Hacking questions about dual-running another firmware on AK2i

[Devilkid32177]

okay, i do not have the money to replace the card i have now and gotten another card from a friend and well trying to find anything for that card but no luck, now i was wondering if there is a way to run another thing like wood or YSMenu on the AK2i cause im tired of restarting a game or hell even getting random lock-ups on it too

i know acekard rpg card has the ability to run wood on it, but AK2i never gotten anything like that?

 

[The Catboy]

You actually can run YSMenu on an Acekard 2i
http://filetrip.net/nds-downloads/f...etrogamefan-multi-cart-update-693-f31021.html

Also if you are having problems like locking up and such, that sounds like it can either be a fragmentation issue or contact issue or both.
I suggest checking out this thread on how fix a contact issue
http://gbatemp.net/threads/solving-acekard-contact-issues.231412/

As well backing up your microSD card and reformatting with this program
http://filetrip.net/nds-downloads/utilities/download-panasonic-sd-formatter-31-windows-f27344.html
With these settings
FORMAT TYPE : FULL (OverWrite) FORMAT SIZE ADJUSTMENT : ON

 

[Devilkid32177]

You actually can run YSMenu on an Acekard 2i
http://filetrip.net/nds-downloads/f...etrogamefan-multi-cart-update-693-f31021.html

Also if you are having problems like locking up and such, that sounds like it can either be a fragmentation issue or contact issue or both.
I suggest checking out this thread on how fix a contact issue
http://gbatemp.net/threads/solving-acekard-contact-issues.231412/

As well backing up your microSD card and reformatting with this program
http://filetrip.net/nds-downloads/utilities/download-panasonic-sd-formatter-31-windows-f27344.html
With these settings
FORMAT TYPE : FULL (OverWrite) FORMAT SIZE ADJUSTMENT : ON

hmm.. i have tried the YSMenu thing but it keeps giving the error "akloader.nds Can't open loader" possibly could move the loaders into the TTMenu and resolve that, as for the locking up it isnt the contact issues it is ap issue with the games, i know the problem there

i have formatted with that program, i normally don't format with any other program

 

[The Catboy]

I know how to fix that problem, create a folder named "ysmenu" and drag the "akloader.nds" into that. Keep the ttmenu folder, just move the akloader.nds.

 

[Devilkid32177]

ok will test this now if it works right then good sir you are my savior

ok, tested and gets to the loading screen and locks up


hmm, which YSMenu setup do i use, im using the one for DSTT but possible one of them might work, wouldn't loafing through the akloader.nds still be loading games with akaio??

 

[The Catboy]

Try reformatting the card first, using my steps I posted earlier.

 

[Another World]

if its locking up before the kernel runs then its a contact issue. a VERY common problem for the ak2i. if its locking up on the "now loading..." when games are loading its a msd issue, corruption issue, etc.

-another world

 

[Devilkid32177]

if its locking up before the kernel runs then its a contact issue. a VERY common problem for the ak2i. if its locking up on the "now loading..." when games are loading its a msd issue, corruption issue, etc.

-another world

nope, it locks up on the game most of the time >_<

Try reformatting the card first, using my steps I posted earlier.

will do catboy, thanks for the help

 

[The Catboy]

I just realized that the link I posted didn't have the files needed, so I pm'ed you a link with the loader.
You can also try using this as well
http://filetrip.net/nds-downloads/utilities/download-ak2ysauto-ak2-421fw-f10236.html

 

[Another World]

nope, it locks up on the game most of the time >_<

that is a tell tale sign of a contact issue. i have an ak2i that works just fine, until i move the dsi xl. i have another that only loses contact if i place the dsi xl above my head.

-another world

 

[Devilkid32177]

that is a tell tale sign of a contact issue. i have an ak2i that works just fine, until i move the dsi xl. i have another that only loses contact if i place the dsi xl above my head.

-another world

hmm, i will try the paper trick for the dsi

 

[Another World]

try some very thin paper, like a slice from a phone book. build it up 1 piece at a time until you dial it in. jamming in a thick bit of paper can bend the contact pins in slot-1.

-another world

 

[Devilkid32177]

try some very thin paper, like a slice from a phone book. build it up 1 piece at a time until you dial it in. jamming in a thick bit of paper can bend the contact pins in slot-1.

-another world

yup, but never had issues with the contacts since i can pretty much jog with it and not have it mess up since i use a music player on it from time to time, so if it did ave any contact issues it would have risen from that

but i will still try the trick out

 

[Another World]

i had a card that worked great for years. one day i pulled it it out to load some stuff on the msd, put it back in, and now it has contact issues. the ak2i is built like shite. everyone knows it. contact issues aren't a matter of if, they are a matter of when.

try reseating it a few times and maybe that will fix your problem. if it continues then give the paper trick a try.

-another world

 

[Devilkid32177]

well, it just seems that its the AP issues with the games that i have been playing >__> because i was looking into it and 40% of the games that is either locking up or doing strange things i have found is due to the AP not contact issues

but i will keep the paper trick in mind, as of right now though i have thrown myself under the bus trying to find another kernel to run on the AK2i but it seems i am out of ideas

i don't have the money to replace it either but i am just tired of fighting with this card for much longer, i mean it is a dependable card for the older games but just the new ones being released, i was told even after debugging properly to use the latest DB with the newest fixes for the games and still having the same issue with the game, tested with multiple msd and still the same effect either freezing or just random white/black screens when entering buildings, talking with people, finishing challenges, etc. so after awhile i come to accept it but deep down, i am hoping for someone to upgrade to a DSTwo and get rid of their R4 card they are using for their DSi ;P

sorry for the bellyaching message here but i have had this card for a very long time and never bellyached this badly about it.

if someone finds a stable way of running moonshell with ysmenu backbone, i have tried MAIO but seems to be worse than AKAIO though >_< setup was simple after sitting and reading the guide for it, but i could not find the easy way of updating it

If someone could talk normatt in releasing the code to properly update the akaio kernel to another group that properly updates the cards would be very nice or releasing a beta program to edit the kernel ourselves, but i can understand if normatt doesn't want to release something like that cause i wouldn't want my work out there so people could mess with it

 

[Another World]

i have my doubts that the issue has anything to do with the AP routines. there are a lot of unanswered questions before that conclusion could be reached.

-another world

 

[Devilkid32177]

i have my doubts that the issue has anything to do with the AP routines. there are a lot of unanswered questions before that conclusion could be reached.

-another world

im sorry then, what other questions is there, well here is what i have done so far to test my card out

Equipment:
1. Acekard 2i Flashcart (AKAIO 1.9.0/HW 81)
2. DSi (FW 1.4.4u)
2. Sansdisk 8gb msd(Class 4)
3. Kingston 4gb msd(Class ??) ~ not sure on class #, don't know how to verify
4. Transcend 10gb msd(Class 10)

Steps
1. Properly formatted the SD cards for test with panasonic formatter
2. Set the latest akaio onto the formatted cards
3. Set "In-question" roms on the micro sd cards
4. Disabled the "AP Bypass" "cheats" "Homebrew reset" on all msd

here is the results for each card

Sansdisk ~ when running the question roms, the loading seems to be fast and effective but it will freeze in random spots unable to reproduce with other cards, no issues saving with any of the roms though

Kingston ~ Seems to load slowly for rom/homebrew stuff on it, saves seem to be the thing that is hanging the roms, hardly any freezing with the roms but still random small freezing happening

Transcend ~ Seems to be non-existent for loading, it is very slow loading for roms/homebrew, after loading seems to run fine, no saving issues but bad random freezing with roms

also, Another World i went ahead and did the paper trick while working with these cards it seemed to help with the transcend loading but the random freezing was still happening though

 

[Another World]

where did your msd cards come from? were they purchased from a legit store or randomly bought offline? fake msd cards is a common thing, it would be nice to be able to cross that off the list.

please verify the roms you are using by CRC against a known goodset listing. i recommend advanscene.com. it is one of the only ways to know for sure that the roms you are using are good, clean, and not corrupted.

if you disable ap bypass and play a game that requires it, that game will have problems. these problems usually include random freezing and/or saving issues. on some other games the ap could be as simple as things like experience will not increase but the game plays normally. the ap routine is a generic routine that patches common ap on roms, allowing them to run without issue. other roms require loader updates as they have more advanced ap. by default we recommend that you leave the ap turned on, unless you are running a rom already patched for ap. patched roms are never fully supported as the kernel has not been coded to take into consideration every possible patch scenario. with that said, akaio has not had a loader update for a short while so some of the recent games may not play correctly.

please list the games you are having problems with by their full release name (including number), with a brief explanation about what problems you are having and where the freezing occurs. if you are having issue relatively close to the start of the game then i will try to double check the roms here. i am happy to test some files, depending on the amount of time it will take.

-another world

 

[Devilkid32177]

where did your msd cards come from? were they purchased from a legit store or randomly bought offline? fake msd cards is a common thing, it would be nice to be able to cross that off the list.

for my cards i have bought them all from staples, i have had them for couple of years now

please verify the roms you are using by CRC against a known goodset listing. i recommend advanscene.com. it is one of the only ways to know for sure that the roms you are using are good, clean, and not corrupted.

if you disable ap bypass and play a game that requires it, that game will have problems. these problems usually include random freezing and/or saving issues. on some other games the ap could be as simple as things like experience will not increase but the game plays normally. the ap routine is a generic routine that patches common ap on roms, allowing them to run without issue. other roms require loader updates as they have more advanced ap. by default we recommend that you leave the ap turned on, unless you are running a rom already patched for ap. patched roms are never fully supported as the kernel has not been coded to take into consideration every possible patch scenario. with that said, akaio has not had a loader update for a short while so some of the recent games may not play correctly.

ok, for the CRC check it seems most of them passed with no problems, i had one that wasn't right and had to be fixed, so that could have been the problem with that one though, i will list the ones im having issues with, as for disabling the AP bypass is by default one of the steps for the debugging in akaio steps and yeah i know if disabling that will cause issues but i still do it to verify the loaders aren't the cause of the freezing and random issues and most of the newer roms im running are patched for AP issues.

here is the list of the roms with the scene number (if any) and the name of it:

XXXX - Pokemon Weiss Edition 2 (GER) (Patched)
XXXX - Pokémon: Schwarze Edition 2 (GER) (Patched)
XXXX - Pokemon: White Version 2 (USA/EUR) (Mawile) (Patched)
XXXX - Ore-Sama Kingdom Koi no Manga mo Debut o Mokushise (JPN) (Clean)
6110 - Brave (EUR) (ABSTRAKT) (Clean)
XXXX - MiniGolf Resort (GER) (Clean)
6085 - Learn with Pokémon: Typing Adventure (EUR) (EXiMiUS) (Patched)
6091 - Pokémon Conquest (USA) (frieNDS) (Patched)

as for the one that did not match up was brave, when i got it again it seems that resolved the problem rom, as for the rest it seems to match up, but these are the ones im having problems

but for the typing game is AP issues, so that one i know what that one is, but for the pokemon games is the random freezing is occurring with

for Ore-Sama rom it freezes up about half way into the game at random conversations, so i cant seem to lock down where the freeze happens but locally its about half way

Brave just ends up freezing up at the title screen on me, after pressing start on it

Minigolf resort freezes up after doing random things on there

Conquest locks up after finishing up the first run through

 

[Another World]

most of what you listed are already patched for AP? those will never be fully supported by akaio. however, they should function with AP turned off, but "should" being the important word in that statement. there is no guarantee. you would be much better off debugging with verified clean dumps. you are testing with a lot of pokemon games. are they roms over 128MB in size? if so, please format your msd card using 16k clusters. you can do this in windows using the dos format command. format G: /Q /A:16k /FS:FAT

for pokemon conquest you need to use the "Game Enabler" cheat on a clean rom. http://akaio.net/loaders/

you didn't list the release numbers for most of the files. were they released after 6091? if that is the case then they are probably only supported if the generic AP fixes them. there have been no loader updates since july of this year. meaning that a lot of new games are not guaranteed to function.

i'll see about testing brave, as that is the only english language clean rom on your list. =P

-another world