Hacking Save File from CIA Installed Game is Gone on Source 3DS after System Transfer

[-NOP-]

I was following plailect's guide on NFIRM downgrading. My source 3DS had a save file for Pokemon Moon which was installed on the system. I made the NANDmin.bin backup of the 3DS, just as it says in the tutorial. Upon system transferring, I restore my source 3DS from the NANDmin.bin backup I created to find that my Pokemon Moon save file is gone.

How do I fix this?

 

[YigglyPoof]

If it's gone, I'm sorry to say this but it's gone (as far as I know). For future reference, use a Save Manager tool so you can copy the main file.

 

[-NOP-]

If it's gone, I'm sorry to say this but it's gone. For future reference, use a Save Manager tool so you can copy the main file.

The guide only specifies to backup saves on the target 3DS because you're overwriting it with the source 3DS.

But I am restoring my backup on the source 3DS. So, what's the point of the backup if it doesn't even work?

 

[Posghetti]

The guide only specifies to backup saves on the target 3DS because you're overwriting it with the source 3DS.

But I am restoring my backup on the source 3DS. So, what's the point of the backup if it doesn't even work?

You were supposed to make backups of each SD Card before the whole process.
After restoring your NAND back, you drag your backed up files into the SD Card because it gets formatted when you do the System Transfer.
If you didn't backup your SD Card Contents, goodbye to your save pal.

 

[-NOP-]

You were supposed to make backups of each SD Card before the whole process.
After restoring your NAND back, you drag your backed up files into the SD Card because it gets formatted when you do the System Transfer.
If you didn't backup your SD Card Contents, goodbye to your save pal.

I did copy my SD card contents. So I drag it back onto the SD card after I restore and it should automatically detect the saves?

 

[YigglyPoof]

The guide only specifies to backup saves on the target 3DS because you're overwriting it with the source 3DS.

But I am restoring my backup on the source 3DS. So, what's the point of the backup if it doesn't even work?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but that guide recommends backing up the NANDmin, which as the name infers, it copy's only the minimum files for the NAND, which doesn't include save files.

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Wait, you didn't copy your SD card over yet? Try that and come back

 

[-NOP-]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but that guide recommends backing up the NANDmin, which as the name infers, it copy's only the minimum files for the NAND, which doesn't include save files.

Sorry, I didn't specify that I also copied the entirety of the SD card before the transfer.

 

[Posghetti]

I did copy my SD card contents. So I drag it back onto the SD card after I restore and it should automatically detect the saves?

No, if you did that, the 3DS will make a new folder inside the "Nintendo 3DS" folder and overwrite the old one IIRC.

Have your backed up SD Card contents in before you restore your NAND, restore your NAND and you should be golden.
If not, then something messed up when you were backing up the SD Card contents.

 

[-NOP-]

No, if you did that, the 3DS will make a new folder inside the "Nintendo 3DS" folder and overwrite the old one IIRC.

Have your backed up SD Card contents in before you restore your NAND, restore your NAND and you should be golden.
If not, then something messed up when you were backing up the SD Card contents.

The save on another downloaded game works. But not on the game I want. Is it possible that the game isn't recognizing the save file on the SD card? Is there some way I can inject it?

 

[Quantumcat]

First of all, game save files are stored on the SD card in the Nintendo 3DS folder. The only saves on the NAND are for things like Activity Log and Mii Plaza.

Second of all, the contents of the Nintendo 3DS folder are encrypted per console. This means you can't just move an SD card to another console and expect all the games to show up.

Third of all, this is how the transfer works:
1. Nintendo's servers change their record of which console the NNID belongs to (if any NNID is present). This means you can sign into the NNID on the new console and no longer sign in on the old one.
2. This is the important part: The encryption on the Nintendo 3DS folder is changed so that the new console can read it. If your data is not present on the old console at the time of the system transfer, it will miss out on being converted for the new console. So, if you move the data before the transfer, then no console will be able to read it!! And your save data will be lost. Except if you restore the pre-transfer NAND backup, then the old console can read it, and you could recover the save with JKSM and inject it on your new console.

I know this isn't exactly right, because even when you do a transfer properly, you can restore a backup on the old console and both consoles can read the data. I think maybe the data is re-encrypted so both consoles can read it, but then of course the old console gets formatted and can't read it anymore, so it has the effect of changing it so only the new console can read it.

 

[ArmoredGuns1]

If you made a SD backup and a NAND backup before the transfer, after you restore both the NAND.bin file to the 3DS console and the Nintendo 3DS folder to the SD card, it should work.