Getting an R4iSDHC RTS Lite 2024 cart to work

winterk · 2024-11-06T10:54:39+0000

Hi! I'm trying to fix a problem that a little kid is having with his DS Lite.

It turns out that the cart is a timebombed R4iSDHC(?) RTS Lite that's throwing the dreaded "Please upgrade the hardware to support latest firmware" error.
(The full name of the brand is a domain which I can't write due to anti-spam protections, so refer to the image to verify the brand)

I could try to find the appropriate official firmware, but that'll just introduce a new timebomb that'll cause a new problem down the road.

How do I go about circumventing the timebomb? Some search results say to install YSMenu, but other search results say to avoid it because it'll brick this variation of R4 cart clone.

Advice would be appreciated. I'm attaching a photo of the cart for reference. Thanks!

SylverReZ · 2024-11-06T18:30:59+0000

winterk said:
Hi! I'm trying to fix a problem that a little kid is having with his DS Lite.

It turns out that the cart is a timebombed R4iSDHC(?) RTS Lite that's throwing the dreaded "Please upgrade the hardware to support latest firmware" error.
(The full name of the brand is a domain which I can't write due to anti-spam protections, so refer to the image to verify the brand)

winterk said:
How do I go about circumventing the timebomb? Some search results say to install YSMenu, but other search results say to avoid it because it'll brick this variation of R4 cart clone.

Advice would be appreciated. I'm attaching a photo of the cart for reference. Thanks!

A 'timebomb' is entirely kernel-based done by the manufacturer, so that after a certain date has reached, the kernel does not progress, therefore giving you a false impression that you need to buy another cart. It doesn't destroy the hardware entirely or wipe the SD card. There are ways that you can disable the timebomb. Kynex did a writeup reverse engineering on how it works and how to disable it: https://kynex.ovh/patching-the-timebomb-in-an-r4-flashcart.html

But, for the best compatibility, it's always recommended to stick with TWiLight Menu++ or RGF's YSMenu.

winterk · 2024-11-06T23:00:30+0000

SylverReZ said:
A 'timebomb' is entirely kernel-based done by the manufacturer, so that after a certain date has reached, the kernel does not progress, therefore giving you a false impression that you need to buy another cart. It doesn't destroy the hardware entirely or wipe the SD card. There are ways that you can disable the timebomb. Kynex did a writeup reverse engineering on how it works and how to disable it: [posting a url is blocked by spam filter]

But, for the best compatibility, it's always recommended to stick with TWiLight Menu++ or RGF's YSMenu.

Thank you, that was very informative. I'll consider editing the kernel as a last resort.

I've started by looking at TWiLight Menu++ and it seems promising but the FlashCart Loader readme doesn't list R4iSDHC (com) RTS Lite (2024), only NEW, 2013 and Dual-Core without a year number. Would that still be compatible with RTS Lite (2024)?

Given that this isn't my flashcart I'm very hesitant to brick it.

SylverReZ · 2024-11-06T23:06:17+0000

winterk said:
Thank you, that was very informative. I'll consider editing the kernel as a last resort.

I've started by looking at TWiLight Menu++ and it seems promising but the FlashCart Loader readme doesn't list R4iSDHC (com) RTS Lite (2024), only NEW, 2013 and Dual-Core without a year number. Would that still be compatible with RTS Lite (2024)?

The R4 SDHC NEW and 2013 cards (as well as the one without a year number) are different to the later DEMON ones, they are R4iTT Acekard-based clones. They do not work with YSMenu as you can end up overwriting the EEPROM and brick it otherwise.

One that you have pictured, the 2024 versions use the R4i-SDHC DEMON hardware, which does support YSMenu and TWL kernels.

Getting an R4iSDHC RTS Lite 2024 cart to work

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