Hacking 3DS Downgrade Question.

[jastolze]

Is this actually possible? If so, I'm just curious what I need to 'downgrade' the 3DS. Will I need to open it for any reason? I saw the pictures in a thread about nand dumps, and am curious about the level of difficulty. I'm on 4.5 at the moment.

 

[trumpet-205]

No.

 

[reaper527]

yes. because you are on 4.5 right now, you can theoretically dump your nand now, and in the future downgrade yourself back to 4.5.

you must be using the nand from your console however, since each nand is console specific. that means you want to make sure you dumped it properly before taking a chance on an upgrade.

that being said, it's one of those things where if you are capable of doing the downgrade (from a skill standpoint), you probably already know how.

 

[jastolze]

No.

Not really helpful, nor specific.

yes. because you are on 4.5 right now, you can theoretically dump your nand now, and in the future downgrade yourself back to 4.5.

you must be using the nand from your console however, since each nand is console specific. that means you want to make sure you dumped it properly before taking a chance on an upgrade.

that being said, it's one of those things where if you are capable of doing the downgrade (from a skill standpoint), you probably already know how.

Thanks. How would I go about testing the Dump to see if it worked? I'm new to this, but am willing to learn, so if someone could point me in the direction of a thread on how to do this, it would be nice.

 

[reaper527]

i unfortunately don't have any information on that. i don't have any plans to upgrade beyond what is hackable, so i haven't paid attention to the specifics on how to dump/downgrade, just that it can be done.

you'll have to search the forums and probably drudge through a couple 20 page threads. maybe with some luck, someone else will see your post and can offer you some specific info on the process.

the main reason i chimed in is because the person who just said "no" was dead wrong, and i wanted to make sure you were aware of the fact he was wrong.

 

[kyogre123]

Not really helpful, nor specific.


Thanks. How would I go about testing the Dump to see if it worked? I'm new to this, but am willing to learn, so if someone could point me in the direction of a thread on how to do this, it would be nice.

But it would be nicer if you could point us a link to that thread instead, would you do it?

 

[trumpet-205]

Not really helpful, nor specific.

it is not possible to downgrade 3DS at this time, because the system isn't hacked yet. To dump the NAND it requires you to solder couple wires. The NAND itself is encrypted, so nothing can be done on it. When the system is fully hacked then come back and ask this question again.

There I said it.

 

[Devin]

it is not possible to downgrade 3DS at this time, because the system isn't hacked yet. When the system is fully hacked then come back and ask this question again.

There I said it.

Except it is possible if you have a NAND dump from an earlier firmware.

Dump 4.5 NAND from 3DS->Update to 6.3->Flash 4.5 NAND dump

The system has now been downgraded from 6.3 to 4.5. Also jastolze in the thread some people put up some things you can do to make sure you have a valid NAND dump.

 

[Arnold0]

You are wrong, if you did the hardware mod, dumped 4.5 updated to 6.3, you can go back to 4.5. That's a downgrade.
However, you must dump YOUR OWN 3DS 4.5 (before updating). If already updated, it's too late.
The topic about nand dump is here : http://gbatemp.net/threads/nand-flash-dump-3ds-xl.350668/

 

[Chaldron]

it is not possible to downgrade 3DS at this time, because the system isn't hacked yet. When the system is fully hacked then come back and ask this question again.

There I said it.

It is, just the requirements are very exact.

You need a dump from the exact 3DS you want to downgrade. Here's the link, I'd reccomend reading everything for tricks and tips: http://gbatemp.net/threads/nand-flash-dump-3ds-xl.350668/

 

[trumpet-205]

True, assuming that you know how to to flash NAND back using hardware method (involves opening 3DS up and solder it). This also involves making sure 3DS isn't using a method to check for downgrade (such as Level 1 hashing check used by PS3).

Most people don't know have the knowledge to do it though (they want a method not opening up 3DS and just run a couple programs). That's why I said no.

 

[kyogre123]

You are wrong, if you did the hardware mod, dumped 4.5 updated to 6.3, you can go back to 4.5. That's a downgrade.
However, you must dump YOUR OWN 3DS 4.5 (before updating). If already updated, it's too late.
The topic about nand dump is here : http://gbatemp.net/threads/nand-flash-dump-3ds-xl.350668/

When people ask about downgrading, they don't expect the need to still have their consoles on the same firmware they want to downgrade as a requirement, so it's easier to tell them that it's not possible.

 

[jastolze]

But it would be nicer if you could point us a link to that thread instead, would you do it?

If I catch what you're saying, here's the thread I was talking about: http://gbatemp.net/threads/nand-dump-downgrader-file-changer.355247/

 

[kyogre123]

If I catch what you're saying, here's the thread I was talking about: http://gbatemp.net/threads/nand-dump-downgrader-file-changer.355247/

See, it wasn't difficult

 

[jastolze]

See, it wasn't difficult

I don't believe I ever said it was.

 

[Kupie]

It appears you just have to solder like 5 wires and dump your NAND at 4.5.

Then, you upgrade to 6.3, get the Shop Channel and buy whatever games you want. Use that to play your official games (like Animal Crossing or Pokemon).

When you wanna play your 'backup' games again, you backup your 6.3 dump then downgrade to 4.5 and continue where you left off.

Tada!

 

[jastolze]

It appears you just have to solder like 5 wires and dump your NAND at 4.5.

Then, you upgrade to 6.3, get the Shop Channel and buy whatever games you want. Use that to play your official games (like Animal Crossing or Pokemon).

When you wanna play your 'backup' games again, you backup your 6.3 dump then downgrade to 4.5 and continue where you left off.

Tada!

So, to do ANY of this, I would need to open my 3DS? I just don't want to break something, as I may be good with software, but hardware stuff is confusing to me. So, if I need to do something with any of the wires, unless there's a step by step tutorial with pictures, then I'm probably not going to go through with this. :/

 

[Vappy]

Gateway 3DS is advertising their upcoming update to feature NAND dumping just through using their cart, no opening up the console or soldering. Although, that IS just dumping, not reflashing, so you'd probably need the hardware mod to actually restore the dumped NAND.

 

[kaputnik]

So, to do ANY of this, I would need to open my 3DS? I just don't want to break something, as I may be good with software, but hardware stuff is confusing to me. So, if I need to do something with any of the wires, unless there's a step by step tutorial with pictures, then I'm probably not going to go through with this. :/

As of now, yes, you'll have to open it up, at least to be able to restore your 4.5 backup.

It's a really simple mod if you have an XL, a bit harder on a regular 3DS. On the XL, you only need to remove the battery cover and the bottom part of the shell, then you got access to the soldering points. Here's a shell swapping guide, just follow it until you see the whole motherboard, to get an idea of the difficulty level. Then you need to connect four wires to four points on the motherboard, and their corresponding points in a Micro SD to SD adapter or a Micro SD reader.

Anyone who at some point has installed a modchip in some console should be able to do it, it's way easier than most modchip installations. However, I wouldn't recommend it as a first experience with the soldering iron; even though the soldering points aren't all that small and hard to get at, you need to know what you're doing. It's still very possible to screw it up.

Since English isn't my native language, I usually avoid writing guides on subjects where the least language error might end in misunderstandings and broken stuff, but perhaps I might write something up this time, if I find the time, and can convince some native English speaker who has done the mod himself to proof read it.