Hacking Best practice for preserving Switch 2 exploitability?

[Blythe93]

i have no reference for this at all, but i get a strong vibe the the out of box firmware is gonna lead to something, and im staying on it. It's a gamble, but the lower the better and would imagine, depending on the exploit itll be useable, but perhaps thats wishful thinking.

There's no right or wrong answer. Good luck to us all. ^^

 

[rsc-pl]

This question was probably already asked multiple times but I recently bought a Switch 2 from AliExpress during a huge sale. The unit came with firmware 19.0.0.

I’m wondering if I should do anything about updating it. Ideally, I’d like at least Switch 1 compatibility to work, but it doesn’t work on 19.0.

I don’t want to connect the console to the internet, and there aren’t really any games or titles that interest me yet. Still, I’m not sure if things like SD card slot activation or a launch patch might be required later for potential CFW.

Do you recommend staying on 19.0.0 or updating to something newer (maybe offline via get cartridge)?

I know it’s a bit of a gamble either way, but I’d really like to hear opinions from people who also own a Switch 2 with the main focus on having a CFW.
I’m just curious what other users have already done with their units.

 

[Blythe93]

Do you recommend staying on 19.0.0 or updating to something newer (maybe offline via get cartridge)?

Check my post here. It's still hard to say whether it's worth updating or not.
Personally, I've updated my Switch 2 from 19.0.0 to 20.1.5, which was the second firmware revision that was available after a day one update (20.1.1) mainly because I've purchased Mario Kart World to play on it. I'll probably stay on 20.1.5 until CFW or similar is released. Another reason why I've updated it to 20.1.5 was to be able to play Switch 1 games and/or MIG Switch flashcart if there happens to be no other option for the Switch 2. 20.2.0 and 20.3.0 came out since then.

I might suggest updating it to the current latest firmware, downloading whichever game you officially own downloaded to it, microSD Express card activated and staying offline after that.

(Off-topic: Onodera is the best girl. ^^)

 

[Turbo_Interceptor]

I remember seeing warnings about, "Don't update your Wii/WiiU/Switch firmware AT ALL! STAY ON FACTORY IF YOU EVER WANT TO PLAY BACKUPS!"

End results.... it made no difference. All of those systems were 100% hacked and the firmware version made absolutely no difference. Most hacks were software based but a few were hardware. Sure, it didn't happen overnight but it did happen.

The Switch 2 will either be completely hacked one day (no matter the firmware version) or go the route of the Xbox/PlayStation and wide scale hacking will never happen on it.

TLDR; Enjoy your Switch 2 and update to whatever the latest firmware is and party on. A hack may, or may not, come and if it does, your firmware version won't matter.

 

[TomSwitch]

I remember seeing warnings about, "Don't update your Wii/WiiU/Switch firmware AT ALL! STAY ON FACTORY IF YOU EVER WANT TO PLAY BACKUPS!"

End results.... it made no difference. All of those systems were 100% hacked and the firmware version made absolutely no difference. Most hacks were software based but a few were hardware. Sure, it didn't happen overnight but it did happen.

The Switch 2 will either be completely hacked one day (no matter the firmware version) or go the route of the Xbox/PlayStation and wide scale hacking will never happen on it.

TLDR; Enjoy your Switch 2 and update to whatever the latest firmware is and party on. A hack may, or may not, come and if it does, your firmware version won't matter.

Keeping at low firmware is a fool's errant. If it turns out that a certain firmware version is needed there will be many crying for having the wrong one as low don't necessary means good and Nintendo is updating like there is no tomorrow so having the wrong one is oh so likely.

PS: I like the eshop on Switch 2 much better. It's really far better than on Switch 1 and you can't do eshop without updating or waiting too long to update.

 

[quotepelican]

I remember seeing warnings about, "Don't update your Wii/WiiU/Switch firmware AT ALL! STAY ON FACTORY IF YOU EVER WANT TO PLAY BACKUPS!"

End results.... it made no difference. All of those systems were 100% hacked and the firmware version made absolutely no difference. Most hacks were software based but a few were hardware. Sure, it didn't happen overnight but it did happen.

The Switch 2 will either be completely hacked one day (no matter the firmware version) or go the route of the Xbox/PlayStation and wide scale hacking will never happen on it.

TLDR; Enjoy your Switch 2 and update to whatever the latest firmware is and party on. A hack may, or may not, come and if it does, your firmware version won't matter.

Thats really funny, because i have a different perspective. I had a 3DS running just past 9.2, and as a result i got to see first hand the consequences of upgrading. IIRC it took over a year for the new firmwares to get an exploit.

Its easy to say "every system is cracked" in retrospect, but the difference in versions can be months or even years.

Then again, that assumes it's not a hardware hack and in those cases, a software exploit existed prior. Typically these exploits get announced after patching, so it's a safe assumption that all firmwares are exploitable or none are so far.

 

[xadra]

If I have a Switch 1 and a physical copy of a game, could I update the game on the Switch 2 without connecting to the Internet?

No SW2 patch but regular game updates.

Thanks.

 

[xadra]

Pretty much the same way it works on Switch 1. For Switch 2 games you'll need another Switch 2 with the update installed, obviously. For the Switch 1 games, you can use Switch 1 instead (preferably modded one so that you can control which update version you can install if that matters to you). You'll probably be able to update to the higher version but make sure that you don't update past the version that requires a higher update. I believe that game won't work in that case and may ask you to update your console firmware. Also, to avoid accidental updates, make sure to use 90DNS in order to block Nintendo servers on your Switch 2 console that you'd like to keep on a lower firmware.

J want to try this, to play some Switch 1 games I have.

• Since the Switch 1 is unable to connect to internet, I'll have to download the game first. Is there any risk if the game I use is XCI or NSP?
• Is it possible to get expansions or paid DLC in the Switch 2 using this method? I guess not, since even if the expansion /DLC are legit, I would need the Switch 2 to connect to Nintendo servers to verify the purchase.

Thanks

I have other doubts, but I found this video that offers an example.

 

[Blythe93]

Since the Switch 1 is unable to connect to internet, I'll have to download the game first. Is there any risk if the game I use is XCI or NSP?

As far as I know, there shouldn't be as long as they weren't tempered with. Check with NxFileViewer to see if there are any warnings and, if there are, look for another file to install the base game.

Is it possible to get expansions or paid DLC in the Switch 2 using this method? I guess not, since even if the expansion /DLC are legit, I would need the Switch 2 to connect to Nintendo servers to verify the purchase.

Indeed, you can't get DLC stuff over to the another Switch, only match the game version locally between two Switch consoles, be it 1 or 2.

 

[xadra]

As far as I know, there shouldn't be as long as they weren't tempered with. Check with NxFileViewer to see if there are any warnings and, if there are, look for another file to install the base game.


Indeed, you can't get DLC stuff over to the another Switch, only match the game version locally between two Switch consoles, be it 1 or 2.

Thank you very much. Sometimes is hard to follow all this. Really appreciate your help.

 

[Danook28]

cfw nintendo switch 2 well be from 19 or older and 20 so dont update if you want do mode cfw. finally there are cfw come 2026.

 

[Newhouse-Estates]

cfw nintendo switch 2 well be from 19 or older and 20 so dont update if you want do mode cfw. finally there are cfw come 2026.

Source?

 

[Danook28]

Source?

well see the new nintendo switch 2 cfw in youtu.be. coz the person not share it yet. so sorry bro.

 

[Newhouse-Estates]

Okie