Hacking Can't find kernel for this r4 card

[cxclarke]

Replace everything, ideally.

Few things to note with the behaviour:

• If it is stuck at "Loading..." then for some reason it is not accepting this kernel. I have a different one for that occasion.
• If it's a white screen, and the HOME/DSi/DS Menu does not show any icon, then it is likely you bricked your cart. Usually it's from trying to run YSMenu on a flashcart you shouldn't be running it on, but using the wrong TWiLight Menu++ autoboot can also lead to this. You kind of have to be extra careful with that. (No autoboot for the r4isdhc.hk carts exist at this time.)
  • You need an SPI flasher to fix this, and you somehow need to grab a backup from another cart which isn't publicly available as these carts never supported ntrboot properly and thus there was a lack of interest. As far as understanding why it bricks, it's because when using the DSTT DLDI, which is what YSMenu and some TWiLight Menu++ autoboots are based on, because they are differently designed it triggers the wrong register and it wipes the flash completely. A lot of the quotes on "don't use kernels where it isn't meant to be!" is exactly for this reason.

I'd personally like to hear exactly what you did with TWiLight Menu++. It seems you tried it, but there's no way you got this to boot because TWiLight does not have an autoboot for this cart and you didn't have a kernel. Meaning you 100% used the wrong one.

1. It isn't stuck in "Loading..." since the DSi couldn't detect the actual cartridge in the game slot.
2. I have tried running YSMenu yesterday on my flashcart and it did boot to the R4 Menu, but when i tried YSMenu, it only displayed a white screen on the bottom half of the DS for quite some time. I suspect it lead to the wrong TwilightMenu autoboot.

What is an SPI Flasher? Also what is ntrboot?

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The process of me installing TwilightMenu++ went like this:

Being frustrated by not being able to play GBA games on the DSi ---> see that TwilightMenu has built in emulators and can run GBA games with ease ---> try installing TwilightMenu on flashcart after a format ---> Where we are now, with the Flashcart not working and not being detected by the DSi

 

[lifehackerhansol]

1. It isn't stuck in "Loading..." since the DSi couldn't detect the actual cartridge in the game slot.
2. I have tried running YSMenu yesterday on my flashcart and it did boot to the R4 Menu, but when i tried YSMenu, it only displayed a white screen on the bottom half of the DS for quite some time. I suspect it lead to the wrong TwilightMenu autoboot.

What is an SPI Flasher? Also what is ntrboot?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The process of me installing TwilightMenu++ went like this:

Being frustrated by not being able to play GBA games on the DSi ---> see that TwilightMenu has built in emulators and can run GBA games with ease ---> try installing TwilightMenu on flashcart after a format ---> Where we are now, with the Flashcart not working and not being detected by the DSi

This cart is guaranteed to brick if anyone dares try to run YSmenu.

Unfortunately I don't think I can help you any further on this, I'm concluding this to be a permanent brick.

 

[cxclarke]

This cart is guaranteed to brick if anyone dares try to run YSmenu.

Unfortunately I don't think I can help you any further on this, I'm concluding this to be a permanent brick.

Even if before formatting, the cart still worked after deleting YSMenu?

 

[cimo95]

Even if before formatting, the cart still worked after deleting YSMenu?

Sorry, when you're using YSMenu, what's happen? Is it showing white screen for seconds, or the card not detected by DSi ?
If the card not detected by DSi after adding YSMenu as your firmware, looks like your R4 flashcart is not actually using R4 engines (or something like that) (thought that was a counterfeit one, sorry)

This done on my non-famous GEI flashcart which is looks like a DSTwo clones, it has its own firmware, doesnt work with any firmwares, and once i install YSMenu on it ...
1. when i use it on NDS, the NDS won't turn on
2. when i use it on DSi, the card not detected

trivia : And i wondering for this flashcart firmware until now, because i cant play my NDS phat since i just own 2 flashcarts

 

[cxclarke]

Sorry, when you're using YSMenu, what's happen? Is it showing white screen for seconds, or the card not detected by DSi ?
If the card not detected by DSi after adding YSMenu as your firmware, looks like your R4 flashcart is not actually using R4 engines (or something like that) (thought that was a counterfeit one, sorry)

This done on my non-famous GEI flashcart which is looks like a DSTwo clones, it has its own firmware, doesnt work with any firmwares, and once i install YSMenu on it ...
1. when i use it on NDS, the NDS won't turn on
2. when i use it on DSi, the card not detected

trivia : And i wondering for this flashcart firmware until now, because i cant play my NDS phat since i just own 2 flashcarts

When i installed Ysmenu yesterday and booted it from my r4 menu, it loads a white screen and it doesn't go to the actual menu. The 'not-detecting' part of your comment is when i formatted the r4 and installed twilightMenu.

 

[lifehackerhansol]

When i installed Ysmenu yesterday and booted it from my r4 menu, it loads a white screen and it doesn't go to the actual menu. The 'not-detecting' part of your comment is when i formatted the r4 and installed twilightMenu.

Here is what I think happened here.

After you tried loading YSMenu, you said it stuck on a white screen? I assume you didn't try to run YSmenu a second time, you just went straight to formatting the SD. So YSmenu indeed bricked it, and if you tried to load the original menu one last time you likely would have seen that it didn't show up.

I'm not saying this is the course of events, I really don't know what went up here. What I do know is that a) this cart is well known to brick from trying to even run YSMenu, and b) even if that miraculously didn't brick it, if you used the wrong "Autoboot" file from TWiLight Menu++ that would also have bricked it.

I'm banking on point a here. In any case, I don't think this is recoverable anymore. There is no known way to fix this without directly soldering some wires onto the PCB, and even then, we do not have a backup of another cart identical to this, at least not publicly. I vaguely recall some people saying they were successfully able to recover it, but it was only like one or two people at best, and even then it's kind of vague how they handled it.

 

[cimo95]

When i installed Ysmenu yesterday and booted it from my r4 menu, it loads a white screen and it doesn't go to the actual menu.

from R4 menu? you mean from DSi homescreen or HiyaCFW menu?

if its not from DSi homescreen :
i doubt, but i face the same problem while not run YSMenu directly from DSi homescreen,

if its from DSi homescreen :
in my case, im using different sd card (my old sd card is probably not fast enough)

The 'not-detecting' part of your comment is when i formatted the r4 and installed twilightMenu.

sorry, but I dont really know about this, but i think some of twl menu components are not working
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SPI Flasher is a tool to flash firmwares to your flash memory (in this case is your R4 flashcart), this flash contains instructions to how this R4 flashcart work.

as i thought, ntrboot is a 3DS modified firmware

i just try to suggest everything i have experienced, hope one of them can help you

 

[lifehackerhansol]

as i thought, ntrboot is a 3DS modified firmware

ntrboot is a 3DS modified firmware, yes. But the idea is that the flashcart needs to be flashed for this.

There are several tools to be able to do this, and they involve any DSi or 3DS console, but it involves a working flashcart which we do not have. This cart also has no known way to flash ntrboot, so that's also fun.

 

[cimo95]

ntrboot is a 3DS modified firmware, yes. But the idea is that the flashcart needs to be flashed for this.

There are several tools to be able to do this, and they involve any DSi or 3DS console, but it involves a working flashcart which we do not have. This cart also has no known way to flash ntrboot, so that's also fun.

yes, a donor if im not wrong, need a NDS or DSi for it to work.

Its painful while playing around with counterfeit flashcart (im not blaming anyone, since R4 is dead, its almost impossible to get original R4 these days). It puts me in a big gamble, that if I don't try, I can't use it at all, but if I try, there's a high chance that my flashcart will be bricked.

 

[lifehackerhansol]

Its painful while playing around with counterfeit flashcart (im not blaming anyone, since R4 is dead, its almost impossible to get original R4 these days). It puts me in a big gamble, that if I don't try, I can't use it at all, but if I try, there's a high chance that my flashcart will be bricked.

One of the reasons I'm maintaining a GitHub repo focused on archiving what I can find and providing the best option for whatever clone cart. Unfortunately there are things called "video guides" that are slightly misleading due to people thinking similar looking labels = same cart? Or just using YSMenu because everyone else is using it, or someone said it works better for GBARunner2 (which is not even close to being the case.) The fact of the matter is that kernels only work if they are designed for the cart, and deviating from this can be disastrous.

Unfortunately the DS scene is on its last legs and there is not much we can do aside from providing correct information and hoping people weren't being experimental before asking.

 

[cimo95]

One of the reasons I'm maintaining a GitHub repo focused on archiving what I can find and providing the best option for whatever clone cart. Unfortunately there are things called "video guides" that are slightly misleading due to people thinking similar looking labels = same cart? Or just using YSMenu because everyone else is using it, or someone said it works better for GBARunner2 (which is not even close to being the case.) The fact of the matter is that kernels only work if they are designed for the cart, and deviating from this can be disastrous.

Unfortunately the DS scene is on its last legs and there is not much we can do aside from providing correct information and hoping people weren't being experimental before asking.

Yeah, you right, my GEI card get (looks like) bricked after i put YSMenu firmware on it.
And yes, until now i still looking for way to add anticipation blocks like detects the flashcart if its work with current firmware or not

 

[lifehackerhansol]

And yes, until now i still looking for way to add anticipation blocks like detects the flashcart if its work with current firmware or not

This still comes with a risk of accidentally bricking. iirc, ntrteam, the group of people who developed ntrboot_flasher, actually did this in the past, and changed it to a user-selectable menu instead of autodetection because it started bricking stuff.

The root of the problem is this:
1. The kernel tries to activate the SD card. There is a certain "command" that the kernel sends to the Slot-1 to make this happen.
2. Not all flashcarts behave the same, and this certain "command" may actually be a "start writing the internal flash" command.
3. Kernel thinks it worked, and it starts doing some other shit completely unaware that they are murdering the flashcart.

So there is no good way around it, unfortunately. Back in the day, TTMenu, which is known to brick fake carts, detected the exact model of the internal chip and killed the cart based on this. But who's to know which flash is which, and, if the same chip is used on completely different carts, how do you differentiate that?

Nothing is safe lol.

 

[cxclarke]

One of the reasons I'm maintaining a GitHub repo focused on archiving what I can find and providing the best option for whatever clone cart. Unfortunately there are things called "video guides" that are slightly misleading due to people thinking similar looking labels = same cart? Or just using YSMenu because everyone else is using it, or someone said it works better for GBARunner2 (which is not even close to being the case.) The fact of the matter is that kernels only work if they are designed for the cart, and deviating from this can be disastrous.

Unfortunately the DS scene is on its last legs and there is not much we can do aside from providing correct information and hoping people weren't being experimental before asking.

the thing you mentioned about video guides is why i even got to installing YSMenu in the first place. I couldn't run GBARunner2 so i noticed that the guys in the video were all using YSMenu or twilightmenu++ so i tried installing both. and here we are

 

[cimo95]

This still comes with a risk of accidentally bricking. iirc, ntrteam, the group of people who developed ntrboot_flasher, actually did this in the past, and changed it to a user-selectable menu instead of autodetection because it started bricking stuff.

The root of the problem is this:
1. The kernel tries to activate the SD card. There is a certain "command" that the kernel sends to the Slot-1 to make this happen.
2. Not all flashcarts behave the same, and this certain "command" may actually be a "start writing the internal flash" command.
3. Kernel thinks it worked, and it starts doing some other shit completely unaware that they are murdering the flashcart.

So there is no good way around it, unfortunately. Back in the day, TTMenu, which is known to brick fake carts, detected the exact model of the internal chip and killed the cart based on this. But who's to know which flash is which, and, if the same chip is used on completely different carts, how do you differentiate that?

Nothing is safe lol.

i thought the flash was protected, until peoplee mention about bricking stuff, its rude, but yeah, this is best for us now :/

 

[Nikokaro]

@cxclarke listen some friendly advice; put your heart at ease. I don't think there's an easy fix for your problem. It's useless to talk about a flashing tool, since it would cost more than double your flashcart anyway, and its internal kernel is unobtainable. With 30€ or less (if you're European) you can comfortably get a new flashcart and also a microSD+Adapter, so you could play DS roms on the former and GBA roms on the latter (via TWL++, GBAR2 in camera-slot). So you can finally go back to sleeping soundly and without any more nightmares, knowing that your trusty DSi will be waiting for you the next day, fitter than ever, for new, amazing gaming adventures.

P.S. In the meantime, you could try your old r4 with its own kernel again and again, until you're exhausted. Who knows? ....maybe a miracle will happen...

 

[cimo95]

the thing you mentioned about video guides is why i even got to installing YSMenu in the first place. I couldn't run GBARunner2 so i noticed that the guys in the video were all using YSMenu or twilightmenu++ so i tried installing both. and here we are

so now, do you have plan to buy new flashcart or keep trying your best with current flashcart?

if you want to buy one, you may need assist from expert here for suggestions

 

[cxclarke]

@cxclarke listen some friendly advice; put your heart at ease. I don't think there's an easy fix for your problem. It's useless to talk about a flashing tool, since it would cost more than double your flashcart anyway, and its internal kernel is unobtainable. With 30€ or less (if you're European) you can comfortably get a new flashcart and also a microSD+Adapter, so you could play DS roms on the former and GBA roms on the latter (via TWL++, GBAR2 in camera-slot). So you can finally go back to sleeping soundly and without any more nightmares, knowing that your trusty DSi will be waiting for you the next day, fitter than ever, for new, amazing gaming adventures.

P.S. In the meantime, you could try your old r4 with its own kernel again and again, until you're exhausted. Who knows? ....maybe a miracle will happen...

Thanks for the kind words, and it did reassure me. But i've been thinking of just switching all my ds games onto my 3DS since it doesn't have a flashcart and i have some games on there currently. I just can't get the games to work on there with Luma3DS running

 

[cxclarke]

so now, do you have plan to buy new flashcart or keep trying your best with current flashcart?

if you want to buy one, you may need assist from expert here for suggestions

i think i'll try to add my DS Games to my 3DS sd card, but i don't want to risk breaking it like my R4. I know how to put GBA games on my 3DS but i don't know how for DS games. my firmware is Luma3DS

 

[lifehackerhansol]

i think i'll try to add my DS Games to my 3DS sd card, but i don't want to risk breaking it like my R4. I know how to put GBA games on my 3DS but i don't know how for DS games. my firmware is Luma3DS

You can always use TWiLight Menu++!

https://wiki.ds-homebrew.com/twilightmenu/installing-3ds.html

Currently this, together with nds-bootstrap, is what makes it possible to run it on the 3DS SD card. If you have any questions, you can always join the Discord server that is linked on the above website, where I as well as the developers of the project can help you out.

And, yeah, I'm sorry about the fate of your cart. I couldn't think of a better way to break it to you. But hey, we have the free (and always improving) alternative that will always work regardless of what you run it on!

 

[cxclarke]

You can always use TWiLight Menu++!

https://wiki.ds-homebrew.com/twilightmenu/installing-3ds.html

Currently this, together with nds-bootstrap, is what makes it possible to run it on the 3DS SD card. If you have any questions, you can always join the Discord server that is linked on the above website, where I as well as the developers of the project can help you out.

And, yeah, I'm sorry about the fate of your cart. I couldn't think of a better way to break it to you. But hey, we have the free (and always improving) alternative that will always work regardless of what you run it on!

can i use my flashcart as like an alternative for something that can also run NDS games?