Hacking DSlite cart swap fix for R4i gold 3DS failing. Lets figure this out.

[Cretaceous]

Sadly, I had my R4igold 3DS, (confirmed C revision with Kirby Demo Icon) Updated to the new 1.4.5 icon, and working aside from that annoying skin loading bug it was working fine. But being the knowledge seeking doof I am, I fiddled around learning every command, etc. Fast forward to me wondering how the update process works.. ran updater for 1.4.5 a second time on 1.4.5 and as everyone with this issue has, I accidentally switched the ads off. So, with the card inserted 3DS will power on (Blue LED, black screens but lit) With the card not inserted, normal functionality but as soon as the card is inserted, it will hang(both screens freezing but oddly the sound stays on its loop) I've hunted around on this forum and gotten the same basic copy paste instructions to fix it with a ds. I have a fully functioning R4 sdhc (RTS Lite) with the new banner, updated to 1.4.5 no problem. It will load the patching program fine, but I cannot for the life of me get it to then patch the broken R4i Gold card. Using current firmware and patch, at the time of posting about to attempt 1.44 instead of 1.56, I'll post results. Would love to get to the bottom of this as a community so we can point us thick headed r4 owners to a workable method, as it seems this is a common issue(among the less informed home brewer at least) Thank you in advance, and sorry for the novel!

tl;dr:
"R4 BROK IN PATCH HALP FIX PLZ"

 

[Rydian]

All the unbrick things assume that the cart still functions normally, but has a damaged bootloader so it won't run.

However if yours is hanging the DS, there's something more critical wrong with it.

 

[Cretaceous]

That's odd. How would the cart get so critically damaged? It has been completely babied and running perfectly up until the power off mid update that caused the brick. Anyone know of a final attempt method to find out if the hardware itself is even functional? I've ruled out the tf card- it is fully functional on a different R4 cart. Perhaps a crappy homebrew program made by R4 or a clone sit?. I have two fluent Chinese speakers that can translate for me, so english isn't crucial.

 

[Rydian]

Powering off mid-update. Generally this means that the bootloader is not intact and won't be sent to the DS, but apparently you cut yours off at just the right/wrong time to where it is sending data back to the DS, but malformatted data that the DS can't handle for some reason.

 

[Cretaceous]

Well hell. And there is no known way to resolve , refresh, or wipe this bootloading protocol and start fresh? I appreciate your input by the way- even if it isnt what I want to be hearing.

 

[Rydian]

Any method to fix it assumes that your DS isn't freezing when you put the cart in, which sort of kills... everything. If you can't run any code with it inserted, you can't do any writes.

 

[Cretaceous]

Yeah, the DS Lite doesn't hang or freeze, it just doesn't recognize it if that makes any bit of difference. I've been reformatting via Mac OS X's Disk Utility as well, I'm hunting down that Panasonic formatter, just incase it does a faster/better 0's write or something that might matter. Kind of exhausted my options. I got this R4 Nov 2012, should I try putting the second newest and updating accordingly?

 

[Rydian]

Wait, list the exact steps you're doing to try to reflash it using another cart?

 

[Cretaceous]

I actually was going to ask for a step by step to double check I'm doing this correctly. As far as i can tell from reading up, I've simply buggered my primary firmware on the cart itself. So I have 2 micro sd cards. 1 in an up to date r4-SDHC rts Lite that has only the current kernel and the patch file for my R4i Gold on it. I have a second microSD card with the current R4-wood Kernel and the same update file only inserted into the bricked R4i Gold 3ds cart. I turn on my DS Lite with the R4 SDHC inserted, it loads. I then refresh the game list, and boot the patch file. Now, here is where I've tried a few steps:

I originally just took the working cart out and inserted the broken and pressed B, then A. (leaving both MicroSD cards described above in their corresponding Carts.
Result: FAIL

Then, I did same as above but took the working R4-SDHC out then took the microSD out of it, and inserted it into the R4i-3ds.
Result: FAIL

Of course, after a few seconds thought I decided that was absurd and that SD had the wrong Loader/ not a R4-wood UI/OS. So I attempted as above but using a single MicroSD with BOTH firmwares (R4iGOLD's wood and R4-SDHC's crap turd original r4 deviation. Surprisingly SDHC booted fine, attempted patch, removed working cart, inserted broken with the same MicroSD used to boot the working.
Result: Still FAIL

So after retrying the above steps with a stubborn conviction akin to a small child's first red-ring and the stages of grief that follow, I decided I needed to step back get some better input and find someone who understands the hardware better. I read a considerable amount of absolute keyboard vomit with varying amounts of readable english sprinkled around for good measure. (at this point, the vague numbered steps to reflash using another card with crappy grammar thats copy-pasta'd everywhere as THE answer began to mock and toy with my sanity.)

This morning I have seen theres a new Wood Kernel 1.57. I'm currently re-attempting said steps with that. As well as attempting an cart-swap patch with NO MicroSD card inserted into the r4igold.
Result: GO HOME FAIL YER DRUNK.


At this point I've invested enough time that I WILL make this cart work, or have to question the validity of my own existence and what I'm doing with my life/free time. I'm guessing you really just needed to know that the broken R4igold 3DS is 100% from the 4rids.cn website, had the Kirby Icon firmware and was successfully patched to the current 1.45 Icon prior to this mind-warping mistake I've made dicking around with the updating on it. After bricking it, it will either freeze the 3DS on the home screen, or if booted with it already inserted the 3DS will turn its blue LED power light on, but nothing else. (Powering off requires a "Hard-shutdown" holding down the power button for 10+ seconds then shutting the lid before the light will turn off)
Booting the broken cart in the DS Lite however, simply shows an empty slot 1 and the DS system has full functionality. Inserting the Cart while the DS Lite is already powered and on the home screen also results in nothing.
The fact that it isn't hanging the DS lite give me hope that one day I will be able to again play Castlevania without hearing the high pitched female wails of "Use your OWN damn card- don't break mine too." that even now I still hear ringing in my head. Though I mod'd the GF's wii- so I have atleast a few more days to tinker with her SDHC cart. Sorry this turned into a small book- but it looks like you're a pretty active (only useful dare I say?) member of the forum so I wanted to get all the info I could think of in there. If you or anyone else reading this wouldn't mind a general ABSURDLY OVER DETAILED STEP BY STEP for the two cart reflashing process, I would be very grateful and hopefully it will hopefully aid others with this same problem. There is an insane amount of dup threads all over the interbutt on this single issue, sadly with the afore mentioned copy-pasta as the only reply more often than not. Thank you again for taking the time to help me with this.

Spoiler: "OPTIONAL ASIDE"

I'm amazed at the lackadaisical "This isn't an exact science bro" attitude that seems to exist pretty universally throughout the internet about something that is absolutely exactly that... an exact science. I may not have an advanced grasp on the hardware or the primary firmware on the cart itself, but I am trying my gosh dangest, and will continue to until I feel there is 100% no solution. If anyone reads this and has zero clue how to do a normal update or reflash, I'm more than willing to share my knowledge. This forum is sadly a tiny oasis of knowledge in the sea of runny-peas-for-a-week poop that is the modern internet. I hope to contribute to the losing battle you few that do help are waging on this onslaught of one line vague demands for answers and the general refusal of the human race to learn anything ever about a subject matter which is essential to every their day life. End rant.

 

[Rydian]

"After bricking it, it will either freeze the 3DS on the home screen, or if booted with it already inserted the 3DS will turn its blue LED power light on, but nothing else. (Powering off requires a "Hard-shutdown" holding down the power button for 10+ seconds then shutting the lid before the light will turn off)"
Yeah that's what I was referring to. If it's messed up to the point that the DS can't even read it, it's hosed.

 

[Cretaceous]

DS lite doesn't do this, so can it potentially read it?

 

[Rydian]

I already thought you were doing it on an older DS model? You can't cart-swap on the DSi or 3DS, so cart-swap unbricking only works on the older DS series, the original and the Lite.