Hacking I'm an idiot, backed up A9LH SD card using Win32DiskImager but wont boot after restore

[panicacid]

Yeah I'm pretty sure there's something wrong with your SD card. Turning off by itself without the SD card in is a very good sign!

Great but now the problem is I've tried 3 x sd cards... 2 x 128GB ones forcefully formatted to fat32 using easy partition doodad and set them to primary not logical.

And the 4gb sd that came with it not one is playing ball.

Is there a specific way to format them on the PC? specific cluster size etc.

Edit:

Also does the volume name matter? the original was called EMUNAND9 IIRC but the others haven't... not sure that'd matter though?

 

[thewarhammer]

I feel bad for you mate, I also had my share of bad luck yesterday. But your 3DS at least shut down without the SD card, there might be hope in your case!

Updated my O3DS to A9LH v2, and the installation succeeded fine (TBH, I messed the "arm9loader.bin" once, when I had accidentally used the Luma's one as a payload instead of the SafeA9LHInstaller one and vice-versa. But as I could boot the payload just fine - it simply entered the Luma Config instead of the installer - I guess this wasn't the problem) and the 3DS turned off. After I transfered the right files to continue the update, my 3DS simply won't boot.

Tried the test payload, booting with and without the SD card, re-downloading every file, formatting the SD card, and booting Recovery Menu with no luck. Can't even access the payloads in the SD card.

Does anyone know something about it?

 

[Quantumcat]

I feel bad for you mate, I also had my share of bad luck yesterday. But your 3DS at least shut down without the SD card, there might be hope in your case!

Updated my O3DS to A9LH v2, and the installation succeeded fine (TBH, I messed the "arm9loader.bin" once, when I had accidentally used the Luma's one as a payload instead of the SafeA9LHInstaller one and vice-versa. But as I could boot the payload just fine - it simply entered the Luma Config instead of the installer - I guess this wasn't the problem) and the 3DS turned off. After I transfered the right files to continue the update, my 3DS simply won't boot.

Tried the test payload, booting with and without the SD card, re-downloading every file, formatting the SD card, and booting Recovery Menu with no luck. Can't even access the payloads in the SD card.

Does anyone know something about it?

When you say it won't boot, do you mean it turns off right after powering on? Did you try multiple SD cards? Is there any difference between having the SD in or out (eg power light stays blue with the SD card in but turns off with it out)?

If you have any game cartridges for flashcarts inserted, take them out before booting.

 

[thewarhammer]

When you say it won't boot, do you mean it turns off right after powering on? Did you try multiple SD cards? Is there any difference between having the SD in or out (eg power light stays blue with the SD card in but turns off with it out)?

If you have any game cartridges for flashcarts inserted, take them out before booting.

Nope, power light on, but won't boot.

Besides trying another SD, I have tried everything already.

 

[Quantumcat]

Nope, power light on, but won't boot.

Besides trying another SD, I have tried everything already.

Ah power light staying on is a bad sign :-( It may be bricked. But wait to see if someone else chimes in with something helpful before giving up hope completely.

If it really is bricked, try and work out your exact sequence if steps so that smarter people than us can work out exactly what happened and the tools can be improved (I have never heard of this combination of circumstances causing a brick, it may be a new one).

 

[kublai]

I bricked my system last night from upgrading A9LH to the newest version so now my backup is useless

 

[mudassirul]

Messing up the sdcard can't brick your system. Try a different SD card with the luma arm9loaderhax.bin file on the root (that should be all you need on the root to boot provided the cards formatted right with no EmuNAND) if that don't work you must have tried reinstalling a9lh and messed up there

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

I bricked my system last night from upgrading A9LH to the newest version so now my backup is useless

Hardmod

 

[kublai]

Messing up the sdcard can't brick your system. Try a different SD card with the luma arm9loaderhax.bin file on the root (that should be all you need on the root to boot provided the cards formatted right with no EmuNAND) if that don't work you must have tried reinstalling a9lh and messed up there

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------


Hardmod

I just sent my 3DS XL off to be hard modded. I didn't think my #DS would brick from just upgrading to the newest A9LH following the guide.

 

[thewarhammer]

I bricked my system last night from upgrading A9LH to the newest version so now my backup is useless

I had the exact same problem, updated my O3DSXL to A9LH v2, everything was fine, SafeA9LHInstaller gave me a success message and the 3DS turned off. After that, only the Power Light turns on.

I've installed A9LH several times, always without any issue (including my N3DSXL), and I never thought a brick could come from using the SafeA9LHInstaller.

Well, I'll try another SD card when I get home and keep my fingers crossed!

 

[kublai]

I had the exact same problem, updated my O3DSXL to A9LH v2, everything was fine, SafeA9LHInstaller gave me a success message and the 3DS turned off. After that, only the Power Light turns on.

I've installed A9LH several times, always without any issue (including my N3DSXL), and I never thought a brick could come from using the SafeA9LHInstaller.

Well, I'll try another SD card when I get home and keep my fingers crossed!

I also got the same message upgrading to a9lh v2 that it was successful. I did also install SafeA9LHInstaller this time around when upgrading but previously I don't remember using that. Hopefully you'll find a way to fix your. I already sent mine off.

 

[thewarhammer]

I also got the same message upgrading to a9lh v2 that it was successful. I did also install SafeA9LHInstaller this time around when upgrading but previously I don't remember using that. Hopefully you'll find a way to fix your. I already sent mine off.

TBH, the only reason I haven't send mine for a hardmod is because I didn't find someone at my city. But well, I want to at least try all the alternatives available before anything else.

 

[kublai]

TBH, the only reason I haven't send mine for a hardmod is because I didn't find someone at my city. But well, I want to at least try all the alternatives available before anything else.

Let me know if you do find a way to fix it without a hardmod. I kept thinking that if I have A9LH installed that I would be protected from a hard brick and would be able to recover but does not seem to be the case. I'm glad once my 3DS XL is hard modded I can play around and not worry about it being bricked anymore. There is a thread on gbatemp with all the hard modders available in each region and which I am using one of the modders in that thread.

 

[thewarhammer]

Let me know if you do find a way to fix it without a hardmod. I kept thinking that if I have A9LH installed that I would be protected from a hard brick and would be able to recover but does not seem to be the case. I'm glad once my 3DS XL is hard modded I can play around and not worry about it being bricked anymore. There is a thread on gbatemp with all the hard modders available in each region and which I am using one of the modders in that thread.

I thought the same thing, never did think on this step specifically as something risky. Well, I'll try with another SD, but I don't have much hope.

I saw the thread already, I'll try to contact them to see what I can do. Thanks!

 

[panicacid]

Ok so I modded a friends O3DS yesterday using the guide, it's WAY different to the way I did it last time, last time we had RedNANDS and EmuNANDS and then committing that to SysNAND etc. The new method was very easy!

However, I copied EmuNAND9 onto my friends Luma payloads, booted it up, ejected the SD, put 3 of mine in and formatted them in EmuNAND9 (Using the no-emunand option) tried copying over the test payloads, some other files from other SD Backups I took. Nothing will load via Luma / payloads.

No SD console wont power on, any SD and I power on but no boot...

I'm really stuck here and not sure what else to try. (Hardmod probably won't happen I'll just end up buying a faulty 3DS and stealing the board. but I'd rather get mine working and save the cash!)

 

[Quantumcat]

Just quickly, you don't have any game or flashcart cartridge in the console right? (I may have asked this before, if so, sorry!)

 

[panicacid]

Aye, no cart in at the moment, was hoping maybe it'd boot cubic ninja but no dice.

Really pulling my hair out now, doesn't make sense.

If it helps my folder structure on the backed up SD card was:

Root-
3DS Folder
EmuNAND9 Folder
Luma Folder
Nintendo 3DS Folder
Themes
aeskeydb.bin
arm9loaderhax.bin
boot.3dsx
hblauncherloader_otherapp_payload_OLD-11-0-0-33-EUR.bin
screenshots_raw.bin

This is NOT the same layout as my friends that I flashed last night.

I'm trying to find the guide that I followed when I flashed mine as I believe I can probably pick up from a certain point and recover, mine definitely used RedNAND and menuhax which I can't find any reference to in the current Guide or the copy of the Guide I've found from October... This ringing any bells for anybody?

EDIT: OK So I've found the revision that looks like the one I followed back in the day:

https://github.com/Plailect/Guide_R...hax)/3806f5b1f608c53cb2008a39b20c7a312cb46d37

This was the final step for me when I modded this 3DS. If that helps anybody?

 

[panicacid]

Well we can put this to bed now as I've broken the board. :'(

Anybody in the UK wants to sell me a 10.0 or lower XL board lemme know.

 

[kublai]

Aye, no cart in at the moment, was hoping maybe it'd boot cubic ninja but no dice.

Really pulling my hair out now, doesn't make sense.

If it helps my folder structure on the backed up SD card was:

Root-
3DS Folder
EmuNAND9 Folder
Luma Folder
Nintendo 3DS Folder
Themes
aeskeydb.bin
arm9loaderhax.bin
boot.3dsx
hblauncherloader_otherapp_payload_OLD-11-0-0-33-EUR.bin
screenshots_raw.bin

This is NOT the same layout as my friends that I flashed last night.

I'm trying to find the guide that I followed when I flashed mine as I believe I can probably pick up from a certain point and recover, mine definitely used RedNAND and menuhax which I can't find any reference to in the current Guide or the copy of the Guide I've found from October... This ringing any bells for anybody?

EDIT: OK So I've found the revision that looks like the one I followed back in the day:

https://github.com/Plailect/Guide_R...hax)/3806f5b1f608c53cb2008a39b20c7a312cb46d37

This was the final step for me when I modded this 3DS. If that helps anybody?

I bricked mine as well and I believe it has to do with the Safeinstaller.