Installing OOTHAX using the R4i Save Dongle
Hey everyone. I thought I would write up a quick tutorial for this since I just did it last night and had some trouble finding one for myself. There are a few tutorials on getting the OOTHAX save onto the cartridge, but only using the Datel PowerSaves device, not the much cheaper R4i Save Dongle. I ended up figuring it out on my own, but some people might not be as lucky, so here it goes!
This will be installing OOTHAX as a primary entry point, not as a secondary one. This is for people who can't use CubicNinja, IronFall, MenuHax, TubeHax or BrowserHax for whatever reason.
So here is what you are going to need:
Before writing anything to your OOT cart, BACK UP YOUR DATA! Even if you don't want to keep it, just do it anyways as a way to get familiar with the Save Dongle program. The program itself is very self explanatory, so I won't go into details. There are two buttons for dumping your save to the PC and for writing a save to the cart.
Once you've dumped your save, unzip the oothax save release zip from yellows8's github repo. There will be two directories. One labeled "saveimages" and the other labeled "saveimages_powersaves". Use the normal "saveimages" folder. Once you're in there, there will be two more directories. These apparently correspond to the cart ID or header or something like that. Don't quote me on that one though. All I know is that I used the save files from the first listed folder (cardids_45fe009000000000) and it worked for me. If you didn't copy the right save from the right folder, OOT will give you an error message saying that the save data is being deleted. If this happens, try the saves from the other directory.
Remember downloading the ropbin? Well look at the file. It should have a specific name. This name corresponds to the save you are going to have to write to your OOT cartridge. Once you have the appropriate file, copy it or move it to a more convenient place.
Fire up the Save Dongle software and write the OOTHAX save onto the cart. It might take a minute or two, so give it time. Once it is done, a window will pop up reporting that the process was successful. Once that is done, copy the contents of the homebrew starter pack to your 3DS's SD/MicroSD card. Also, copy the ropbin file from earlier onto the root of the card and rename it "payload.bin". I am not sure if this is absolutely necessary, but from digging online, a few people recommended it, so I kept it in here.
Start up OOT3D. If the save file is correct, it should load to the load screen just fine. Select the OOTHAX save (it will be in the first slot) and let it load. Once it does, you will be in Link's room. Press A to trigger the hack. Once it is triggered, you are free to install other primary/secondary hacks from there. I personally installed IronHax from there since I wanted to continue playing OOT3D, haha.
And that should be it! I hope this helps some people who were in a similar situation to mine! Go enjoy some homebrew!
This will be installing OOTHAX as a primary entry point, not as a secondary one. This is for people who can't use CubicNinja, IronFall, MenuHax, TubeHax or BrowserHax for whatever reason.
So here is what you are going to need:
- The oothax save releases (.zip file) from yellows8's GitHub repo
- Your R4i Save Dongle
- The Save Dongle software utility
- The latest firmware version of the Save Dongle's firmware (this is super important. I tried backing up a DS save before updating and ended up corrupting my data. Your mileage may vary, but the best idea is to update. It isn't hard at all.)
- The homebrew starter kit from Smea's GitHub repo
- The appropriate ROPBIN for your device from Smea's Git page.
Before writing anything to your OOT cart, BACK UP YOUR DATA! Even if you don't want to keep it, just do it anyways as a way to get familiar with the Save Dongle program. The program itself is very self explanatory, so I won't go into details. There are two buttons for dumping your save to the PC and for writing a save to the cart.
Once you've dumped your save, unzip the oothax save release zip from yellows8's github repo. There will be two directories. One labeled "saveimages" and the other labeled "saveimages_powersaves". Use the normal "saveimages" folder. Once you're in there, there will be two more directories. These apparently correspond to the cart ID or header or something like that. Don't quote me on that one though. All I know is that I used the save files from the first listed folder (cardids_45fe009000000000) and it worked for me. If you didn't copy the right save from the right folder, OOT will give you an error message saying that the save data is being deleted. If this happens, try the saves from the other directory.
Remember downloading the ropbin? Well look at the file. It should have a specific name. This name corresponds to the save you are going to have to write to your OOT cartridge. Once you have the appropriate file, copy it or move it to a more convenient place.
Fire up the Save Dongle software and write the OOTHAX save onto the cart. It might take a minute or two, so give it time. Once it is done, a window will pop up reporting that the process was successful. Once that is done, copy the contents of the homebrew starter pack to your 3DS's SD/MicroSD card. Also, copy the ropbin file from earlier onto the root of the card and rename it "payload.bin". I am not sure if this is absolutely necessary, but from digging online, a few people recommended it, so I kept it in here.
Start up OOT3D. If the save file is correct, it should load to the load screen just fine. Select the OOTHAX save (it will be in the first slot) and let it load. Once it does, you will be in Link's room. Press A to trigger the hack. Once it is triggered, you are free to install other primary/secondary hacks from there. I personally installed IronHax from there since I wanted to continue playing OOT3D, haha.
And that should be it! I hope this helps some people who were in a similar situation to mine! Go enjoy some homebrew!
