Switch Lite with HWFLY modchip – can’t boot Atmosphere or access OFW

[mikesbigjam]

Hi everyone

I’ve installed an HWFLY modchip on my Nintendo Switch Lite, and I’m having trouble getting Atmosphere to boot. The device shows the Atmosphere logo briefly, then shuts down. I can access Hekate, but I’m unable to boot into either emuMMC or OFW.
System Details & Problem Summary

• Device: Switch Lite with HWFLY modchip

• Issue: Atmosphere shows the logo for about a second, then the device powers off. I can’t boot into OFW either.

• Status: Able to access Hekate, partition the SD, and create emuMMC without errors.

Steps I’ve Tried So Far

1. Tried Multiple Software Versions:

• Tested around 10 different versions of Hekate, Atmosphere, and sigpatches, including the HATS pack from Sthetix (worked fine on my other device).

• Manually installed Hekate, Atmosphere, and sigpatches from tutorials, but still no luck.

2. Switched SD Cards:

• Tested with three different SD cards (one brand new), formatted to both FAT32 and exFAT.

3. Checked Hekate Configuration:

• Used hekate_ipl.ini files from the HATS pack and other tutorials. Haven’t written my own configuration file but followed trusted sources closely.

4. Tried Booting Without the Modchip:

• Attempted to bypass the modchip by holding VOL+ and VOL- during startup. No change in behavior.

5. Backup and Restore Questions:

• Wondering if I should attempt a NAND backup and restore on the same device, or if there’s any advantage to it.

Any suggestions or guidance would be hugely appreciated. Let me know if there’s any other info I should include!

Thanks in advance!

 

[thesjaakspoiler]

Hekate has page that shows some information about the internal emmc memory :

Especially the right part is important.
If that doesn't show this kind of information, then something might have corrupted the internal memory.
That can happen when there is some issue with installation of the modchip.

The internal emmc memory contains the OFW and the safe mode data.

I don't know if a NAND backup will help, as the issue that corrupted it might still be present.

 

[urherenow]

Can’t access OFW? Even when holding both Vol -/+? That would point to a hardware issue, such as one of the modchip’s wires came loose.

If you hadn’t mentioned OFW, my first thought would be that you need to reset and retrain the mod chip. The need can arise when you update through OFW. Lately, I download the firmware and update through Atmosphere/Daybreak even on sys… to avoid that problem.

 

[mikesbigjam]

Thanks for the detailed insights! Here’s where I’m at with your suggestions:

• Hekate’s eMMC Info Page: I’ll check Hekate’s eMMC info page to see what’s showing on the right side, as suggested. If there’s any indication of corrupted internal memory, that might help confirm if the issue is related to the modchip installation. If something looks off, I’ll report back with details.

• OFW Boot with VOL +/-: Yes, I can’t access OFW even when holding both VOL -/+ during boot, which definitely makes me think a hardware connection might be loose. I’ll recheck the wires, especially the modchip’s key connections like DAT0, CMD, and CLK.

• Modchip Reset and Firmware Update: Since I can’t boot into OFW, I hadn’t thought about resetting or retraining the modchip. I’ll also look into updating the modchip firmware to see if it helps with boot compatibility.

Does it sound like these steps cover everything, or is there anything else specific I should look out for?

 

[Myst0gan]

If there is no hardware issue, nor wiring problem, then I'd try to desolder all the wires from modchip and check if it boots to ofw normally

 

[mikesbigjam]

Hekate has page that shows some information about the internal emmc memory :
View attachment 469250
Especially the right part is important.
If that doesn't show this kind of information, then something might have corrupted the internal memory.
That can happen when there is some issue with installation of the modchip.

The internal emmc memory contains the OFW and the safe mode data.

I don't know if a NAND backup will help, as the issue that corrupted it might still be present.

mine looks like this
I‘m not able to get into the system folder with tegraexplorer, I get an error. does this mean something?

 

[randy_w]

emmc partitions seem fine. also you sure it's an hwfly chip? hwfly been out of production for almost a year now, you probably got a rp2040 based picofly, send a picture of your modchip.

some picofly (also some hwfly clones (v4.1 v5) except instinct) are known to cause interference on emmc data lines, disconnect the chip and see if console boots to ofw

 

[mikesbigjam]

emmc partitions seem fine. also you sure it's an hwfly chip? hwfly been out of production for almost a year now, you probably got a rp2040 based picofly, send a picture of your modchip.

some picofly (also some hwfly clones (v4.1 v5) except instinct) are known to cause interference on emmc data lines, disconnect the chip and see if console boots to ofw

I disconnected the modchip and it just shows the nintendo logo for a second and shuts down again. modchip looks like this:
could EmmcHaccGen help?

 

[randy_w]

I disconnected the modchip and it just shows the nintendo logo for a second and shuts down again. modchip looks like this:
could EmmcHaccGen help?

yeah that's not hwfly, it's picofly/rp2040.

if you can't even boot maintenance mode something's very wrong. reconnect the modchip and do a full backup in hekate, also dump your prod.keys. First try to format user partition in nxnandmanager, if that doesn't help you need to generate system titles with your own prod.keys, format system partition and reinstall system titles, that should fix it

 

[mikesbigjam]

yeah that's not hwfly, it's picofly/rp2040.

if you can't even boot maintenance mode something's very wrong. reconnect the modchip and do a full backup in hekate, also dump your prod.keys. First try to format user partition in nxnandmanager, if that doesn't help you need to generate system titles with your own prod.keys, format system partition and reinstall system titles, that should fix it

thank you! I tried it all. I can‘t even perform a systemwipe bacause of an error in tegraexplorer, which won‘t let me into the SYSTEM folder, neither. I formated the user partition after mounting in nxnandmanager and got a fuse error while booting. this is the error in tegraexplorer

Post automatically merged: Nov 4, 2024

yeah that's not hwfly, it's picofly/rp2040.

if you can't even boot maintenance mode something's very wrong. reconnect the modchip and do a full backup in hekate, also dump your prod.keys. First try to format user partition in nxnandmanager, if that doesn't help you need to generate system titles with your own prod.keys, format system partition and reinstall system titles, that should fix it

where can I find a „how to“ about reinstalling system titles and formatting the system?

 

[randy_w]

Did you dump your keys in lockpick before loading tegra explorer? Seems like tegra explorer can't find keys.

What's the fuse error? That shouldn't happen since you can't even boot ofw let alone updating it.

 

[mikesbigjam]

Did you dump your keys in lockpick before loading tegra explorer? Seems like tegra explorer can't find keys.

What's the fuse error? That shouldn't happen since you can't even boot ofw let alone updating it.

Tegra works now!
Hey everyone, here’s an update on my Switch Lite situation and a recap of what I’ve already tried.

The main problem remains: I can’t boot into either CFW or OFW. When I try to launch Atmosphere, the logo shows up for a second, then the Switch shuts down. This happens even after a full system wipe, disconnecting the modchip, and pressing both volume buttons while booting, which makes me think the issue might go deeper, especially since it won’t boot into OFW. Unfortunately, I don’t have a NAND backup from when the device was functional, as this console isn’t originally mine.

So far, I’ve:
• Used Lockpick_RCM to dump prod.keys and grabbed BIS keys.
• Mounted the SYSTEM partition with HacDiskMount and tried deleting any potentially corrupt files.
• Ran systemrestore.te and systemwipe.te scripts in TegraExplorer, but they didn’t solve the issue.
• Completed a full eMMC rebuild using EmmcHaccGen, generated boot.bis and SYSTEM folders, and flashed them back, but still no success.
• Verified SD card format (both exFAT and FAT32) and ensured firmware and Atmosphere files are up-to-date.
• Double-checked all modchip connections, and even with the modchip disconnected, OFW still won’t load.

I’d appreciate any new ideas, especially if anyone has dealt with something similar. Thanks for all the help so far!

 

[mikesbigjam]

yeah that's not hwfly, it's picofly/rp2040.

if you can't even boot maintenance mode something's very wrong. reconnect the modchip and do a full backup in hekate, also dump your prod.keys. First try to format user partition in nxnandmanager, if that doesn't help you need to generate system titles with your own prod.keys, format system partition and reinstall system titles, that should fix it

It looks like I found the root of the issue. I recently discovered that this particular unit is patched against the RCM exploit, as indicated by the information in Hekate (bottom right corner showing “This unit is patched to the RCM bug”). This unit is a newer blue/red/grey Pokémon edition, so it seems like it might not be possible to mod or even boot into the stock OS (OFW), unlike older models I’ve worked with.

The last advice I received was to reconnect the modchip, do a full backup in Hekate, and dump the prod.keys. I was advised to first try formatting the user partition in NxNandManager, and if that doesn’t help, to generate system titles with my own prod.keys, format the system partition, and reinstall system titles.

This is getting pretty complex, so if anyone has experience dealing with patched units in a similar situation, I’d appreciate any further guidance!

 

[Nephiel]

It looks like I found the root of the issue. I recently discovered that this particular unit is patched against the RCM exploit, as indicated by the information in Hekate (bottom right corner showing “This unit is patched to the RCM bug”). This unit is a newer blue/red/grey Pokémon edition, so it seems like it might not be possible to mod or even boot into the stock OS (OFW), unlike older models I’ve worked with.

The last advice I received was to reconnect the modchip, do a full backup in Hekate, and dump the prod.keys. I was advised to first try formatting the user partition in NxNandManager, and if that doesn’t help, to generate system titles with my own prod.keys, format the system partition, and reinstall system titles.

This is getting pretty complex, so if anyone has experience dealing with patched units in a similar situation, I’d appreciate any further guidance!

All Lites are patched against the RCM bug, that's why the modchip is required.