Hi all,
I bought a second-hand Nintendo Switch.
The bad news is that it was Banned. The good news was that it was "Unpatched"
Have decided to look into running CFW and Homebrew applications on it.
I wanted to get learn about the process with some help from the community and to detail each step in the hope that it will help any other newbs in the same position.
I have:
An unpatched Nintendo Switch (Banned) running 11.0.1 Firmware
A 512GB MicroSDXC (Samsung Evo / Class 10)
A RCMLoader Dongle and Jig from xkit.xyz
A Windows 10 laptop
--Getting started--
Just to start from a fresh canvas I:
Formatted the MicroSDXC on my laptop - ExFAT
Factory Reset the Switch (System - Formatting Options - Restore Factory Settings)
NOTE: I've read in a few places that people with Banned Switches have struggled to perform a Factory Reset - luckily mine works fine)
Once Reset, the Switch took me through the 1st time setup
I skipped past connecting to Wifi for now
It then gave me a message about needing to delete data on the MicroSDXC (strange as it was just formatted) but has probably formatted the card again and is happy to use it now.
I turned the Switch off, removed the MicroSDXC from the Switch and inserted it into my laptop.
--SD Prep--
Looking at the MicroSDXC Card on my laptop, it has just 1 folder "Nintendo"
I downloaded the latest version of Atmosphere atmosphere-0.18.0-master-26d8db74+hbl-2.4.0+hbmenu-3.4.0.zip
I extracted the zip and copied all of the contents into the root of the MicroSDXC card.
I downloaded the latest version of Hekate hekate_ctcaer_5.5.3_Nyx_0.9.9.zip
I extracted the zip and copied all of the contents into the root of the MicroSDXC card.
I downloaded a hekate_ipl.ini file and copied it to the Bootloader folder on the MicroSDXC
Ejected the SD from the laptop
Inserted it into the Switch
--1st Boot into RCM Mode--
On the Switch I:
Removed the right Joycon and inserted Jig
Connected my RCMLoader dongle
Pressed Vol+ for 3 seconds before also pressing the Power button
The Hetake boot logo appears
I remove the Jig and RCMLoader dongle and attach the right Joycon
I set the date and time
A message appears saying that the configuration was saved to my SD Card
I click Launch
I have 3 options: AMS CFW (SYSNAND), AMS CFW (EMUMMC) and STOCK (SYSNAND)
I click on AMS CFW (EMUMMC) (This is a guess)
The Switch boots the Atmosphere firmware
Once booted, I can visit Album and see Daybreak and Reboot to Payload
Cool.
Powered off the Switch
Removed MicroSDXC from Switch and inserted it into the laptop
--Getting some Homebrew Apps--
I downloaded the latest version of the Homebrew App Store and downloaded a appstore.nro file
On my MicroSDXC I created a new folder called appstore in the Switch folder and copied the file there
Ejected MicroSDXC from laptop and inserted it into the Switch
Connected RCMLoader and Jig and booted up Switch in RCM Mode
Launch AMS CFW (EMUMMC)
Album - HB Appstore
Installed the pNES app (to allow you to play NES Roms) -
After downloading - I can see pNES in Album
I click Launch - it crashes Atmosphere Error Code 2168-0002 (0x4a8)
I have to reboot the Switch into RCM Mode
In HB Appstore it shows as installed - have removed
Installed the eBooks Collection app
Installs but does not show on Album screen
In HB Appstore it shows as installed - have removed
Installed the FTPD app (to provide SD Card access over FTP) - works great
Installed the NXDumpTool app (to dump game cartridges to SD) - works great
Installed NX-Shell app (Filemanager) - works great
Installed the Goldleaf app (to allow you to play dumped game carts from SD) -
After downloading - I can see Goldleaf in Album
I click Launch - the screen goes black for 2 seconds and then returns me to the Album screen
Can anyone help me understand if I am missing something / have done something wrong?
All help appreciated and will try and pay it back