TwlNandTool/USAGE.md
2024-11-17 02:39:21 -05:00

4.5 KiB

TwlNandTool Usage

With great power (TwlNandTool) comes great resposibility. It can be easy to cause further damage to your console if you don't know what you're doing.

I will add a friendly built in "tutorial" at some point, but until then please do not use any function without reading this page first.

Table of Contents

FileSystem Menu

All of these functions deal with the filesystem. This includes MBR, partitions, and TwlNandTool's own included files.

- Read MBR

Read and verify the Master Boot Record. This is the first 512b of NAND (encrypted) that determines where the partitions are.

- Repair MBR

Repair the Master Boot Record if corrupted.

- Format TWL_MAIN

Format TWL_MAIN. This is the partition where firmware, system files, games, and saves are stored. Formatting this is an immediate brick unless you know what you are doing.

- Format TWL_PHOTO

Format TWL_PHOTO. This is the partition where all photos are stored.

- Mount TWL_MAIN

Mount TWL_MAIN in order to access NAND files and to lock the formatting options.

- Unmount TWL_MAIN

Unmount TWL_MAIN in order to unlock formatting, or to repair MBR. The unmount will prevent you from accessing NAND files.

- Mount NitroFS

Mount TwlNandTool's filesystem in order to install included system files.

NandFirm Menu

These functions deal with the stage2 bootloader- officially called NandFirm. NandFirm is what boots the home menu.

- Check NandFirm

Verifies that NandFirm is not corrupted.

- Import NandFirm

Install the standard NandFirm. The versions I include are slightly updated for reasons mentioned in the README.

  • v2265-9336 (prod)
  • v2725-9336 (dev)

- Import NandFirm (SDMC)

Install the SDMC Launcher NandFirm. It is completely different from the standard NandFirm, and it will leave the home menu inaccessible. This is only for extreme edge cases and should be avoided.

DO NOT INSTALL THIS UNLESS OTHERWISE TOLD.

Sys File Menu

These functions deal with system files that are required for the DSi to boot. Much of this is focused around HWInfo Secure, the file that sets your region and serial number. It is impossible to recreate due to signing, and without it you will be permanently forced to use unlaunch.

- Find HWINFO_S.dat

Check if HWINFO_S.dat exists in TWL_MAIN (requires mounting). If deleted, this function will check commonly used offsets (no mount). This is the quickest search and usually finds HWINFO_S.dat.

- Find HWINFO_S.dat (deep)

Search the entire TWL_MAIN (no mount) byte by byte until HWINFO_S.dat is found. This is a last resort option and will take a very long time to complete.

- Init HWINFO_N.dat

Create a new HWINFO_N.dat.

- Init HWINFO_S.dat

Create a new HWINFO_S.dat in TWL_MAIN by running the Find HWINFO_S.dat function.

- Init cert.sys

Create a new certificate chain.

- Init TWLFontTable

Install the font files required by the firmware. This is region specific, so it will depend on Init HWINFO_S.dat having recovered and saved a HWINFO_S.dat (or it will use HWINFO_S.dat if already there). If no HWINFO_S.dat exists, the region will default to USA and the respective TWLFontData will be installed.

Chip Info Menu

These functions show info on the DSi's chips.

- CID Info

Displays the NAND ID, along with a breakdown of what it means (manufacturer ID, date, type, etc).

- ConsoleID Info

Displays the CPU ID, and a guesstimate of the manufacturing date.