Thinking of getting a dual NAND console. Some questions

[Viper187]

I'm interested in one of those dual nand consoles. I've been wanting to get one for ages, and I keep putting it off. I figure I should probably do it while people are still working on these.




1. Does flashing the DVD drive bypass region lock while using the safe/legit NAND? I have 850+ retail discs and a few are from other regions.


2. Are all RGH NANDs fully compatible with the 360 SDK for debugging etc? Dev Kernel? I think the last guide I looked at mentioned RGLoader being needed for that. What's normally on the ones people sell here?


3. Is there an easy way to get the digital games/DLC I own working on the RGH without doing a license transfer? Is there an easy way to backup one's own digital games and bypass their DRM?


4. Can you recommend a homebrew dashboard or two? Is there a default for RGH? I strictly play/mod games and homebrew. My main concern is keeping the RGH from attempting to connect to XBL in any way but at the same time allowing it to connect to my PC and other consoles for system link play and modding.


5. How does this thing (the safe NAND part) handle firmware updates being pushed? Any issues there? I know 360 rarely gets updated now, but it still does now and then. I'm also curious how switching between the two NANDs works. I didn't see it mentioned.


p.s. In case you're wondering, I'm not some hack noob. Just new to modded Xboxes. I've been hex editing and cheat searching since the N64 Gameshark. I even got into the assembly (MIPS) and rather enjoyed it. PowerPC looks very similar in context and was easy enough to pickup. I would've been content with hex editing saves if anyone had been willing to properly document all the damn different checksums every game uses instead of releasing half assed editors that later turn into dead links and not sharing the checksum info with anyone. I was actually one of the people involved with Project Artemis for PS2. Someone wrote a small library to dump the RAM across the network and I got it working with a PS2 specific version of my own cheat searching app. If I could find documentation on how things like Peek Poker etc access the 360, I might be tempted to do the same for it depending on how useful the existing tools are to me.

 

[decerent]

I'm interested in one of those dual nand consoles. I've been wanting to get one for ages, and I keep putting it off. I figure I should probably do it while people are still working on these.




1. Does flashing the DVD drive bypass region lock while using the safe/legit NAND? I have 850+ retail discs and a few are from other regions.


2. Are all RGH NANDs fully compatible with the 360 SDK for debugging etc? Dev Kernel? I think the last guide I looked at mentioned RGLoader being needed for that. What's normally on the ones people sell here?


3. Is there an easy way to get the digital games/DLC I own working on the RGH without doing a license transfer? Is there an easy way to backup one's own digital games and bypass their DRM?


4. Can you recommend a homebrew dashboard or two? Is there a default for RGH? I strictly play/mod games and homebrew. My main concern is keeping the RGH from attempting to connect to XBL in any way but at the same time allowing it to connect to my PC and other consoles for system link play and modding.


5. How does this thing (the safe NAND part) handle firmware updates being pushed? Any issues there? I know 360 rarely gets updated now, but it still does now and then. I'm also curious how switching between the two NANDs works. I didn't see it mentioned.


p.s. In case you're wondering, I'm not some hack noob. Just new to modded Xboxes. I've been hex editing and cheat searching since the N64 Gameshark. I even got into the assembly (MIPS) and rather enjoyed it. PowerPC looks very similar in context and was easy enough to pickup. I would've been content with hex editing saves if anyone had been willing to properly document all the damn different checksums every game uses instead of releasing half assed editors that later turn into dead links and not sharing the checksum info with anyone. I was actually one of the people involved with Project Artemis for PS2. Someone wrote a small library to dump the RAM across the network and I got it working with a PS2 specific version of my own cheat searching app. If I could find documentation on how things like Peek Poker etc access the 360, I might be tempted to do the same for it depending on how useful the existing tools are to me.

Idk about the other things but I'm pretty sue that all rgh'd consoles work with the xbox 360 sdk, ive owned a lot of different ones and they all work (eg. trinitys,coronas, falcons and jaspers)

 

[gavin_darkglide]

Here is the quick answers to all of your questions:
1. No. It will only allow you to play burnt discs. The region is set in the SMC config, so you can either RGH/JTAG and spoof the game region with dashlaunch, or you can change it in the SMC config.

2. Freeboot nand images are just stock images with checks patched out, so not really, but some stuff can be done using the XBDM plugin. RGLoader is a much better option if you plan on developing stuff, and want to set breakpoints, and use tools like XBWatson for debugging. Most cotsoles are modded for end users and not developers, so I would say 99% of the people here are installing Freeboot(Xebuild) images. I am sure any one of them will flash an RGLoader nand if you ask them to, as it is basically the same process, minus the stuff that has to go on the HDD.

3.Yes, it is fairly simple, enable licence patch in dashlaunch, and that should fix 90% of DLC. The rest either need to be patched with XM360, or manually with a Hex Editor. As for the DRM on a game, Freeboot patches out all checks for this, so it is irrelevant.

4. XBL blocking is done with dashlaunch, as has nothing to do with the dash you choose. If I had to suggest one though, it would be Aurora. Being the only dash that is still in development, and being more stable with larger libraries than FSD3. The other option for a custom dash is XexMenu, but it is very basic. If you want to be extra safe, build your nand with an already banned KV(just look on youtube for XBL stealth server with free KV(It will be banned before you download it), then even if it does connect to xbox live, xbox live will see the console as already banned, and you will just get an annoying message about it. If you do this, make sure to check if the KV uses FCRT or not. If your console needs FCRT which j-runner will tell you in the kv info tab, you will need a banned KV that also needs FCRT(Or you could use the nofcrt xebuild patch, but I havnt used that, so I dont know if it works in this use case). You could also disable xbox live in the family settings, but there is no guarantee that this will be 100% safe, just like there is no guarantee with live block in dashlaunch, as all it does is spoofs the xbl domains to localhost, but some games may try to reach out to an actual IP address, vs DNS name.

5. Switching between nands basically grounds CE on the main nand so it isnt enabled, and applies 3.3v to CE on the second nand so it is enabled, and then sends an SMC reset signal to the southbridge. As far as updates go, you update the retail side from xbox live, like you always do, then to update the freeboot side, you need to build a new image with the latest kernel version. Most updates these days are related to live service, and will not effect your games, so really updating the Freeboot side is up to the end user, as with the checks patched out, the console doesnt care. They have the XEbuild Updserv option that makes it really easy to do, which requires only a network connection, and the right software running on your xbox(Dashlaunch installer w/updserv enabled) and Xebuild on the PC. J-Runner, AutoGG, Xebuild GUI, etc all use XEbuild to create images, and should all support this feature, so it is really a matter of choosing the kernel you want and hitting the update button.

 

[Viper187]

Ok, thanks for the info. I actually really like breakpoints, btw. Been hacking with them since N64. I'm not looking forward to setting up the SDK on Visual Studio though. I was never a fan of VS. Oh, any idea what version of Visual Studio is needed to be compatible with the SDK? The only copy of the SDK I've been able to find is 21256.3.

 

[gavin_darkglide]

It depends on what version of the sdk you find. Really old versions run with visual studio 2005, but the most current one I have runs on Visual Studio 2010 or 2012. Most of the ones that are easily found on the internet run on 2010. So a good starting point is to get Visual Studio 2010. While RGLoader will allow you to develop and set breakpoints, it is a devkit nand, so it will not play a retail signed XEX, and also does not work with dashlaunch. I would only go that route if you want to use your RGH for actually playing games. There is a non TX tripple nand chip that was available called the t.r.i.d.e.n.t(without the periods), that would allow you to install freeboot, rgloader, and keep the stock nand. Might be worth looking into if you want to develop, and do standard RGH stuff on the same system.

 

[Viper187]

It depends on what version of the sdk you find. Really old versions run with visual studio 2005, but the most current one I have runs on Visual Studio 2010 or 2012. Most of the ones that are easily found on the internet run on 2010. So a good starting point is to get Visual Studio 2010. While RGLoader will allow you to develop and set breakpoints, it is a devkit nand, so it will not play a retail signed XEX, and also does not work with dashlaunch. I would only go that route if you want to use your RGH for actually playing games. There is a non TX tripple nand chip that was available called the t.r.i.d.e.n.t(without the periods), that would allow you to install freeboot, rgloader, and keep the stock nand. Might be worth looking into if you want to develop, and do standard RGH stuff on the same system.

WTF!? Seriously!? RGLoader won't run retail discs!? This is ridiculous. I want to do breakpoints and hack my sh*t. Wait. Isn't there some app to rip the games to HDD and play them without the disc? Is the XEX still considered signed at that point? Obviously people are making trainers with breakpoints on retail games somehow. Also, can you confirm whether or not system link is possible while running RGLoader?

 

[gavin_darkglide]

WTF!? Seriously!? RGLoader won't run retail discs!? This is ridiculous. I want to do breakpoints and hack my sh*t. Wait. Isn't there some app to rip the games to HDD and play them without the disc? Is the XEX still considered signed at that point? Obviously people are making trainers with breakpoints on retail games somehow. Also, can you confirm whether or not system link is possible while running RGLoader?

XEX is the executable format for the xbox, so when ripping games, it just copies the files to the hdd, but does not modify them. The signature in the XEX is written based upon build type when compiling, there are 3 or 4 of them. So, yes the xex is still signed at that point. When people create trainers they are using the xbdm plugin that allows them to do some devkit stuff on a retail console. If you want to learn more about the trainer stuff, talk to felida over at RMS, as he is one of the only trainer devs that I know is still fairly active in the scene. RMS also has the required files for creating Aurora based trainers, since he posted them there after the XYZMods site went down. I dont use, or develop trainers, as I think it ruins the game play, so I dont know much about the coding of it, other than it sets hooks on memory addresses, and will force a value to said memory address. Other than that, I havnt looked into all that much, or attempted to do it, since it was never that important to me, and if I wanted trainers, there are already a ton of them. The biggest problem that is ran into is that you have to remake every trainer, when ever a new TU for a game comes out, as that will change the memory addresses that are used in most cases. Systemlink is possible with RGLoader, but doesnt help much if you cant play a retail signed game, and the link service will not work with RGLoader, as the Freestyle Plugin doesnt load with RGLoader. It is like I said before, RGLoader is only useful if you want to develop your own games, dashboards, or emulators on an RGH. For everything else, including trainer development, Freeboot is the way to go.

 

[Viper187]

XEX is the executable format for the xbox, so when ripping games, it just copies the files to the hdd, but does not modify them. The signature in the XEX is written based upon build type when compiling, there are 3 or 4 of them. So, yes the xex is still signed at that point. When people create trainers they are using the xbdm plugin that allows them to do some devkit stuff on a retail console. If you want to learn more about the trainer stuff, talk to felida over at RMS, as he is one of the only trainer devs that I know is still fairly active in the scene. RMS also has the required files for creating Aurora based trainers, since he posted them there after the XYZMods site went down. I dont use, or develop trainers, as I think it ruins the game play, so I dont know much about the coding of it, other than it sets hooks on memory addresses, and will force a value to said memory address. Other than that, I havnt looked into all that much, or attempted to do it, since it was never that important to me, and if I wanted trainers, there are already a ton of them. The biggest problem that is ran into is that you have to remake every trainer, when ever a new TU for a game comes out, as that will change the memory addresses that are used in most cases. Systemlink is possible with RGLoader, but doesnt help much if you cant play a retail signed game, and the link service will not work with RGLoader, as the Freestyle Plugin doesnt load with RGLoader. It is like I said before, RGLoader is only useful if you want to develop your own games, dashboards, or emulators on an RGH. For everything else, including trainer development, Freeboot is the way to go.

Yes, but can't I just take a xex from the HDD and mod it with xextool or whatever to set it as dev/etc to make it run with RGLoader? From what I understand, the only way to do breakpoints is with RGLoader. I like to do proper hacks without limitation. Dumping memory etc is also much faster with RGLoader than XBDM according to Team Akatsuki's trainer guide. Hard to believe there's no easier workaround yet.

p.s. I read something about possible issues with retail profiles on RGLoader. Has that been worked out in later versions? I don't want to take th emodded console online, but loading my actual profile to screw with some things a game stores to gpd is a possibility. I suppose I can just backup my profile before and after and pull the specific GPD from the copy I'm running in the hack box...maybe.