Corrupted Cartridge Fixer Release

[kuro0628neko]

Right now I am running your script on my Japanese copy of SSB and even if it doesn't totally fix the issue I'm having – game crashes right after the Nintendo 3DS loading screen – I am incredibly grateful for your work. I will never understand coding in any way, shape, or form, but you add true value to the community!

 

[Peyvol]

Hi, wanted to give an update. I bought a new FE Echoes cartridge. Sadly it was also dead, but this time I managed to fix it. As the proccess has been curious, I wanted to document it here, for anyone having a similar situation.

First I tried the default script of 1.2 ver. (20 refreshes) several times, getting these results:

1st try: 144.000 refreshes.
2nd try: 44.000 refreshes.
3rd try: 15.000 refreshes.
4th try: 8.115 refreshes.

The 5th try gave me an extremely low number of refresh, so I tried to verify the cartridge and succeded!. I booted the game and everything worked perfectly. After that I went to verify it (just to make sure everything was ok), and to my surprise the proccess failed, so I ended up running the fixer again getting 14.000 refreshes.

I then tried the SELECT version (1 time) and the 100 refresh version several times, getting these results:

1st try: 813.000 refreshes.
2nd try: 749.000 refreshes.
3rd try: 770.000 refreshes.

The number of refresh kept increasing again, and when trying the 20 refresh version, there were some chunks stuck (with around 7800 refresh, as similar to my original cartridge) so I was about to quit. But finally, after running one to two more times the 100 rf. version, there where no more stuck chunks. I verified several times, booted up the game and verified again, and now there were 0 issues!!

I don't know the reason why some trys had more refreshes than previous ones, or how it went from having several chunks stuck to 0 in one run of the fixer, but it is what it is, cartridge fixed! so thank you again skawo!!

 

[RayquazaMaster]

Hi there, using this on a copy of Pokemon Alpha Sapphire that gave me the "save data corrupted" message on startup. I've been through this a couple times now and both fixing and verification have succeeded each time, but I still have had the same issue on starting up the game. Going to keep trying since you said it may take several run-throughs, and I'll edit this if I've got any updates on the progress. Hoping that it does ultimately work, it's entirely possible I just haven't run through it enough quite yet.

 

[Kwyjor]

Hi there, using this on a copy of Pokemon Alpha Sapphire that gave me the "save data corrupted" message on startup. I've been through this a couple times now and both fixing and verification have succeeded each time, but I still have had the same issue on starting up the game. Going to keep trying since you said it may take several run-throughs, and I'll edit this if I've got any updates on the progress. Hoping that it does ultimately work, it's entirely possible I just haven't run through it enough quite yet.

Can you export your save data with Checkpoint? Can PKSM or pkhex still make sense of the data?

 

[skawo]

This tool does not touch the Save Data. The Save Data is located on a separate chip to the game itself.
If verifying the game succeeds then there's nothing more this can fix.

 

[RayquazaMaster]

Can you export your save data with Checkpoint? Can PKSM or pkhex still make sense of the data?

PKSM and PKHeX can't read the data, I haven't tried Checkpoint yet but JKSM exports as it should so I would expect Checkpoint to be able to do so as well.

This tool does not touch the Save Data. The Save Data is located on a separate chip to the game itself.
If verifying the game succeeds then there's nothing more this can fix.

So it wouldn't have any chance at solving corrupted save data? Is there a similar tool that does?

 

[skawo]

I'm afraid not :c

 

[RayquazaMaster]

I'm afraid not :c

Well, I tried. I have a backup on a previous SD card that I copied onto a new one due to my computer not reading the tips on it anymore, my 3DS can still read the old SD card just fine so I think I probably should be able to use that backup. Really glad I didn't throw out the old SD card when I got the new one. In any case if I do end up with a game corruption rather than save data corruption this tool should be handy! Thanks!

 

[skawo]

I do have to ask, though: can the save not be wiped and the cart be used that way?

 

[Kwyjor]

PKSM and PKHeX can't read the data

In that case you should try to find a way of fixing the data. I found one utility for the particular purpose of restoring corrupted ORAS saves once, but I haven't been able to find it again.

 

[redunka]

The Save Data is located on a separate chip to the game itself.

While probably not that relevant here, but I'd still like to point out that Alpha Sapphire is a card2 game.
That type does store the save data on the same chip as the game itself, unlike card1 that uses separate chip.
IIRC, GodMode9 has limited support for card2 currently, e.g. can read saves, but can't write them (also, the save area will be left empty when dumping such cart into a .3ds, but that's on purpose).

 

[skawo]

Oh. I did not know that.
Well, in that case, you can try selecting the .sav and then "Calculate SHA-1" while holding SELECT.
Try that a few times and see if the calculated hash changes?

 

[Pokepicker]

Would it be an idea to sit down and run this on every cartridge I might have? Despite not having checked if they work or not? Or should I only run this on a verified faulty cartridge?

 

[ghjfdtg]

Before you run this GodMode9 fork you can simply launch GodMode9 the guide told you to install and then run a verification pass on your games. If any of them fails you can try the fixer.

 

[Not_a_Virus]

I ran the program like 6 times and it worked!!! You saved my copy of Fire Emblem Fates. Tysm for doing the lords work!!!!

 

[k7ra]

Dawn, my FE:E work.
But after message corruption fix success I try verify it and it's instant say failed...

 

[skawo]

Try running it a few times more. The "corruption fix success" only means the process ran through all the data and not necessarily that the data was fixed.

 

[k7ra]

Try running it a few times more. The "corruption fix success" only means the process ran through all the data and not necessarily that the data was fixed.

Yeap, finally fixed. Refresh count changed each time to higher/lower.
Well, after 3rd time it's start to verify, but fails after some time.
After 4 time it's fails to verify again in instant.
After 6, it's start verify again and fails after some time.
Process took me 9 times to get a verify success!
Checked 2 times, success!
TY, guess from my 42 games only this one goes bad.
Glad it's worked

 

[Gu_Towers]

Thanks to your tool, my original problem was solved (cartridge game wouldn't boot, arm11 core 1 error), however the tool still points out two bad blocks (repeatedly tried to run the tool, apparently they won't get fixed). The "Verify" tool tool of Godmode9 fails as soon as it starts. Any tips there? And thanks for all your efforts!

 

[skawo]

Well, sadly, if the blocks are stubbornly staying unfixed, then they're probably too far gone.
You can just hope that they're part of something unimportant, like the digital manual, or something.