The MIG Switch Thread

[choconado]

Basically so far the end answer is it seems it's mostly useless if you don't have a donor cert file for your personal use to amend to your downloads, and the safest way to do that is to have the dumper and grab it off of one of the carts you physically own rather than get one from someone else who you can't guarantee the safety of. Imma wait the long game, and if by the end of the year there hasn't been any crackdown on people using their own homemade donors, I'll probably get one, assuming a better swap method doesn't appear by then. I'll probably also get one of those third party docks with the remote controlled game swapper thingie too just to avoid the tedium of physically ejecting the cart repeatedly, as they've been proven to work fine with the cart.

 

[linuxares]

Basically so far the end answer is it seems it's mostly useless if you don't have a donor cert file for your personal use to amend to your downloads, and the safest way to do that is to have the dumper and grab it off of one of the carts you physically own rather than get one from someone else who you can't guarantee the safety of. Imma wait the long game, and if by the end of the year there hasn't been any crackdown on people using their own homemade donors, I'll probably get one, assuming a better swap method doesn't appear by then. I'll probably also get one of those third party docks with the remote controlled game swapper thingie too just to avoid the tedium of physically ejecting the cart repeatedly, as they've been proven to work fine with the cart.

You need 2 files from each game to work.
The 2 others are possible to get from any other game.

 

[RAD047]

I guess I just don’t understand that expectation. I feel like it’s been pretty clear since the initial announcement that this thing would require a tiny bit of work

The initial announcement is irrelevant. Every thing like this comes with "this isn't for piracy blah blah blah" but that's usually what most people use flashcarts for.

Therefore, many people expected modders to come up with a way for it to work like those carts for other systems. It's a perfectly reasonable expectation. Not sure what's so hard to understand about that.

Sadly, Nintendo have done an excellent job of minimising piracy with the switch. Hats off to them. I've already listed my Mig switch on eBay. Hopefully someone buys it lol

 

[choconado]

You need 2 files from each game to work.
The 2 others are possible to get from any other game.

Yeah I get that. I'm just under the impression that the cert file is likely what ninty is set up to check for with roms. And as initial tests are giving the appearance that the cert doesn't have to actually match the game inside the data, (not to mention both the oft-talked about used/rental market problem the mig presents and just how mind-boggling many individual cartridges there are from so many companies around the world each with their own unique cert,) it stands to logic that the company is only checking to make sure the certs aren't being used by multiple users at the same time. Which then means what I said about using your own donor cert instead of including them in the file packages is the smart and safe utilization of the cart.

 

[pharrowking]

So basically this thing is totally useless for piracy unless people start uploading their complete dumps to the internet?

Lol.

now that i think of it. its kind of a good thing that people cannot modify the xci. less likely chance of someone uploading a switch bricker built in to a switch dump.

 

[TheStonedModder]

now that i think of it. its kind of a good thing that people cannot modify the xci. less likely chance of someone uploading a switch bricker built in to a switch dump.

Modified XCIs aren’t confirmed to not work or not. Not many have a MIG yet. I’ve been trying but can’t figure out the last few steps to get everything back into the XCI format

 

[jnl1]

As I said, in my opinion you could use it for piracy just now.
All you need is
game123.xci + game123 (Certificate).bin + game123 (Initial Data).bin
Everything is available somewhere in the internet (at least I have seen approx. 130 certificate and initial data bin files, XCIs are available anyway).

 

[cityslicker]

Am I correct in thinking that currently we don’t have any knowledge of someone being banned for using a certificate that doesn’t match the game? Have we seen any bans from having two of the same certificates online at the same time?

if we haven’t seen any bans for either case above yet can some smart people speculate of what is more likely to lead to bans (certs that don’t match their game or two matching games and certs online at the same time)?

 

[bobfacemoo]

Hi, can someone please clarify things for me. I got a MIG and need help with it.

From what I understand:
Only XCI can be played. (I can source these.)
For the game to work, 2 files are needed: InitialData and Certificate

IntialData:
This is unique to the GAME and not the CART. Does this mean any InitialData file for that game would be fine? If I have access to an atmosphere switch (not directly but I know people who have them), can this be dumped through atmosphere from an NSP?

Certificate:
This is unique to both the GAME and the CART. This can have a "donor" used - a cert that is not for that game. I am considering buying the cheapest switch cart, dumping these using an aforementioned ^ modded switch, and getting rid of the cart I used (as more than 1 person using it will likely lead to ban etc).

I currently have the setup required on the MIG SD card:
Folder.xci/
-game.xci
-game (initial data).bin
-game (certificate).bin

I get the green light on the MIG when plugging in which means ROM has been found, however it does not load and I get "Game cart cannot be read" error on the switch popup. Likely because the initialdata.bin does not match the game I am trying to load.

TL;DR:
Can InitialData.bin be dumped from an installed NSP if on an atmosphere switch and will that work with an XCI on MIG setup?

 

[TheStonedModder]

Hi, can someone please clarify things for me. I got a MIG and need help with it.

From what I understand:
Only XCI can be played. (I can source these.)
For the game to work, 2 files are needed: InitialData and Certificate

IntialData:
This is unique to the GAME and not the CART. Does this mean any InitialData file for that game would be fine? If I have access to an atmosphere switch (not directly but I know people who have them), can this be dumped through atmosphere from an NSP?

Certificate:
This is unique to both the GAME and the CART. This can have a "donor" used - a cert that is not for that game. I am considering buying the cheapest switch cart, dumping these using an aforementioned ^ modded switch, and getting rid of the cart I used (as more than 1 person using it will likely lead to ban etc).

I currently have the setup required on the MIG SD card:
Folder.xci/
-game.xci
-game (initial data).bin
-game (certificate).bin

I get the green light on the MIG when plugging in which means ROM has been found, however it does not load and I get "Game cart cannot be read" error on the switch popup. Likely because the initialdata.bin does not match the game I am trying to load.

TL;DR:
Can InitialData.bin be dumped from an installed NSP if on an atmosphere switch and will that work with an XCI on MIG setup?

You can use NSPs at all

Initial data files are paired to the dumped XCI from your cartridge

 

[ghjfdtg]

Modified XCIs aren’t confirmed to not work or not. Not many have a MIG yet. I’ve been trying but can’t figure out the last few steps to get everything back into the XCI format

That's not true. If you modify them in any way you break the signature and unmodified Switches will reject the game. It simply doesn't work. I have been trying to tell people it will not work but no one listens.

https://switchbrew.org/wiki/XCI#CardHeader

 

[TheStonedModder]

That's not true. If you modify them in any way you break the signature and unmodified Switches will reject the game. It simply doesn't work. I have been trying to tell people it will not work but no one listens.

https://switchbrew.org/wiki/XCI#CardHeader

I mean I’ve mentioned trying to do this exact thing in this thread several times and even posted screenshots of my attempts at rebuilding and this is the first I’m seeing you post about it not working

Good to know that I’ve been wasting time tho

 

[ghjfdtg]

I mentioned it in other threads where the Mig was discussed. The questions if you can run nsp or modify games or use the Mig to exploit the Switch keep popping up. The Mig is literally a card to play perfect 1:1 dumps only (on unmodified Switches). Maybe one day we will have the power to forge RSA signatures or Nintendo screws up and the private key(s) leaks but i don't see that coming any time soon.

 

[bobfacemoo]

You can use NSPs at all

Initial data files are paired to the dumped XCI from your cartridge

So if I understand this correctly:

InitialData are also unique to the cart that would be dumped? Is there a way to extract initial data bin from an XCI dump with an atmosphere switch that can be used with MIG?

I know NSPs do not work with MIG, I am just wondering if the necessary data/cert files can be extracted from an already dumped ROM using an already modded switch?

 

[TheStonedModder]

So if I understand this correctly:

InitialData are also unique to the cart that would be dumped? Is there a way to extract initial data bin from an XCI dump with an atmosphere switch that can be used with MIG?

I know NSPs do not work with MIG, I am just wondering if the necessary data/cert files can be extracted from an already dumped ROM using an already modded switch?

No there isn’t games need to be redumped along side their matching initial data file

 

[choconado]

Am I correct in thinking that currently we don’t have any knowledge of someone being banned for using a certificate that doesn’t match the game? Have we seen any bans from having two of the same certificates online at the same time?

if we haven’t seen any bans for either case above yet can some smart people speculate of what is more likely to lead to bans (certs that don’t match their game or two matching games and certs online at the same time)?

You are correct. from what I've seen it's just too new for any real data to start coming out, and nobody outside the company walls has any idea how the cert files are checked. We do know the games still run fine if the certs don't match however.

It is totally possible that they have software running on the online servers to read cert files and make sure they match the game being played, but it feels like with the sheer number of companies manufacturing physical switch games, not to mention how many cartridges of each title are out there, that the easier solution is to just scan for dupes being online simultaneously.

But I'm not even a programmer, I could be wrong about which is the simpler program to implement, and for all we know, they might be doing *both* out there when you connect. I feel like it's going to be months before we have anything close to an inkling on this one.

 

[sKoMo]

I'm reading this thread for the sake of knowledge. All i'm reading is how to play "game xy" etc etc.
Where's the problem?
Dump it by yourself or patiently wait for the community doing the job for you.
Even i, that i have literally zero interests in piracy, have found tons of playable games...

AN other thing can't understand.. A banned console is unable to play online, get online updates for games etc. It is not the same to have the console forever in airplane mode?

Where is the "plus" offered by a mig switch over a modchip? Where i live i can have my console modded for LESS money than a mig switch at the prices asked as today.

I'm looking for a solution for game preservation when Switch will reach the end of support. As today i think a modchip is a better solution, because i can easily reinstall even my eshop titles.

 

[Lumpofcoal]

Where is the "plus" offered by a mig switch over a modchip? Where i live i can have my console modded for LESS money than a mig switch at the prices asked as today.

I'm looking for a solution for game preservation when Switch will reach the end of support. As today i think a modchip is a better solution, because i can easily reinstall even my eshop titles.

IMO, there is more for those who do not wish to take the risk (eg. bad solder work) that inherently comes with a hardware mod. And ninty's warranty isn't going to cover it if there is a royal screw up. Cost of a mig is definitely far lower than the cost of an entire switch.

Depending on where one lives, there could also be no local shops/individuals providing such a service, let alone a competent one. Mailing a switch to another country isn't cheap either, never mind whether it actually works when we get it back.

 

[Blythe93]

Unlock Switch apparently can be pre-ordered now for $54.99 on their official website. Not much cheaper, if any at all, than a MIG Switch.
EDIT: They've also uploaded a video showing that it works on the latest 18.0.0 firmware.

 

[TheStonedModder]

Unlock Switch apparently can be pre-ordered now for $54.99 on their official website. Not much cheaper, if any at all, than a MIG Switch.
EDIT: They've also uploaded a video showing that it works on the latest 18.0.0 firmware.

There are no official distributors for that yet that’s all starting next week apparently

Or at least that’s what I was told when I asked to become one