Dumping HGSS US saves

[Dialga.The.Master.Of.Time]

Found this on GBAtemp....

It works but requires modifying your card

I don't know if anyone else has solved this yet, I've just seen lots of discussion asking how. The retail game cartridge for SoulSilver (and presumably HeartGold) are built differently from other cartridges, to accomodate the IR communication. Consequently the normal methods for extracting the save files don't work. I.e. the wifi and 3in1 backup tools cant find / identify the save, and the USB hardware NDS Backup tool will tell you it's found the save (but identify the size incorrectly) then it will only copy out 1MB of nulls.

I've taken apart my SoulSilver cartrdige to map out how it's set up. In normal cartridges, edge-connector pin 6 is the /CS signal for the EEPROM. See here for details: http://files.darkfader.net/ds/files/cartridge.txt Toggling that line low gives you access to the EEPROM chip. In the SoulSilver cartridge though, pin 6 doesn't go to the EEPROM but instead it goes to the small MCU. My assumption is that the game is coded so that the /CS EEPROM signal is used to toggle both the eeprom and the IR device with that MCU handling the logic.

Normal backup tools can't handle this, they don't know how these cartridges access the save data. However, my solution is very simple albeit requiring hardware hacking.

All I had to do was identify which pin on the EEPROM chip was /CS (it's pin four). Then I soldered a jumper wire from the edge connector pin six to the EEPROM pin four:

Once this was done, I was able to use the NDS Backup Tool and this time it successfully recognized the save as 4Mbit, and copied out properly. I was then able to use that .sav file on my flashcart (Acekard 2i with AKAIO 1.6rc). Furthermore, I was able to take the save file back and write it back out onto the retail cartridge, using this same setup.

Once the save was written back out to the retail cartridge, I simply removed the jumper wire and re-assembled the cartridge. I was then able to continue the game on the retail cartridge & use the pokewalker etc.

If one wanted to make this more elegant, it'd require soldering a SMT microswitch next to the IR transceiver, cut a hole in the top of the cart, then use the switch to control the /CS EEPROM line so you could switch it on or off without having to take things apart and resolder every time you wanted to read/write the save data... too much work for me I think.

Anyhow, as I said, I don't know if anyone else has solved the problem but figured I'd share my results. For me, the important thing is being able to backup my game save data - I'm continuing to use the retail cart so I can play with the pokewalker.

Cheers!

-Atashi

[Guest]

Why not just wait until newer dumping tools are made?

[Chancellor Cole]

It's easier to use a NDS Adaptor Plus than to break apart your game (kidding about the breaking part, it's not hard to take apart DS carts without breaking them if you have something like a thumb tack).

[Poryhack]

It's easier to use a NDS Adaptor Plus than to break apart your game (kidding about the breaking part, it's not hard to take apart DS carts without breaking them if you have something like a thumb tack).

I've done it with a thumbnail. =P

[ZMaster]

Seems so complicated. We still require the NDS Adaptor, no?

[Poryhack]

No any regular backup program works if you use thee solder trick.

[Herol]

Give it time. I think ARDSi will have a firmware update that can bypass the lock on the cart nintendo put. There is no need to do this. For now, make a pokemon for Platinum, then trade it to HG/SS or get a friend to help you over wifi.

[Guest]

Give it time. I think ARDSi will have a firmware update that can bypass the lock on the cart nintendo put. There is no need to do this. For now, make a pokemon for Platinum, then trade it to HG/SS or get a friend to help you over wifi.

There's no "lock."

The cart is simply made differently, so the save data can't be found.

[mewmart]

Let's just hope that Rudolph will have updates for his backup tool, meanwhile I think I'm just going to create Pokes in Platinum and port them over to my SS. No risk of breaking apart my cartridge.

[jawsisra]

I email codejunkie and they told me they are workonjg on this but that an Update for the DSI AR might not works so they are also working on making a New DSi AR if they have to

[Chancellor Cole]

I've done it with a thumbnail. =P

WHAT?! How did you do that?

[Dually]

I have the ARDSi and I have decided I will jsut wait to see if it gets updated. If not Im screwed. I have both versions, so i could try this, but im still unsure.

[Chancellor Cole]

WHAT?! How did you do that?

Nevermind, I figured it out.

[Dually]

Anyone know if the ARDSi will be updated? It has the potential to be.

[Dually]

Does the cart pop back on smoothly?

[Poryhack]

Does the cart pop back on smoothly?

If you mean can you just "snap" it back together, no. The two pieces are sealed by glue which must be broken to open the game, and the way its designed there's nothing else to keep the pieces from falling apart. If you have a steady hand and some superglue with a small nozzle you can get it back together good as new.

[Dually]

Oh, well I don't even know how to solder or where to connect it to. So I guess Im waiting.

[arhacker]

Interesting, does anyone have a schematic of that cart and a normal ds cart so I can compare them?

[Poryhack]

Courtesy of Nintendo.