GodMode9 Usage

For support in English, ask for help at Nintendo Homebrew on Discord.
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For information on dumping cartridge or SD card content, see Dumping Titles and Game Cartridges.

For support (in English) with GodMode9, as well as help with scripting and to get updates and info, join GodMode9 on Discord.

Required Reading

GodMode9 is a full access file browser for the Nintendo 3DS console, giving you access to your SD card, the FAT partitions inside your SysNAND and EmuNAND, and basically anything else. Among other functionality, you can copy, delete, rename files, and create folders.

Note that if you have any payload files other than GodMode9.firm in the /luma/payloads/ folder on your SD card, holding (Start) on boot will display a “chainloader menu” where you will have to use the D-Pad and the (A) button to select “GodMode9” for these instructions.

GodMode9 is powerful software that has the capability to modify essentially anything on your console. Though many of these modifications are locked behind a permissions system, and it is impossible to accidentally perform dangerous actions without deliberately unlocking permissions, you should still follow instructions carefully and keep backups just in case.

Updating GodMode9

Some of the instructions below are only applicable to the latest version of GodMode9, and as such you should follow this section to update your copy before continuing. Overwrite any existing files.

What You Need

  • The latest release of GodMode9 (the GodMode9 .zip file)

Instructions

  1. Power off your console
  2. Insert your SD card into your computer
  3. Copy GodMode9.firm from the GodMode9 .zip to the /luma/payloads/ folder on your SD card
  4. Copy the gm9 folder from the GodMode9 .zip to the root of your SD card
  5. Reinsert your SD card into your console

GodMode9 is now up to date.

Creating a NAND Backup

  1. Press and hold (Start), and while holding (Start), power on your console. This will launch GodMode9
  2. Press (Home) to bring up the action menu
  3. Select “Scripts…”
  4. Select “GM9Megascript”
  5. Select “Backup Options”
  6. Select “SysNAND Backup”
  7. Press (A) to confirm
  8. Press (A) to continue
  9. Press (B) to return to the main menu
  10. Select “Exit”
  11. Press (A) to relock write permissions if prompted
  12. Navigate to [S:] SYSNAND VIRTUAL
  13. Press (A) on essential.exefs to select it
  14. Select “Copy to 0:/gm9/out”
    • If you see “Destination already exists”, press (A) on “Overwrite file(s)”
  15. Press (A) to continue
  16. Hold (R) and press (Start) at the same time to power off your console
  17. Insert your SD card into your computer
  18. Copy <date>_<serialnumber>_sysnand_##.bin, <date>_<serialnumber>_sysnand_##.bin.sha, and essential.exefs from the /gm9/out/ folder on your SD card to a safe location on your computer
    • Copy these backups to multiple locations (such as online file storage, an external hard drive, etc.)
    • These backups will save you from a brick and/or help you recover files from the NAND image if anything goes wrong in the future
  19. Delete <date>_<serialnumber>_sysnand_##.bin and <date>_<serialnumber>_sysnand_##.bin.sha from the /gm9/out/ folder on your SD card after copying it
    • The other backup files are negligible in size and may be kept on your SD card for ease of access
  20. Reinsert your SD card into your console

Your NAND backup has been successfully created.

Restoring a NAND Backup

  1. Power off your console
  2. Insert your SD card into your computer
  3. Copy <date>_<serialnumber>_sysnand_##.bin from your computer to the /gm9/out/ folder on your SD card
  4. Reinsert your SD card into your console
  5. Press and hold (Start), and while holding (Start), power on your console. This will launch GodMode9
  6. Press (Home) to bring up the action menu
  7. Select “Scripts…”
  8. Select “GM9Megascript”
  9. Select “Restore Options”
  10. Select “SysNAND Restore (safe)”
  11. Select your NAND backup
  12. Press (A) to unlock SysNAND (lvl3) writing, then input the key combo given
    • This will not overwrite your boot9strap installation
    • This process will take some time
  13. Press (A) to continue
  14. Press (B) to return to the main menu
  15. Select “Exit”
  16. Press (A) to relock write permissions if prompted

Your NAND backup has been successfully restored. You can now delete <date>_<serialnumber>_sysnand_###.bin from your SD card.

Injecting any .CIA app into Health & Safety

Note that it is not possible to inject files into Health & Safety that are larger than it (including games and other large applications)

  1. Press and hold (Start), and while holding (Start), power on your console. This will launch GodMode9
  2. Navigate to [0:] SDCARD -> cias
  3. Press (A) on your .cia to select it
  4. Select “CIA image options…”
  5. Select “Mount image to drive”
  6. Press (A) on the .app file
  7. Select “NCCH image options”
  8. Select “Inject to H&S”
  9. Press (A) to unlock SysNAND (lvl1) writing, then input the key combo given
  10. Press (A) to continue
  11. Press (A) to relock write permissions if prompted

Your desired application has now been injected into Health & Safety.

Restoring Health & Safety after injecting a .CIA app

This will only work if the Health & Safety injection was performed by GodMode9 (not Decrypt9 or Hourglass9).

  1. Press and hold (Start), and while holding (Start), power on your console. This will launch GodMode9
  2. Press (Home) to bring up the action menu
  3. Select “More…”
  4. Select “Restore H&S”
  5. Press (A) to unlock SysNAND (lvl1) writing, then input the key combo given
  6. Press (A) to relock write permissions if prompted

Health & Safety has been reverted to normal.

Format an SD card

Note that this will erase the contents of your SD card!

  1. Press and hold (Start), and while holding (Start), power on your console. This will launch GodMode9
  2. Press (Right Shoulder) + (B) to unmount the current SD card and insert the one you want to format
    • If GodMode9 shows an initialization error when inserting the SD Card to be formatted, it can safely be dismissed
  3. Press (Home) to bring up the action menu
  4. Select “More…”
  5. Select “SD format menu”
  6. Select “No EmuNAND”
  7. Select “Auto”
  8. Press (A) to accept the label GM9SD
    • Optionally, you may input a custom name for the SD card
  9. When prompted, input the key combo given to confirm

Your SD card has successfully been formatted for use with the console.

Removing an NNID without formatting your console

This process will only log you out of your NNID. You will still not be able to use the NNID on another console, as the NNID remains linked to the console.

  1. Press and hold (Start), and while holding (Start), power on your console. This will launch GodMode9
  2. Press (Home) to bring up the action menu
  3. Select “Scripts…”
  4. Select “GM9Megascript”
  5. Select “Scripts from Plailect’s Guide”
  6. Select “Remove NNID”
  7. Press (A) to continue
  8. Press (A) to unlock SysNAND (lvl1) writing, then input the key combo given
  9. Press (A) to continue
  10. Press (B) to return to the main menu
  11. Select “Exit”
  12. Press (A) to relock write permissions if prompted
  13. Press (Start) to reboot your console

You have now been logged out of your NNID.