Homebrew news: New tool allows anyone to downgrade Vita firmware

If you’ve ever wanted to go back to an older firmware on your PlayStation Vita, then your wishes have been granted. Renown Vita scene hacker TheFloW has released a brand new homebrew tool called Modoru that allows you to downgrade your firmware. This software can be used on any Vita running OFW 3.60-3.68, and allows for anyone above OFW 3.65 to downgrade and apply a permanent hack, Henkaku Enso, to their system. Those on 3.69 and above cannot use it at this time, but once an exploit is available for those firmwares, they will be able to.

In order to use Modoru, you must make sure your Vita has over 50% battery, and that all of your custom plugins have been disabled. This means you will not be able to use an SD2Vita to downgrade, and must have a memory card, or have free space on the handheld’s internal storage. Installation instructions are below. [source]

modoru 戻る

modoru means “to go back” in Japanese and is a downgrader for the PS Vita™.

Requirements

  • Your device must already run HENkaku/h-encore on firmwares 3.60-3.68 in order to use this software. Firmwares 3.69 and 3.70 can use this software once a new hack is released.
  • Your device’s battery has be at least at 50%.
  • All your plugins must be disabled, therefore you will not be able to launch the downgrader from a SD2VITA and hence, you must have a Memory Card (or Internal Storage).
  • If you have installed IMCUnlock by SKGleba, it is recommended to uninstall it first before attempting to downgrade.

Installation

  1. Download and install modoru.vpk using VitaShell.
  2. Obtain the PSP2UPDAT.PUP file of your desired firmware (make sure that this firmware is officially hackable) and place it at ux0:app/MODORU000/PSP2UPDAT.PUP (don’t install modoru.vpk afterwards, otherwise the update file will be removed).
  3. Disable all your plugins. Easiest way is renaming ux0:tai and ur0:tai to some other name.
  4. Reboot your device and relaunch HENkaku/h-encore.
  5. Launch the modoru application and follow the instructions on screen.
  6. Enjoy the installation and welcome to your favourite firmware.

FAQ

  • Q: Where can I find and download firmwares?
    A: Here is a nice collection by darthsternie: PS Vita Firmwares. Make sure you download the firmware from the Complete Official Firmwares section.
  • Q: There are 3 different PUP files in the archive, which one do I need?
    A: There are packages with (pre), (systemdata) and (full). You should choose the full one.
  • Q: Can I downgrade my 3.69/3.70 device using this tool?
    A: Yes, but not yet. You’ll need to wait until the next exploit chain is released.
  • Q: My factory firmware is higher than 3.65 and modoru doesn’t allow me to downgrade to 3.60/3.65.
    A: Unfortunately, there are some devices with factory firmware above 3.65. These cannot be downgraded (yet). This means no bootloader hack for you.
  • Q: Can I downgrade my device to 3.60/3.65 and then install ensō?
    A: Yes, that’s the main goal of this tool.
  • Q: Can I downgrade my testkit/devkit?
    A: It has not been tested yet, but you can very likely do it. You should even be able to go lower than firmware 1.692, which is officially inhibited.
  • Q: How low can I downgrade?
    A: You can go down to your factory firmware (this is highlighted in yellow within modoru).
  • Q: Can I use this tool to update or reinstall my firmware?
    A: Yes, you can downgrade, update or reinstall any firmware using this tool.
  • Q: Is there a chance of bricking?
    A: Not likely, since this application is using the official updater and only makes a few harmless patches to bypass some checks.

Github [here]

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About Marcos Codas 384 Articles
Lover of portable gaming and horror cinema. Indie filmmaker and game developer. Multimedia producer. Born in Paraguay, raised in Canada. Huge fan of "The Blair Witch Project", and "Sonic 3D Blast". Deputy head at Vita Player and its parent organization, Infinite Frontiers. Like what I do? Donate a coffee: https://www.paypal.me/marcoscodas

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