A tool to unpack & repack Nintendo DS ROMs (.nds)
If you find this software useful, please consider supporting it:
NDSFactory helps you easily unpack and repack Nintendo DS ROMs, but some technical knowledge is required.
A typical NDS ROM consists of the following sections:
- Header
- ARM9 Binary
- ARM9 Overlay (Optional)
- ARM9 Overlay Files (Optional)
- ARM7 Binary
- ARM7 Overlay (Optional)
- ARM7 Overlay Files (Optional)
- FNT (Filename Table)
- FAT (File Allocation Table)
- Icon/Title Logo
- FAT Files (The actual files used by the software, like Graphics, Music etc.)
NDSFactory allows you to extract these sections, modify them as needed, and rebuild the ROM with your edited sections. If modified sections are larger than the original, you must specify their new physical address and size in the header. Ensure that sections do not overlap and remember to patch the FAT.BIN if necessary.
This tool is particularly useful for modding games or writing trainers.
In the Unpacker Tab, you can load your Nintendo DS software (.nds) and extract the ROM sections. Take note of the original address of the FAT files, as you will need this value if you alter the addresses and sizes of the sections or if you want to extract its contents.
You can then do what you want with these sections (inject code, apply patches etc.)
In the Packer Tab, you can recreate a .nds file using your edited sections. If your sections are larger than the originals, you must update their addresses and sizes in the header. Ensure that the addresses do not overlap, or the final ROM will be broken. If you repack edited sections and the FAT files' address is different from the original, you must patch the FAT (fat.bin). The FAT contains absolute addresses representing each file's start and end addresses, so you need to update them accordingly (use the FAT Patching Tab for this).
WARNING: if the ROM contains ARM9/ARM7 overlays and your sections are larger than the original, you must manually update the overlay offsets in the ovr and fat binaries (using an hex editor).
In this tab, you can:
-
extract the FAT files from fat_data.bin.
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rebuild the FAT files into a new fat.bin and fat_data.bin. If the ROM contains ARM9/ARM7 overlays you must provide the original fat.bin to extract the overlay offsets.
WARNING: DO NOT MODIFY FAT FILES NAMES OR EXTENSIONS, OR YOU WILL NEED A NEW fnt.bin.
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patch the FAT section (fat.bin): this is only necessary if the FAT files' final address (fat_data.bin) differs from the original. Patching the FAT is straightforward: load your fat.bin, and fill in the original and new addresses of fat_data.bin. This will produce a patched fat.bin for use in the packing process.
If you find a bug, feel free to open an issue or submit a pull request :)
Special thanks to Antonio Barba & Davide Trogu
Developed with ❤ by Luca D'Amico
