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Hacking the NX73 CF Driver - day 2
The 3-bit solution!
Please read and follow the warnings and instructions of the "day 1" report.
http://www.cliesource.com/forums/sh...;threadid=18469
[originally called 'Hacking the NX73 CF driver - part 1", but someone changed the title]
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LEGAL NOTE/DISCLAIMER: this is a 'HACK' not a 'CRACK'
The software provided here contains no copyrighted material, or material derived from copyrighted material. It does not touch anything related to copy protection.
The 'hack' simple changes three bits in a copyrighted .prc file that you must obtain elsewhere.
Any questionable activity occurs in how you obtained that .prc file
ie. a gray area of piracy, downloading a driver that is newer than the one you paid for with your NX70/NZ90. Please read part1.
PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK
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A little background.
External memory devices like memory sticks and compact flash devices have a generalized interface for reading and writing files.
There are subtle difference between them, and some Sony apps (the 'Banned Apps') use these differences so the programs work with a memory stick, but don't work with a Compact Flash.
That's what EruWare does with its Masquerade/Cloak modes and Dual MS modes.
The solution presented here is a trivial change, and does not work on all the Banned Apps. For more complete coverage, you should buy the EruWare driver.
The "3-bit solution"
The byte at offset 10394 in CFSlot.prc must be changed from 0x30 to 0x2C. That's 3 bits changed. I have written a little utility and a batch file to do this for you.
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Installation for part two:
You will need the memory stick you created in part one, the one with the CFSlot.prc and CFStorageLib.prc on it.
Step#6) Download the patch_3_bits.zip file and unzip it to the same directory that has those drivers (eg: \PALM\CF_DRIVER).
http://aibohack.com/clie/patch_3_bits.zip (18KB)
You should have CFSlot.prc, CFStorageLib.prc, patch_3bits.zip and patch_byte.exe in the same folder on the stick.
Run the "patch_3bits.bat" file (on the PC).
It will create a slightly modified copy "CFSlot_MS.prc" in the same directory.
Yes, believe it or not, it only changes 3 bits in the .PRC
Put the memory stick into your CLIE.
NOTE: If you don't have a PC stick reader, run the .BAT file in a folder on your PC, then HotSync the resulting CFSlot_MS.prc to your CLIE (but change the destination to memory stick)
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Step#7) OPTIONAL: remove the vanilla driver
If you still have the driver from part 1 installed, you need to delete it first (similar to Step 5 from part1):
Run Filez. Select the 'PalmCard' and press "View and Edit Files".
Be sure the "ROM" checkbox in the bottom right is *not* checked. You will see a list of files in RAM.
Scroll down until you see "CFSlot". Press "Details". Then select the "Attributes" tab. Change the "Type" from 'libs' to 'libx'. Press the "Save" button (this is very important).
Press the reset button (a soft reset). At this point the driver is disabled.
Scroll down until you see "CFSlot". Press "Details". Then select the "Attributes" tab. Uncheck "Read Only" and press the "Save" button. Select "CFSlot" again, press "Details" and then "Delete".
You can leave the "CFStorageLib" alone.
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Step#8) Install the hacked driver
Install the driver again (similar to Step 2 of part1) but instead of copying over "CFSlot.prc", use "CFSlot_MS.prc" instead.
Run Filez and select the Memory stick from the upper right. Press the "View and Edit Files" button.
Navigate to the folder with the drivers (\PALM\CF_DRIVER).
Select "CFSlot_MS.prc". Pick "Copy..." from the menu. Copy to "PalmCard" destination. Press "OK".
If you did not do it earlier, select "CFStorageLib.prc" and repeat the copy step. If it says it is already installed, that's ok, just ignore it.
Press the soft reset button, and wait for the CLIE to start up again. Now the hacked driver will be used.
NOTE: when you want to disable and/or delete this driver, follow Step#5 in part1. The CFSlot_MS.prc hacked driver is still called 'CFSlot' when installed into RAM.
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The Results:
After you install the CFSlot_MS driver, try inserting a CF storage card in the slot, and be sure the Memory stick slot is *empty*.
Many of the 'banned apps' now work: Memory Stick Backup, CLIE Viewer, PhotoStand, CLIE Album, Photo Editor, and Movie Player [based on my limited testing]
These 'banned apps' still do not work: CLIE Camera, Movie Recorder, Audio Player.
IMHO: Pretty good for a 3 bit change.
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Now the long list of caveats, and work arounds:
Important: If you have both a CF card an a MS in at the same time, some of the 'banned apps' get confused. Be sure the memory stick slot remains empty to avoid problems.
Recommendation: If you want need both CF and MS storage at the same time, try the "Dual MS" mode of the EruWare driver.
BTW: With the help of a memory stick and a little stick swapping, you can trick Voice Recorder to record voice memos to a CF card, but IMHO it isn't worth the effort.
NOTE: if converting movies, be sure to try your movies on a memory stick first. If the video format isn't correct (a common problem), it won't play on either media.
NOTE: The little memory stick icon on the bottom does not work either. I'm not sure how Clie Memo uses MS storage (it is on the banned list)
Observation: The CF card appears be a little slower for movies (not a problem for playing, but a problem for seeking)
TIP: to switch back to the non-hacked Sony CF driver, repeat steps 7 and 8 but install CFSlot.prc again. To remove, follow step 5.
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Coming tomorrow: Part 3 - swapping with the EruWare driver
How to have both the EruWare and the NX73 driver (hacked or not) installed, but only one active at a time.
You can probably figure it out by yourself based on the instructions so far, the trick is to change the Type of the drivers so one is 'libs' (the active slot driver), and the other is 'libx' (or some other bogus type). When you press the rest button, the driver with the 'libs' type will be used.
You also have to be careful with HotSyncing backup copies of these tweeked drivers.
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contents of ZIP are freesource/freeware.
(sorry for the long post, just trying to be thorough)
Linear Mode
