How do I activate the Pretendo servers? | Pretendo Network | Page 1

balmy pine Jul 5, 2025, 10:55 PM

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I installed the 3DS CIA file for pretendo and attempted to switch to the pretendo servers. When I attempted the switch my console booted back up and was still on the Nintendo servers, any ideas on how to fix this?

wheat kiln Jul 5, 2025, 11:38 PM

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Was the file you downloaded, updated to the current version?

junior knot Jul 6, 2025, 2:17 PM

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balmy pine I installed the 3DS CIA file for pretendo and attempted to switch to the pretend...

That last sentence is a bit vague; how exactly is your console "still on the Nintendo servers"?
Are you following the official text guide (linked here below)? It's recommended to keep away from video guides.
https://pretendo.network/docs/install/3ds

Pretendo Network

An open source Nintendo Network replacement that aims to build custom servers for the WiiU and 3DS family of consoles

balmy pine Jul 6, 2025, 10:15 PM

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Sorry for the slow reply timing, to clarify, I am on Nimbus 1.6.1 and in the last sentence I meant to say that even though I had attempted to switch to a pretendo online server I was still on the official nintendo game servers.

north marsh Jul 6, 2025, 10:18 PM

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balmy pine I installed the 3DS CIA file for pretendo and attempted to switch to the pretend...

You have to download all of the files
Not just the cia

balmy pine Jul 6, 2025, 10:19 PM

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I’m not exactly sure what other files you are referring to. If it helps, I downloaded Pretendo from universal updater

north marsh Jul 6, 2025, 10:19 PM

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balmy pine I’m not exactly sure what other files you are referring to. If it helps, I downl...

Go update Luma as well then

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Probably isn't running from your SD

balmy pine Jul 6, 2025, 10:21 PM

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I’m sorry but how do you update luma?

north marsh Jul 6, 2025, 10:21 PM

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balmy pine I’m sorry but how do you update luma?

Universal updater

balmy pine Jul 6, 2025, 10:22 PM

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Okay thank you

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I presume the update happens immediately after I install it right?

north marsh Jul 6, 2025, 10:23 PM

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balmy pine I presume the update happens immediately after I install it right?

You have to reboot once it's done

balmy pine Jul 6, 2025, 10:23 PM

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Just turn my 3DS off and on correct?

north marsh Jul 6, 2025, 10:24 PM

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balmy pine Just turn my 3DS off and on correct?

Yes

balmy pine Jul 6, 2025, 10:24 PM

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Okay

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Luma 13.3.2 Is the latest version correct?

north marsh Jul 6, 2025, 10:32 PM

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Yes

junior knot Jul 7, 2025, 10:01 AM

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balmy pine Luma 13.3.2 Is the latest version correct?

Indeed.
Could you open the Luma configuration menu (hold SELECT while powering on) and tell us if the yellow text says "Booted from SD via B9S"?

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And if it does say that, make sure to tick/enable the first two options: "external FIRMs" and "game patching"

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then hit the start button to save

balmy pine Jul 8, 2025, 1:27 AM

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I have both options ticked and it says it has been booted from SD via B9S

junior knot Jul 8, 2025, 2:35 AM

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balmy pine I have both options ticked and it says it has been booted from SD via B9S

Okay, now open Nimbus and select Pretendo (your 3DS will reboot each time you switch networks in Nimbus; this is normal) and you should be good to go! Try going online in a game like Mario Kart 7 for example.

If you look at your friends friend list now, it will appear to have reset and you should have a different friend code than before.

balmy pine Jul 9, 2025, 8:26 PM

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Sorry for another slow response, however the issue still hasn’t been resolved, I still cannot connect to a Pretendo server.

peak beacon Jul 9, 2025, 8:40 PM

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Check your internet connection

balmy pine Jul 9, 2025, 9:00 PM

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It’s currently showing a secure and constant internet connection.

wheat kiln Jul 9, 2025, 11:30 PM

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balmy pine It’s currently showing a secure and constant internet connection.

If you already have Nimbus and Luma installed, then use Universal Updater to reinstall both again. After doing so, go to settings, then click Nintendo Network ID Settings and sign in with your Pretendo account. Then test it with a game, could either be Mario Kart 7 or Mario Maker 3DS.

Still having issues? Then I'd assume your SD Card could be faulty.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:29 AM

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I’m sorry how do I sign out of my Nintendo ID? Is this a permanent change?

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:30 AM

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balmy pine I’m sorry how do I sign out of my Nintendo ID? Is this a permanent change?

When using Nimbus, click/tap on Pretendo. Then go to Settings then sign in through Nintendo Network ID Settings. It shouldn't be a permanent change.

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I should clarify on permanent change. You can always switch between Nintendo and Pretendo servers when using Nimbus.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:32 AM

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Will I be able to switch back to my old ID still?

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:32 AM

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balmy pine Will I be able to switch back to my old ID still?

Yes. You can at any time.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:33 AM

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Okay, now what setting in the NNID should I use to sign in

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:33 AM

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When you click on Nintendo Network ID Settings, it should take you in as if you never had an account. It should ask whether you want to create or sign in.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:34 AM

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When I went in, it shows my Nintendo ID is still signed in can I sign out from that?

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:34 AM

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Let me check

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:35 AM

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Have you loaded the NN ID settings with Nimbus set to Pretendo?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:35 AM

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That’s the issue, I can’t set nimbus to pretendo

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:36 AM

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Elaborate

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:36 AM

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Go to nimbus and send a screen shot of a before and after you clicked on "Pretendo".

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:36 AM

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When I click on pretendo in nimbus it would reset then stay at Nintendo

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:36 AM

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Is this your first time modding your 3DS?

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:37 AM

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Did you install the IPS patches alongside Nimbus?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:37 AM

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I’ve had it modded for about a year

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:37 AM

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What update version is your 3DS?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:37 AM

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bleak ravine Did you install the IPS patches alongside Nimbus?

I confused by what patches you are referring to the ones in luma.

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:37 AM

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No, the ones included as part of the Nimbus install guide

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:37 AM

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wheat kiln What update version is your 3DS?

11.17.0.50U

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:38 AM

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bleak ravine No, the ones included as part of the Nimbus install guide

Are they included with the universal installer version or do I have to get them separately

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:39 AM

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That's probably your issue then, you need to install them separately. Follow this guide here
https://pretendo.network/docs/install/3ds/#Downloading-Nimbus

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:39 AM

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Okay

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:39 AM

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Read the bit about ISP patches then try switching across

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:43 AM

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Okay

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:44 AM

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balmy pine I have both options ticked and it says it has been booted from SD via B9S

Did you make sure to Save and Exit that is shown in this screenshot?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:44 AM

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Yes

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:45 AM

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If you've installed the patches, you should be able to now switch across successfully

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:46 AM

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I’m doing that now

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I don’t have sysmodules for luma, how do I obtain them?

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:48 AM

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You just create a folder called sysmodules if it doesn't already exist

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:49 AM

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I have the folder but not the additional files

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:49 AM

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The IPS ones?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:49 AM

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balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:49 AM

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bleak ravine The IPS ones?

Yes

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 12:50 AM

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Ok, so re-read the guide and come back here once you've down what it actually says

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:50 AM

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Oh my gosh, I’m incredibly sorry I missed that step!

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:52 AM

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Did you forget to install combined.1.6.1 package?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:52 AM

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Indeed

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:52 AM

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balmy pine Indeed

Problem solved it sounds like

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:52 AM

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My bad I missed it reading the guide through

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 12:53 AM

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Glad you figured it out! Enjoy Pretendo Servers once again!

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 12:53 AM

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I will!

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Oddly enough it didn’t work.

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 1:01 AM

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You placed all the files into the correct locations?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:01 AM

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Yes inside of the Luma folder

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 1:02 AM

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As in /luma/titles or /luma/modules where applicable?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:02 AM

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Sorry, what are those and how do I tell the difference?

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 1:03 AM

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Ok, go read the guide again

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:03 AM

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Oh, yes I did

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By modules you did mean sysmodules correct?

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 1:05 AM

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Apologies, I did mean sysmodules

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If all the patches are in the correct locations, and Nimbus fails to switch over, I don't know what it is

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:06 AM

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So as of now this is an unresolved bug?

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 1:07 AM

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It's most likely something console-specific rather than a Nimbus bug. I'd wait to be advised from a helper who knows more about this

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:07 AM

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Okay thank you for your help still!

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:09 AM

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balmy pine Oddly enough it didn’t work.

Hmm, I do have one more thing you could try. If you are still logged into your Nintendo Network Account, head to the EShop wait till it fully loads then try switching.

Still doesn't work. Then power off your console, turn it on, go to eshop again, close out of it, turn the console off then try switching.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:09 AM

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Okay

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It sadly didn’t work again

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:15 AM

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hmm, strange

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ah, one second

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does your sysmodules look like this? you could be missing some extra files

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:17 AM

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I’ll check give me a moment

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Odd, it’s showing as empty again

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:21 AM

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okay, that's what you missing then

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okay, so in the combined.1.6.1 package, it does include some of the things that are shown in the screen shot i sent you. But you mentioned they weren't there?

What are you using to extract the files?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:23 AM

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Basic windows extract

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:23 AM

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Okay, that could be the cause.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:23 AM

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The files app default

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:24 AM

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I'd try using 7zip extracter

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:25 AM

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Which one should I use for windows 11?

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:25 AM

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7-Zip. That is the one I use for my Windows 11

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:26 AM

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Should I use x86

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:28 AM

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If your computer is using a 64 bit version, then choose x64. If your computer uses 32 bit, then choose x86 version.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:28 AM

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How do I tell exactly?

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:29 AM

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Go to system, then scroll down to About, then look for system type.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:29 AM

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Okay thanks on it now

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Files are copied, turning on my 3DS now

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:34 AM

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Sounds good

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:36 AM

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It didn’t work :(*

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:37 AM

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That is very weird

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Do you have FBI on your system? If so go to it. Go to SD Card, look for Luma, then Sysmodules and see if the files you copied are in there.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:38 AM

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They still aren’t that’s incredibly odd

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:38 AM

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what model is your 3ds?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:38 AM

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Original Red 3DS

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:44 AM

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Is your sd card set to FAT32? Also how much space does that card offer?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:47 AM

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Fat32, 512GB

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:47 AM

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Okay, wow that plenty.
Um. How long has your computer been running. This could also conflict with managing files.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:47 AM

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Oh just started it up

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:48 AM

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Okay

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oh

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Okay, so head into FBI, go to SD , go down to cias, then Nimbus, then install and delete CIA file. Then close out of it, reopen Nimbus click Pretendo.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:53 AM

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It’s not there for some reason

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I’m not exactly sure the issue right now

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:54 AM

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So it seems like dragging those files into your sd card just didin't save at all then. With the information given by you.

Let me try adding files to mine real quick, I'm curious if its a windows problem.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:55 AM

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Thank you

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:56 AM

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Okay, yeah that's weird. I just noticed that I can't even edit or delete any files. Does that also apply to yours? LIke does it show the trash icon greyed out instead of white?

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:56 AM

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Yeah it’s incredibly odd to me, I have tons of drives plugged in and they work fine but this one is just different

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:57 AM

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Weird, let me also test my Wii U SD card and see if its being caused by Windows

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:57 AM

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Okay

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:58 AM

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Okay, it is a Windows problem. I can't even do anything, same with you too.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:58 AM

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Yes same here

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 1:59 AM

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Okay, so the conclusion here is, we, Windows users, just can't even do anything at the moment I guess. Not sure why its just affecting SD cards.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 1:59 AM

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Yeah

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I suppose this means the issue is unresolved?

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 2:00 AM

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Well, all I can tell you for now is to keep those sysmodule files till the next Window update. Seems like this update isn't working with sd cards for weird reasons.

Yes it is unresolved for now. That is until the next Windows update comes out, then I recommend trying it again.

balmy pine Jul 10, 2025, 2:01 AM

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Okay thank you again for all of your help! I appreciate it a lot more than I can show!

wheat kiln Jul 10, 2025, 2:02 AM

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Anytime. Glad to be of assistance!

shadow leaf Jul 10, 2025, 3:43 AM

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wheat kiln When using Nimbus, click/tap on Pretendo. Then go to Settings then sign in throu...

i can go make a new account and do this right? i just had to re-mod my 3ds so i'll have to login to pretendo again but i don't have my info and won't be able to recover

shadow leaf Jul 10, 2025, 4:09 AM

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nvm i big brained it out

bleak ravine Jul 10, 2025, 6:50 AM

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balmy pine Fat32, 512GB

What brand of SD card is it?

junior knot Jul 10, 2025, 4:42 PM

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balmy pine Odd, it’s showing as empty again

can you show a picture of your (physical) SD card?

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For the record, installing Nimbus via Universal Updater means it should have automatically copied all the sysmodule files as well; there was no need to copy them manually according to the website guide.

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That is, unless the 512gb card you've purchased is a fake, which would explain the sysmodules folder making its files disappear.

junior knot Jul 12, 2025, 9:03 AM

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balmy pine I’m not exactly sure what other files you are referring to. If it helps, I downl...

#How do I activate the Pretendo servers?