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PS2 Independence Exploit

 

 
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PS2 Independence Exploit
 
 
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The PS2 Independence Exploit
Exploit (computer security)

An exploit is a piece of software, a chunk of data, or sequence of commands that take advantage of a software bug, glitch or vulnerability in order to cause unintended or unanticipated behavior to occur on computer software, hardware, or something electronic ....
 allows the execution of homebrew programs
Homebrew (video games)

Homebrew is a term frequently applied to video games produced by consumers to target proprietary hardware platforms not typically user-programmable or that use proprietary storage methods....
 on an unmodified PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2

The PlayStation 2 is a History of video game consoles video game console manufactured by Sony. The successor to the PlayStation, and the predecessor to the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation 2 forms part of the PlayStation of video game consoles....
.

a PlayStation
PlayStation

The PlayStation is a 32-bit history of video game consoles video game console released by Sony Computer Entertainment in December .The PlayStation was the first of the ubiquitous PlayStation ....
 (PS1) game is loaded in the PlayStation 2, the console looks for a file called TITLE.DB which, if present, is located in the Memory Card
Memory card

A memory card or flash memory card is a solid-state electronic flash memory data storage device used with digital cameras, Personal Digital Assistant and Mobile computers, telephones, music players, video game consoles, and other electronics....
's directory BxDATA-SYSTEM (where x is a letter corresponding to the console's region –e.g.: E for the EU, A for the USA or I for Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, this directory corresponds to the System Settings save).






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The PS2 Independence Exploit
Exploit (computer security)

An exploit is a piece of software, a chunk of data, or sequence of commands that take advantage of a software bug, glitch or vulnerability in order to cause unintended or unanticipated behavior to occur on computer software, hardware, or something electronic ....
 allows the execution of homebrew programs
Homebrew (video games)

Homebrew is a term frequently applied to video games produced by consumers to target proprietary hardware platforms not typically user-programmable or that use proprietary storage methods....
 on an unmodified PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2

The PlayStation 2 is a History of video game consoles video game console manufactured by Sony. The successor to the PlayStation, and the predecessor to the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation 2 forms part of the PlayStation of video game consoles....
.

Exploit details

When a PlayStation
PlayStation

The PlayStation is a 32-bit history of video game consoles video game console released by Sony Computer Entertainment in December .The PlayStation was the first of the ubiquitous PlayStation ....
 (PS1) game is loaded in the PlayStation 2, the console looks for a file called TITLE.DB which, if present, is located in the Memory Card
Memory card

A memory card or flash memory card is a solid-state electronic flash memory data storage device used with digital cameras, Personal Digital Assistant and Mobile computers, telephones, music players, video game consoles, and other electronics....
's directory BxDATA-SYSTEM (where x is a letter corresponding to the console's region –e.g.: E for the EU, A for the USA or I for Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, this directory corresponds to the System Settings save). This file is a database of special options to be applied to specific PS1 games for their correct operation.

The exploit relies on creating a deliberately incorrect entry inside this file, which triggers a buffer overflow
Buffer overflow

In computer security and computer programming, a buffer overflow, or buffer overrun, is an Anomaly in software condition where a process attempts to store data beyond the boundaries of a fixed-length buffer ....
 and, combined with a small stub loader located in the file, allows the execution of unencrypted code from the Memory Card upon the insertion of a specific PS1 game. Normally, only programs encrypted by Sony, such as the DVD player, will run from the Memory Card.

The discovery of this vulnerability in the PS2's software opens up the possibility of running programs created by the PS2 homebrew developer community without the need for a modchip
Modchip

A modchip is a small electronic device used to modify or disable built-in restrictions and limitations of many popular videogame consoles. It introduces various modifications to its host system's function, including the circumvention of region coding, digital rights management, and copy protection checks for the purpose of running software...
 or disc swapping techniques (e.g. CogSwap or Swap Magic).

Installation


Triggering the exploit requires a way of installing the modified files to the Memory Card, which is not possible by normal means. Installation is accomplished either from a console (modified or with the exploit already installed), a Memory Card reader/writer, a disc swapping technique or through the use of some commercial programs allowing USB flash drive to Memory Card transferences, such as Code Breaker (versions 8 and higher) or Action Replay MAX, by transferring a modified System Settings save file. Alternatively a more involved method can be used, through the combination of a hard disk loader program (HD Loader
HD Loader

HD Loader is a program for the PlayStation 2 video game console which allow users to play games installed to the optional hard drive peripheral available for the PS2....
/HD Advance), an ISO image
ISO image

An ISO image is an archive file of an optical disc in a format defined by the International Organization for Standardization . This format is supported by many software vendors....
 installer program for PS2 (such as WinHiip), and an image of some program allowing installation (such as Ubergeek's Exploit Installer http://sksapps.com/index.php?page=exploitinstaller.html)

Benefits


With the exploit installed, the user is able to run programs from Memory Cards, optical discs, network or USB flash drives. Programs are found in the ELF
Executable and Linkable Format

In computing, the Executable and Linking Format is a common standard file format for executables, object code, shared libraries, and core dumps....
 executable format.

Popular programs include media players, Memory Card/hard disk management tools, emulator
Emulator

An emulator duplicates the functions of one system using a different system, so that the second system behaves like the first system. This focus on exact reproduction of external behavior is in contrast to some other forms of computer simulation, which can concern an abstract model of the system being simulated....
s, and loaders (able to launch other programs, or "backup" games).

The exploit on newer consoles

The original Independence Exploit method does not work on newer "slim" PS2 models. However, there are other ways of installing similar programs to the memory card using Swap Magic discs or commercial cheat discs, such as Action Replay MAX.

Free McBoot is a newer PS2 exploit that is more user friendly (once set up) and works on all models of the PS2, including slimlines, prior to model SCPH-9000x with BIOS 2.30 (manufactured late 2008) and newer. FMCB does not require a trigger disk, thus making it possible to use on systems with dead disk drives. The drawback is that FMCB MUST be installed/compiled on each memory card individually, copying the exploit does NOT work, this means that an already exploited or modded system is required in order to create new installations. The FMCB installation is keyed to the memory card, not the system.

See also

  • Homebrew (video games)
    Homebrew (video games)

    Homebrew is a term frequently applied to video games produced by consumers to target proprietary hardware platforms not typically user-programmable or that use proprietary storage methods....
  • SNES-Station
  • PGen
    PGen

    PGen is an open source Sega Genesis emulator written in C++ programming language for PlayStation 2. It uses the Generator source code.PGen is widely considered the only choice for a Sega Genesis on PS2 emulator....


External links

  • - Huge ELF Repository
  • - The original and largest community PS2 orientated website. Largely a discussion forum.
  • - Save game editor and related tools.
  • There are many lists of known PS2 ELFs online e.g.: .
  • - In depth How-to and explanation
  • - Tutorials and forums.