To stay within legal boundaries, you should dump the NAND from your own physical hardware. Prerequisites A Nintendo DSi with or HiyaCFW installed. An SD card with at least 256MB of free space. The DumpTool homebrew utility. The Extraction Process Launch DumpTool from your DSi's Homebrew Menu. Select the option to Dump NAND .
| Problem | Likely Cause | Potential Solution(s) | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | The nand.bin file is not in the expected location. | Double-check your emulator's configuration to ensure the path to the nand.bin file is correct. For the RetroArch core, try placing dsi_nand.bin (or the retroarch core's naming) in the system folder. | | White Screen After Boot | The NAND file might be corrupted, or the BIOS/firmware files are incompatible. | Re-dump your NAND and BIOS files from your DSi. Ensure you are using the correct BIOS files for DSi mode and that your NAND dump is from a compatible region. | | Invalid NAND Footer | The dumped NAND might not be in the correct "no$gba" format. | Some NAND dumping tools add extra data (a "footer") that melonDS might not recognize. Tools like hiyaCFW Helper can remove this footer. | | Games Not Saving | Incorrect or missing DS Mode Firmware. | For standard DS games (not DSiWare), ensure you have a valid firmware.bin from an original DS or DS Lite. Firmware from DSi/3DS consoles often lacks the required boot code for proper saving. | nand.bin melonds
nand.bin is not a crack, patch, or hack. It is a legally required piece of data that melonDS uses exactly as the real hardware would. To stay within legal boundaries, you should dump
Dumping also creates a file called nand_mac.bin containing your console’s MAC address. melonDS may request this separately if you want unique Wi-Fi identification. The DumpTool homebrew utility
You cannot download a nand.bin legally online because it contains copyrighted Nintendo system code and console-unique encryption keys. You must dump it from a physical Nintendo DSi or 3DS console using homebrew software. Prerequisites for Dumping A physical Nintendo DSi or 3DS console. An SD card compatible with your console.