FAQ and troubleshooting

Please note that this troubleshooting page is not frequently updated.

If you have an issue you cannot solve by following the steps here, or if your issue is not mentioned here, please join the Nintendo Homebrew discord server for further assistance.

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GBA/DS games/DSiWare/Smash Bros/Monster Hunter fail to start with a black screen

You haven't configured Luma3DS to work with your boot manager, please refer to this for instructions.

I get a black screen on boot

Luma3DS's automatic patching reports when a patch fails, to make it easier to maintain the patches in the future and to prevent unintended consequences. This means that if you installed a pre-patched system title which contains the same patches applied by Luma, this will trigger an error (which manifests as a black screen on boot). You can fix this by reinstalling the clean versions from Nintendo.

1. Use SELECT to get into the Luma configuration menu, and turn on the Enable exception handlers option.
2. Attempt to boot. If you see a "svcBreak" in the "loader" process, go ahead with the steps. Otherwise, you have a different issue.
3. Get the clean system titles package from here.
4. From the package, copy NS.cia and the appropriate Home Menu cia for your region to the SD card.
5. Create a sysmodules folder inside the luma folder, and copy loader.cxi from the package to it.
6. Plug the SD in the 3DS and use SELECT to go to the Luma configuration menu, then check the Enable loading external FIRMs and modules option. Luma3DS should now be booting again.
7. Open your favorite cia installer (the guide has been tested successfully with FBI). If you don't have one it's outside the scope of this guide, check how to get your first cia installed on Plailect's guide (refer to the "Injecting FBI" section).
8. Install the .cia files you copied in step 4.
9. Luma3DS should now be functioning normally, you can delete the .cia files you used and the luma/sysmodules folder, and revert the Developer options and Enable loading external FIRMs and modules options.

I get an auto-shutdown with GBA/DS/DSiWare games

Luma3DS's automatic patching reports when a patch fails, to make it easier to maintain the patches in the future and to prevent unintended consequences. This means that if you installed a pre-patched FIRM which contains the same patches applied by Luma, this will trigger an error (with manifests with an auto-shutdown). You can fix this by reinstalling the clean versions from Nintendo.

1. Get the clean system titles package from here.
2. From the package, copy O3DS AGB.cia and O3DS TWL.cia (if you have an Old 3DS), or N3DS AGB.cia and N3DS TWL.cia (if you have a New 3DS) to the SD card.
3. Plug the SD in your 3DS and open your favorite cia installer (the guide has been tested successfully with FBI). If you don't have one it's outside the scope of this guide, check how to get your first cia installed on Plailect's guide (refer to the "Injecting FBI" section).
4. Install the .cia files you copied in step 2.
5. Luma3DS should now be functioning normally, you can delete the .cia files you used.