Yoink

Tool to dump unencrypted romFS and exeFS for Switch 2 games, updates and DLC.

Supports digital games, game cards, Switch 2 Editions, etc. (For NSO titles, make sure the title has been opened recently before you attempt to mount it, otherwise the mount will fail.)

Disclaimer

For the love of God, do NOT share any files you rip using this tool. It is to be used with ONLY your own games on your OWN system. This tool doesn't provide system keys or any method to decrypt files. The files are loaded normally by the system, then pulled over FTP.

Usage

0. Connect your computer and Switch 2 to the same local network. Yoink reads the console's IP address through RPC automatically.

1. Clone the repo:

git clone https://github.com/Alleexxi/Yoink.git

2. Use kurumuz's fork of the ns2jb exploit to get an RPC connection with the system. Use node run.cjs --rpc.

3. Run node yoink.cjs (or npm start). On the first launch, enter the run folder printed by ns2jb, for example /home/hexa/projects/ns2jb2/runs/switch2-Icu7Jd. You can also enter its parent runs folder.

4. Pick a game, choose Save NUP or Serve FTP, and start the dump.

Interactive terminals open a full-screen interface: use ↑/↓ to browse, / to search by name or title ID, and Enter to choose a game. The setup screen lets you save a NUP or serve FTP, edit the output filename, and choose an edition. Use ←/→ to change options and Enter on Start to begin.

During a dump, Yoink shows the current file's progress, transfer speed, ETA, and activity log. PgUp/PgDn scroll the log; q or Ctrl+C stops safely and cleans up the console. After completion, press Enter to close. --no-tui keeps the numbered menu and ordinary output; piped output and --probe use this mode automatically.

Yoink remembers the parent runs folder after a successful connection. Later launches check its run folders from newest to oldest and choose the first one with a ready application RPC bridge and a matching filesystem RPC session. Stale or incomplete runs are skipped; if none is live, Yoink asks for a path again. Start ns2jb with --rpc before launching Yoink.

You can still provide an explicit run or parent folder with node yoink.cjs <path>. Settings live in %APPDATA%/Yoink/settings.json on Windows or $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/yoink/settings.json (default ~/.config/yoink/settings.json) elsewhere. YOINK_CONFIG overrides the settings file. Non-interactive launches need a saved live run or an explicit path.

5. When Yoink says FTP up!, open the FTP address it prints in an FTP client. A username and password is not required. (Make sure your FTP client has its transfer mode set to Binary/Image/TYPE I.)

Dumping straight to a .nup

Instead of browsing the FTP yourself, Yoink can download everything (base, updates and DLC) and pack it into a single .nup file:

node yoink.cjs --nup game.nup

The console's IP is detected automatically from the active RPC connection. You can still pass --ip <switch 2 ip> to override it, or if automatic detection fails.

Each RomFS is pulled as one big image instead of thousands of small files, reducing per-file FTP overhead. Transfer speed still depends on the console's storage and network. Files are hashed, deduplicated across base/updates and zstd compressed on the PC as they come in. Needs Node 22.15 or newer (for zstd).

If the base storage does not start with a valid RomFS header, Yoink can try opening the base with its selected application update through the console. This applies to internal storage, SD and game cards, including nonzero header bytes. The confirmed same-version card combination is preferred when available; otherwise Yoink uses the newest selected update for the game's patch ID. It validates the composed RomFS tree and the main/main.npdm headers before serving or packing them as one base package at the update version. The standalone base ExeFS is skipped, and the selected update is not packed twice. A missing update or failed validation still stops the dump. Header errors include the storage size and prefix for diagnosis. Composition has been confirmed on a MOUSE: P.I. For Hire card; other layouts still need console testing.

Stalled transfers

If a data connection goes quiet for 5 minutes, or drops before the whole file has arrived, Yoink opens a new FTP connection and continues from the last received byte with REST. It tries up to 5 times before giving up. Already-received bytes are kept, so a hiccup late in a large RomFS image doesn't start that image over. YOINK_STALL_SECONDS changes the quiet period and YOINK_RESUME_ATTEMPTS the number of tries.

Switch 2 Editions

The game selection list marks [Switch 2 Edition] when an installed base or update contains a Switch 2 program at program index 1. This checks installed content, not whether an upgrade is available online or its Upgrade Pack is owned.

A Switch 2 Edition ships a second program (program index 1) inside its update, along with an Upgrade Pack DLC and the updated program 0 RomFS. --edition chooses how the .nup is packed:

node yoink.cjs --nup game.nup --edition switch2

• switch2 (the default) packs a self-contained Switch 2 Edition base package with the Switch 2 0400... title ID, program 1 ExeFS, and a flattened RomFS combining updated program 0 + Switch 2 Upgrade Pack DLC + program 1 (skipping the unused v1.0.0 base RomFS and dummy unlock DLCs).
• switch1 packs the original Switch 1 program (base + program 0 update + DLC).
• both writes two files in one run — game.nup (Switch 1) and game-switch2.nup (Switch 2) — sharing the common RomFS downloads so shared layers are only pulled once.
• all keeps every dumped package in one file, the way the NUP spec lays a dump out: base, program 0 update, the Switch 2 program as an update with its own 0400... id, the Upgrade Pack and its data patch. The emulator picks the program and layers the RomFS.

For a game that isn't a Switch 2 Edition, --edition makes no difference: there's only one program to pack.

Switch 2 output uses the edition's own name, icon, localized NACP and display version from /Acd_1 inside the update's Control content, when available. Switch 1 output retains the base game's Control data. With all, the edition metadata is carried on its program package.

Yoink opens and checks the Switch 2 executable before its RomFS and the DLC mounts. An installed edition whose executable cannot be opened stops preparation; it is not packed without its code. --edition switch1 skips opening the Switch 2 program when writing a NUP. FTP browsing still prepares both programs.

If opening content times out, restart the console application and the RPC run before retrying. On Linux, export YOINK_TRACE=1 enables operation timing, the retained mount counts, and the program ID/storage/attributes sent to CodeFS. The failed operation's name is included in errors even without tracing. These diagnostics distinguish content selection failures from resource pressure; a timeout alone does not establish a mount limit.

Add-on data patches

An add-on can be updated by a data patch (content meta type 0x84). Yoink reads its original add-on ID and application owner from content metadata, checks the add-on's matching patch reference when present, and pins the selected DLC version and content. Upgrade Packs use this: Tears of the Kingdom's Upgrade Pack 0100F2C0115B7001 v0 was built for an older Switch 2 program, and data patch 0100F2C0115B7801 brings it in line with the current one. Without it the Switch 2 program can't find its resource tables and crashes at boot.

Data patches are served next to their add-on at /dlc/<data patch id>/<version>/romfs. --edition switch2 layers them over the Upgrade Pack; the other editions pack them as an addon_update package (NUP kind 3) under the id of the add-on they update. YOINK_NO_DATA_PATCHES=1 leaves them out.

DLC metadata discovery and patch matching are adapted from misshexa66's upstream DLC work, retaining Yoink's NUP layout and restoration of previous single-path or two-path DLC registrations.

To see what a title has installed, and whether its data patches open:

node yoink.cjs <path-to-ns2jb-run> <title id> --probe

For a fuller read-only diagnostic, use the debug subcommand:

node yoink.cjs debug <path-to-ns2jb-run> <title id>

It prints installed content metadata and attempts the same base, update, DLC, and Switch 2 edition mounts used by a dump. The JSON report includes each layer's storage, content ID, NCA path, size, file counts, and available Control/NACP/icon details. It does not start FTP or write a NUP. Leave out the title ID to select a game from the library.

Development

Run npm test for the local FTP and NUP packing tests; no console is needed. Run npm run build to rebuild the bundled native FTP server. This needs either the AArch64 GNU toolchain or Clang, LLD and llvm-objcopy on PATH.

Licensing

Yoink is licensed under the terms of the GPLv2 (because it borrows a tiny bit of code from Atmosphere)

You can find a copy of the license in the LICENSE file.