For those of you who own, or plan on purchasing a ProgSkeet flasher, there is some good news.  We have just received confirmation that the offical NOR clips for ProgSkeet will start shipping very soon. The price of the clip is not yet confirmed, but we do know that the clip will NOT require a tristate solder wire to use. We will have pictures for you soon. More information about ProgSkeet can be found over at their official site.

Thanks to nikitis for the news tip.

Im sure there are those of you that updated to the new 4.0 OFW that Sony released last week, you needn’t worry as you will be able to downgrade, which has been confirmed by various people/devs including DiGiTaLAnGeL from digitalangel.it, it should be safe to say that all future firmwares will be downgrade able, but its still always better to have confirmation.

Source DiGiTaLAnGeL Via Twitter

BTW, this is the device you should be buying instead of that junk True Blue, with Progskeet, you can downgrade to CFW, for backups and Homebrew, then update to play online and download PSN games, then downgrade back to CFW

The Progkseet Flasher guys gave updated their Software and it is now also available for Mac OSX (iSkeet) and Linux (YASkeet).

Download at ProgSkeet Homepage

via Twitter

The team behind progskeet, uf6667 among others, have updated their application WinSkeet4000 bringing you bug fixes and lots of new flashing options.

[Source and download ]

Source

The solderless ProgSkeet will be released tomorrow, bringing dual NAND setup, and a 1gigabit NAND (allowing backups or dual boots). More info on that HERE. (more…)

We haven’t heard a lot of progskeet recently. They have just announced progskeet as solderless. On top of that, they have also announced a dual nand setup. Progskeet seems to be getting better over time.

We are happy to introduce you the SOLDERLESS KITS for our ProgSkeet device!

The main word is “BE FLEXIBLE” as ProgSkeet project will be the BEST TOOLKIT for the NAND and NOR flashing!!!
We present today the NAND TOOL KITS, in few days we will be ready also with NOR TOOL KITS!!! Stay Tuned
1 – PROGSKEET is 100% PIN to PIN compatible with the SOCKET tool sold from this site http://www.360-clip.com
Just connect the ProgSkeet 32 pin special flat cable. (please note that this version don’t support programming or reading with out the device is powered on. A new version will be released with the VCC pad to manage NANDS with a self power provided from PROGSKEET) 360-clip.com and also us we will offer this socket in a package together with the 20 cm 32 PIN flat cable.

2 – ADAPTOR PCB: This pcb is an adaptor from 50PIN ZIF PROGSKEET CONNECTOR (necessary for the coming “NOR SOCKET” solderless tools) to 2 x 32 PIN ZIF connector. With this adaptor progskeet is able to manage 2 NANDS on the DEVICE and also extra 2x SECONDARY NANDS (for dual nand feature). The kit include the 50 pin flat cable from PROGSKEET to ADAPTOR PCB.

3 – NAND PCB: This “optional” pcb has a 1Gbit NAND flash on board. Progkseet is able to use it like a backup nand or switch this nand and use it instead the NAND on the board of the device. The feature called “DUAL NAND” allow to support different NANDs ONLINE and test firmwares in a easy fast way. The software will be ready soon to support this feature, user can also attach a switch to progskeet to allow a fast selection of the NANDs without using the PC tool.
Progskeet support max 2 x NAND PCB on each ADAPTOR PCB, the kit include a 32 PIN 3CM flat cable (from NAND PCB to NAND SOCKET)

You can see a FULL PROGSKEET KIT SAMPLE where is clear how is the complete kit with 2x NANDS PCB and 2x NANDS SOCKETS (on the picture miss one socket sorry J ) but I think the concept is clear.

The big advantage of PROGSKEET is that can work on ANY CONSOLE / DEVICE, is study to be MODULAR and so is MUCH CHEAPER then any other solution that is specific addressed to a device.

The nice special FLAT CABLES are also easy to be fitted inside the device without bit problems, and also the KIT is removable in few minutes and is not PERMANENT.

We remember that PROGSKEET is an OPEN PROJECT study to be used in many kind of devices CONSOLES, SATELLITE, IPHONES, PENDRIVERS etc etc. “PROGSKEET NOTHING MORE THAN A GOOD NAND / NOR PROGRAMMER”.

We will send tomorrow more infos and pictures regarding PROGSKEET V1.1 “CRYSTAL BLUE LIMITED EDITION” in production in these days and available in the market soon!

Nice news also about the PROGSKEET software, that now support new nice features.

BYE FOR NOW

Visit the official Website here

[VIA PS3Crunch]

For those of you that have Progskeet, AnGeL DiGiTaLAnGeL.iT has released a patchfile.txt needed for proskeet “patcher”, here is a quote from the source:

|————————————————————————–|
| ProgSkeet Patcher’s PS3 NOR Downgrade v2 patchfile |
| by |
| AnGeL |
| WwW.DiGiTaLAnGeL.iT |
|————————————————————————–|
|========================================================|
|============================= HOW TO USE IT ================|
|-Just extract the folder “downgrade v2 ProgSkeet” anywhere on your PC. |
|-Open WinSkeet40000/LinuxKeet/iSkeet on your computer. |
|-Create a dump of your 3.70 OFW if you haven’t already done it. |
|-Call it “OFW370.bin” -IT MUST BE A BYTESWAPPED DUMP!- |
|-Open the “Patcher” tab and select “OFW370.bin” as the input file. |
|-Select the progskeet_patch.txt as the patch file. |
|-Go for it Now you have a fully working downgrade.bin to flash ! |
|============================================================|
|============================================================|
|==============================================================|
|This release is based on the patchset of the downgrade v2 released by |
|dospiedra, and you should check BYTESWAP while reading NOR and when you |
|flash your downgrade.bin file back! |
|===========================================================
|-uf6667. |
|-Ago. |
|-bmx. |
|-and dospiedra for his work Kudos to him for the downgrade patches! |
|=======================================================

Source And Download

Now whilst others try and stall the scene, by leaking information and other important stuff that should be kept secret, there are decent people hard at work, trying to keep the scene alive, like the cool guys at Digital Angel, who have released this important application, which works in conjunction with Progskeet, here is a quote from the source:

Hi Guys!
Today i would like to introduce you the new step in the Progskeet evolution: the “QT” Flasher…

The actual public version is a bit “buggy” and difficult to use, and it works well only on Windows XP, as Windows 7 and other OS have compatibility problems with it (some are just crappy things that you can fix with some tricks, while other makes the Flasher crash).
During the last times, the Flasher developer which constantly works on it to improve the stability and the features, has gave a big push to the Flasher, making the choice of using a powerful and multi-platform framework such as QT!
QT is a framework which can allow the developer to write a program and make it work the same way on the 3 main platforms : Windows,Linux and Mac OS X without worrying about write tons of lines to make it work on the currently running platform: QT will do the dirty work for you.
Because of this, @uf6667, helped by two other good coders named Ago and bmx, started to port the original Flasher to QT… and as always we (DiGiTaLAnGeL) and some others have the privilege to beta-test this new and awesome version of the Flasher.
Let’s start with some hightlights: at the moment, the version we have is the Windows one, which then will be called WinSkeet40000,followed by Linuxkeet (Linux) and iSkeet(MAC OS X).

The interface is full of new things… and for now we can use these features:

The “evil” progskeet.log is gone, and the event log is now embedded in the flasher itself, in realtime!
You can manually read,write and now erase too.
You can use presets and create new ones, matching your NOR/NAND flash -now there are some presets for the PS3 flashes and XBOX360 NAND-.
You can change the write method, between buffered write (the default one) or use the “single word” or “double word” mode (you can use it when something goes wrong or your tasks fails).
Now the flasher is splitted in tabs: “Common”,”NOR”,”NAND” and “Patcher” making it more easier and faster to use.
The byteswap function is still here, working flawlessly on both writing and reading.
You can use the “patcher” tab:useful to apply patch to your dump on the fly.
There is an option to change to refresh-cycle of the flash (for slower/faster flashes).
Progskeet Flasher is being translated! For now there are english,french and german languages -italian and all the others are coming-
The “verify” task is now done at the end of the read->erase->write process.

Source And Download

Team E3DIY, the same guys behind the E3 card reader in the PSJailbreak days have contacted us today unveiling their new product, E3 Flasher. The E3 flasher is essentially a ProgSkeet clone, which you know is being used to downgrade PS3s from firmware 3.70.

To quote email:

E3 FLASHER, the world first flasher special  for PS3 , easier backup and downgrade,support dual boot,coming soon !

E3,  created miracles on PS3 jailbreak , release free jailbreak,downgrade and goldfinger , and will now release a full new revolutionary E3 FLASHER which includes: backup, restore, upgrade, downgrade and dual boot all in one .

Features:

• NOR FLASH ON board
• 1 KEY backup or restore, simple is best
• Dual boot , choose booting from original bios or E3 bios.
• 3 save MODE, save bios to E3 nor flash, TF card or PC .
• NO harm for console, but can longer console life because of specially design.
• Integrated lots of interface, perfectly extension, will have more function with future new E3 accessory.
• Compatible all slim and fat console, include latest 3000x version.

Don’t forget E3DIY team, which free service always It said they were studying BIOS, Let’s wait and see what happens.

AND please note the new E3 domain www.e3-tech.net , more details coming soon !

PS: E3DIY team note 3.7 downgrade, so maybe E3 flasher will downgrade automatically, no need modify on PC .

Thanks all guy whom contribute PS3 jailbreak.

Not a bad alternative to a ProgSkeet. Prices and availability will be announced soon.

You can check out E3DIY new site here: www.e3-tech.net

Most of you have heard the news of the PS3 slim downgrade on firmware 3.70, helping those buying newer or updated PS3 slim consoles to the scene. At the moment push aside “soft modding” and its time to bring on the good ole’ soldering iron back out.

This new method of downgrading basically requires the soldering of a multi-console-compatible chip known as ProgSkeet (or clone) which you can find or purchase HERE…or you can use Teensy++ board if you still have those from the good dongle days. A solder-less ProgSkeet is in the works, more info here.

Now the original tutorial was released in a very technical form and in Spanish, but we at PS3Hax have got you covered, and are bringing you easy to follow tutorial that a noob can follow on. This tutorial is long, but it is more detailed than complicated, making sure your bases are all covered.

So lets get started, this tutorial is split into multisteps. You should also check out the posts made here, and the posts that will be made in this thread to get assistance. The following tutorial was modified from the original Spanish translation by Dospiedras1973, and the tutorial/images were modified from PS3Hax member Mattr92 tutorial over at his site: RootedSystem and and thanks to the many PS3Hax members that brought us the proper/native translation of the original instructions .

Highly advised you read this tutorial fully once, and then again and read the comments in this thread and the other threads linked above to get a GOOD understanding of what your getting yourself into and how the entire process works. Remember, this should be a fun and rewarding experience

DISCLAIMER: PS3Hax.net is not responsible for any damage caused to your system. We do not claim credit for this method, we simply have compiled and reorganized the information so it is easier to follow. I  kindly request for other sites to not rip this entire tutorial to their websites, but instead link to this page if you wish to share it on your webpage. This page will be actively updated so please keep checking back to find solutions to encountered/discovered problems.

STEP 1 – Preparation

STEP 2 – Some Background

STEP 3 – Installing ProgSkeet

STEP 4 – The NOR Dumping

Now the actual work begins and the part you all have been waiting for, the NOR dumping!

Step 5: Flashing your PS3

You have now successfully downgraded, and installed 3.55 KMEAW CFW on your PS3! You can check out our forums for more info on various homebrew, or drop by our tutorial section for more neat things you can do with your unlocked PS3 .

Problem Solving Tips:

Useful Resources:

Thanks to dospiedras1973, eussNL, and uf6667 for helping me refine/write this guide.

Remember this? Well the same person has been in contact with an Italian team called DiGiTaLAnGeL and through twitter they have announced that they managed to downgrade a PS3 slim from 3.70 down to 3.55 CFW using the well known NAND/nor flasher Progskeet. This looks like good news for the scene and people stuck on 3.70. They have said that a tutorial will be released soon.

To quote: For the first time, we have been involved in something truly spectacular We were the first in the world to test the downgrade from 3.70 to 3:55 on a PS3 Slim (With flash memory, ” NOR “) using the ProgSkeet and patched some files provided by dospiedra, a famous Spanish coder already discovered on the crest of the wave for the method of going back to 3:55 / 3:41 with the PS3 (FAT flash memory “NAND”). After several attempts, in collaboration with dospiedra, we got to go back from 3.70 to 3:55, enter the factory mode with a simple key to jailbreak, rifleshare a modified version of 3:55 to prevent the SYSCON (the registry in between downgrades) was consulted during the downgrade and now we are happily at 3:55 KMEAW! With this version of moddata 3:55, you can perform a memory dump today and you can switch on the fly from 3:55 to 3.70 without having to make all this long procedure times: progskeet using it you can go straight to 3.70 changed to 3:55! Dospiedra said it will release details on the patches applied to the NOR and the update file as soon as possible. New life for those who arrived too late to enjoy the benefits of the 3:55?——Google Translate

It has also been announced by uf6667 (developer behind Progskeet) that a surprise is waiting for 3.56-3.70 users.

[VIA DigitalAngel Release Site]

[VIA Twitter]

Remember all those RSOD’s that were happening back in the early days of CFW, now progskeet as we all know supports fixing issues such as NAND/NOR downgrading, etc. Now progskeet has a gotten a little bit more cooler with the release of this update allowing those of you unfortunate ones with the RSOD(Red Screen Of Death) to come back to life and join in on the scene that’s right developer uf6667 has done just that. Here is a quote:

Changelog:

110811:

NOR: Complete rewrite of the driver of NOR, NAND one of was not changed.

NOR: Optimization of the method of Write-To-Buffer Programming (addition of a timeout). Note: All models do not support this optimization. Please consult the data sheet if you have problems.

NOR: Optimization of erasing sector (addition of a timeout) ⋅

NOR: Checking forced flash and differential.

NOR: Unable to enter values ​​now, thank you RAIDEN (if only a few people read …).

Note: Some models of NOR have bad sectors (usually only a few bytes, but enough to prevent the operation of the entire system). They will be reported in C: ProgSkeet.log If you have a template with this problem (for example, I heard that this problem occurs when a RSOD the PS3) you should be able sectors move somewhere or replace NOR flash. 110 811-A:

NOR: Fixed bug in timeout for deletion / programming. It has also been improved to 3.5 seconds per line per sector.

110 811-B:

NOR: Add a message waiting when erasing a sector.

110 811-C:

Improved speed flashing.

110 811-D:

Addition of “test” for flashing. 5 trials are currently scheduled.

More information can be found at the source:

http://www.ps3crunch.net/forum/threa…es-NOR-Support

http://www.logic-sunrise.com/news-33…progskeet.html

The ProgSkeet is gaining quite a bit of steam over the last few days, and many of you might have ignored it due to the some what intensive solder job required for the install. Well noobs have no fear, it seems a solderless version is in the works, and a video has been posted below:

As a reminder ProgSkeet primarily can be used for downgrading/fixing brick consoles and in the future will most likely be the key to bringing custom firmware support on newer offical firmwares. The video above shows a 360 motherboard, but the chip is universal for consoles so you can pretend that the picture is a PS3 and serves the same purpose

To quote:

I would like to add one thing, in case you haven’t noticed: it’s not about the speed, that train’s long gone.
no, this time around we have the SOLDERLESS CLIP attached to the NAND.
sure, it has wires soldered to it but this is just because there is flex pcb yet to connect to progskeet
once it’s all tested and flex pcb is designed, this will be 100% solderless

And also there are more diagram, and program changes – to quote:

DIAGRAM Changes:

03/08/2011
- Removed DualNandNew.bmp (this is for prototype, sorry)
- Added Dual NAND diagram (with the switch), read below for instructions.

02/08/2011
- Added new NAND/Dual NAND diagram. Power up the console with the switch set to “off”. When the console is on, you can switch it to “on”.

FLASHER Changes:

110802
- Added more selections to Block Count (bigger NANDs)

110803
- Fixed: issue with “Test Shorts” – ONLY USE THIS WHEN PROGSKEET IS NOT CONNECTED TO ANY DEVICE!!! OTHERWISE IT GIVES FALSE POSITIVE!!!

yours truly,

uf6667

[VIA Twitter, VIA ProgSkeet Website, VIA PS3Crunch]

ProgSkeet has been working more and more with their nand flasher. In recent changes they have added more install diagrams, also including support for PS3s that have 2 on board nands. Wii nand flashing is also being supported.

Changes go as followed:

ProgSkeet Diagrams Changes:

02/08/2011
- Added new NAND/Dual NAND diagram. Power up the console with the switch set to “off”. When the console is on, you can switch it to “on”.

26/07/2011
- Added the GENERAL NOR PINOUT diagram
- Added the GENERAL ZIF 50 PIN CONNECTOR diagram

25/07/2011
- Added the WII NAND diagram with alternatives points

ProgSkeet Flasher Changes:

110731:
- Added Verify option to NOR Dumping/Flashing (make sure you use Differential for best speed results ;D)
- Fixed bug in NAND 2 dumping
todo: will add verify for NAND Dumping/Flashing, code is a bit large and I have to get some sleep now

110801
- Fixed: error with regard to addressing of NOR flash
- Fixed: verify was done on NOR even though the checkbox was left out (=> half speed)
- Added Verify NAND… you have to stay by the program while it’s flashing, because it’s going to display a message and continue.
todo: find a way to display bad blocks; add a counter to maximum attempts of writing before aborting that specific block; add start/end sector

110802
- Added more selections to Block Count (bigger NANDs)

[VIA Progkseet via PS3Crunch] -Thanks to dusky for original news post
[Download updated files here]

For those who ordered and are keeping tabs on ProgSkeet, they have released their diagrams, software and driver tools today.

To quote from Flasher.exe readme:

ProgSkeet Flasher (BETA 110726-a)
——————————-

History:

110726:
Private flasher release. Only for reviewers. Does not support Flashing due to some difficulties with some NAND Flash devices.
Note: Production went too fast, so I didn’t have enough time to do everything promised yet. It will all come on time. I am working on fixing this ASAP. Tomorrow we are thoroughly testing it to find any bugs that may be hidden. We cannot risk the customer flashing a wrong image and then blaming us for it.
For now you have to specify the specific values taken from datasheets.
This goes without saying: DO NOT LEAK.
You can however tell people that you have the software.
Please click “test shorts” prior to soldering to ensure you have a working ProgSkeet.

110726-a:
Added NAND Flashing. Be cautious when using. Not tested on every sort of flash yet.
Removed “PageSize” and added “Raw” and “LargeBlock” checkboxes.

110627:
- Added NAND Flashing (confirmed working) with differential flash option (read sector before flashing, eventually saving some time)
- Optimized NAND Dumping by a whole lot (28kB/s on average ~~~~~)
- Fixed NOR dumping

Note: if you get too high speed (more than 1035kB/s) during dump, it’s probably got an error and you should let me know about it.

yours truly,

uf6667

[Grab downloads via offical site]