[PS Vita] h-encore tutorial (for Stock Vitas on 3.65 – 3.68)

h-encore is the second public jailbreak for the PS Vita which supports the newest firmwares: 3.65, 3.67 and 3.68. This is great news because you no longer have to be on 3.60 to be able to play PS Vita backups and homebrew.  This h-encore tutorial will help you install this exploit if your Vita is on any of these firmwares.

Requirements

• PS Vita on 3.65, 3.67, or 3.68
• Windows PC
• The latest version of auto h-encore
• The latest version of QCMA (use the .exe link)
  • If you have the official Sony CMA, uninstall it before installing QCMA

Note : If you have a PS Vita 1000 you must also have an official Sony memory card (of any size) to follow this guide. This restriction does not apply to the PS Vita 2000.

Note : If you are on PS Vita 3.65 do not update it if you want to also install HENkaku Ensō. HENkaku Ensō will allow your PS Vita to load the exploit at boot. This means that you will not need to re-run the exploit every time your PS Vita is powered down/rebooted.

Installation

This tutorial requires a Windows PC because installation will require the use of Windows applications.

Part 0: Vita Setup

You will need to block Sony Official updates first. Follow these steps to do so:

1. On the Vita, launch the Settings app
2. Navigate to “Network” and then “Wi-Fi Settings”
   • Connect to a Wi-Fi network if you have not already done so
3. Select your current connection
   • This is marked by a green dot next to the network
4. Select “Advanced Settings”
5. Set “DNS Settings” to “Manual”
6. Set “Primary DNS” to 23.96.6.207
   • This DNS server will block official Sony updates
7. Leave “Secondary DNS” blank
8. Ensure “Proxy Server” is set to “Do Not Use”
9. Return to the main Settings menu
10. Navigate to “System” then “Auto-Start Settings”
11. Uncheck “Download Update File for System Software”
12. Return to the main Settings menu

Part 1: PC Setup

1. Install and launch the QCMA application on your PC.
2. Download the latest version of auto h-encore and unzip the archive anywhere on your computer.
3. Launch the Content Manager application on your PS Vita. Select “Copy Content” and then “PC”. Select the method you wish to use to connect to QCMA. If you are prompted to log-in to a PlayStation Network Account, do so. If you do not have a PlayStation Network Account, create one. Select/register your computer if prompted.

Part 2: Auto h-encore

1. Launch the auto h-encore application on your PC.
2. The “Account ID (AID)” and “QCMA PS Vita directory” fields should be filled in for you
   • If this is not the case, you will have to manually enter this information
   • The “QCMA PS Vita directory” will typically be the “C:\Users\username\Documents\PS Vita\” folder on your computer
   • If you cannot find it, check the QCMA “Applications / Backups” setting by right-clicking the QCMA icon in the system tray, then selecting “Settings”
   • The “Account ID (AID)” will be the name of the folder in the “PS Vita\APP\” directory
   • An example Account ID: ec8d45ec9c055609
3. Select “Start”
   • This process will take some time
   • If you get an error, ensure the “Account ID (AID)” and “QCMA PS Vita directory” fields are correctly filled in
4. Press “OK” to dismiss the dialogue box that appears when the process completes
5. Close auto h-encore on your computer

Part 3: QCMA h-encore transfer

1. Right-click the QCMA icon in the system tray, then select “Refresh database”
2. In the Content Manager application on your device, select “PC -> PS Vita System”
3. Select “Applications”. Then, select “PS Vita”. Next, select “h-encore”. Select “Copy” and then select “OK”.
   • The h-encore exploit will be copied to your device
   • This process will take some time since the exploit is about 243 MB
4. Close the Content Manager application on your PS Vita

Part 4: Final steps

1. Launch h-encore to exploit your device (if a message about trophies appears, simply click yes). The screen should first flash white, then purple, and finally open a menu called h-encore bootstrap menu.
   • If the exploit is stuck on a white screen, simply close the application (which will cause a crash and reboot your device), then try again
   • If it is still stuck, hold the power button down for over 30 seconds to force a reboot, then try again
2. Select “Install HENkaku”
3. Select “Download VitaShell”
4. Select “Exit”
5. Enjoy. Note that you have to relaunch the exploit every time you reboot or shutdown your PS  Vita. If you put your device into standby/sleep mode, you don’t need to relaunch the exploit.

Part 5: Install HENkaku Ensō (optional but recommended)

Requirements

• An FTP Client (eg. FileZilla) OR a USB cable to use with VitaShell
• The latest release of Ensō

This is an optional but recommended section for PS Vita’s on firmware version 3.65 which will install the HENkaku Ensō exploit.

HENkaku Ensō is a complete Custom Firmware solution for the PS Vita which allows for homebrew access at boot time. It is more convenient than h-encore since it does not require you to install the exploit after every reboot.

Instructions

Part 6: Finalize Setup

#1 Get rid of the trophy warning

Note : This is optional and will disable the trophy warning that appears when h-encore is launched. Thisis not recommended for devices on firmware version 3.65 since HENkaku Ensō can replace h-encore on those systems.

1. Enable Unsafe Homebrews under HENkaku Settings in the Settings application to grant VitaShell full permission.
2. Launch VitaShell and navigate to ux0:user/00/savedata/.
3. Press triangle on the folder PCSG90096 and select Open decrypted (you should NOT see the folder sce_pfs within this folder when opened decrypted).
4. Copy system.dat out of the folder and remove the folder ux0:user/00/savedata/PCSG90096.
5. Close VitaShell and launch h-encore (this will now not trigger the exploit anymore, since we’ve removed the savedata).
6. Close the game after you see the first screen and return back to VitaShell.
7. A fresh folder of PCSG90096 at ux0:user/00/savedata should have been created.
8. Copy system.dat back to ux0:user/00/savedata/PCSG90096/system.dat where you need to open the PCSG90096 using Open decrypted (you should NOT see the folder sce_pfs within this folder when opened decrypted).
9. Now if you launch h-encore you should not see the trophy warning anymore and exploiting your device is therefore even faster.

#2 Install Essential Homebrew

Check out the links below to download and install the following essential PS Vita homebrew:

1. Vita Homebrew Browser (downloads and installs other homebrew applications)
   • Transfer the above .vpk file to your vita via VitaShell’s FTP/USB method and install
2. NoNpDrm (allows for encrypted games/Vita game backups to be used)
   • Follow instructions here
3. DownloadEnabler (allows any file type to be downloaded with the Vita browser)
   • Follow instructions here
4. shellbat (displays the exact battery percentage in the status bar)
   • Follow instructions here
5. pngshot (improves the built-in screenshot utility)
   • Follow instructions here

#3 Block Firmware Updates

1. Launch the Settings application on your PS Vita
2. Navigate to System > Auto-Start Settings
3. Uncheck “Download Update File for System Software”

#4 Access the PSN Store Correctly (Spoof PS Vita Firmware Version)

1. Launch the Settings application on your PS Vita
2. Navigate to “HENkaku Settings”
3. Check “Enable PSN spoofing”
4. Check “Enable Version Spoofing”
5. Navigate to “Spoofed Version”
6. Enter “3.68” into the box
   • The spoofed version in this box should always be the latest official version Sony has released. If a new firmware is released, update this text.
7. Close the Settings application

#5 Clean up files

1. Launch the Content Manager application and select “Manage Content on Memory Card”
2. Select “PS Vita”
3. Delete the following applications if they exist:
   • “3.65 HENkaku Enso Updater”
   • “ensō”
   • “molecularShell”
4. Close the Content Manager application