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How to Modify Sony PS3 PKG Files
Discovered and Written by Xcellerator

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Please note: to use this guide you will need the following:
• PS3 SDK (I used the 156mb one (v1.6))
• PS3SFOEdit.exe (Or any other PS3 SFO Editor, I used this one)
• Files from fraz422’s Game Save Modifying tutorial
• Any Linux Distro (I used BackTrack 3 (Download Here))
• A bit of common sense

{I} – How to unpack a PKG File

OK, let’s start off easy. This was already well known before I wrote this tutorial, but I’ll add it in as a reference. First you’ll need to start up BackTrack 3 (this step can be done in Windows, but I did it all in BackTrack). I’m sure you can work out how to load up BackTrack, if not Google it, because I won’t cover it in this guide. Now make sure you have your PS3 SDK and the PKG on the Desktop and open up a Terminal window (or use Yakuake), now from your terminal window browse to the following directory using the CD command. (Considering the SDK is indeed on your desktop).

    cd /Desktop/ps3/cell/host-linux/bin

In this directory is the Linux version of the PS3 SDK and is where all the tools we need for modifying the PKGs even further than this article will show. The file we are going to use is called make_package_npdrm. To unpack the PKG we issue the following command.

    ./make_package_npdrm –x <PKG-FILE>

Example:

    ./make_package_npdrm –x manager.pkg

Now from whatever directory you issued the command, (in our case it’s bin) will be a folder titled whatever the Game-ID of the PKG is. So for us, it will be LAUN12345. If we open that folder, we can see the following files.
NOTE: You can only decrypt DEBUG PKG files as they are not signed by Sony. You can obtain Debug files from this link.

Congratulations, you now have successfully unpacked a Sony PS3 PKG File

{II} – How to modify the PARAM.SFO file

OK, so by now, you should have extracted a PKG and have the contents on your Desktop in your chosen Linux Distro. This section will show you how to modify the PARAM.SFO file. It contains everything the PS3 needs to know about what the PKG contains and how to run and where to store its contents. I will be using a program called PS3SFOEdit.exe but any SFO Editor will do. (They’ve been out a while, so I’m sure you’ll find one with a quick Google search!) To start open up your SFO Editor and Load up the PARAM.SFO from the LAUN12345 folder.

If look in the top-left you will see the setting for the Game-ID. As you can see I have already changed it to BLES00232 (SEGA Superstars Tennis). The only other setting you need to look for is the Data Type. I have it set to HG – Harddisk Game. I did not have to change it, but you may need to change it for various reasons, while experimenting. Once you have modified all the settings you need to, click save and you are finished.

So, you’ve made it this far, have you? Done with the easy stuff! Most people knew all this before. Now comes the good stuff!

{III} – How to write the configuration file in order to pack the PKG

The configuration file is possibly the most important thing to get right while packing a PKG. It contains all the necessary information in order to pack your PKG with the correct settings. Below is an example of a configuration file.

Content-ID = EP0001-BLES00232_00-XCELLERATORSTEAL >> Name given to PKG
K_licensee = 0x00000000000000000000000000000000 >> License No. (unique)
DRM_Type = Free >> Free or Local (Paid)
Content_Type = GameExec >> PKG Content Type
PackageVersion = 01.00 >> Package Version

This is where I had to experiment a bit. In the SDK v1.92 Documentation, configuration files are slightly different. In the 1.92 version the Content_Type would be Game_Data, but in the 1.6 version, it’s GameExec. The Content-ID does not matter as long as it follows the following layout: XXYYYY-XXXXYYYYY_00-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. DRM_Type specifies whether this PKG is Free (no activation needed) or Local (activation needed via PSN Store). Follow the above layout exactly as it is and make sure you customise it so it suits your needs. If you make any errors, you will not be able to form your PKG file. (Don’t worry, you’ll just have to come back and fix the file!)

When you are finished, you can continue to the final stage: Packing Your First PKG File!

{IV} – How to pack a PKG file

So here we are, the final stage of the operation where we can form our very own PKG file and install it onto our PS3! In order to follow this section, you must be on your chosen Linux Distro, and have your configuration file, PKG contents and the PS3 SDK readily available. I am going to assume that all of those things are on your Desktop.

+ Desktop
- config.txt
+ BLES00232
- PARAM.SFO
- ICON0.PNG
+ USRDIR
- EBOOT.BIN
+ PS3 SDK

Now open up a Terminal window and issue this commands:

    $ cd ‘root/Desktop/PS3 SDK/ps3/cell/host-linux/bin’

$ make_package_npdrm ‘root/Desktop/config.txt’ ‘root/Desktop/BLES00232’

Here is the syntax for the command:

    make_package_npdrm <configuration file> <PKG Contents Directory>

Now, in whatever directory you ran the command from (in my example it’s the bin folder) will be your PKG file named as whatever the Content-ID was in your configuration file. Feel free to rename this to whatever you want and share with the community at Next Gen Update and PS3 News.

{V} – FAQ

Q: How do I edit the EBOOT.BIN file from the extracted PKG?
A: Use the unfself and make_fself tools in the SDK.

Q: How do I edit the patch_mp.ff file in the Call of Duty patches?
A: We don’t know yet, so stop posting threads about how you think you know or asking how to do it, because no one knows yet.

Q: Can I make a modded lobby with this guide?
A: I believe that this is the way to modded lobbies, all we need to do is to edit the patch_mp.ff file successfully and we’ll have one.

Q: My Linux Distro won’t recognise EBOOT.BIN and doesn’t include it when it packs the file!
A: This happened to me, all I did was right-click on the directory it was in and then to the permissions tab and set it so that everyone can ‘Read and Modify’.

Q: I get the error: EBOOT.BIN is an NPDRM SELF file with an unsupported extension.
A: There is an issue with Content_Type setting in your configuration file, make sure you set it to GameExec.

It took me a long time to work out and write down everything in this guide, so please give +REP and Thanks. I ask the Mods to sticky this article so everyone can do this and hopefully get us somewhere further than what I did.


Discovered and Written by Xcellerator.

Awesome Post Hope It Works!

Nice guide but how could you install the pkg on a retail ps3 as it needs to be signed?

very nice and detailed guide! i think hackers love this stuff! nice job =D

Great guide, was wondering the same thing as Juddy. Can this be installed inside a retail?

wondering as all the others how to install it?

If you have jailbreak, then you can install just like you would the Back Up Manager...

No signing needed!

yes that is true im hopeing to get my hands on a psjb

Way to ask for rep.