PSN and Online Features on without updating on FW 2.02: Fiddler 2.

In my previous article on Charles Proxy many people have been stating that Fiddler 2 is free, and asking for guides regarding that. As I have had time to look into Fiddler, I thought I’d write a quick tutorial for those who wish to use this as an alternative to Charles.

In my previous article I mentioned that I was unsure as to whether or not Proxy’s would work through the mobile network (for those of us with the 3G model of the Vita). Well, I have had enough time to look through this and I can confirm that it does not work. Which means no online play on the go, guys. You have to be connected to Wi-Fi.

This method will allow you to do everything you could before the update like playing games online, purchasing from PSN or even just browsing the internet (though a proxy is not required to browse the internet).

Note: Just to clear some confusion; you can use Vita FTP or any internet connection within the PSP Emu without doing this as using the internet (as long as you do not attempt to access PSN) does not attempt to make you update. This guide will help you access PSN and it’s features. 

I will write this in a step by step method. All the files included I have modified/checked myself and then uploaded to my mediafire. If there are any issues with hosting then please contact me.

Note: Fiddler 2 is a Windows only application, so to run this on a Mac or Linux based system you have to use a Virtual Machine such as VMWare on the Mac, or WINE on Linux.

1. Download the psp2-updatelist.xml for your specific region: Japan, United Kingdom, United States, Europe. Save this file to an area that is easy to remember and easily accessible (Desktop for example).
2. (Optional) Rename the file to “psp2-updatelist.xml” (without the quotation marks).
3. Download and install Fiddler 2.
4. Obtain your IP Address. To do this:
   • Windows: Start -> Run -> CMD -> ipconfig. IPv4 Address is what you need.
   • Linux: Use the command line “$ /sbin/ifconfig” (without quotation marks).
   • Mac: Apple Icon -> System Preferences -> Network.
5. (optional) If you do not have a working WiFi connection then create one on the Vita then move on to step 6. If you already have a working WiFi connection move on to the next step.
6. Open the Advanced Settings on your WiFi connection on your Vita (Settings -> Network -> Wi-Fi Settings -> your connection name (under access points) -> Advanced Settings). Scroll down and select Use Proxy Server then enter your IP Address and the port “8888” (without the quotation marks).
7. Start Fiddler 2 on your Computer.
8. In Fiddler go to Tools -> Fiddler Options -> Connections (Tab) and set the Proxy port to  “8888“
9. Also under the Connections Tab ensure to click “Allow remote computers to connect“
10. (optional) Still under the Connections Tab there is a box on the lower right hand side “Bypass Fiddler for URLs that start with:” copy and paste this url into the box gs-sec.ww.np.dl.playstation.net This will allow you to play some games that would not work otherwise: Ragnarok Oddesy for example.
11. On your Vita you now need to connect to the internet. Go to Settings -> Network  -> Internet Connection Test. This should open a session in Fiddler 2 as illustrated below:
    Note: The host ID will change depending on your region. 
12. Delete the duplicate (#2)
13. Left click on the remaining session and press F2 (Alternatively you can right click and select “Unlock For Editing“
14. Left click on the session again, and look to the right hand side of Fiddler.
15. Click on the “Inspectors” tab, then below that you should see “WebForms“
16. In the QueryString section of the WebForm add “var” under the name, and a value of “02050000“.
17. Click on the “AutoResponder” tab (see image above)
18. Check the boxes “Enable automatic responses” and “Unmatched requests passthrough“.
19. Click on the Add button. Your URL should now appear under the “If requests matches…” section. If this does not match the session URL (check step 10) then left click on the session again, and attempt to Add again under AutoResponder.
20. Click on the URL then look at the “Rule Editor” section below.
21. Under the Rule Editor you will see your URL with the word “EXACT:” behind it. We need to modify this. Firstly, remove “EXACT:” then remove everything after XML. It should look something like this (the regions are probably different though so bear that in mind): http://fuk01.psp2.update.playstation.net/update/psp2/list/uk/psp2-updatelist.xmlNote: To check you can copy and paste it into your browser and look. If it’s identical (with only differences in region) then you’re good to go.
     
22. Below the Rule Editor there’s a box that says “Local file to return or *Action to execute”. Click on the arrow to the right and it will open a drop down menu.
23. Select “Find a file …” now navigate to where you saved the file from Step 1 and double click it.
24. Select Save.

You’re now done. It should now allow you to connect to PSN and enjoy the benefits of  this without having to upgrade to 2.05.

On a final note; I saw some people on the Charles article stating that Sony will block this quicker now that there’s an article on it. While this does hold some truth; it’s something Sony already know about and have blocked on previous Firmware. The likelihood is that they will block it on 2.02 too. Having an article on it doesn’t mean that it’s more likely to be blocked since it’s something they’re already well aware of. The way I see it; this information should be shared now so that everyone can enjoy it while it’s still available. If it gets blocked in the future, well, at least everyone had the opportunity while it was available rather than only a few people knowing about it, and it getting blocked anyway.

So, as always guys. Have fun, and feel free to comment.