Total_Noob: The big interview
Recently I interviewed Coldbird and Virtuous Flame, the creators of CFW Pro. It is now time to take a look at the other side of the force. As you may or may not know, all the Custom Firmwares / Homebrew Enablers for recent firmwares rely on the same base: a Kernel vulnerability discovered and exploited by Total_Noob a few months ago. Total_Noob used this exploit as the base for his largely used Homebrew enabler, TN Hen.
I had the opportunity to chat with Total_Noob about his ongoing projects for the psp, so read along if you want to learn about the upcoming features for TN-HEN E…
Total_Noob, thanks for your time . Let’s start with the basics, can you quickly introduce yourself ?
Total_Noob: My name is Andy, I’m a fifteen years old student. I came to the scene sometime in 2008
When did you get your first PSP ?
Total_Noob: I got my first PSP phat when I was 13. A present from my parents on my birthday. Soon, my cousin hacked my PSP and I had CFW 3.40 OE-A. I really enjoyed my homebrews.
So, you were into hacks from the start…when did you join the scene as a “dev”, what was your first contribution?
Total_Noob: Hm…initially I joined QJ.net. My first plugin was MusicHold, maybe some people will remember it: It allows you to press right and left trigger, while your PSP is in hold mode. Torch, the developer of Hold+ added this feature to his awesome plugin.
Was there a hack or a hacker on the PSP that really impressed you ?
Total_Noob: The hack wich impressed me (and still impresses me) is the Pandora battery. My cousin downgraded my PSP with that and it was just like magic :D. Every developer who worked on this project impressed me
Let’s move on to your work on the kernel exploit. So… to put things simply, how did you find this exploit?
Total_Noob: 2 years ago ( or one ? ), Yoshihiro gave me a hint about a vulnerability in utility.prx. I was a noob and at first I didn’t understand where the Kernel Exploit was. In August 2010, I was actively looking for a Kernel Exploit and I stumbled upon a function in utility.prx wich was calling a buggy power function with k1 shifted. At that point I remembered that Yoshihiro had told me about this
wololo: So from then you started working on a Hen….
Total_Noob: yes.
how long do you think you spent in total working on the exploit + the Hen ?
Total_Noob: Veeeeeeery much. Since October 2010 till now
wololo: do you have an idea how many hours you spent?
Total_Noob: Well, I worked every weekend on the HEN, so… thousands of hours maybe? Maybe that’s a bit exaggerated…but definitely hundreds of hours.
are you still working on TN Hen ?
Total_Noob: Of course I am! I’m a bit sad, ’cause people think I left the scene. I invented maaany new features and I promise, you guys will be excited once you know what the features are
wololo: Oh, so TN-E is coming…can you reveal a few features you are working on ?
Total_Noob: Well….I think TN-E is ready for release. But maybe my brain will tinker some new features :). OK, here are a few:
- – Added OSK Character Limit Increase (the Internet Browser OSK only supports 512 characters. This patch allows you to use 1518 characters).
- – Added password control at startup.
- – Added UMD patch (umd4hombrew is not necessary anymore).
- – Added usbdevice.
- – Added PSX multi-disc support.
- – Added possibility to hide hen eboot in the game menu.
- – Added version.txt display.
- – Added more functions to kubridge library.
- – Added a surprise
Total_Noob: The suprise will hew you guys down
wololo: hehe, can’t wait
What was the biggest challenge when you worked on TN Hen ?
Total_Noob: There was no huge difficulty. Fix bugs, add patches for stability, fix bugs again… the most difficult part was probably to fix bugs I couldn’t reproduce myself.
wololo: ah, good point, so how did you proceed to fix those?
Total_Noob: Trial and error, send new versions regularly to the testers. Sometimes it took me a whole weekend to fix a bug! Like the 32gb Memory Stick problem (Homebrew execution crash)
wololo: Thanks, moving on to your “future” projects…
Lots of people are expecting a Hen for 6.37 (and now I see that 6.38 is out)…do you have an answer for them?
Total_Noob: Yesterday I saw a new function wich has a vulnerability, but it is probably not exploitable. I’ll investigate more after the TN-E release.
wololo: Ok, not sure yet if this is really exploitable, right? But at least it means some vulnerabilities are still around.
Total_Noob: Exactly.
What kind of advice would you give to people who want to become console “hackers”?
Total_Noob: Learn with practice, do NOT start with the hardest thing, such as a CFW.
I assume you know that geohot was recently threatened by Sony (they settled the case earlier this month). Are you afraid the same kind of stuff might happen to PSP hackers?
Total_Noob: No, I’m not afraid. They care much more about the PS3
are you getting an NGP?
(Note: NGP used to be the name of the PS Vita)
Total_Noob: If I’ve got enough money, I’ll buy it for sure
wololo: hehe, any games you’re hoping to play on that new console?
Total_Noob: Assassin’s Creed! or God Of War
Thanks a lot for your answers , any final word?
Total_Noob: Yes, I am developing with my friend HacKmaN.
wololo: Say hi to him, and thanks a lot for your time, Total_Noob!
for those who think that permanent is risky.. how do you think the older cfw became permanent even after changing the memory card? ^_^
it would be risky if your a kid who cant follow simple very basic instructions and want everything done in a blink of an eye…
i think its too late for tn to put an iso loader or a permanent patch for his hen = (
holy $hit!!!!! 15 and already a hacker?
man i bet your brain worth hundreds time more than most of us here..
how can i contack TN?
how to contact TN I HAVE REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTIONS TO HIM
how to contact TN I HAVE REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTIONS TO HIM!!!
@Qwerty
As long as no pandora unbricker is made for the latest models I’m sticking to calling it risky. Remember that no matter how careful you think you are you’re just as doomed as anyone else is to fail, even if it’s just once.
@Wololo
Great News! Not that I didn’t like tn-d, I still like it above all others, but it’s always nice to get updates albeit reading this made me start obsessing again.. I really want to hope the surprise will be multiplayer or even just 2player support of psx games.
i was hoping for a bootloader that could boot up a menu and with the right files ask which hen or cfw you want then it temp flashes and you have :
tn-e
pro b-4
but remeber it said a password setup so i think it’s a perm patch
@troll People like you most likely not gonna make my life better nor easier.
Yeah, having an A+ on all my classes can prove that I’m dumb. And most likely planning to go to a university is pretty dumb too right?
It looks like you finish school already but yet you still live with your mommy. 😛
I’m done with your ***.
praising yourself doesn’t impress me.
you can say anything you want but your actions proves the real thing.
and don’t plan to go to university because you will get headache everyday for every subject. you should get a vocational classes instead it will make your life easier.
BTW: i am out off topic here because of a freaking pathetic warfreak who loves praising himself.
and there’s no big deal if i live with my mom, you know i am a filipino and people like you don’t understand our culture. so i think you should spent more years in school to study culture, you should spent your whole life studying.
@troll- will you ***!! pinapahiya mo ang mga pilipino..mali mali pa grammar mo..
walang pakialamanan di ako pinanganak na marunong mag english so dapat naiintindihan mo kung mali grammar, ikaw tong nakakahiya tanga.
@troll- you are a disgrace to our country! If you think that TN only wants fame, well he is a 15 year old and im amazed. Can you even compile a program? I think not!
@troll How would I know your Filipino? I never mentioned that I have the ability to read mind, especially over the internet.
Do you know I’m Filipino too? Oh you don’t, well better keep you *** about culture.
You know what, I’m sorry about eveything. Eventually, Wololo might banned us or something. Wololo, sorry for everything.
@spider_monkey eh pinoy ka rin pala, dapat sa susunod isipin mo mabuti mga ipopost mo,wag ka magbabato ng personal.
saka wag ka basta basta makikipag talo sa troll na tulad ko, dahil ang purpose ko lang eh mang inis/asar. nabasa mo naman siguro yung reply ni wololo sa taas.
@covert did you meet TN personally? how can you prove that he is only 15? he say anything he want, me also i can say that “oh im only 10 and i can reverse engineer anything”. did you get that?.
and to be honest, i can code in java, python,perl,c,c++,vb but not deep. i can make simple homebrew.
and i am sure that only wants fame, napakayabang ni ungas. my opinion will never change.
about the disgrace thing, watch your post first. amuze and believe to what people say, you are such an i***t.
awaiting moderation tuloy, pasalamat ka na lang “covert” di naipost yung reply ko.
yay i love tn
I have a hard time believing TN_noob is 15 years old and did this all by himself. Sorry but I call BS. Is this a cover for a group of people or of someone who doesn’t want to get credit.
Plus he goes from being a noob 2 years ago getting his first phat and then less than a year later he is “actively looking for a Kernel Exploit and stumbled upon a function in utility.prx” and since “oct 2010” writes the cfw that changes the PSP scene? Am I missing something? No way a 15 yo kid did this all by himself.
You’re just sad to realize some people on Earth are way smarter than us 🙂
FYI looking for Kernel Exploits is not more complex than any other hobby, it just requires time and dedication.
agreed…….. I’ve been messing around with computers and programming longer than TN has even been alive, and there’s no way I could match his skill……… not even close.
Fully admit TN is most definatly smarter than i am.
its for his privacy pls respect total-noob ok!
he’s 15? wow amazing how some people can do this complicated stuff at such a young age.
yeah men…………
@Tn thanks for those dev apps.
@wololo great job 😀
awaiting moderation tuloy post ko
i would like for TN_Noob to email me i have some questions for you
respect for TN. total respect. @wololo you should have “like” and super like options for the comments and posts. 😛
VFlame and Coldbirds Big suprise was 6.20 PRO B4, so no doubt TNs suprise will be 6.35 TN-E
tn you just totally rock man ! =D
Amazing what you find out, thanks abunch! This is why Sony is scared, this guys only 15….
Damn, im 15 too and i suck at programming because i never have the time to put into writing more complex scripts. 9th grade is like mental torture, and c++ on top of math, science, history, spanish, and english can be a bit overwhelming. T_n i dont know how you’ve managed to single handedly write a cfw in like 3 months and pass all your classes, but you’ve really inspired me not to give up.
thanx tottal noob for everything
It’s nice to be thanked.
I know its almost 2 years later but you are still the man. I would like to touch base with you and find out how and where to start. Congratz for everything. I remember watching your interview about the double analog stick. I had one in my fat 1000 and still have one sitting away for a rainy day. UR the man!!!
TN HEN-E is out!!! It’s so awesome… go check it out at psphacks or pspgen
i love total_noob, a love wololo, a love everybody, i love my psp3000, im almost *** rsrsrsr
Please add a shut down menu under USB.
And integrate that folder plugin.
I hate to say this, but how can a 15 year old be finding exploits and writing his own CFW? Sure some kids are precocious but this seems a little much… especially a kid who got his psp 2 years ago :/. Writing a plugin means you know how to code. And hese trying to say he learned how to code AND make plugins in a year or less? … :/ either he has NO life at all, or he is lying or a cover-up for the real total_noob.
If i am wrong i am truly sorry, wololo and total_noob you must understand how sketchy this appears.
Good job to TN though.
The fact that 99% of the 15 year old you know wouldn’t be dedicated enough to do that, doesn’t man that there aren’t a few geniuses out there.
I, too, was a “normal” kid when I was 15, but I had a few friends who were spending their free time writing their own jpeg encoder/decoder, so, you know, probably depends what kind of people you were hanging out with when you were 15, but I definitely knew people who would have been up to this.
this guy aint serious .. 15 yrs Damnn!!
Hello everybody, this is my first time here. I am bad at programming, it is a hobby and i not have more than 5 hours per week, i just finished Lógicade and Algorithms and i will begin to study C, i am 31 ??years but at 12 i began studying electronics reading magazines, to 15 years i was already technical and repairing radios and TVs, i began programing in Basic with 16 years. two years later I met an 8 year old boy who spent his time reading books on programming in C, I would not have believed it if he did not write and compile a program in front of me. TN, I do not doubt his ability and I thank you for sharing your work with us. I would like you to give us some tips on getting started with the ASSEMBLY or C for PSP, after all with BASIC is not going anywhere .. rsrsr
When do you schedule to have a new exploit and make other users be able to hack?