NX Migrator Pro

A professional partition management tool for Nintendo Switch SD cards with dual-mode operation: Migration and Cleanup.

Overview

NX Migrator Pro provides two powerful modes for managing your Nintendo Switch SD card partitions:

Migration Mode

Migrate partitions from a smaller SD card to a larger one with automatic FAT32 expansion.

Cleanup Mode

Remove unwanted partitions (Linux/Android/emuMMC) from a single SD card and reclaim space for FAT32.

Features

Supported Partition Types

• FAT32 (hos_data) - Main Nintendo Switch data partition
• Linux (L4T) - Single Linux partition for Lakka/Ubuntu
• Android - Both Dynamic (Android 10+) and Legacy (Android 7-9)
• emuMMC - Single or Dual emuMMC partitions

Migration Mode Features

• Smart Scanning - Automatically detects partition layout
• Selective Migration - Choose which partitions to migrate
• Auto-Expand FAT32 - Automatically expand FAT32 to use free space
• Safe - Source disk is never modified (read-only access)
• Fast - Optimized sector-by-sector copying with 32MB chunks

Cleanup Mode Features

• Single-Disk Operation - Works on one SD card (no target needed)
• Selective Removal - Choose which partitions to remove
• FAT32 Preservation - Backs up FAT32 data temporarily during cleanup
• Auto-Expand - Automatically expands FAT32 to reclaim freed space
• Safe Backup - Prompts for backup confirmation before proceeding

GUI Features

• Modern dark-themed interface built with ttkbootstrap
• Visual partition layout display
• Real-time progress tracking with detailed status
• Pre-migration validation and warnings
• Detailed partition information and size calculations

Requirements

System Requirements

• OS: Windows 10/11 (64-bit)
• RAM: 512MB minimum
• Permissions: Administrator privileges required
• Disk Space: Minimal (application is ~10MB)

Hardware Requirements

• Source SD Card (your current smaller card)
• Target SD Card (must be larger than source)
• SD card reader(s) - can use one or two readers

Installation & Usage

Option 1: Standalone Executable (Recommended)

1. Download NXMigratorPro.exe from the Releases page
2. Double-click NXMigratorPro.exe
3. Follow the on-screen instructions

Option 2: Run from Source

If you want to run from Python source:

1. Install Python 3.8+ from python.org
2. Install dependencies:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Run as Administrator:

   python main.py

Usage Guide

Mode Selection

Choose your operation mode at the top of the window:

• Migration Mode - Migrate from small SD to large SD
• Cleanup Mode - Remove partitions from single SD

---

Migration Mode Usage

Step 1: Select Disks

1. Insert both source and target SD cards
2. Click "Refresh Disks" to detect SD cards
3. Select your Source SD Card (smaller, original)
4. Select your Target SD Card (larger, destination)

WARNING: Target disk will be COMPLETELY ERASED!

Step 2: Scan Source

1. Click "Scan Source SD Card"
2. Wait for the scan to complete
3. Review the detected partition layout

The tool will automatically detect:

• FAT32 partition (hos_data)
• Linux partition (L4T) if present
• Android partitions (Dynamic or Legacy) if present
• emuMMC partitions (Single or Dual) if present

Step 3: Configure Migration

Choose what to migrate:

• FAT32 Partition (always migrated, will be expanded to use free space)
• Linux Partition (optional)
• Android Partitions (optional)
• emuMMC Partitions (optional)

Step 4: Calculate Layout

1. Click "Calculate New Layout"
2. Review the new partition layout
3. Check the comparison dialog showing:
   • Source vs Target sizes
   • How much space FAT32 will gain
   • Free space after migration

Step 5: Start Migration

1. Click "Start Migration"
2. Confirm the warning dialogs
3. Wait for migration to complete

DO NOT remove SD cards or power off during migration!

Migration Progress:

1. Preparing Disk (5%)
2. Copying Partitions (10-80%)
3. Writing Partition Tables (85-90%)
4. Updating emuMMC Config (95-99%)
5. Complete (100%)

Step 6: Verification

Once complete:

• Safely remove both SD cards
• Insert target SD card into your Nintendo Switch
• Boot normally - all data and partitions preserved

---

Cleanup Mode Usage

Step 1: Select SD Card

1. Insert the SD card you want to clean up
2. Click "Refresh Disks" to detect SD cards
3. Select the SD card

Step 2: Scan SD Card

1. Click "Scan SD Card"
2. Wait for the scan to complete
3. Review the detected partition layout

Step 3: Select Partitions to Remove

Choose what to remove:

• Remove Linux - Delete Linux (L4T) partition
• Remove Android - Delete all Android partitions
• Remove emuMMC - Delete emuMMC partition(s)

⚠️ WARNING: Selected partitions will be PERMANENTLY DELETED!

Step 4: Review Cleanup Preview

1. Click "Calculate Preview" (happens automatically)
2. Review the "After Cleanup" layout
3. Verify FAT32 expansion size

Step 5: Start Cleanup

1. IMPORTANT: Make sure you have a backup of your SD card!
2. Click "Start Cleanup"
3. Confirm the warning dialogs
4. Wait for cleanup to complete (10-30 minutes)

DO NOT remove SD card during cleanup!

Cleanup Process:

1. Backing up FAT32 data (5-35%)
2. Cleaning disk (40-45%)
3. Writing new partition table (50-55%)
4. Creating FAT32 filesystem (60-70%)
5. Restoring FAT32 data (75-95%)
6. Updating configs (97-99%)
7. Complete (100%)

Step 6: Verification

Once complete:

• Safely remove the SD card
• Insert into your Nintendo Switch
• Boot normally - unwanted partitions removed, FAT32 expanded

Supported Partition Layouts

Simple: FAT32 Only

[MBR] Partition 0: FAT32 (hos_data)

FAT32 + Linux

[MBR] Partition 0: FAT32 (hos_data)
[MBR] Partition 1: Linux (l4t)

FAT32 + emuMMC (Single)

[MBR] Partition 0: FAT32 (hos_data)
[MBR] Partition 1: emuMMC

FAT32 + emuMMC (Dual)

[MBR] Partition 0: FAT32 (hos_data)
[MBR] Partition 1: emuMMC
[MBR] Partition 2: emuMMC2

Complex: FAT32 + Linux + Android + emuMMC

[MBR] Partition 0: FAT32 (hos_data)
[MBR] Partition 1: emuMMC
[MBR] Partition 2: emuMMC2
[MBR] Partition 3: GPT Protective

[GPT] Entry 0: hos_data (FAT32)
[GPT] Entry 1: l4t (Linux)
[GPT] Entry 2-8: Android partitions (boot, recovery, dtb, misc, cache, super, userdata)
[GPT] Entry 9: emummc
[GPT] Entry 10: emummc2

Important Notes

Before Migration

• Backup your SD card data (recommended)
• Ensure target SD card is larger than source
• Use a good quality SD card for target
• Close all programs accessing the SD cards
• Run as Administrator

During Migration

• DO NOT remove SD cards
• DO NOT power off your computer
• DO NOT cancel the migration
• Wait patiently (30-60 minutes for 128GB, longer for larger cards)

After Migration

• Verify partition layout in the tool
• Test target SD card in Nintendo Switch
• Keep source SD card as backup until verified working

Troubleshooting

"Administrator Required" Error

• Run as Administrator (right-click → Run as Administrator)

"No SD Cards Found"

• Make sure SD cards are properly inserted
• Click "Refresh Disks"
• Try different USB ports
• Check Device Manager for SD card readers

"Target disk must be larger"

• Ensure target SD card is actually larger than source
• Some SD cards report slightly different sizes

Migration Fails

• Check SD card connections
• Try different SD card reader
• Verify target SD card is not write-protected
• Check for bad sectors on target SD card

emuMMC Not Working After Migration/Cleanup

• The tool automatically updates emuMMC sector offsets in the raw_based files
• If issues persist, verify the emuMMC/RAW1 or emuMMC/RAW2 folders contain correct offsets
• Check nx_migrator_pro_*.log for any emuMMC update errors

Cleanup Mode Specific Issues

"Temporary backup directory full"

• Cleanup mode backs up FAT32 data to your system temp folder
• Ensure you have enough free space on your system drive (C:)
• Required space = size of your FAT32 partition
• Alternative: Free up space on C: drive before cleanup

"Cleanup failed during restore"

• If cleanup fails during FAT32 restore, your temp backup is still safe
• Check temp folder (C:\Users\YourName\AppData\Local\Temp\nx_partition_backup_*)
• Manually copy files back if needed
• Always keep original SD backup before cleanup!

Technical Details

Partition Table Compatibility

• Creates 100% hekate-compatible partition tables
• MBR for simple layouts (no Android)
• MBR + GPT for complex layouts (with Android)
• Exact same structure as hekate's partition manager
• 16MB alignment for optimal SD card performance

Android Partition Schemes

Dynamic (Android 10+): 7 partitions

• boot (64MB), recovery (64MB), dtb (1MB), misc (3MB)
• cache (60MB), super (5922MB), userdata (variable)

Legacy (Android 7-9): 9 partitions

• vendor (1GB), APP (3GB), LNX (32MB), SOS (64MB)
• DTB (1MB), MDA (16MB), CAC (700MB), MSC (3MB), UDA (variable)

Performance

Migration speed depends on SD card quality and reader:

• Average: 30-50 MB/s transfer rate
• 128GB card: ~45-60 minutes
• 256GB card: ~90-120 minutes
• 512GB card: ~3-4 hours

Performance optimizations:

• 32MB chunk size for optimal throughput
• Direct sector-level I/O bypassing filesystem overhead
• Parallel operations where possible

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Submit a pull request

License

GPL-2.0 License - same as hekate bootloader

Copyright (c) 2024

Credits

• CTCaer - Original hekate bootloader and partition manager
• ttkbootstrap - Modern GUI framework

Support

• Open an issue on GitHub
• Check existing issues for solutions
• Review this README and troubleshooting section

Support My Work

If you find this project useful, please consider supporting me by buying me a coffee!

---

Made for the Nintendo Switch homebrew community