The custom Home Menu UI for the Nintendo 3DS.

Check out the Home Menu UI Layout Customization Guide for creating your own customized Home Menu UI for 3DS!

Table of Contents

Kitsune’s Custom Home Menu UI

A customized Home Menu UI made by me.

❮ ❯
Spinning Cursor
Blue Applets
No Miiverse Applet
Blue Shutdown Screen

Target system firmware version: 11.17.0-50
and future FW versions, unless major changes are made to Home Menu

The system font is a separate system file. To install a custom system font, go here.

Last updated: 2024-10-07

Download Mod:

For those who don't want to use a Miiverse replacement service such as Pretendo Network's Juxtaposition

Choose how you want to install the mod:

Adding the Home Menu Applet Patch

Luma3DS custom firmware is required to use the mod. Install CFW if you haven't already.

LayeredFS is a Luma3DS feature that redirects games/apps assets to modded assets files in the SD Card without patching the ROMs or system files directly.

LayeredFS patching is unstable for system applets which causes Home Menu to crash. This happens when Home Menu is opened 11 times total (by suspending a game or exiting an applet) during the whole session (after booting the system).
This method should be used for testing purposes. To avoid crashes, install this mod with the CIA file instead.

  1. Unpack the downloaded archive file and enter the LayeredFS folder.

  2. Enter a folder matching your console region.

  3. Copy the luma folder to the root of the SD Card.

  4. Launch the Luma3DS config by holding the Select button while booting.

  5. Activate "Enable game patching".

  6. Save and exit.

The custom Home Menu UI has been installed.

You can also add the Home Menu applet patch to Azahar emulator.

The system files need to be installed to a virtual NAND before continuing. Follow the instructions for setting up system files on an emulator. A real 3DS is required.

  1. Launch Azahar.

  2. Go to File → Open Azahar Folder.

  3. Go to /load/mods. Create folders if those don't exist.

  4. Unpack the downloaded archive file and enter the LayeredFS folder.

  5. Go to /[region]/luma/titles.

  6. Copy the 000400300000??02 folder to the mods folder.

  7. Launch the Home Menu by going to File → Boot Home Menu → EUR/USA/JPN.

The custom Home Menu UI has been installed.

Removing the Home Menu Applet Patch

  1. Boot the console while holding the Start button to launch GodMode9.

  2. Go to SDCARD:/luma/titles.

  3. Delete or rename the 000400300000??02 folder.

    • EUR: 0004003000009802

    • JPN: 0004003000008202

    • USA: 0004003000008F02

  4. Reboot the console.

The Home Menu UI has been restored.

  1. Launch Azahar.

  2. Go to File → Open Azahar Folder.

  3. Go to /load/mods.

  4. Delete or rename the 000400300000??02 folder.

    • EUR: 0004003000009802

    • JPN: 0004003000008202

    • USA: 0004003000008F02

  5. Launch the Home Menu by going to File → Boot Home Menu → EUR/USA/JPN.

The Home Menu UI has been restored.

Backing Up the Home Menu Applet

Luma3DS custom firmware is required to use the mod. Install CFW if you haven't already.

The Home Menu applet will be backed up to the SD card so if you modified the Home Menu applet, you can restore it.

  1. Boot the console while holding the Start button to launch GodMode9.

  2. Press the Home button.

  3. Select Scripts... → GM9Megascript → Miscellaneous → Title Options → Dump HomeMenu to .cia.

  4. Proceed dumping this system applet.

  5. If it asks you to decrypt the CIA file afterwards, select "No".

The homemenu.cia file is saved to SDCARD:/gm9/out. Copy that file to a safe place in your computer.

Installing the Custom Home Menu Applet

Create a NAND backup before modifying any system files! Modifying the Home Menu applet is safe since Boot9Strap provides brick protection, allowing recovery with GodMode9. If you messed up and the Home Menu fails to launch, use GodMode9 to restore the Home Menu applet.

Never uninstall CFW while any modded system files are installed, doing so will remove Boot9Strap and fully brick the console! If you fully bricked your console, you'll need a DS flashcart with ntrboot to re-install Boot9Strap to unbrick your console.

System Update note

System Update will fail while the custom Home Menu applet is installed. To update your system, you must restore the Home Menu applet back to its original state.
After a system update, backup the homemenu.cia file again in case the Home Menu is also updated.

The current Home Menu mod is likely compatible with future system firmware versions. If this mod stops working, I will update the base Home Menu applet for this mod.

The CIA file must be installed with GodMode9. Do not install it with FBI, the installation will fail as the Home Menu applet is being used by another process.
GodMode9 v2.0.0 or above is required to install .cia files. Get the latest version of GodMode9 here.

  1. Add a downloaded CIA file to the SD Card.

  2. Boot the console while holding the Start button to launch GodMode9.

  3. Browse and select a CIA file.

  4. Select CIA image options... → Install game image.

    • CIA files downloaded from this page are already encrypted, so there's no need to re-encrypt it.

  5. Reboot the console.

The custom Home Menu applet has been installed.

Restoring the Home Menu Applet

If you've dumped the homemenu.cia file with GodMode9, follow this section.

  1. Boot the console while holding the Start button to launch GodMode9.

  2. Go to SDCARD:/gm9/out and select a homemenu.cia file.

  3. Select CIA image options... → Install game image.

  4. Reboot the console.

The Home Menu applet has been restored.

If you've lost the homemenu.cia file from your SD Card and computer, follow this section.
The target system firmware version is 11.17.0-50.

  1. Download the original Home Menu applet:

  2. Add a HomeMenu_???.cia file to the SD Card.

  3. Boot the console while holding the Start button to launch GodMode9.

  4. Browse and select a HomeMenu_???.cia file.

  5. Select CIA image options... → Install game image.

  6. Reboot the console.

The Home Menu applet has been restored.

Alternatively, download the system file for your system firmware version other than 11.17.0-50.

  1. Download 3DNUS.

  2. Launch 3DNUS.

  3. Input your system's current firmware version and region (ex: 11.15.0-47E).

  4. Click "New 3DS" or "Old 3DS" for your 3DS system model.

  5. Click "Begin Download", and wait for the download to complete.

  6. Enter the firmware folder and find the .cia file for Home Menu inside the updates folder.

    • EUR: 0004003000009802.cia

    • USA: 0004003000008F02.cia

    • JPN: 0004003000008202.cia

  7. Rename the 000400300000??02.cia file to HomeMenu.cia.

  8. Place it in the SD Card.

  9. Boot the console while holding the Start button to launch GodMode9.

  10. Browse and select a HomeMenu.cia file.

  11. Select CIA image options... → Install game image.

  12. Reboot the console.

The Home Menu applet has been restored.

Extra Stuff

Home Menu Mods Made by Other People

These releases contain only the RomFS folder. Again, LayeredFS patching for applets is unstable, Home Menu crashes if the Home Menu is opened 11 times.
It is recommended to compile a CIA file and install it so Home Menu doesn't crash.

  1. Follow derberg's 3DS Home Menu Customization Guide for RomFS extraction (do not decompress all LZ files).

  2. After extracting, copy the mod's RomFS contents to /HMRT/ExtractedRomFS (overwrite all).

    • For ExeFS:

    • code.bin goes to /HMRT/ExtractedExeFS

    • exheader.bin renamed as DecryptedExHeader.bin goes to /HMRT/HMRT

    • Instead of code.bin, the code.ips file is provided and you must patch your original code.bin file with Lunar IPS.

      1. Launch Lunar IPS.

      2. Click "Apply IPS Patch".

      3. Select a code.ips file and click "Open".

      4. Click the "Most Common ROM Files" combo-box and select "All Files".

      5. Select an original code.bin file and click "Open" to patch it.

      6. Copy the patched code.bin file to /HMRT/ExtractedExeFS.

  3. Launch HMRT and build a CIA file.

  4. Add a CIA file to the SD card.

  5. Boot the console while holding the Start button to launch GodMode9.

  6. Browse and select a compiled CIA file.

  7. Select CIA image options... → Encrypt file → Encrypt inplace.

  8. Select an encrypted CIA file again.

  9. Select CIA image options... → Install game image.

  10. Reboot the console.