AP2.5 flagging and LT+ 3.0 info and FAQ

If your 360 has suddenly stopped booting certain backups that previously worked fine, it's probably because your machine has failed an AP2.5 challenge. AP2.5 is the anti-piracy method that MS employ on certain games.

This guide covers everything you need to know about checking if your console is flagged, how to avoid being flagged, and LT+ 3.0.

Here's how to check if your console is flagged: -

1. Download XVal 2.0. You can get it from Xbox-Scene, HERE.

2. Fire up your 360 (it doesn't matter if you're connected to Live or not) and go to Console Settings - System Info in the dashboard. Here you'll find your console serial number and at the bottom of the screen, you'll see "X:" followed by a 16 character string.

3. Run XVal 2.0 and enter in your console serial number and the X value from the System Info page, then hit the Decrypt button.

If your console is clean, you will see "Secdata is Clean" displayed as the result. If your console has been flagged for failing an AP2.5 challenge, you will see "Failed AP25 Challenge". You may see other messages, as your 360 may have failed a different challenge, but anything other than "Secdata is Clean" is not good.

What does it mean if my console is flagged?

If you're flagged for a failed AP2.5 challenge, then the following occurs: -

1. Backups protected by AP2.5 won't boot unless they are re-patched either with the correct AP2.5 data (LT+ 2.0) or with topology data (LT+ 3.0). In some cases, some AP2.5-protected games may still boot, while others won't, as MS have been disabling AP2.5 in certain titles with title updates.

2. Your console is revoked, which means it can no longer sign data in a way that other consoles can read. That means that if you have gamertags/game saves on a USB stick and you connect that stick to a different console, the gamertags and saves will show up as corrupt data.

It does not necessarily mean that you will get banned as legit users have been flagged for failing AP2.5 challenges too, so it's not a 100% reliable method for only catching people playing backups.

If I'm not flagged, am I safe?

Not necessarily. XVal 2.0 checks to see if you've been flagged client-side, which means on your console. You may have been flagged for something server-side (i.e. on Xbox Live), but there's no reliable way to check for that.

If my console is flagged, what can I do?

If you have a clean backup of your 360's NAND, you can restore that and remove the flag, but you may still be flagged server-side if you've been using Xbox Live.

How do I avoid getting flagged for failing an AP2.5 challenge?

There are a couple of steps you should take: -

1. Make sure that any AP2.5 backups you have are fully patched and up to date.

2. Stay off Xbox Live if you're not on LT+ 3.0 with fully patched backups! If you connect to Live, your 360 will download an update to DAE.bin silently and then when you try and boot an AP2.5 game (either online or offline), your console will be flagged.

How does LT+ 3.0 change this situation?

LT+ 3.0 handles AP2.5 challenges differently to previous versions. With LT+ 2.0, the AP2.5 data is ripped and stored based on the current challenges only, so when the challenges change, you need to re-rip/re-patch and re-burn your games. This is impractical now that MS can update DAE.bin any time they like silently in the background. In LT+ 3.0, disc topology data is stored in the backup that enables the console to answer any AP2.5 challenges, even when the challenges change.

Do I need to re-rip/re-patch/re-burn AP2.5 protected games for LT+ 3.0?

Yes. LT+ 3.0 requires that the new topology data is stored on your backup disc. The good thing is, you will only have to do this once, then you will not have to worry about AP2.5 again (unless MS improve or change the system of course!).

Xbox Backup Creator has been updated to enable you to rip/inject the topology data and a new version of abgx360 will be released that will patch this topology data into ISOs for you.

How do I patch games for LT+ 3.0?

Check the guide, HERE.

What games need patching for LT+ 3.0?

Check the list, HERE.

Will games patched for LT+ 3.0 work OK on LT+ 2.0 and vice versa?

Nope.

Why is all of this necessary? Isn't my backup already a perfect copy of the original?

Backups are not perfect copies of the original. Original discs are pressed in a factory and it's not possible to create perfect 1:1 backups of them using DVD burners and DVD+R DL media. In fact, that's what AP2.5 relies on.

When will the new version of abgx360 be released?

There is no ETA for the new version of abgx360, but it's in progress.

 

nice and useful topic with useful infos, its a must have & must read topic. thanks man

 

This should be stickied! Very informative, even for beginners. Thanks for this useful post.

 

Thanks gents.

I've added a link to this thread to the Tutorial & FAQ links thread that's pinned at the very top of this forum section. That pinned thread only contains links to up to date tutorials and info and as I started it, I can edit it and keep it up to date.

 

funksoulb you are rapidly becoming "the man".

 

Much agreed with eebeejay, this is the best write up I've seen on this topic. Fantastic job funksoulb. I just hope it does get stickied, unlike other recent posts. Is there Moderator in the house? We need a new sheriff!

I nominate funksoulb. hahaha

EDIT** Quick question. If xval shows an AP2.5 flag, is it still possible to do a "title update" using the Horizon USB method in order to get a game to work offline? I haven't had to do this yet.

 

Thanks man. Yeah, some of the recent title updates for certain games have been disabling AP2.5 on a per-title basis. That's how people have got games like MW3 to boot after their console has already been flagged. I read that MS are doing that as a test, maybe so that they can add AP2.5 to more existing games (popular XGD2 titles I would assume), and also to make sure that they can disable AP2.5 for a particular title if it causes a problem with a lot of legit users.

As for pinning this, I think it's better to pin as little as possible really. 1 rules thread and 1 topic with links to all of the current tutorials and FAQs is enough IMO. n00bs won't read the stickies anyway, but at least with a pinned tutorials/FAQs thread we can quickly point them in the right direction instead of either saying "search!" or typing out the same answer time and time again, haha.

 

Cool, so ABGX will be able to patch our ISO files with the topology data and we wont have to re-rip all the originals, just patch and re-burn? That is a relief.

 

My black benq elite that's been around since 1.3 failed AP2.5 challenge... Bring on the dash update in 2 days cause my xbox is still gonna be rocking online.. If not, I got a closet full of white arcades that I payed less than 85$ each

 

So if my console is flagged, is it not possible to play burned and copied games while staying COMPLETELY OFFLINE?

 

It depends.

An AP2.5 challenge failure occurs when you try and boot a game that isn't patched with the data that matches your DAE.bin file. That flags your console.

So, if MS update DAE.bin on your machine, then all of the AP2.5 data on your backups will be out of date and unless AP2.5 has been disabled for a particular game via a title update, none of those backups will boot, even offline.

If you either update the dashboard so that the DAE.bin in the dash matches the AP2.5 data in your backups, or you update the AP2.5 data in your backups to match the DAE.bin file in the dashboard, then games will begin to boot again. Doing that is easier said than done now though, because the DAE.bin updates that MS have been silently rolling out are tied to individual machines. If you want to re-patch a backup, you would need to dump the DAE.bin file from your own machine and then re-rip the original using it.

The more long-term (and easier) solution is to wait for LT+ 3.0 and for abgx360 to be updated so that it supports patching of the new topology data that LT will use. Once your 360 is updated and games are re-patched/re-burned, that should be the end of AP2.5 unless MS come up with something new (which they probably will!).

 

Assume that I have loads of burned XGD3 games which work and I NEVER connect to Xbox Live AND NEVER apply system updates. Do I still have tot flash to Lt +3.0 ? Whats the point in flashing to LT 3.0 if these XGD3 games are working and I NEVER connect to XBOX LIVE

 

At some point, games will come out that force you to upgrade your dashboard. Also, it's possible for MS to update dae.bin via a game disc. Games ripped for use with LT+ 3.0 may not run on LT+ 2.0 either.

 

I did the test and it says AP25 failed challenge
what do I do now?
my xbox plays backups but won't play the XGD3 games.

 

I prolly got a flag for modern warfare 3. So what if i buy the original and boot that? Will it work? And, if LT3.0+ gets released, will it be possible to play the modern warfare 3 backup again or will the flag stay forever?

 

The flag will stay unless MS decide to reverse it (highly unlikely). Once LT+ 3.0 is out, you should be able to flash your console with that, patch your AP2.5 backups with the topology data, then they'll play fine.

 

any idea when LT+3.0 will be out?
I had my xbox modded by someone so I guess I
would have to bring it back to him to put LT+3.0

 

There's never an ETA on these things unless c4eva says something. All he's said in this case is "yes" to when someone asked "will LT+ 3.0 be releasing soon?", so it sounds like it won't be too far away, but you never know.

If you rip your own games, you'll also need the new version of Xbox Backup Creator too. If you don't rip your own games, you'll need the new version of abgx360. Neither of those have ETAs either.

 

Post 1 updated with new information.

 

Forgive me if this has been answered already but my search was fruitless. I have patched my ISO with the XGD3 Topology data for LT+ 3.0 and all works well.

As the patched 3.0 versions will not work on LT+ 2.0, my question is how can I reverse the patch in order to make a backup copy for my LT+ 2.0 Console? Do I have to re-rip another ISO from the Original Disc?