Patchstick

I was finally able to get my patchstick working last night using the instructions on the AwakwardTV Wiki. It’s actually a lot easier than it looks, your basically making 2 partitions, loading them up with all of the correct files (that you patched yourself or found somewhere else), then changing the partition table at the end to a string that the Apple TV will boot with.

I created 2 bash scripts that convert the partition table back and fourth from ATV mode and standard mode so I can get in and edit the root partition files on my mac mini.

Now that I have the correct files needed to boot on an apple tv, I can take a fresh apple tv from the store, and in a few minutes have it loaded up with every codec, plugin and screensaver available. Just pop in the USB stick, press Menu and – to reboot the ATV, and it will reboot and run teh code on the memory stick. The scripts on the stick copy over all relevant files and make any necessary changes to your Apple TV OS, then you simply reboot and enjoy all of your new plugins/screensavers/codecs.

There is still much more work to be done for the code to be moved over to 100% open source code so that a disk like this can be distributed to the masses legally, but I would imagine that sometime in the near future there will be a nice and easy drag and drop utility that includes all of the files you need to make a usb patchstick.

This opens the floodgates to a lot of people. Once these USB keys exist and more apps such as ATV Loader are released, the Apple TV Scene is going to explode. Now any idiot with $299 and a usb stick can become an ‘Apple TV Hacker’.

I am looking forward to all of the new content I will be able to watch on my bigscreen.
Have fun and keep it open source!

 

These are instructions on how to jailbreak your AppleTV using a patchstick created by atv-win on Windows.

Before getting started you need will need a USB Stick which can be fully erased.

Step One
Create a folder called Patchstick on your desktop, download atv-win from here, and place it into the folder.

Double click to open the atv-win-3.0.zip archive and drag the atv-win executable into the Patchstick folder.

Double click atv-win-3.0.exe to launch the application.

Step Two
Select the newest firmware version from the Firmware Version dropdown and select SSH from the checkboxes below. Click the Create Patchstick button to continue.

Step Three
Atv-win will now ask you for a location to save a .img file. Navigate to the Patchstick folder on your desktop, input a filename of atv-patchstick.img and click the Save button.

Step Four
Atv-win will download the latest AppleTV firmware build the .img file.

Step Five
A popup will appear informing you that your patchstick img has been created successfully. Click the OK button.

Step Six
When asked if you would like to run USB Image Tool now click the Yes button.

Step Seven
Select your USB stick from the list of devices on the left and then click the large Restore button.

Step Eight
Navigate to the Patchstick folder on your desktop and choose the atv-patchstick.img file we created earlier.

Step Nine
When asked to confirm the restore click the Yes button. Note: You will lose all previous information on the USB stick.

Step Ten
USB Image Tool will now create your patchstick using the img file we generated earlier.

Step Eleven
Once the restore is complete eject the USB Stick and connect it to your AppleTV.

Step Twelve
Hold down the Menu and – buttons on the AppleTV remote until it reboots.

Step Thirteen
Notice the Patchstick will now do its job and install SSH on the AppleTV.

Step Fourteen
When complete, remove the USB Stick from the AppleTV and unplug the device. Plug it back in to reboot.

Step Fifteen
You can now access your AppleTV via SSH to perform a host of functions and hacks. You can find many interesting tutorials for your AppleTV here. The default username and password for your AppleTV is now frontrow and frontrow.