The 3-2-1 Rule, Save-File Edition

• 3 copies of anything you care about (the working copy plus two backups).
• 2 different media (for example your PC’s drive and a USB stick).
• 1 copy off the console/PC desk — cloud storage, or a drive kept somewhere else.

Step 1: Export Cleanly from Apollo

Export both forms of important saves:

• Decrypted exports (PS4: to /PS4/APOLLO/) — the editable form you patch and re-sign.
• Encrypted exports (PS4: under /PS4/SAVEDATA/<account-id>/) — the form the game itself reads; the fastest restore path.

Name folders by game and Title ID, and date your snapshots (2026-10-24_before-patching/) so a bad edit never overwrites a good state.

Step 2: Land Them on Your PC

Copy the USB’s Apollo folders into a dedicated PC folder — this folder is now your save library’s home. Pick a drive option from our USB drive guide if transfers feel slow or unreliable.

Step 3: Put One Copy in the Cloud

Sync that PC folder to a cloud service and the routine is complete. A lifetime-plan service such as pCloud suits save libraries well: one payment, no subscription to babysit, and your exported saves are retrievable from anywhere. automatic sync means the backup happens even when you forget. Apollo itself cannot back up to the cloud directly (FTP to your own server is its built-in option) — the cloud copy protects the PC folder Apollo exports to, and that distinction matters.

Step 4: Test the Restore

Once, deliberately: pick an unimportant save, delete it from the console, and restore it from your PC/cloud copy through Apollo’s import and re-signing. A backup you have never restored is a hope, not a backup. The restore workflow is the same as re-signing a save.

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PS4 Paths

On an external HDD used through Apollo’s fake-USB mode, the same trees live under /data/fakeusb/. HDD saves are scanned from the internal drive based on your current User ID.

PS3 Paths

PS Vita & PSP Paths

• Vita Apollo data and patches: ux0:data/apollo/.
• PSP saves under Adrenaline: ux0:pspemu/PSP/SAVEDATA/.
• On a real PSP, Apollo itself installs to ms0:/PSP/GAME/APOLLO, and PSP saves live in PSP/SAVEDATA/ on the Memory Stick.

File Formats Apollo Recognises

• PS2 saves: .xps, .max, .psu, .cbs, .psv, .sps · VMC images: .vmc, .card, .vm2, .ps2, .bin, .mc2, .mcd
• PS1 saves: .mcs, .psx, .ps1, .mcb, .psv, .pda · VMC images: .vmc, .mcd, .mcr, .gme, .vm1, .vmp, .vgs, .srm, .bin
• Dreamcast (v2.4.0): VMU images .bin/.vmu/.dcm; saves .vmi/.vms and .dci

Still Not Seeing the Save?

Check case and nesting: one extra folder level (for example PS4/APOLLO/PS4/APOLLO/) hides the save. Then work through Apollo not seeing USB saves for the full checklist.

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On PS4: Manage and Export

The PS4 build’s trophy tools centre on the current user’s trophy container:

• Mount trophy.img — Apollo can mount the secure trophy container for the current user.
• Export trophy sets — back up your trophy files to .zip or raw format, for example before a system rebuild.
• Fake lock/unlock — Apollo can fake lock or unlock trophies in the XMB view. Note the word fake: this changes local trophy state display, not a server-side record.

Workflow: Backing Up a Trophy Set on PS4

1. Install Apollo and open the trophy management section.
2. Select your trophy set and choose export (.zip or raw) to USB.
3. Store the export with your save backups — see the backup guide.

On PS3: The Full Trophy Toolkit

The PS3 build goes further:

• Re-sign trophy sets for the current user and console (so sets from another account can be adopted).
• Export trophy sets to .zip/raw, and import sets back from USB backups.
• Unlock individual trophies for the current user.

Step Carefully

Unlocking trophies out of order or syncing artificially unlocked sets to an online profile is exactly the kind of thing platform holders can flag. Apollo’s own documentation makes no safety promises here, and neither do we — treat trophy unlocking as an offline, at-your-own-risk feature. See cheat codes: sources and safety boundaries for the full picture.

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Where the Patches Come From

Apollo downloads its patch collection from the companion apollo-patches project, and cheat definitions are plain-text .savepatch files. Game-specific decryption and checksum support is built into the engine for many titles — v2.4.0 added titles such as Resident Evil Village, Monster Hunter Rise and Goat Simulator 3 (see the v2.4.0 support list).

Step 1: Back Up the Original Save

Export an untouched copy of the save to USB first. Patches rewrite values; a backup is the only undo.

Step 2: Open the Save in Apollo

1. Select your save (decrypted, or decrypt/export it from your console’s save data first).
2. Open the cheats / patches view for that save. Apollo matches patches by the game’s Title ID.

Step 3: Choose and Apply Patches

1. Tick the modifications you want (max items, currency, unlocks — whatever the patch offers). Some codes present on-screen choices for values.
2. Apply. The Patch Engine runs the code’s searches, writes the new values, and recalculates the save’s checksums automatically (including custom per-game checksums where supported).
3. Apollo re-signs / re-encrypts the save back to your account if needed.

Step 4: Test

Load the game and check the result. If the game rejects the save, restore the backup and try a smaller set of patches — see corrupted save fixes.

Honesty Box

Patch formats are compatible; the tools are not affiliated. Save Wizard is a paid PC product that also edits saves without a jailbreak; Apollo applies the same style of codes on a jailbroken console. And no patch makes online use risk-free — read cheat codes: sources and safety boundaries before taking a modified save online.

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Step 1: Open the Online Database

1. Connect your console to the internet and open Apollo.
2. Choose the Online Database option in the menu. Apollo fetches the current index from the project’s GitHub pages.
3. Browse by game. Saves are organised by platform and by each game’s Title ID (for example BLUS12345), with a saves.txt index describing what’s inside.

Step 2: Download a Save

Select the save and download it. Apollo stores it with your other saves, ready for processing. Note the project’s own honest caveat: the list of available games is still limited and grows through community contributions.

Step 3: Re-Sign Before You Play (Mandatory)

Downloaded saves will not load until you re-sign them. They are encrypted to the contributor’s account. Use Apollo’s re-signing on the downloaded save — PS4 re-signing guide or PS3 re-signing guide — then start the game.

Options Worth Knowing

• User-defined database URL: Apollo’s Settings let you point the Online Database at a different URL (your own mirror, for example).
• FTP instead: on current builds you can select an FTP server as the source for downloads and backups instead of the Online Database.
• PS2 exception: the PS2 build has no network features — it loads an offline save database from disc or USB instead.

If the Database Won’t Load

Connection failures are usually network or build problems — work through Online Database not loading fixes. To explore what the library actually contains and how to contribute your own saves, see the Online Database library tour.

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What This Is (and Isn’t)

This is local, offline activation data generated on your own console, mainly so homebrew and your legally owned content behave correctly on CFW/HEN systems that never connect to PSN. It is not a PSN account and does not sign you into anything online.

Step 1: Create the Offline Activation

1. Install Apollo and open it on the user profile you want to activate.
2. Open the Backup Management / account tools section.
3. Choose the account activation option. Apollo generates a fake Account ID for the profile and writes the offline activation (act.dat) for that user.

Step 2: Back Up Your Licences

From the same toolkit you can:

• Export licences for the current user to a .zip archive or as individual .rap files — do this before any system reinstall.
• Import licences: place .rap files where Apollo expects them and import them; Apollo generates the corresponding user .rif licences on the console.

Step 3: Keep the Pieces Together

Your activation and licences belong to a specific user profile and console IDs. Store the exported licence archive with your save backups — our 3-2-1 backup guide shows a simple routine for the whole library.

Notes

• Apollo auto-detects PSID, IDPS and Account ID; if the wrong account is detected under multi-user setups, an owners.xml override at /dev_hdd0/game/NP0APOLLO/USRDIR/ can correct it.
• Licence tools are a PS3 build feature — the PS4 and Vita builds do not manage licences this way.

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Before You Start

• Install Apollo on a CFW or HEN-enabled PS3.
• Back up your own save to USB first (Apollo lists saves from both USB and the internal HDD).
• Apollo auto-detects your PSID, IDPS and Account ID. With multiple accounts, sign into the right one first. Wrong IDs can be overridden with owners.xml at /dev_hdd0/game/NP0APOLLO/USRDIR/.

Step 1: Put the Save on the PS3

Copy the save folder to a FAT32 USB drive under PS3/SAVEDATA/, or download a save directly inside Apollo from the Online Database. Downloaded and shared saves are tied to their original account until re-signed.

Step 2: Unlock the Save if It Is Copy-Protected

Some saves carry a copy-lock flag (“Copying Prohibited”). In Apollo, select the save and use SFO unlocking to remove the flag so the save can be transferred and processed normally.

Step 3: Re-Sign the Save (PFD)

1. Select the save in Apollo’s save list.
2. Choose the re-sign option. Apollo re-encrypts the save’s protected files (PFD) against your console and account IDs and updates the save’s SFO information.
3. Copy the re-signed save to the internal HDD if it came from USB.

Step 4: Load the Game and Verify

Start the game and load the save. If the PS3 still says the save belongs to another user, the account Apollo detected doesn’t match the profile you play on — see account-ID mismatch fixes. If a save was fine and now errors, restore the backup and check corrupted save after re-signing.

Related PS3 Powers

The same build re-signs and imports trophy sets, converts PS1/PS2 saves to the PS3 .PSV format, and manages licences — see the PS3 hub for the full feature list.

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Before You Start

• Install Apollo on your jailbroken PS4.
• Back up your own original save first. In Apollo, select your save and choose the export option to copy it to USB — never overwrite your only copy.
• Understand the two save states: encrypted saves (the format games write, tied to an account) live in PS4/SAVEDATA/<account-id>/ on USB; decrypted saves (the editable form Apollo works with) live in PS4/APOLLO/.

Step 1: Get the Save onto Your PS4

Place the decrypted save in /PS4/APOLLO/ on a USB drive (create the folders if needed) and plug the drive into the PS4. Saves downloaded from Apollo’s built-in Online Database arrive ready for the same process — downloaded saves are locked to the contributor’s account and must be re-signed before any game will load them.

Step 2: Let Apollo Detect Your Account

Apollo automatically detects your User ID and Account ID from the current profile — there is nothing to type in. If you use several profiles, make sure you are signed into the profile the save should belong to.

Step 3: Re-Sign the Save

1. Open Apollo and browse to the save in the USB saves list.
2. Select it and choose the option to import / re-sign the save to your account. Apollo updates the save’s param.sfo account information and re-encrypts it for your profile.
3. Apollo copies the finished save to your console’s save data area.

Step 4: Test in the Game

Launch the game and load the save. If the game reports the save belongs to another user, the re-sign didn’t take — work through account-ID mismatch fixes. If the game calls the save corrupted, restore your backup and see corrupted save after re-signing.

Good Practice

• Keep decrypted and encrypted copies separate and labelled by game title ID.
• Re-sign one save, test it, then batch the rest.
• Apollo can also work in the other direction: decrypt and export your own saves to USB (/PS4/APOLLO/) for backup — see our save backup guide.

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What You Need

• A homebrew-enabled PS Vita (HENkaku / Enso family).
• VitaShell installed, with Enable unsafe homebrew turned on in its settings (required to install homebrew packages with extended permissions).
• The official package: apollo-vita.vpk (7,343,637 bytes).

Step 1: Download and Verify

Get the .vpk from our download page or the PS Vita hub and verify its SHA-256:

25a3525efc49dd912b97b112c9b20cb333020b663cb74dc060de8697292d262a

Step 2: Transfer the VPK

Copy apollo-vita.vpk to your Vita over USB or FTP with VitaShell — ux0:data/ is a convenient location.

Step 3: Install

1. In VitaShell, browse to the .vpk and press X.
2. Approve the extended-permissions prompt. Apollo installs to the LiveArea.

Step 4: PSP Saves Need One Extra Step

To hash and re-sign PSP saves correctly, Apollo needs your console’s FuseID dumped from Adrenaline. Apollo can install its own dumper: open Apollo’s Tools → PSP Key Dumper tools → Install PSP FuseID Dumper, run it once in Adrenaline, and Apollo will pick the file up automatically. PSP save decryption also needs per-game keys — see PSP save decryption keys explained.

Troubleshooting

• Install fails or the app errors on launch: check Vita unsafe-homebrew and C2-12828-1 fixes — plugin conflicts are the usual cause.

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What You Need

• A PS3 with custom firmware (CFW), or a console with PS3HEN enabled.
• A USB drive formatted to FAT32.
• The official package: apollo-ps3.pkg (6,256,160 bytes).

Step 1: Download and Verify

Download from our download page or the PS3 hub, then verify the SHA-256:

adae4a71f08b1c2c8e16924ca27dce79a15453d28f19dfc9e16c04d1bad9e9af

Step 2: Copy to USB

Place apollo-ps3.pkg in the root of the FAT32 USB drive and plug it into the PS3.

Step 3: Install from the XMB

1. If you use HEN, run Enable HEN first.
2. Go to Game → Package Manager → Install Package Files → Standard.
3. Select apollo-ps3.pkg and confirm. Apollo is installed to the internal drive and appears under Game.

Step 4: First Run

Apollo auto-detects your PSID, IDPS and Account ID and supports multiple user accounts. If re-signing ever picks the wrong account, an owners.xml file at /dev_hdd0/game/NP0APOLLO/USRDIR/ can override the detected IDs.

Troubleshooting

• Error 80029563 during install: the package failed the console’s checks — usually HEN wasn’t enabled, or the download is truncated. Re-verify the checksum and see fixing error 80029563.
• Package not listed: confirm the USB is FAT32 and the .pkg is in the root, not a subfolder.

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Download Apollo · PS3 hub · Re-sign PS3 saves · Activate a PS3 account