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FAQ
OpenFlash is an open-source tool for reading, writing, and analyzing NAND flash memory chips. It's designed for reverse engineers, hardware hackers, and data recovery specialists.
Yes! OpenFlash is 100% free and open-source under the MIT license.
- Windows 10/11
- macOS 10.15+
- Linux (Ubuntu 20.04+, Debian 11+, Arch, etc.)
You need a cheap microcontroller (~$2-60) or single board computer:
Microcontrollers:
- Raspberry Pi Pico / Pico 2 (recommended)
- STM32F4 "Black Pill" (fastest MCU, v1.5+)
- Arduino GIGA R1 WiFi (enterprise, v2.3+)
- Teensy 4.0/4.1 (USB High Speed 480Mbps! v2.3.5+) ⚡
- ESP32 (wireless, v1.5+)
- STM32F103 "Blue Pill" (budget)
Single Board Computers (v2.3+):
- Raspberry Pi 3B+/4/5/Zero 2W
- Orange Pi Zero 3/5
- Banana Pi M2 Zero/M4 Berry/BPI-F3 (v2.3.5+) 🍌
Plus wires to connect to your NAND chip.
| Platform | Speed | Price | WiFi | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RP2040 Pico | Medium | ~$4 | ❌ | Beginners |
| RP2350 Pico 2 | High | ~$5 | ❌ | NV-DDR NAND |
| STM32F4 | Fast | ~$5 | ❌ | MCU Performance |
| Arduino GIGA | Very High | ~$60 | ✅ | Enterprise |
| Teensy 4.0/4.1 | Very High | ~$20-30 | ❌ | USB HS Speed ⚡ |
| ESP32 | Medium | ~$4 | ✅ | Wireless |
| STM32F1 | Slow | ~$2 | ❌ | Budget |
| Raspberry Pi | Very High | ~$35-75 | ✅ | Headless/Server |
| Orange Pi | High | ~$15-50 | ✅ | Budget SBC |
| Banana Pi | High | ~$15-35 | ✅ | RISC-V option 🍌 |
Raspberry Pi Pico (RP2040) is recommended for beginners. Raspberry Pi Pico 2 (RP2350) for high-speed NV-DDR NAND. STM32F4 is fastest MCU with USB OTG and FSMC. Arduino GIGA for enterprise with FMC, HS USB, WiFi. Teensy 4.0/4.1 for USB High Speed (480Mbps) — 10-20x faster! ESP32 enables wireless operation via WiFi/BLE. Raspberry Pi/Orange Pi/Banana Pi SBC for headless server or high-speed operations.
Yes! Arduino GIGA R1 WiFi is supported in v2.3+. It's the most powerful platform with STM32H747 dual-core, FMC hardware NAND controller, and WiFi/BLE.
Classic 8-bit Arduinos (Uno, Nano) are not supported due to limited RAM and speed.
Any ONFI-compliant parallel NAND flash with 8-bit data bus. See Supported Chips.
Yes! eMMC support was added in v1.2. OpenFlash communicates with eMMC chips via SPI mode.
Yes! SPI NAND support was added in v1.1. Only 4 wires needed.
Usually yes, unless:
- The device has a NAND test point header
- You can access the chip in-circuit without interference
3.3V only. Never connect 5V to NAND chips!
Click the "Mock" button to enable a simulated device. This lets you test all features.
Currently raw binary (.bin). More formats planned.
Yes, but use with caution! Writing incorrect data can brick devices.
OpenFlash detects bad blocks and shows them in analysis. It doesn't automatically skip them during dumps (you get raw data).
- Hamming (1-bit correction)
- BCH (multi-bit correction)
The AI tab provides intelligent analysis:
- Pattern Recognition - Detects encrypted, compressed, executable, text regions
- Anomaly Detection - Finds bad blocks, bit errors, truncated data
- Recovery Suggestions - Recommends actions with success probability
- Chip Recommendations - Tips for optimal settings (ECC, timing, page size)
- SquashFS
- UBIFS
- JFFS2
- YAFFS2 (partial)
- U-Boot images
- Compressed data (gzip, LZMA, XZ)
Each pixel represents one page:
- White: Empty (0xFF)
- Blue: Low entropy (repetitive data)
- Green: Medium entropy
- Orange: High entropy
- Purple: Very high entropy (compressed/encrypted)
- Red: Potential bad block
No, OpenFlash only reads raw data. Decryption is up to you.
See Troubleshooting
The chip might be empty, or there's a wiring issue. See Troubleshooting
See Troubleshooting
- Test with different NAND chips
- Report bugs
- Improve documentation
- Submit code improvements
- Translate the UI
See CONTRIBUTING.md
- Get the chip ID
- Find the datasheet
- Submit an issue or PR with specifications
Yes, the MIT license allows commercial use. Attribution appreciated but not required.
Reading your own devices is legal. Reading devices you don't own may not be. Always ensure you have the right to access the data.
Reading is safe. Writing can potentially damage data if done incorrectly. Always backup first!
OpenFlash runs locally on your computer. No data is sent anywhere unless you use OpenFlash Cloud (v3.0+), which is opt-in.
OpenFlash Pro (v3.0) adds cloud features for professional users:
- Cloud sync - Sync dumps, reports, projects across devices
- Team collaboration - Share projects with your team
- Chip crowdsourcing - Contribute to community chip database
- AI model updates - Get latest AI models automatically
- Enterprise support - Priority support tickets
OpenFlash Pro has three tiers:
- Free - Basic features, chip crowdsourcing
- Pro - Cloud sync, team collaboration, AI updates
- Enterprise - Priority support, unlimited storage
No account needed for local features. Account required only for cloud features.
Cloud data is stored on OpenFlash servers. You can delete your data anytime. Local features work completely offline.