# Unbricking SHIELD TV (2015) with a Bootrom Exploit

DevFeed: [Unbricking SHIELD TV (2015) with a Bootrom Exploit](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/unbricking-shield-tv-2015-with-a-bootrom-exploit-22358.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://yifan.lu/2022/06/17/unbricking-shield-tv-2015-with-a-bootrom-exploit/>)

Author: yifanlu

Published: 2022-06-17T07:00:00Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Yifan Lu](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/yifan-lu.md>)

Topics: [Reverse Engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/reverse-engineering.md>), [Raspberry Pi](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/raspberry-pi.md>), [configuration](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/configuration.md>), [boot](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/boot.md>), [Nvidia](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/nvidia.md>), [Linux](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/linux.md>)

Tags: [boot](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/boot.md>), [bootrom](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/bootrom.md>), [configuration](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/configuration.md>), [embedded](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/embedded.md>), [exploit](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/exploit.md>), [linux](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/linux.md>), [nvidia](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/nvidia.md>), [raspberry-pi](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/raspberry-pi.md>), [rcm](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/rcm.md>), [reverse-engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/reverse-engineering.md>), [t210](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/t210.md>), [tegra](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/tegra.md>)

## AI overview

The article documents recovering a 2015 NVIDIA SHIELD TV after flashing an outdated device tree blob left it unable to boot. It examines serial-console diagnostics and the Tegra boot ROM's APX emergency recovery mode, including its use of NVIDIA's RCM protocol.

## Source excerpt

Last year, a friend gave me his SHIELD TV when he moved. He worked at NVIDIA and got it for free and had used it only a handful of times before it traveled from his closet to my own. I had forgotten about it until I had a need for a Raspberry Pi and discovered that they were all still sold out. Wouldn't the SHIELD TV make a great RPI replacement? It has been out for almost a decade now and surely people have gotten Linux working on it. After following a guide from 2015, I quickly bricked the device trying to flash an outdated DTB file. It turns out that a bad DTB brick was quite common in the community and unfortunately the only proposed solution of "return it to Best Buy" was not an option for me. Even though I have never cared about this device, I was still ashamed at my negligence and felt guilty about creating more e-waste. Thus began my journey to recover the device.