Nintendo Switch system software

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Nintendo Switch system software
NintendoSwitchLogo.svg
Nintendo Switch Menu screenshot.png
Operating system and user interface of the Nintendo Switch
Developer Nintendo
OS family Nintendo proprietary (FreeBSD Kernel)
Working state Current
Source model Closed source
Initial release 1.0.0 / 3 March 2017; 4 months ago (2017-03-03)
Latest release 3.0.0 / 19 June 2017; 27 days ago (2017-06-19)[1]
Available in English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish
Update method Direct download
Platforms Nintendo Switch
Preceded by Wii U (system software)

The Nintendo Switch system software is an updatable firmware and operating system used by the Nintendo Switch gaming console.

Technology[edit]

System[edit]

According to the license information, the Nintendo Switch's system software uses code from the FreeBSD kernel, similar to the PlayStation 4's system software.[2][3][4][5] A hacker has found system calls to be similar to those of Nintendo 3DS system software but speculates that those were rewritten.[2]

In addition, several components from Android are present in the Switch's operating system, such as the Stagefright multimedia framework.[6] Rendering of web content is done via WebKit, although a web browser isn't on the console.[3] However, hackers have found their way around this to browse the web on the Nintendo Switch.[7]

UI[edit]

Home Screen[edit]

The Nintendo Switch home screen has battery, internet and time information in the top right corner, and below it is a grid showing downloaded games and cartridge games. Underneath that it has shortcuts to the Nintendo eShop, settings, a power off button and more.

History of updates[edit]

The initial version of the system software for Nintendo Switch on the launch day consoles was updated as a "day one" patch on 3 March 2017, the console's launch date.[8] The update added online features that were previously missing from the original software before its official launch date. Some notable features of this update are access to the Nintendo eShop as well as the ability to add friends to a friends list, similar to that of the Nintendo 3DS.[9]


Nintendo Switch System Software Release History
Version Release date Features
1.0.0 March 3, 2017; 4 months ago (2017-03-03) Initial release of Nintendo Switch
2.0.0 March 3, 2017; 4 months ago (2017-03-03)
  • Playing games online with multiplayer features
  • Adding friends
  • Sharing Album screenshots to Facebook and Twitter
  • Browsing and purchasing content on Nintendo eShop
  • Receiving News relating to games, Nintendo eShop discounts, and promotions
  • Earning My Nintendo points for game card (retail version)
  • Update game software
  • Turn on the TV automatically when placing the Nintendo Switch console in the Nintendo Switch dock with HDMI-CEC
  • Display the battery percentage on the HOME Menu
  • Format the microSD card
2.1.0 March 27, 2017; 3 months ago (2017-03-27)
  • General system stability improvements to enhance the user's experience
2.2.0 April 17, 2017; 2 months ago (2017-04-17)
  • General system stability improvements to enhance the user's experience
2.3.0 May 15, 2017; 2 months ago (2017-05-15)
  • General system stability improvements to enhance the user's experience
3.0.0 June 19, 2017; 27 days ago (2017-06-19)
  • Register a channel to receive News for specific games
  • Add friends from your Nintendo 3DS and Wii U Friend Lists
  • Receive notifications when your Friends go online
  • Find paired controllers within communication range by activating the vibration feature
  • Change the user icon order on the Home Menu
  • Select from 6 new Splatoon 2 characters for user icon
  • Change the system volume from the Quick Settings
  • Lower the maximum volume for headphone or speakers connected to the audio jack
  • Change display colors to Inverted Colors or Grayscale
  • Connect a USB keyboard to the dock to type whenever the keyboard is on the screen
  • Use the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller via wired communication by connecting the USB charging cable
  • The NFC touchpoint on the Pro Controller will be disabled while the controller is using wired communication
  • Update connected controllers
  • Added a feature that suggests deletion of software data if there is insufficient space when downloading other software

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Nintendo Switch System Updates and Change History". Nintendo. Retrieved 19 June 2017. 
  2. ^ a b "What hackers know of the Nintendo Switch so far". Wololo.net. 9 March 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2017. 
  3. ^ a b Cunningham, Andrew. "Nintendo Switch ships with unpatched 6-month-old WebKit vulnerabilities". Ars Technica. Retrieved 14 March 2017. 
  4. ^ Marc Sauter, Andreas Sebayang, Michael Wieczorek (1 March 2017). "Nintendo Switch im Test: Klack und los, egal wie und wo" [Nintendo Switch review: Click and go, no matter how and where] (in German). Golem Media GmbH. p. 7. Archived from the original on 1 March 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2017. The most interesting thing is that the operating system is not based on a classic Linux or Android, but on FreeBSD. The latter also takes Sony as the basis for the system of the Playstation. This avoids Nintendo’s licensing requirements for the Linux kernel, but can easily use Nvidia’s proprietary graphics driver. 
  5. ^ Bhartiya, Swapnil. "Nintendo Switch introduces a new concept for consoles". 
  6. ^ "Hacker nehmen Nintendos Switch ins Visier". heise online (in German/English). Heinz Heise. Retrieved 14 March 2017. 
  7. ^ Spawn Wave (2017-03-12), The Nintendo Switch Was Hacked?, retrieved 2017-05-06 
  8. ^ Kyle Orland (1 March 2017). "Nintendo Switch review: Meet the Game Boy Entertainment System". ArsTechnica. Condé Nast. 
  9. ^ Craig Majaski (23 February 2017). "Day 1 Nintendo Switch OS Update Details". NintendoTimes. 

External links[edit]

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