First time using ForScan, back up everything?

[murrman]

I’ve been trying to read up as much as possible on ForScan before I attempt anything. I know it’s a good idea to back everything up before making any changes. What I’m still confused about is the differences between the asbuilt modules vs the plain text ones. Do I need to backup the plain text ones, or are those actually modifying the same thing as the asbuilt ones (just with a different interface)? The last thing I want to do is brick my vehicle, so I’m really trying to fully understand things before doing anything.

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[Brian_B]

As-Built are just the raw hex codes - that’s what you want to save

If you do the “non As Built” it’s just plain English way and it does the hex for you. But it’s still altering the hex behind the scenes

So back up the As Builts


(It’s confusing - since they aren’t actually “as built” from the factory - but that’s what Ford calls them and you can download the most recent set from your OTA updates via a web server)

 

[B22-2023]

(It’s confusing - since they aren’t actually “as built” from the factory - but that’s what Ford calls them and you can download the most recent set from your OTA updates via a web server)

And you may as well get your VIN-specific Ford OEM As-Built file saved before making any changes. I don't have the direct link but it is talked about at 6:49 of this also helpful FS video.

 

[murrman]

And you may as well get your VIN-specific Ford OEM As-Built file saved before making any changes. I don't have the direct link but it is talked about at 6:49 of this also helpful FS video.

Thanks. If I download the vin-specific file, is that essentially the same as backing up all the as-built modules, or should I still do that as well?

 

[B22-2023]

Thanks. If I download the vin-specific file, is that essentially the same as backing up all the as-built modules, or should I still do that as well?

TLDR - Better to have both, it's easy enough.

I do both to be safe, not fully understanding the workings of Ford and FS. To me the FS module backups are for everyday f'ups where a change is made to a single module like ACM, you can't get it to work and can't load it to change it back but it's not bricked yet. I made a series of changes to BdyCM and was off by one vertical/horizontal line so I had about 7 things altered randomly by mistake; it wrote & loaded, caused a bunch of errors, and I couldn't figure out what I had done or what to change back to. Reloaded from a file.

The Ford-downloaded gives you everything at once, and is the go-back-to path if SHTF and there are all kinds of errors because of FS or other changes or something random. Also, Ford apparently updates THAT online file as you drive it so even better to have the original in case THEY f something up, I guess.

 

[Brian_B]

I will warn you on backups. Earlier this year I decided to roll back a lot of my changes. Things like fog light cornering and all the GOAT modes that don’t do anything on my rig, etc.

I had backups from before I made them, but it was months prior. So I thought - no problem, I’ll just go back to my backup files.

Because other things had also changed in the mean time - my old backups weren’t valid, and I had to do a lot of work getting things working again.

This is why Ford updates their “As-Built” files OTA periodically too - so they aren’t actually from the factory as built, but rather just your most recent (hopefully working) configuration

TL;DR
Make new backups every time you use Forscan. Once you get more comfortable with it you only need to back up the modules you know you are monkeying with.

 

[B22-2023]

Make new backups every time you use Forscan. Once you get more comfortable with it you only need to back up the modules you know you are monkeying with.

I realize now that I’ll need to backup again too. One question, do you think that when there is a plain-English and a Hex option for one module (I can’t think of a specific module name but let’s just say PCM), that if you back up the hex version (Forscan’s “As-Built” selection), that you can skip the other one?

 

[Brian_B]

I realize now that I’ll need to backup again too. One question, do you think that when there is a plain-English and a Hex option for one module (I can’t think of a specific module name but let’s just say PCM), that if you back up the hex version (Forscan’s “As-Built” selection), that you can skip the other one?

I haven’t tried it, but I would be shocked if the backup file is not identical doing it either way

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