Install Leaf

Leaf installs from an SD card using the Miniloong Pocket 1’s own built-in update mechanism. You don’t need ADB, a custom flasher, or any PC-side tooling: just extract the release to a card and let the device install it.

Download Leaf

Get the latest release → and grab leaf-mlp1-sd-<release_id>.zip. Skim the release notes on that page first, then follow the steps below.

Update stock at least once first

Leaf installs through the Miniloong Pocket 1’s built-in stock updater, which needs a recent stock firmware (1.3.0.32 or newer). A brand-new device can ship on an older stock OS, so before installing Leaf, boot the stock OS and run its system update at least once. Let it finish and report it’s up to date, then come back here.

What you need

• A Miniloong Pocket 1 that’s had its stock system update run at least once (see the note above). A factory-fresh unit may be on a stock OS too old to start the installer.
• An SD card, FAT32 (or ext4). A backup of anything already on it; installing works on the card you boot from.
• The Leaf install ZIP from the latest release: leaf-mlp1-sd-<release_id>.zip.

Steps

Unzip onto the card itself, not onto your computer

Nearly everything in the release sits in a folder named .system, and the leading dot hides it in Finder and, by default, in Windows File Explorer. Unzip somewhere else and drag the contents over, and only the visible files make the trip. The card looks like it has the release on it, the device finds nothing to install, and no error explains why.

Drag the ZIP onto the card first, then unzip it there. Before ejecting, show hidden files (Command-Shift-Period in Finder) and check that .system is at the card’s top level, or run ls -a /Volumes/YOURCARD.

1. Prepare the card. Format the SD card as FAT32 (or ext4) if it isn’t already. On macOS, open Disk Utility, select the card, and choose MS-DOS (FAT) as the format (that is FAT32) with Master Boot Record as the scheme. Do not pick ExFAT - the device can’t read an ExFAT card, so the install won’t start. (Terminal equivalent: diskutil eraseDisk FAT32 LEAF MBRFormat /dev/diskN.)
2. Extract the ZIP to the card root. Unzip leaf-mlp1-sd-<release_id>.zip directly to the top level of the SD card, not into a subfolder, and not to your desktop to copy across afterwards (see the note below if you are on a Mac). Nearly all of the installer lives in a folder named .system, and the leading dot makes it invisible in Finder and hidden by default in Windows File Explorer, so the one thing you can see is not the thing that matters.
3. Insert and boot. Put the card in the powered-off device and turn it on. The Miniloong Pocket 1 has two microSD slots: use the main slot for the install card. (The second slot is optional extra game storage that Leaf auto-detects once you’re up and running.) If the stock update screen never appears, the card may be in the second slot - move it to the other one and try again.
4. Let it install. The device’s stock update screen detects the installer and runs it. Wait for it to finish; don’t power off mid-install.
5. Power off when the installer reports it’s done.
6. Boot into Leaf. Turn the device back on normally. The Leaf boot animation plays and you land on the Leaf launcher.

That’s it: the device is now running Leaf, with stock still intact underneath for recovery.

After installing

• Connect to Wi-Fi so you can update and (later) scrape art: open Settings → Network.
• Add your games - see Adding games & ROMs.
• Add BIOS files for the systems that need them - see BIOS & cores.
• Check for updates from the launcher - see Updating.

Notes

• Your stock data is preserved. Leaf runs on top of stock and doesn’t wipe the original OS. It only takes over the boot once installed.
• Your data lives at the card root. Games, saves, states, and app data sit at the top level of the card (Roms/, Saves/, States/, and the .userdata/ and .umrk/ folders), separate from the firmware. Re-installing or updating over an existing card refreshes Leaf itself but leaves all of that untouched.
• Crash safety. If Leaf ever fails to start cleanly several times in a row, the device falls back to the stock interface automatically so you’re never stuck.
• Removing Leaf. Going back to stock for good is covered in Recovery.

Need help?

If the install won’t start or the device doesn’t boot into Leaf, ask in the Leaf Discord. Someone can usually help you sort it out.