hactool looks for prod.keys in one of these locations (priority order):
| Platform | Path |
|----------|------|
| Windows (current dir) | .\prod.keys |
| Linux/macOS (current dir) | ./prod.keys |
| Linux/macOS (user config) | ~/.switch/prod.keys |
| Windows (user config) | %USERPROFILE%\.switch\prod.keys |
Fix: Copy the file to your current working directory or to the .switch folder.
If you are trying to use hactool to dump or decrypt Nintendo Switch content and you receive the error: hactool prodkeys does not exist fixed
OSError: Prodkeys does not exist
This means hactool cannot locate the critical encryption keys required to read Switch files. Below are the steps to fix this issue.
A quick but essential warning: websites offering "free prod.keys download" are dangerous. hactool looks for prod
Always dump your own keys. It is simple, safe, and the only legitimate method.
By default, hactool looks for prod.keys in the same directory where the hactool executable is located.
If you’re running hactool from a terminal, it also checks your current working directory.
So if you run:
hactool mygame.nsp
…and your prod.keys file is sitting on your desktop, you’ll get the error.
Some community tools like hactoolnet (a GUI wrapper) or Python scripts that call hactool allow you to hardcode the keys path in a configuration file. These can bypass the missing file error by embedding the path in the script logic.
If you use the Yuzu or Ryujinx emulators, they also require keys. You can often find their prod.keys file in C:\Users\YourName\AppData\Roaming\yuzu\keys\ (Yuzu) or the Ryujinx system folder. Copy that file to hactool’s location. However, note that hactool requires a full keyset (including keys that emulators may not store), so this may still fail. OSError: Prodkeys does not exist