TECHNICAL GUIDE · BIN VERIFICATION
Bin Verification Guide — Checking Your Read Before You Patch
How to verify that an ECU read is good before patching. File size checks, checksum identification, head/tail bytes, double-read verification.
Table of contents
Why bin verification matters
An unverified read is a time bomb. If the .bin you patched is corrupted, the ECU bricks — and you have no clean original to recover from. Two minutes of verification at read time saves a €500 recovery job.
File size check
Each ECU family has a known bin size. Use our HEX inspector to verify:
| ECU family | Expected size |
|---|---|
| EDC15 | 256 KB or 512 KB |
| EDC16 | 512 KB or 1 MB |
| EDC17 | 1 MB or 2 MB |
| MED17 | 1, 2 or 4 MB |
| MD1 / MG1 | 4 MB or 8 MB |
Format identification
Use the checksum detector to verify the header signature matches the ECU you read. A read that returns garbage won\'t match any known format.
Full verification workflow
- Read the ECU.
- Verify file size (10 sec).
- Drop into checksum detector (10 sec).
- Open in HEX inspector. Eyeball head + tail (1 min).
- Optional: re-read and bit-compare (3-5 min).
- Save original to two locations.
- Only then start patching.
FAQ
How long does verification take?
2-5 minutes total: size check (10 sec), checksum detect (10 sec), head/tail eyeball (1 min), optional double-read (3-5 min).
Can two reads ever differ?
Yes — transient bus errors, EEPROM regions updated between reads, partial read. Bit-by-bit comparison reveals these.
What if file size is wrong?
Reject and re-read. Wrong size = early termination — flashing a half-read .bin bricks the ECU.