Hacking D2X and cIOS 249 Confusion

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

To all Wii hackers,

Long ago, I used a guide by HighTeckMan (I think that was the name) on YouTube on how to install Homebrew Channel and USB Loader and how to configure the portable drive for installing games and blah blah.

I have been using this for quite a while now - some games that I really wanted to work for example Just Dance 2016, all Avatars, Kung Fu Panda, and many more games that I wasted my time downloading.

Can someone help me or link me to a guide on how to convert from the old cIOS 249 to the new D2X which apparently runs all game or can someone tell me how I can make all games work without converting?

I don't mind any. Thank you in advanced for any help!

Additional info:

Wii is a 4.3E Black version.

 

[Cyan]

first, following youtube video to hack a console is NEVER a good idea.
1. the video are not updated, can be dangerous due to the fact it's quickly outdated
2. the person doing it usually don't understand what he is doing, doesn't explain anything, doesn't take in account all the OTHER possible hardware and software a user can have which is different than his own console (can be bad too !)


what you ask :
You seem to not understand what you have and how the console is working.
the console have "slots" (folders) where you can install IOS (drivers, system files, etc.)

So, currently, in your slot 249, which is used by USBLoaders, you already have something. We don't know what, you apparently don't know either.
What you expect is to update is to get "d2x". But d2x is the system file, and it will be installed in the slot 249 too ! OR maybe you even already have d2x without knowing it.

so saying that you want to remove 249 to get d2x is a little wrong.
you can't remove a location to put a data.
what you'll have to do is : replace the data with another data inside the folder 249.


Either you check what you already have, and then you replace it IF needed.
OR
just replace it, even if you already have it.


Another thing :
the game you listed are working fine with old IOS, you don't need d2x.
You might need either a proper game ISO, or a correct setting, or a correct IOS base.
But installing d2x it will not necessarily fix your issue. it could. let's try.


1. get this d2x installer for Wii
2. create a folder on your SD card : SD:/apps/d2x_installer/
3. extract the downloaded package into that folder

4. be sure you have a working internet connection on your Wii
5. launch The Homebrew Channel, and select d2x installer

6. select this in the installer :
what : d2x v8 final
where : 249
base : 57
version : 21008
Press A to install

when complete, you can do it again (not necessary, but might be useful one day) with this changes :
where : 250
base : 56


after install, press Home button to exit.
that's all, you updated to d2x.
now try your games, if they still don't work then the issue wasn't IOS, but something else.

 

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

Wow. Thanks Cyan! Surprisingly, I have actually heard a lot about your continuous support for Wii hacking.
Your advice was awesome! I'm gonna do this now and see how it goes.
And also, another question: how do I make more room for Virtual Console wads? My Wii seems like it doesn't have much space - can this be fixed? Thank you.

EDIT:
Turns out I already have the settings you metioned other than base 57, mine was base 56.
What now?

 

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

I did what you asked and usb loader didnt load properly... what happened?

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Note: my loader ios before i did this was 250.

This is what usb loader said after the loading screen.

I did v8 final for both 249 and 250 on the different bases

Basically I did everything you told me to do precisely and now the loader shows this DSI exception error I think it was called -- picture attached.

Please respond asap and thank you in advanced.

 

[Cyan]

the dsi screen is not useful if you don't tell which exact revision you used. to debug it I have to use the corresponding elf file (which I keep for all releases) related to the dol you use.
you didn't tell when you see that screen, nor what is your setup, hardware, etc.

did you try to delete all the USBLoaderGX folder and start fresh ? (new settings)

 

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

OK. So I deleted the settings file on the SD card for USB Loader and it worked!! It actually loaded.

What the issue is now is the games - the selected ones still aren't loading, they are just giving me a black screen. After the screen pops up, I have to manually restart the Wii.

So these are the games that do not work:

• Rayman Origins
• Avatar (all three games)
• Harvest Moon (all three games)
• and others.

Now I have proof that these games work as my cousin's Wii has been hacked the exact same way as mine is, since I did it for them and we exchange the exact same ISOs through Wii Game Manager.

If you need any more info about the Wii and ISOs and stuff, please don't hesitate - it would just be really awesome to play these games and all the other ISOs. Thanks!

 

[Cyan]

I don't recommend ISO website. We are not providing illegal URL or sharing illegal files here.
Please, re-read the forum rules and don't ask where to get games illegally. you'll be warned or banned.


you have black screens, but is it for ALL games or some of them are working fine?
it could be a video mode issue (play PAL games on PAL console, with default settings and it should work)

if it blackscreens, it could be a HDD issue (flashdrive? not enough power?) or a file issue : verify your wbfs files are not write protected on your USB FAT32.

you use FAT32, right?
if you use WBFS, please DO NOT USE "WBFS MANAGER", it's corrupting games.
convert your drive to FAT32 (optional) and use "wii backup manager" instead to reinstall the game.

 

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

you have black screens, but is it for ALL games or some of them are working fine?
it could be a video mode issue (play PAL games on PAL console, with default settings and it should work)

Well here's the thing, most of the games that I have are PAL, but I'm pretty sure the default settings for USB Loader are to run any region games and region free games. I'll check my video mode and that for you.

if it blackscreens, it could be a HDD issue (flashdrive? not enough power?) or a file issue : verify your wbfs files are not write protected on your USB FAT32.

Nah, my portable hard drive is 450gbs. It is not a USB stick and I made sure of that. I don't really get WBFS files, I get ISOs but I'll try replacing them with WBFS files. How can I verify they are not write protected?

you use FAT32, right?
if you use WBFS, please DO NOT USE "WBFS MANAGER", it's corrupting games.
convert your drive to FAT32 (optional) and use "wii backup manager" instead to reinstall the game.

Well I'm not too sure to be honest. I can tell you that my portable hard drive is formatted to where I Windows can't access it and needs it to be 'formatted' before using. However, I don't do that as my Wii Game Manager 1.5 puts the games on the hard drive for me. And yes, I do not use WBFS Manager, it truly is terrible.

EDIT: My drive is converted to NTFS because apparently ROMs bigger than 4gb are not supported on FAT32. How can I convert my drive to FAT32? I know how to backup my ISOs. Thanks.

 

[Cyan]

if you get "ISO" then you are using NTFS or Ext format.
you DON'T NEED NTFS for Wii games !!!!

why is that still so much unknown after 10 years of Wii homebrew that games are shrinked on FAT32 ? it seems so stuck in mind "you need NTFS because games ISO are bigger than 4GB", while you should not use the ISO format.
Just use FAT32, 32k/cluster, and use Wii Backup Manager to copy ISO to your USB.
the game will be "shrink" (garbadge removed!!), for example, New super mario Wii is just 400MB instead of 4.7GB
that's sooooo much free space you win

if a game is bigger than 4GB, the file is split, and there's NO ISSUE.
USBLoaders are specifically designed to use split files. they are designed with that format in mind, wbfs has been developed especially for Wii backup.


Ps : I don't know "wii game manager 1.5", maybe it's also based on an old buggy wbfs library, but as you don't use WBFS partition format that's not an issue. If it can convert ISO to wbfs files, then it's fine. but really, everybody use Wii backup Manager.

 

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

OK Thanks so much for clearing that up. Phew! Space saving eh? Well, I'mma get to work.
I'll back up all my games and the convert using Windows to FAT32, I'll get the Wii Backup Manager and put them back on.
Thank you so much. I'll keep you posted on whether this works.

 

[tswntk]

Well I'm not too sure to be honest. I can tell you that my portable hard drive is formatted to where I Windows can't access it and needs it to be 'formatted' before using. However, I don't do that as my Wii Game Manager 1.5 puts the games on the hard drive for me. And yes, I do not use WBFS Manager, it truly is terrible.

EDIT: My drive is converted to NTFS because apparently ROMs bigger than 4gb are not supported on FAT32. How can I convert my drive to FAT32? I know how to backup my ISOs. Thanks.

This probably means it is (was?) using WBFS partition. Anyway, IIRC windows won't format a drive greater 32G to FAT32, use a third party partition manager such as easeus partition mgr.

why is that still so much unknown after 10 years of Wii homebrew that games are shrinked on FAT32 ? it seems so stuck in mind "you need NTFS because games ISO are bigger than 4GB", while you should not use the ISO format.

because ppl never care about the date and never try to verify the source. I keep getting rumors "share" via whatsapp quoting "facts" from more than 10 years ago. A little search that took me a few minutes shows how most of them are false (rant).

 

[CMDreamer]

I've followed this guide and let me tell you is easy as it can be, no problems at all if followed step-by-step.

https://sites.google.com/site/completesg/

 

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

or a file issue : verify your wbfs files are not write protected on your USB FAT32

How do I do that? Is it the SHA1 key verify option?

Just use FAT32, 32k/cluster, and use Wii Backup Manager to copy ISO to your USB.

Done, my games are being converted to WBFS now and loaded back on.

This probably means it is (was?) using WBFS partition. Anyway, IIRC windows won't format a drive greater 32G to FAT32, use a third party partition manager such as easeus partition mgr

Yeah it was using WBFS partition. I used Wii Backup Manager to format my drive back to FAT32 I think.

I've followed this guide and let me tell you is easy as it can be, no problems at all if followed step-by-step.

https://sites.google.com/site/completesg/

I have already Softmodded my Wii quite a while ago now, but thank you for your contribution >~>

 

[Cyan]

How do I do that? Is it the SHA1 key verify option?

no, it's a FAT32 file attribute.

plug your drive to computer, open in file explorer and browse up to your game file(s).
right click on it (them) and choose Properties at the bottom.
look at the Attribute of the file, it can be "archive, hidden, write protected"
be sure none are checked.



The Sha1 option in WiiBackupManager (not in Windows's explorer overlay) is the way to verify your ISO is not corrupted.
open the program, select your Wii partition in the "Drive1" tab > Partition dropdown list.
then the list of your games will display.
select the game you want to test and choose option > sha1
if it ends green, the game is good.
if it ends red, the game is corrupted and will (one day, while playing it or launching it) crashes or freezes.



About the convertion/game installation.
some users are not doing it the correct way, for example they open the ISO and select "copy to ..." and just pick a folder manually. DON'T DO THAT.
in WiiBackupManager, be sure to use both "File" and "Drive1" tabs.
in files, you open the folder where you have your game on computer.
in drive1, you select your Wii HDD's partition where you want your games
back on "files" tab, check the game you want to move/copy/convert, and select "transfer to.... > drive1"


If you want better folder name on your Wii HDD drive, set the settings like this :

go to settings > fat32/NTFS tab >
enable these options:
- store in subfolders
- choose Title_[ID] pattern
- choose "automatically update storage convention on partition mount"

go to settings > Titles >
- enable Wiitdb
- click download titles.txt
- Use wiitdb for file and folders name.

Save the settings.
Go to main window and mount your drive ! done ! everything is renamed automatically.

 

[AnimalCrossing-Adam]

plug your drive to computer, open in file explorer and browse up to your game file(s).
right click on it (them) and choose Properties at the bottom.
look at the Attribute of the file, it can be "archive, hidden, write protected"
be sure none are checked.

OK. Thanks for letting me know how to do that. They all had 'archive' checked so as you said, I unticked that.

About the convertion/game installation.
some users are not doing it the correct way, for example they open the ISO and select "copy to ..." and just pick a folder manually. DON'T DO THAT.
in WiiBackupManager, be sure to use both "File" and "Drive1" tabs.
in files, you open the folder where you have your game on computer.
in drive1, you select your Wii HDD's partition where you want your games
back on "files" tab, check the game you want to move/copy/convert, and select "transfer to.... > drive1"

Yes, I figured that was the best way. Good to get confirmation. The Wii Backup Manager is really good by the way.

go to settings > fat32/NTFS tab >
enable these options:
- store in subfolders
- choose Title_[ID] pattern
- choose "automatically update storage convention on partition mount"

go to settings > Titles >
- enable Wiitdb
- click download titles.txt
- Use wiitdb for file and folders name.

Ohhh gosh that makes things so much better, the other names were crap, thanks for that. Everything seems to be working well.

 

[rysluoive]

first, following youtube video to hack a console is NEVER a good idea.
1. the video are not updated, can be dangerous due to the fact it's quickly outdated
2. the person doing it usually don't understand what he is doing, doesn't explain anything, doesn't take in account all the OTHER possible hardware and software a user can have which is different than his own console (can be bad too !)


what you ask :
You seem to not understand what you have and how the console is working.
the console have "slots" (folders) where you can install IOS (drivers, system files, etc.)

So, currently, in your slot 249, which is used by USBLoaders, you already have something. We don't know what, you apparently don't know either.
What you expect is to update is to get "d2x". But d2x is the system file, and it will be installed in the slot 249 too ! OR maybe you even already have d2x without knowing it.

so saying that you want to remove 249 to get d2x is a little wrong.
you can't remove a location to put a data.
what you'll have to do is : replace the data with another data inside the folder 249.


Either you check what you already have, and then you replace it IF needed.
OR
just replace it, even if you already have it.


Another thing :
the game you listed are working fine with old IOS, you don't need d2x.
You might need either a proper game ISO, or a correct setting, or a correct IOS base.
But installing d2x it will not necessarily fix your issue. it could. let's try.


1. get this
2. create a folder on your SD card : SD:/apps/d2x_installer/
3. extract the downloaded package into that folder

4. be sure you have a working internet connection on your Wii
5. launch The Homebrew Channel, and select d2x installer

6. select this in the installer :
what : d2x v8 final
where : 249
base : 57
version : 21008
Press A to install

when complete, you can do it again (not necessary, but might be useful one day) with this changes :
where : 250
base : 56


after install, press Home button to exit.
that's all, you updated to d2x.
now try your games, if they still don't work then the issue wasn't IOS, but something else.

Hello! Your posts and tutorials about hacking a Wii made me to order one through ebay in order to tryout myself.The cheapest european Wii I could found in ebay was coincidentally from France.Although the wii is a 4.3e version,when I connected it to my wifi, it asked me to update it.So,I have a couple of questions.First of all,in order to hack my wii should I update it or leave it as it is?And secondly,the instructions from your previous post on how to install the cios d2x are irrelevant with the wii's version?I mean that someone can install the cios d2x using these settings no matter if his wii is 4.3e or 4.3u etc,right?Thank you very much!
P.s.I forgot to mention that my wii seems to be in stock condition.I have to install the homebrew channel myself.

 

[Cyan]

Hello,
Welcome on the forum.

I thought you had a lot of question for me, but the message was written 3 times. I edited your message to delete the duplicated text.


Installing d2x works on any Wii version.
the system menu has a version number, but it's not the console's firmware. it's the "menu interface" which has a version number.
My Wii still has its system menu v3.2E, it's not a problem to hack or use homebrew with it. the menu can even be skipped (with homebrew menthod) and never loaded, everything will continue to work. There's even a homebrew to edit most settings.

Same as the System menu has a version, the console doesn't have a full firmware but multiple individual system files (IOS) with different versions, and Nintendo can update each independently.
Your console can be already 4.3E (latest system menu version) but still have old IOS version, or even missing IOS. that's why when you check for update it tells you there's a new update available. in fact, it's not 1 update, but multiple files on your console which have a lower version than the files available on nintendo's servers.

for example, my console has been last "officially" updated when 3.2E was available on nintendo's servers.
since then, I didn't need to update it, and I installed the new IOS manually. I never installed or updated some IOS I never needed. it's not a problem, as games and all apps are using only ONE system file at a time. if you use USBLoader to play backups, it will use only IOS slot 249, and will not care at all if your other official IOS slots are up to date or not.


I recommend you don't update, as you already have 4.3E, which means it should already have newest version of all files.
if nintendo detects that you need to update, it's because one of the "custom IOS" (cIOS) used to play backups from USB have a lowest version number than the same (and fake) IOS version number provided by nintendo, intended to only replace your hack and prevent you to use your console with custom files.


I think your console is already softmoded, or has been in the past (that's why it asks you to update), but the previous user probably deleted the homebrew channel to looks like a legit console.
but you can softmod it again and overwrite the files you already have.

use banner bomb to launch hackmii installer
install HBC
from here, launch syscheck (there's a guide in my signature), before installing any cIOS.
we will check what's already installed.

If you have anything in slot 249 and 250 which are not d2x v8 or v10 r52, you can follow the d2x install steps. but I would like to see your syscheck report before you do anything.

 

[rysluoive]

Hello,
Welcome on the forum.

I thought you had a lot of question for me, but the message was written 3 times. I edited your message to delete the duplicated text.


Installing d2x works on any Wii version.
the system menu has a version number, but it's not the console's firmware. it's the "menu interface" which has a version number.
My Wii still has its system menu v3.2E, it's not a problem to hack or use homebrew with it. the menu can even be skipped (with homebrew menthod) and never loaded, everything will continue to work. There's even a homebrew to edit most settings.

Same as the System menu has a version, the console doesn't have a full firmware but multiple individual system files (IOS) with different versions, and Nintendo can update each independently.
Your console can be already 4.3E (latest system menu version) but still have old IOS version, or even missing IOS. that's why when you check for update it tells you there's a new update available. in fact, it's not 1 update, but multiple files on your console which have a lower version than the files available on nintendo's servers.

for example, my console has been last "officially" updated when 3.2E was available on nintendo's servers.
since then, I didn't need to update it, and I installed the new IOS manually. I never installed or updated some IOS I never needed. it's not a problem, as games and all apps are using only ONE system file at a time. if you use USBLoader to play backups, it will use only IOS slot 249, and will not care at all if your other official IOS slots are up to date or not.


I recommend you don't update, as you already have 4.3E, which means it should already have newest version of all files.
if nintendo detects that you need to update, it's because one of the "custom IOS" (cIOS) used to play backups from USB have a lowest version number than the same (and fake) IOS version number provided by nintendo, intended to only replace your hack and prevent you to use your console with custom files.


I think your console is already softmoded, or has been in the past (that's why it asks you to update), but the previous user probably deleted the homebrew channel to looks like a legit console.
but you can softmod it again and overwrite the files you already have.

use banner bomb to launch hackmii installer
install HBC
from here, launch syscheck (there's a guide in my signature), before installing any cIOS.
we will check what's already installed.

If you have anything in slot 249 and 250 which are not d2x v8 or v10 r52, you can follow the d2x install steps. but I would like to see your syscheck report before you do anything.

Hello and thank you very much for your reply!
I am sorry for posting the same message 3 times.I thought I only posted once because all the other times I tried to post it I got an error message and I kept trying.
I was a bit lost but now,with your explantions and the tutorials I 've read, I 'm finally getting to understand what to do and why I did it.
Is it possible, instead the banner bomb to use the letterbox method to install the HBC(homebrew channel)?There is a tutorial in the forum, it seems a little bit easier and I think that it would be compatible with my 4.3E version wii.
Thank you very much for everything!

 

[Cyan]

ah, yeah, letter bomb, sorry
bannerbomb was for 4.1

Though, banner bomb was easier, it needed only a file copied to the SD, no MAC or specific date required to generate the file for SD.

 

[rysluoive]

ah, yeah, letter bomb, sorry
bannerbomb was for 4.1

Though, banner bomb was easier, it needed only a file copied to the SD, no MAC or specific date required to generate the file for SD.

Great!I 'll follow your instructions and I'll post tomorrow the results.