Hacking Finally Got a WiiU... opinions on FW updating and homebrew etc.

[Edster]

Hi all, I finally got a deal on a WiiU. It seems to be on a very old firmware v1.?? It does erratic things like not wanting to shut off some times or the controller goes mental. I figure an update would fix this up but if I take the latest update will it kill any potential exploit?

What exactly will the homebrew channel offer me and can i still add it if I take the latest update?

I've modded my Wii etc but the WiiU is new to me. Doing some reading etc. before i attempt anything. I'm almost thinking of sticking with a few games instead of messing with it, but i love hacking so I am on the fence with this.

Any advice of opinions would be greatly appreciated it.

Thx

 

[razielleonhart]

Hi all, I finally got a deal on a WiiU. It seems to be on a very old firmware v1.?? It does erratic things like not wanting to shut off some times or the controller goes mental. I figure an update would fix this up but if I take the latest update will it kill any potential exploit?

What exactly will the homebrew channel offer me and can i still add it if I take the latest update?

I've modded my Wii etc but the WiiU is new to me. Doing some reading etc. before i attempt anything. I'm almost thinking of sticking with a few games instead of messing with it, but i love hacking so I am on the fence with this.

Any advice of opinions would be greatly appreciated it.

Thx

4.X is the lowest for the exploit and thats where i am at. i believe 5.0 would be the highest. I would try and get it running at 4.x and just stay there

 

[Edster]

I ordered a copy of New Super Mario Bros WiiU. Any idea what Firmware comes with this title?

 

[starfox5194]

I just got one the other day too. Also was big into the wii hacking. I'm going to stay offline. Probably until at least a month after new smash bros comes out. I play mario kart all of the time. the update on that is 4.1 which is the best for exploiting right now. Anything older that mario kart 8 should be fine. Just don't connect to the internet. That thing can be sneaky with autoupdates sometimes.

 

[lonesome_killer]

Right now there is no hacks for Wii U. You can get the vWii and run homebrew channels. They're garbage if you already have a computer. There's nothing for reading ISOs or burned games yet.

 

[NWPlayer123]

Okay, so here's the deal. The Wii U has 2 modes, the "Cafe OS" or Wii U portion, and the "virtual Wii"/"vWii"/Wii portion, which is exactly what it sounds like, a sandboxed Wii that works exactly like the original, thanks to some clever hardware tricks. There has been homebrew on it since it was released, using disc based exploits like Smash Stack (which I recommend). It will install the homebrew channel just like you expect, and you can install WADs and such. HOWEVER, be careful when messing around with WADs or installing IOSes, since there is no easy/known way to restore it should you brick it. That's not to say you shouldn't still backup your vWii just in case. Additionally, since there is now a "Boot ROM" complicating things, there will usually be a vWii specific port of certain programs, so look for it when possible.

As mentioned before, there's also the main "Cafe OS" portion, which is significantly less hacked. We have code execution and can develop very basic homebrew on versions 4.X-5.1.0 (IT DOES NOT WORK ON 5.1.1-5.2.0!). There's also a kernel exploit in the works that should allow for more advanced homebrew and a proper "homebrew channel" (although nothing will be permanent, you have to run it every time). However, since we can't run code on 5.1.1 up, we don't know for sure that the kernel exploit hasn't been patched, however given the way it works it's unlikely to have been.

That being said, if you only care about homebrew in the vWii part, feel free to update. If you care about homebrew for Cafe OS and want a safe way to update, go buy a MK8 disc, make sure your Wii U can't connect to the internet, and then update with the data on the disc. That'll bring you up to 4.1.0. However, note that you can't go online or use the eShop. If you care but still want to use the eShop and go online, us developers have said that unless you want to develop homebrew (IE using the very limited access we have with the Usermode exploit mentioned above), feel free to update. It shouldn't be that difficult to find a new browser bug and port the ROP chain, it just might take a bit, but it should definitely be possible given how old the version of WebKit they're using is.

 

[EmceeKerser]

You could just read the sticky too, I guess.

 

[TheLoneWolfe]

As mentioned before, there's also the main "Cafe OS" portion, which is significantly less hacked. We have code execution and can develop very basic homebrew on versions 4.X-5.1.0 (IT DOES NOT WORK ON 5.1.1-5.2.0!). There's also a kernel exploit in the works that should allow for more advanced homebrew and a proper "homebrew channel" (although nothing will be permanent, you have to run it every time). However, since we can't run code on 5.1.1 up, we don't know for sure that the kernel exploit hasn't been patched, however given the way it works it's unlikely to have been.

Sorry, a bit out of the loop - does this paragraph mean your team now has written a kernel exploit? If so, is it (the vuln) unique from Chadderz'?

 

[Marionumber1]

Sorry, a bit out of the loop - does this paragraph mean your team now has written a kernel exploit? If so, is it (the vuln) unique from Chadderz'?

We have a different bug which we're working on an exploit for. However, progress will be slow, since most of us have school.

 

[SSG Vegeta]

I just got one the other day too. Also was big into the wii hacking. I'm going to stay offline. Probably until at least a month after new smash bros comes out. I play mario kart all of the time. the update on that is 4.1 which is the best for exploiting right now. Anything older that mario kart 8 should be fine. Just don't connect to the internet. That thing can be sneaky with autoupdates sometimes.

Exactly there not giving the option to update they're forcing you to update your system if its connected to the internet

 

[Edster]

Thanks for all the info. I guess for now I will find M Kart 8 and stick to that. Hopefully something comes out to allow us to play backups. That would be nice. Waiting for the price of some of the new titles to come come before i go out and buy a few more games.

 

[TheLoneWolfe]

We have a different bug which we're working on an exploit for. However, progress will be slow, since most of us have school.

Cool, best of luck with that! I get the school thing as I'm in the same boat (only high school, but still).

 

[Marionumber1]

only high school

Me too.

 

[sj33]

The thing to bear in mind is that any kernel mode exploit for the WiiU might be a long while off. If you actually intend to play WiiU games, then you can still consider updating. People here are avoiding updating because they want to err on the side of caution, but Nintendo cannot have fixed an exploit that isn't publicly known.

I guess what I'm saying is, if you do update it won't necessarily exclude you from the kernel exploit in the future. Developers have said many times that it would not be too difficult for them to find a new browser bug (and will probably have to as 4.1.0 will be ancient by time the kernel mode exploit is released). They simply haven't released exploits for newer firmwares because there's little point in giving Nintendo something to patch.

 

[Jiro2]

I think that in order to be useful, there has to be a compromise on when an exploit is released. If you release it early, the company has more time to patch it and fewer people will be able to run the exploit, but if you wait too long, you'll release it so late in the life of the system that there is no time for a homebrew ecosystem to develop before the machine is obsolete. And so late that everyone updated their machine because they didn't want to wait for years without being able to either use either the exploit or play new games.

The nonrelease of the Wii-U exploit and 3DS exploits have utterly failed on this account and it's only Gateway that led to there being any homebrew at all for the 3DS.

 

[unvaluablespace]

We have a different bug which we're working on an exploit for. However, progress will be slow, since most of us have school.

Cool, best of luck with that! I get the school thing as I'm in the same boat (only high school, but still).

It seriously disgusts me in myself that, your in high school and STILL smarter than me. I cant figure out programming or hacking for the life of me, and im probably twice your age. ha!

But seriously, good luck in class guys! Hope it goes smooth sailing for all of you Wii U hackers, high school or not!