Hacking Wii cIOS EmuNAND Compatibility List

[tmnr1992]

In the compatibility list it seems cios rev19 has better compatibility for N64 games, so i was wondering if its possible to run this cios in usb loader gx? as i believe the newest version gives a warning about having to change the ios to d2x first. Also I want to install cios rev 19 but it doesnt give me the option to install it in a slot other than 249 (i already installed cios d2x in slot 249), is there a way around this?

 

[GreyWolf]

What game are you trying to get running? It's easier to just run the handful of incompatible VC/WW games with NEEK.

 

[tmnr1992]

What game are you trying to get running? It's easier to just run the handful of incompatible VC/WW games with NEEK.

Mainly n64 games, like kirby, smash bros. majora's mask, motoheroz and a few neo geo games. I already have an emunand setup using cios d2x and neek for those problematic games, i just thought it would be nice to have fewer games running under neek, as cios is generally faster loading games and returing to usb loader, and doesn't require rebooting each time like neek. I have no problem with my current setup, i'm just trying to optimize it a little if possible.

 

[Cyan]

if you checked the compatibility list on wiki, I thought I wrote some information to explain what's needed to use old cIOS.

but if not present :

1. waninkoko cIOS installer always install in both 249+250 (duplicate)
you can :
install, dump (bluedump mod), edit the slot number (ShowmiiWad), reinstall (wad manager), reinstall d2x to common slot
or
use modmii to get and set a slot number, then install (wad manager)
or
install d2x in another slot and keep rev19 in 249/250 (you know, all loaders let you choose the slot to use, they don't NEED to be 249 or 250, it could be anything in range 230-253)

2. to not see "use d2x" when trying to launch emuNAND, you need to comply to old cIOS requirement :
dump on root (no subfolders)
512 bytes/sector
etc.

I really thought I explained that on the wiki.



If you want the ultimate setup, it will require some time to create, but you should consider this:
512b/sector hdd, Single MBR FAT32 partition (up to 16TB), with all Wii, gamecube, NANDs, emulators, etc.

1. Install many different cIOS version/base (the one you need based on wiki compatibility):
hermes cIOS 4 and 5.1 (in usual slots)
cIOS rev17, rev18[x], rev19[x], rev20b[x], d2x_vx [x] (different version too)

2. multiple NAND path, one per region. (sometime, region free patch is not enough)
/nands/pl_us/ <-- install ALL games from all regions here (all the working AND non working ones)
/nands/pl_eu/ <-- install PAL games not compatible with region free
/nands/pl_jp/ <-- install JP game not compatible with region free
/ <-- root for games using old cios only (unfortunately, only one dump per root, so you can use both sd and usb to get 2 different roots)

Note: "pl_" comes from common usages of using multiple NAND region with "Post Loader" (pl)

3. setup sneek on SD and Uneek on USB
USBLoaderGX can fully recognize both at the same time (unlike other booting method)
set expecting settings in each nands from hidden menus (region free, forced video mode, etc.)
You might even want to use a "nands/pl_480i/" for games not working in widescreen and/or 480p, or anything else than 240p

4. setup USBLoaderGX to display pl_us as default path
set each game setting to use :
- correct NAND path based on its region if not working
- either cIOS mode or neek mode
- correct cIOS slot (if using cIOS mode)


The only issue with this setup can happen for few games if they are on a partition bigger than 2TB, some games check the NAND free space and doesn't get proper size if too big prompting an error in system file at game launch. it usually affects only the first launch, to create the savegame file. once created, accessing files seems to not be an issue anymore. you can create the savegame on SD card's emuNAND path, then move the dump to a bigger partition if needed.

 

[tmnr1992]

if you checked the compatibility list on wiki, I thought I wrote some information to explain what's needed to use old cIOS.

but if not present :

1. waninkoko cIOS installer always install in both 249+250 (duplicate)
you can :
install, dump (bluedump mod), edit the slot number (ShowmiiWad), reinstall (wad manager), reinstall d2x to common slot
or
use modmii to get and set a slot number, then install (wad manager)
or
install d2x in another slot and keep rev19 in 249/250 (you know, all loaders let you choose the slot to use, they don't NEED to be 249 or 250, it could be anything in range 230-253)

2. to not see "use d2x" when trying to launch emuNAND, you need to comply to old cIOS requirement :
dump on root (no subfolders)
512 bytes/sector
etc.

I really thought I explained that on the wiki.



If you want the ultimate setup, it will require some time to create, but you should consider this:
512b/sector hdd, Single MBR FAT32 partition (up to 16TB), with all Wii, gamecube, NANDs, emulators, etc.

1. Install many different cIOS version/base (the one you need based on wiki compatibility):
hermes cIOS 4 and 5.1 (in usual slots)
cIOS rev17, rev18[x], rev19[x], rev20b[x], d2x_vx [x] (different version too)

2. multiple NAND path, one per region. (sometime, region free patch is not enough)
/nands/pl_us/ <-- install ALL games from all regions here (all the working AND non working ones)
/nands/pl_eu/ <-- install PAL games not compatible with region free
/nands/pl_jp/ <-- install JP game not compatible with region free
/ <-- root for games using old cios only (unfortunately, only one dump per root, so you can use both sd and usb to get 2 different roots)

Note: "pl_" comes from common usages of using multiple NAND region with "Post Loader" (pl)

5. setup sneek on SD and Uneek on USB
USBLoaderGX can fully recognize both at the same time (unlike other booting method)
set expecting settings in each nands from hidden menus (region free, forced video mode, etc.)
You might even want to use a "nands/pl_480i/" for games not working in widescreen and/or 480p, or anything else than 240p

4. setup USBLoaderGX to display pl_us as default path
set each game setting to use :
- correct NAND path based on its region if not working
- either cIOS mode or neek mode
- correct cIOS slot (if using cIOS mode)


The only issue with this setup can happen for few games if they are on a partition bigger than 2TB, some games check the NAND free space and doesn't get proper size if too big prompting an error in system file at game launch. it usually affects only the first launch, to create the savegame file. once created, accessing files seems to not be an issue anymore. you can create the savegame on SD card's emuNAND path, then move the dump to a bigger partition if needed.

Yes, it's explained in the wiki, but thanks for taking the time to give a more detailed explanation. I'm guessing my ideal setup will be putting pl_us on the root of my drive, so i can launch those games that need rev 19, and the rest will stay the same since most of my games are NTSC-U and the couple ones that are japanese already work. Will test this and come back if i get into another issue. Thanks.

 

[Cyan]

yes, you don't need to do all I said, that's probably unnecessary. it's just a way to have all working at the same time, and you probably are not looking for a 100% game library.
just try a second NAND dump on root to use with rev19.

 

[tmnr1992]

yes, you don't need to do all I said, that's probably unnecessary. it's just a way to have all working at the same time, and you probably are not looking for a 100% game library.
just try a second NAND dump on root to use with rev19.

Ok, so I've done all the steps I need and i can now launch cios 249 rev19 from slot 244 and it works, it even works for metal slug with the language set to japanese! (this changes the color of blood in the game from purple to red, neek doesn't support language change), i think the only remaining question i have is: is it normal that this cios doesn't return to usb loader forwarder? i know i can fix this with priiloader, just wondering if this is an issue with the cios installation or if it's to be expected.

 

[Cyan]

The "Return to" works differently with d2x, but I thought the loader still had the IOS version detection to use the old method with old IOS.
If it doesn't work, I don't know why. Maybe it works only for game disc and not channels? I know some patches have a bug with channels, like aspect ration, so maybe the patch for "return to" is also broken.
I don't remember having issues when using rev17.

 

[tmnr1992]

The "Return to" works differently with d2x, but I thought the loader still had the IOS version detection to use the old method with old IOS.
If it doesn't work, I don't know why. Maybe it works only for game disc and not channels? I know some patches have a bug with channels, like aspect ration, so maybe the patch for "return to" is also broken.
I don't remember having issues when using rev17.

Will test this with rev17 and see what happens, it's not a big deal anyway, everything works at this point, thanks for all your help.