Hacking Configurable USB Loader

[TeenTin]

Any STRONG reason to give up the WBFS HD and use FAT HD instead ?

 

[Dr. Clipper]

Any STRONG reason to give up the WBFS HD and use FAT HD instead ?

Recovering the unused space on your hard drive for storing other things would be the prime concern.

 

[The-Magician]

Any STRONG reason to give up the WBFS HD and use FAT HD instead ?

Recovering the unused space on your hard drive for storing other things would be the prime concern.

I bought my HDD specially for the wii and when it's full I buy a new one. So there's no win for me then ? Then I just stay on the wbfs.

 

[oggzee]

wbfs_file_1.0_linux.tgz
http://sharebee.com/92a1f98d

linux build of the wbfs_file 1.0 tool.

note: mentioned in the help below is of course a partition device, for example /dev/sdc1


CODEwbfs_file v1.0 by oggzee
========================

Based on wbfs tool by kwiirk and wbfs_win by hermes


New functionality:
------------------

* Conversion from .iso files to .wbfs files and vice versa.

* Handling of split .wbfs files, so that they can fit on a FAT filesystem.
ÂÂby default the split is done at 2GB - 1 sector (512 bytes)

* Extraction of .wbfs files directly from a wbfs partition and back


Changes:
--------

v1.0:
* renamed commands for better clarity
ÂÂ example: extractwbfsall to extract_wbfs_all ...

* create GAMEID_TITLE.txt info files along GAMEID.wbfs files, so
ÂÂ that it's easier to manage the .wbfs files

* added command: make_info which only creates the GAMEID_TITLE.txt for
ÂÂ all games on a wbfs partition or in a wbfs file

v0.9:
* initial wbfs_file release with split file support


Usage help text as printed by wbfs_file -h :
--------------------------------------------

wbfs_file.exe v1.0 by oggzee, based on wbfs by kwiirk

Usage: wbfs_file.exe [OPTIONS] [COMMAND [ARGS]]:

ÂÂGiven just a filename it will convert from iso to wbfs or vice versa:

ÂÂÂÂwbfs_file.exe filename.iso
ÂÂÂÂWill convert filename.iso to GAMEID.wbfs
ÂÂÂÂAnd create an info file GAMEID_TITLE.txt

ÂÂÂÂwbfs_file.exe filename.wbfs
ÂÂÂÂWill convert filename.wbfs to GAMEID_TITLE.iso

ÂÂCOMMANDS:
ÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ create
ÂÂÂÂÂÂlsÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂdfÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂinitÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂmake_infoÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂadd_isoÂÂÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂadd_wbfsÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂrmÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂextract_isoÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂextract_wbfs
ÂÂÂÂÂÂextract_wbfs_all
ÂÂÂÂÂÂls_fileÂÂÂÂÂÂ
ÂÂÂÂÂÂextract_file

ÂÂOPTIONS:
ÂÂÂÂ-s SIZEÂÂ:ÂÂSet split size [2147483136] (4194303 sectors)
ÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂMust be a multiple of 512 (sector size)
ÂÂÂÂ-hÂÂÂÂÂÂ :ÂÂHelp

 

[pepxl]

I have a question :

For a FAT32 HD, how can I put the double layer games (e.g. SSBB) which is about 8GB into it ?

N.B. Biggest file in FAT32 is 4GB.

Thanks !

Either rip it in the loader or use the command line app to convert it. Games need to be split into segments of less than 2GB and that is doen for you by both the loader and wbfs_file.

just a quick question, how do the split files work, i mean how does the CFG handle each segment as a game progresses, is the second segment buffered or something so theres no delay in loading time or will i expect a crash when the second segment is needed to carry on playing a split game, just curious how a game would handle these files compared to a single .wbfs?

 

[gizmomelb]

many thanks oggzee and usptactical!

I can see where FAT32 support would be of use to a lot of users, but personally I think I'll stay with WBFS at the moment - as it's easiest for me to convert to ISO images so I can then also play the games under the Dolphin emulator (any chance someone will add this code to the Dolphin emulator so it can then read the 2GB multipart files please? would make life between emulator and real hardware so much easier then!).

 

[laurozza]

Thank you very much for the FAT32 support! I'm already converting all my games to .wbfs. Configurable is the best.

 

[oggzee]

wbfs_file_1.0_osx.tgz
http://sharebee.com/6f600706

Mac OSX build of the tool.
Untested! (It should work though.)
I just applied the osx patches to the wbfs tool by eddanx and gibbed and rebuilt.

the included binary is for i386 and ppc:

wbfs_file: Mach-O universal binary with 2 architectures
wbfs_file (for architecture i386): Mach-O executable i386
wbfs_file (for architecture ppc): Mach-O executable ppc

however i don't know if this works on ppc correctly. it needs to be tested, maybe run on both windows and osx and compare if the resulting .wbfs file is the same.

 

[cambric]

wbfs_file_1.0_osx.tgz
http://sharebee.com/6f600706

Mac OSX build of the tool.
Untested! (It should work though.)
I just applied the osx patches to the wbfs tool by eddanx and gibbed and rebuilt.

the included binary is for i386 and ppc:

wbfs_file: Mach-O universal binary with 2 architectures
wbfs_file (for architecture i386): Mach-O executable i386
wbfs_file (for architecture ppc): Mach-O executable ppc

however i don't know if this works on ppc correctly. it needs to be tested, maybe run on both windows and osx and compare if the resulting .wbfs file is the same.

Oh men, a Mac OSX build of the tool.... A Mac fanatic like me cannot leave this tool untested... Now I know how to spend the night...

Oggzee, there are no words to thank you enough for your apps...

 

[Wiimm]

deleted

 

[redia]

oggzee and usptactical,
I think we can all simply thank you for that fat32 option.
I have been using and advising everyone to use your loader for a while.
but this is truely a great option imho.
hopefully the managers and the loaders will include this format.
some people seem to doubt the use/need of it.. but I can see a bunch of advantages... no more space issue problem, no more fear for a noob user clicking on format by mystake, simple copy, simple managing... right now I keep my games both on WBFS and NTFS HD.. because I have seen a few people loosing their games on WBFS due to delete/re-add...

I have a few question though :
1. when adding a game are you ripping the whole disc, or only the game partition ? (I like to keep the whole disc for backup purposes, I don't care about the little extra size)
2. would it be possible to extend a little bit the option "-s SIZE"... maybe something like
"-s [SIZE]" for any specific value a user might want
"-fat16" for the 2gb limit
"-fat32" for the 4gb limit

remarks for the users : keep in mind that by default the application splits the discs as if it was a FAT16 partion (2gb limit), but most of us will be using FAT32 partitions (4gb limit). both "split size" will work, but using the appropriate size will allow you to keep nearly all your game not splitted..
I think that I am not too far from reality when I estimate that :
around 60% of the games are below 2gbÂÂ---> no split :)
around 30% are between 2gb and 4gb ---> fat16 = split :(ÂÂand fat32 = nosplit :)
around 10% are over 4gb ---> fat16 and fat32 = split.
so if you use "-s 4294900736" you will keep nearly 90% of the games unsplitted...

the 4,294,900,736 is kinda weird value, but I tested as much as I could and it seems that it is the biggest file that fits... maybe you have more knowledge and you can explain why.. because I thought it should be
2^32 - 1 = 4,294,967,295 rounded toÂÂ4,294,966,784 to make it a multiple of 512 as requested by your app

3. maybe I missed it, but is there a possibility to convert a game from an iso to a specific directory ? (using two different discs should/could make the conversion much faster)
4. the function are confusing. for example
extract_iso
extract_wbfs
extract_wbfs_all
shouldn't they be :
extract_iso
extract_wbfs
extract_wbfs_all
?
5. is import/export to ciso format planned ?
6. last but not least, could we use titles.txt for the info file ?

I hope that everything I am stating is clear.
otherwise feel free to ask for clarification

again, thank you very much.
Cheers,
R

 

[oggzee]

wbfs_file_1.1.zip
http://sharebee.com/6876d171

Changes:
* Added options:
-a : Copy ALL partitions from ISO [default]
-g : Copy only game partition from ISO
-1 : Copy 1:1 from ISO
(Note: it's recommended to just use the defaults)

Included in package: windows and linux binary and source.
it can be build on macosx but i didn't include the binary as i don't have the machine at hand at the moment...

 

[oggzee]

I embedded the answers:

1. when adding a game are you ripping the whole disc, or only the game partition ? (I like to keep the whole disc for backup purposes, I don't care about the little extra size)

by default all partitions are copied
version 1.1 adds options -a,-g,-1 to control that behaviour
But apparently the copy all partitions does not work for some VC/WiiWare partitions, as reported by wiimm, so using -1 for 1:1 copy should probably solve that issue - but you'll always get the full size file instead of scrubbed. And also note that copy 1:1 is not tested thoroughly yet.

2. would it be possible to extend a little bit the option "-s SIZE"... maybe something like
"-s [SIZE]" for any specific value a user might want
"-fat16" for the 2gb limit
"-fat32" for the 4gb limit

it would be possible, but my testing shows that the libfat that is used by the loader is unsuitable for files larger than 2GB. So, while it's true that FAT can hold up to 4GB files it seems files larger than 2GB will not work properly. On the other hand I tested this very briefly, so if you have time go ahead and try if splits larger than 2GB actually work or not.

the 4,294,900,736 is kinda weird value, but I tested as much as I could and it seems that it is the biggest file that fits... maybe you have more knowledge and you can explain why.. because I thought it should be
2^32 - 1 = 4,294,967,295 rounded to 4,294,966,784 to make it a multiple of 512 as requested by your app

Why the strange value i don't know, but maybe the max size is really 2^32 - cluster size instead of 2^32-1 or something, or you are hitting some other bug in windows (or linux?) implementation...


3. maybe I missed it, but is there a possibility to convert a game from an iso to a specific directory ? (using two different discs should/could make the conversion much faster)

Yes, using the create command:
wbfs_file d:/destination/gameid.wbfs create e:/source/game.iso


4. the function are confusing. for example
extract_iso
extract_wbfs
extract_wbfs_all
shouldn't they be :
extract_iso
extract_wbfs
extract_wbfs_all

for the most common cases yes, but running it on files will work too. in fact converting an wbfs to iso (by just using the .wbfs file as a parameter without commands) is same as running extract_iso with appropriate parameters


5. is import/export to ciso format planned ?

no

6. last but not least, could we use titles.txt for the info file ?

heh, the cfg loader on wii actually does that when installing

but I haven't added titles.txt support to the wbfs_file tool.
it should be easy to add but i have other work to do first.
so to conclude,... info file can be renamed afterwards to whatever you want.

 

[redia]

Spoiler

I embedded the answers:

1. when adding a game are you ripping the whole disc, or only the game partition ? (I like to keep the whole disc for backup purposes, I don't care about the little extra size)

by default all partitions are copied
version 1.1 adds options -a,-g,-1 to control that behaviour
But apparently the copy all partitions does not work for some VC/WiiWare partitions, as reported by wiimm, so using -1 for 1:1 copy should probably solve that issue - but you'll always get the full size file instead of scrubbed. And also note that copy 1:1 is not tested thoroughly yet.

2. would it be possible to extend a little bit the option "-s SIZE"... maybe something like
"-s [SIZE]" for any specific value a user might want
"-fat16" for the 2gb limit
"-fat32" for the 4gb limit

it would be possible, but my testing shows that the libfat that is used by the loader is unsuitable for files larger than 2GB. So, while it's true that FAT can hold up to 4GB files it seems files larger than 2GB will not work properly. On the other hand I tested this very briefly, so if you have time go ahead and try if splits larger than 2GB actually work or not.

the 4,294,900,736 is kinda weird value, but I tested as much as I could and it seems that it is the biggest file that fits... maybe you have more knowledge and you can explain why.. because I thought it should be
2^32 - 1 = 4,294,967,295 rounded to 4,294,966,784 to make it a multiple of 512 as requested by your app

Why the strange value i don't know, but maybe the max size is really 2^32 - cluster size instead of 2^32-1 or something, or you are hitting some other bug in windows (or linux?) implementation...


3. maybe I missed it, but is there a possibility to convert a game from an iso to a specific directory ? (using two different discs should/could make the conversion much faster)

Yes, using the create command:
wbfs_file d:/destination/gameid.wbfs create e:/source/game.iso


4. the function are confusing. for example
extract_iso
extract_wbfs
extract_wbfs_all
shouldn't they be :
extract_iso
extract_wbfs
extract_wbfs_all

for the most common cases yes, but running it on files will work too. in fact converting an wbfs to iso (by just using the .wbfs file as a parameter without commands) is same as running extract_iso with appropriate parameters


5. is import/export to ciso format planned ?

no

6. last but not least, could we use titles.txt for the info file ?

heh, the cfg loader on wii actually does that when installing

but I haven't added titles.txt support to the wbfs_file tool.
it should be easy to add but i have other work to do first.
so to conclude,... info file can be renamed afterwards to whatever you want.

I did put everything in spoiler because otherwise this post is gonna take half of the page.
first of all thanks for such a quick answer

1. (game/update/vc partition) ... thanks for the addition.. I will test it and revert
2. 2gb split.. I did not know there could be a limitation on the filesize. I will test it tomorrow and revert on that issue. if that's true (and I am pretty sure we can trust you on that ) well the 4gb file issue is closed

the size issue is kinda weird. because by definition the correct size should be the one I mentioned.. but during my test I kept on getting the infamous "not enough space" message.. so I tested everything
2^32 - 512 * 1
2^32 - 512 * 2
2^32 - 512 * ..
2^32 - 512 * 65 is the first one that fits on my 2 discs (320gb and 500gb)....

3. I officially feel stupid now... lol

4. ok.. it was confusing to me.. but I will test it.. thanks for the clarification

5. why do you have to be so mean ????

lol
ok.. I guess I will have to script that... if anyone is interested let me know I will share.

6. yup.. I was simply being lazy.
I started scripting it anyway

... and once again if anyone is interested it should be ready tomorrow.. I still need to test it.
briefly.. put my app in the same folder as the wbfs, put a titles.txt there too.. and run the app..
you will get the info file with the name you added in the titles.txt.

once again thanks.
I will revert tomorrow with the result of my tests..

Cheers,
R

 

[EnioMarcos]

(sorry about my bad english)

My conversion always stops in this file, at this point...

166 / 326 : RVBERS : Alvin & The Chipmunks 2.16G
Writing 'RVBERS' to: 'e:\wbfs/RVBERS.wbfs'
Info file: e:\wbfs/RVBERS_Alvin_&_The_Chipmunks.txt
adding RVBERS Alvin & The Chipmunks...
5.66% (\) ETA: 0:03:36

This is the second HD that I try. The first one was a Seagate 1.5tb and, the second, a Sansung 1tb.

Both time, this message shows up in the Windows XP System Event Log:

Fonte de evento: Disk
Id. do evento: 51
Data: 26/10/2009
Hora: 16:48:52
Descrição:
Erro detectado no dispositivo \Device\Harddisk4\D durante uma operação de paginação.

Para obter mais informações, visite o Centro de ajuda e suporte em http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.
Dados:
0000: 04 02 68 00 01 00 b6 00 ..h...¶.
0008: 00 00 00 00 33 00 04 80 ....3..?

 

[oggzee]

EnioMarcos:

Are you able to extract the iso of that game using any other wbfs manager?

Could it be the disk has a bad sector?

Maybe check the S.M.A.R.T. report for the disk, not sure which tool is the best, i use this: SpeedFan
In speedfan click on the SMART tab, then select the drive and click on "perform an in-depth online analysis of this hard disk". it will tell you if the drive has any problems. If enyone knows of better tools for this, chip in.

 

[EnioMarcos]

Yes! With wbfs_inteligent_gui_v6 I'm able to extract the ISO. After that, with wbfs_file, I did the ".wbfs". When moved to WBFS dir, the conversion goes on.

I'm back to test again.

Do you have any idea why the wbfs_inteligent_gui_v6 can extract the ISO and wbfs_file can not?

 

[oggzee]

EnioMarcos:
I don't know!

although i can speculate... maybe it has to do with the compiler used - wbfs_win that is used by the intelligent gui is built using VC i think, while wbfs_file is built with wingw, i think that is the only real difference. So i suspect that there might actually be an error on disc but the IO operations in mingw have different error handling and it just hangs, maybe wbfs_win ignores the error,... who knows :s

 

[EnioMarcos]

Your tip saved the day, anyway!

Thanks a lot!

( I'll report back if that game runs well, when the conversion are finished. )

 

[cambric]

Hi Oggzee,

my very first test with wbfs_file comamnd on MacOSX (tool v1.0)

Macintosh:Grigio cambric$ ls -al
total 27539232
drwxr-xr-xÂÂ7 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ 238 26 Ott 23:21 .
drwxr-xr-xÂÂ5 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ 170 25 Ott 00:48 ..
-rw-r--r--@ 1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ6148 26 Ott 23:06 .DS_Store
-rwxr-xr-xÂÂ1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂ4699979776ÂÂ9 DicÂÂ2008 family(compress).iso
-rwxr-xr-x@ 1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂ136384 22 NovÂÂ2009 wbfs_file
Macintosh:Grigio cambric$ ./wbfs_file family(compress).iso
-bash: syntax error near unexpected token `('
Macintosh:Grigio cambric$ ls -al
total 27539232
drwxr-xr-xÂÂ7 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ 238 26 Ott 23:24 .
drwxr-xr-xÂÂ5 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ 170 25 Ott 00:48 ..
-rw-r--r--@ 1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ6148 26 Ott 23:06 .DS_Store
-rwxr-xr-xÂÂ1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂ4699979776ÂÂ9 DicÂÂ2008 family.iso
-rwxr-xr-x@ 1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂ136384 22 NovÂÂ2009 wbfs_file
Macintosh:Grigio cambric$ ./wbfs_file family.iso
Converting family.iso to WBFS
Writing: RZ9PG9.wbfs
adding RZ9PG9 Family Party: 30 Great Games...
Done inÂÂ0:01:30ÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ 
Info file: ./RZ9PG9_Family_Party__30_Great_Games.txt
Macintosh:Grigio cambric$ ls -al
total 47958824
drwxr-xr-xÂÂ11 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ 374 26 Ott 23:27 .
drwxr-xr-xÂÂ 5 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ 170 25 Ott 00:48 ..
-rw-r--r--@ÂÂ1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ6148 26 Ott 23:06 .DS_Store
-rw-r--r--ÂÂ 1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂ1054867456 26 Ott 23:26 RZ9PG9.wbfs
-rw-r--r--ÂÂ 1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ38 26 Ott 23:26 RZ9PG9_Family_Party__30_Great_Games.txt
-rwxr-xr-xÂÂ 1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂ4699979776ÂÂ9 DicÂÂ2008 family.iso
-rwxr-xr-x@ÂÂ1 cambricÂÂstaffÂÂÂÂÂÂ136384 22 NovÂÂ2009 wbfs_file
Macintosh:Grigio cambric$

as you can see, it worked..... I received an error before renaming the file, it seems that the brackets are not enjoyed....
More tests to come...

Thanks again from all Mac Users...