Feedback Gaming Hardware Genuine WII internet issue

[ChronoCrossfangirl2002]

Is there like a surefire consistent way to get your wii and or DS up and running with the internet (on real hardware), per my last thread about the Wi-fi USB connector it gives a good connection but it just straight up stops working sometimes on my VM to where now i genuinely don't know if it works anymore, i don't want to use a hotspot because I'm not made of money, I've heard that one could just purchase a new router but what exactly do i do from there? what router do i get? with my current router i went on the internet providers site, logged in with the attempt to temporarily change the connection to WEP, unfortunately this router is too new.

If purchasing an entire new router consists of also paying another internet provider monthly or just at all then my choices are most likely squandered entirely at this rate.

i am stumped in so many areas with this, i do hope that this thread gets some attention because I've pretty much given up as my knowledge only goes so far with this, if anyone reading this knows a solution or if i am just out of luck entirely, please let me know.

 

[scooby74029]

you could log back into router and make a hidden open network no password

i do this when i am using the internet on my wii for dev mostly but cheats also lol

 

[Quadraxis_v2]

What is exactly your problem? lol

 

[ChronoCrossfangirl2002]

What is exactly your problem? lol

literally read the post, i stated that i'm having trouble finding a reliable and or consistent way to connect to the internet on my wii and or ds consistently, and have given reasons some of the options available aren't exactly reliable

Post automatically merged: Mar 29, 2025

you could log back into router and make a hidden open network no password

i do this when i am using the internet on my wii for dev mostly but cheats also lol

how would i go about making a hidden open network?

 

[scooby74029]

in the router settings should be a button or tab to turn on a guest acct. then name it
remember name turn the security off and turn off the broadcasting of the name
then manually connect to that name on wii wifi

it is a pain sometimes if you have never set up a router before

 

[ChronoCrossfangirl2002]

in the router settings should be a button or tab to turn on a guest acct. then name it
remember name turn the security off and turn off the broadcasting of the name
then manually connect to that name on wii wifi

it is a pain sometimes if you have never set up a router before

okay so i got the first part, what's broadcasting of the name?

 

[Quadraxis_v2]

literally read the post, i stated that i'm having trouble finding a reliable and or consistent way to connect to the internet on my wii and or ds consistently, and have given reasons some of the options available aren't exactly reliable

And you're having trouble... for what reason? You never stated it. Your post makes it look like you don't have wifi or something and that's why you use the long deprecated Nintendo WiFi Connector lol.

The Wii connects fine to normal WPA2 encrypted networks, for the DS you might have to turn off encryption completely, if you're concerned about security you can use SSID cloaking as the other user suggested or even better it's MAC filtering.

If you don't have WiFi then use a laptop and network bridging.

 

[ChronoCrossfangirl2002]

And you're having trouble... for what reason? You never stated it. Your post makes it look like you don't have wifi or something and that's why you use the long deprecated Nintendo WiFi Connector lol.

The Wii connects fine to normal WPA2 encrypted networks, for the DS you might have to turn off encryption completely, if you're concerned about security you can use SSID cloaking as the other user suggested or even better it's MAC filtering.

If you don't have WiFi then use a laptop and network bridging.

1. i literally said, the Nintendo WIFI connector had issues on where it'd work inconsistently to the point it got to an extent where it just stopped leading me to believe it doesn't work at all alluding to the fact that it's not just "reinstall the program" situation anymore and i'm unsure where to go from there, BECAUSE my other options that i was aware of, either were pricey or wasn't educated enough to figure out how to make it come to fruition

2. Please elaborate on MAC filtering i have 0 idea on what that is

3. i do have WIFI unless you mean via my console then no i do not, i also have no idea what network bridging is please explain that in the context of this

 

[Fabax01]

The "spend money & forget option": Buffalo air station access point, as it is the gold standard* for old wireless connectivity (DS, Airport//Power Mac G4)
AOSS + "permit WEP only for game consoles" setting checked -> if you wanna use it only with the DS
| or |
AOSS + "permit WEP only for game consoles" setting unchecked, manual mac filtering on. -> for computers
I use the "WZR-1750DHP" & I gave a buddy my old "WZR-1166DHP" - but any old model of this brand will suffice - check e-bay.
*As in, easy to use / config for the end user - with AOSS they do not even have to memorize the WEP key, just press a button, useful if a lot of people bring their DS & want to use a local/online Pokemon GTS.
---

NOTE:
Not broadcasting a SSID is not secure - windows & other devices will alert the user that there's an hidden network nearby - & any script kiddy with Kali Linux will break into your network pretty easily.
Mac filtering can be defeated the same way - sniff traffic, force disconnect the "victim client", change your Mac address...
WEP is not secure too...
There's no way getting around this. Maybe the most insane way to "fix this" would be to reverse engineer ds network module & build a suitable replacement ex. you can then set up real connection OUTSIDE the ds such as ethernet, modern wifi encryption & then an FPGA simply forwards/receives packets while a fake open network is shown to the DS.









Off topic rant:

Spoiler

If you're really paranoid - Get a power line / wifi extender / install openwrt on an old device, limit antenna power usage to the minimum & then:
set network encryption to wep shared 128bit, set Mac filtering to on, hide SSID (again, all of these are placebo, which may "deter" or "attract" attackers - or help someone sleep at night) ... bonus points if you limit the rate to 802.11b 1mbps & set the various "privacy separator rules" such as device cannot talk to LAN but only connect to the internet; reject wlan intra client traffic...
(All options that most routers/access point combos had for over 20 years, unless they are ISP locked.)
When not in use simply shut it off - unless the "hacker" is someone living in your house, I very much doubt they will be able to magically capture radio waves that are A) being transmitted only a few meters away B) not transmitting at all.

Still paranoid - "what if they DID break into my super sensitive network (Which somehow you are using to game on - probably you still have UPNP on lol)!?"
Pfsense as your router/firewall combo, set up different VLANs + subnets... finally, be free from doubt.

 

[ChronoCrossfangirl2002]

The "spend money & forget option": Buffalo air station access point, as it is the gold standard* for old wireless connectivity (DS, Airport//Power Mac G4)
AOSS + "permit WEP only for game consoles" setting checked -> if you wanna use it only with the DS
| or |
AOSS + "permit WEP only for game consoles" setting unchecked, manual mac filtering on. -> for computers
I use the "WZR-1750DHP" & I gave a buddy my old "WZR-1166DHP" - but any old model of this brand will suffice - check e-bay.
*As in, easy to use / config for the end user - with AOSS they do not even have to memorize the WEP key, just press a button, useful if a lot of people bring their DS & want to use a local/online Pokemon GTS.
---

NOTE:
Not broadcasting a SSID is not secure - windows & other devices will alert the user that there's an hidden network nearby - & any script kiddy with Kali Linux will break into your network pretty easily.
Mac filtering can be defeated the same way - sniff traffic, force disconnect the "victim client", change your Mac address...
WEP is not secure too...
There's no way getting around this. Maybe the most insane way to "fix this" would be to reverse engineer ds network module & build a suitable replacement ex. you can then set up real connection OUTSIDE the ds such as ethernet, modern wifi encryption & then an FPGA simply forwards/receives packets while a fake open network is shown to the DS.









Off topic rant:

Spoiler

If you're really paranoid - Get a power line / wifi extender / install openwrt on an old device, limit antenna power usage to the minimum & then:
set network encryption to wep shared 128bit, set Mac filtering to on, hide SSID (again, all of these are placebo, which may "deter" or "attract" attackers - or help someone sleep at night) ... bonus points if you limit the rate to 802.11b 1mbps & set the various "privacy separator rules" such as device cannot talk to LAN but only connect to the internet; reject wlan intra client traffic...
(All options that most routers/access point combos had for over 20 years, unless they are ISP locked.)
When not in use simply shut it off - unless the "hacker" is someone living in your house, I very much doubt they will be able to magically capture radio waves that are A) being transmitted only a few meters away B) not transmitting at all.

Still paranoid - "what if they DID break into my super sensitive network (Which somehow you are using to game on - probably you still have UPNP on lol)!?"
Pfsense as your router/firewall combo, set up different VLANs + subnets... finally, be free from doubt.

i found a Buffalo Air Station Nfiniti Wireless-N power Router with an Acess point, would that be okay? if so do i just configure it per settings you listed?

 

[Fabax01]

Sure, all (really, I never saw one without) buffalo air stations have a switch on the back to set it as an access point (think of it as a "bridge" to your existing network. It will simply broadcast another wireless signal, devices that connect to this "signal" will talk to your old network. term derives from the times that most devices were not combo wlan units, you would plug an access point into your router to use wifi - well, & your router would be plugged into a modem to access the internet.)
Just plug it in & follow the instruction manual - it is pretty user friendly, if my friend could understand it, everyone can.
I only suggest to disable WPS (useless, as you already have AOSS - did I mention that WPS is also a security hole lol.) & turn on the "WEP only for game console setting" - usually greyed out by default, after you successfully connect the DS through AOSS (through pressing a button, like WPS) it will become checkable.



----
More knowledgeable users can turn the other isolation settings, or if they prefer can flash DD WRT (Buffalo sometimes even bundles a branded version of it on disc as the "professional firmware"- that, or a simple lookup on the dd-wrt website will bring download links. )

 

[wiiNinja]

The title scared the hell out of me. I thought it was world war II.

 

[ChronoCrossfangirl2002]

The title scared the hell out of me. I thought it was world war II.

is it that bad? i can change it if needed

 

[N7Kopper]

And you're having trouble... for what reason? You never stated it. Your post makes it look like you don't have wifi or something and that's why you use the long deprecated Nintendo WiFi Connector lol.

The Wii connects fine to normal WPA2 encrypted networks, for the DS you might have to turn off encryption completely, if you're concerned about security you can use SSID cloaking as the other user suggested or even better it's MAC filtering.

If you don't have WiFi then use a laptop and network bridging.

I recommend against using SSID cloaking for anything other than having end users not attempt to login that way. It can't stand up to wardrivers. If you need DS mode connection, rely on MAC filtering (and toss in a WEP key if you can just to waste a little tiny bit of their time) and connection limits. I also recommend isolating the WEP/Open access point from your LAN just in case.

If you're having problems with radio range or you literally don't have enough Wi-Fi (happened to me!) try grabbing a router that can be flashed with aftermarket firmware, setting it up as an access point, and just plugging it in to what you already have, then set the exact same security settings as your main box. (And turn on SSID cloaking so you don't see duplicates)

 

[wiiNinja]

is it that bad? i can change it if needed

Nah. I'm being stupid.

 

[Aep]

Is there like a surefire consistent way to get your wii and or DS up and running with the internet (on real hardware), per my last thread about the Wi-fi USB connector it gives a good connection but it just straight up stops working sometimes on my VM to where now i genuinely don't know if it works anymore, i don't want to use a hotspot because I'm not made of money, I've heard that one could just purchase a new router but what exactly do i do from there? what router do i get? with my current router i went on the internet providers site, logged in with the attempt to temporarily change the connection to WEP, unfortunately this router is too new.

If purchasing an entire new router consists of also paying another internet provider monthly or just at all then my choices are most likely squandered entirely at this rate.

i am stumped in so many areas with this, i do hope that this thread gets some attention because I've pretty much given up as my knowledge only goes so far with this, if anyone reading this knows a solution or if i am just out of luck entirely, please let me know.

Are you trying to use the USB wifi connector?

 

[ChronoCrossfangirl2002]

Are you trying to use the USB wifi connector?

not anymore, no. i said something happened to it to where it seemingly straight up doesn't work anymore which i never went into detail as this thread was never about the USB Wifi connector itself but rather expressing how lost i felt for trying to find consistently reliable methods for connecting to the internet via old consoles such as the DS and WII.

You can read up on the designated USB wifi connector issue that i had briefly mentioned in the main post here

While i sorta found a solution to this thread as mentioned above i purchased a buffalo access point a few days ago, it arrived today but i am confused on how to set it up as I'm not sure if i need a modem or not to make it all work plus my laptop doesn't have a Ethernet and or LAN port (that last bit may have sounded extremely stupid but bare with me as it's pretty obvious i'm new to this kinda thing), so overall that's where we're at in terms of this dilemma.

I've been trying to follow the instruction booklet for the access point router but some of it feels like word soup to me unless I'm stupid. I dm'd @Fabax01 about it, though no response yet.

 

[Aep]

not anymore, no. i said something happened to it to where it seemingly straight up doesn't work anymore which i never went into detail as this thread was never about the USB Wifi connector itself but rather expressing how lost i felt for trying to find consistently reliable methods for connecting to the internet via old consoles such as the DS and WII.

You can read up on the designated USB wifi connector issue that i had briefly mentioned in the main post here

While i sorta found a solution to this thread as mentioned above i purchased a buffalo access point a few days ago, it arrived today but i am confused on how to set it up as I'm not sure if i need a modem or not to make it all work plus my laptop doesn't have a Ethernet and or LAN port (that last bit may have sounded extremely stupid but bare with me as it's pretty obvious i'm new to this kinda thing), so overall that's where we're at in terms of this dilemma.

I've been trying to follow the instruction booklet for the access point router but some of it feels like word soup to me unless I'm stupid. I dm'd @Fabax01 about it, though no response yet.

So you are not able to use WiFi?