Hacking Multiple SDHC/USB Partitions in Windows (Tutorial)

[Malc`]

This is a useful hack for accessing multiple flash drive/SDHC partitions in Windows, as even if more than one exists, Windows will only assign a drive letter to the first partition (normally). I discovered this method after wasting an entire weekend trying to get it working, now I have all my apps and games on one 16gb SDHC card

Step 1:
Download the hitachi microdrive driver from here: http://www.uwe-sieber.de/files/xpfildrvr1224_320.zip

Step 2:
Extract, open the file cfadisk.inf and scroll down to the section labelled [cfadisk_device]

Step 3:
"IDE\DiskIBM-DSCM-11000__________________________SC2IC801" is the device ID of one of the supported Microdrives. We want to add a line to this section with the device ID for our USB flash drive/sdhc reader.

The ID is found in the Windows device management: Expand 'Disk drives', right click your USB/SDHC drive, select Properties. On the tab "Details" under XP the item "Device instance ID" is already selected. Click on the ID in the List and press Ctrl+C, this copies the ID into the Windows Clipboard and can be pasted somewhere else with Ctrl+V. Be careful with this part, make sure you are selecting the correct drive and not your PC hard disk. Mine looked like this:

Step 4:
Add a line to the [cfadisk_device] section, but change the part after cfadisk_install, by adding your device ID so it should look something like this:

%Microdrive_devdesc% = cfadisk_install,USBSTOR\DISK&VEN_USB_2.0&PROD_SD_MMC_READER&REV__\812320080329&0

Delete the part after the last backslash, so it ends up like this:

%Microdrive_devdesc% = cfadisk_install,USBSTOR\DISK&VEN_USB_2.0&PROD_SD_MMC_READER&REV__

Step 5:
In the device manager again right-click the USB drive, "Update driver...", then "No, not this time" -> Next -> "Install from a list or..." -> Next -> "Don't search." -> Next -> "Have Disk" -> browse to the modified INF file. Now "Hitachi Microdrive" should be in the list -> Next -> Confirm the two warnings -> Finish. Restart if required.

Step 6:
After restarting, you should hopefully now have your SD/Flash drive showing up in my computer as a Hard Disk, like this:

Now you can use a partitioning tool such as the freeware EaseUS partition master from here: http://www.partition-tool.com/personal.htm to create a second Primary partition on the drive and Windows will be able to see them both. Use a tool such as WBFS manager to format the 2nd partition and install some games then test it in the Wii. After partitioning and formating with WBFS, it should look like this:

Step 7:
If HBC doesn't detect your apps, make sure that your first partition is the one with all the files on and the second one is the WBFS partition, they also both need to be "Primary partitions", not Logical or Extended. Also, USBLoader-CFG is the only loader that can detect and use secondary partitions so far (as far as I know). Now you can add games to your WBFS partition and still access all your apps/wads etc through Windows, all on one device.

If after installing the Hitachi driver, your SD card or flash drive is not detected by windows, just go back into device manager, right click on the drive, go to Properties > Rollback Driver and restart - it will go back to being a normal removable storage device again. Hope this guide is useful to someone!

 

[calimero100582]

Or you can create partitions on your SD Card or USB drive with something like gParted, and the use the tool I made wbfsGUI, so you don't need Windows to recognize your partitions

 

[Malc`]

You do need Windows if you wan't to use the same SD card to boot apps from the HBC. I split mine into 200meg FAT32 partition with apps/wads/etc on, 15gig WBFS partition for games

 

[fatherjack]

@malc

I had done this with a 32Gig SDHC,but HBC isnt listing any apps?

Drives were labelled W (2Gig) and X (30 Gig), with all homebrew files on W and X formatted to WBFS for backups.
in XP Admin tools > Computer Management both show up with blue header bar (as Primary Partition), And HBC V1.0.3 is stated as SDHC compatable.

Do you have any suggestions as to why apps do not show?

Sysmenu reads the card OK as I can launch backed up wiiware from SD menu

Any help would be much appreciated

 

[Det1re]

We already had two tutorials about this topic. Nevertheless: Thanks.

 

[Malc`]

Det1re: I don't think any of the other tutorials have mentioned how to get both partitions accessible in Windows, only how to go about creating the partitions.

fatherjack: Does the SD card normally work with HBC when it is 1 FAT32 partition with apps on? HBC can be a bit picky sometimes I found. What did you use to create the partitions? If you have a wad installed channel version of configurable USB loader, try seeing if the WBFS partitions is detected?

 

[Satangel]

Thanks for the tutorial, always nice to have more tutorials!

 

[fatherjack]

@malc - thanx for the quick reply m8

The card has never been used as single partition - purchased and partitioned specifically for this purpose (not many backups fit on a 2Gig!)
I am now gonna:

i) install config USB loader .wad and try to run backup off X (WBFS) partition
ii) If no joy with above, will reformat to one partition (FAT32) and try HBC by itself

for info, SDHC was partitioned under Windows XP disk management; both partitions were formatted to FAT32, then reformatted Backup partition to WBFS using WBFS Manager (AlexDP)

 

[Det1re]

Det1re: I don't think any of the other tutorials have mentioned how to get both partitions accessible in Windows, only how to go about creating the partitions.

I made mine using one of those and that's my result:

While "Wii-HDD (L" is a FAT partition, "Lokaler Datenträger (M" is the WBFS one.

 

[fatherjack]

@all
Config USB launcher channel 'saw' and launched my backup (WBFS partition)
sysmenu can also read and launch wiiware/vc games from the sd (FAT partition)

forwarder channels (wadmanager & smw) cannot find their boot.dols and still no apps appearing within HBC

I think this is either the HBC itself (what is best method to RE-install?)
or the FAT32 partition - I have tried as FAT with same result

If anyone has any ideas..................I'm listening


@det1re

"We already had two tutorials about this topic. Nevertheless: Thanks."
please link me to these two if u can

 

[Det1re]

@det1re

"We already had two tutorials about this topic. Nevertheless: Thanks."
please link me to these two if u can

http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=146191
http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=153138

The second is the one, I've choosen, leaving out the NTFS stuff.

 

[fatherjack]

Thanx

 

[Malc`]

Both of this tutorials are for portable hard drives, they won't work for SDHC cards or USB memory sticks as Windows won't let you assign a second drive letter to them unfortunately (without doing the driver hack)

fatherjack: It may be worth trying another formatting tool to make sure the FAT partition is definitely placed physically at the start of the card. As long as HBC can definitely read the card when it just 1 partition it SHOULD be able to read the first partition when there are multiple. I guess you used the windows management thing to partition it before? Give the EASEUS tool a go

 

[Det1re]

Both of this tutorials are for portable hard drives, they won't work for SDHC cards or USB memory sticks as Windows won't let you assign a second drive letter to them unfortunately (without doing the driver hack)

Didn't notice that. Sorry.

 

[delarin]

I love you, hope that isn't out of line. Seriously though, this is exactly what I have been looking for, thank you very much for posting this tutorial!

 

[Malc`]

No problem! Glad to have helped!

 

[fatherjack]

Just to bring some closure to the thread.......................

First off, huge thanx to malc' and det1re for bouncin' me ideas on this one - its a forum, the answers are ALWAYS out there somewhere, but its great to have that feelin that someone is walkin you thru it anyway, thx guys!

Re: card - think I cheaped out on unbranded
Re: partition - got there in the end, ended up using app called 'swissknife' for my formatting probs.
Re; result - I can only really launch small sized (

 

[phowguy]

I hope there still somebody who can help me.

I did everything from above and I can use usbloader and run the game from my sdhc, however I am having trouble detecting the sdhc card now with some programs, such as wadmanager and mplayer CE. When on the wii menues, when I press the SD button, it loads, and the freezes up.

Anyone encounter this problem?

I had installed 4.1e waninkoko

 

[Malc`]

@fatherjack - no problem

One thing I would suggest before you give up completely is to give USBLoader-CFG a go if you haven't already as I find that is the best loader to use when having multiple partitions.

@phowguy, use the modded wadmanager that supports multiple partitions from here http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=154720&st=30

The one posted by buvk about halfway down the page is the best, a lot more functionality than the normal wadmanager.

 

[phowguy]

@fatherjack - no problem

One thing I would suggest before you give up completely is to give USBLoader-CFG a go if you haven't already as I find that is the best loader to use when having multiple partitions.

@phowguy, use the modded wadmanager that supports multiple partitions from here http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=154720&st=30

The one posted by buvk about halfway down the page is the best, a lot more functionality than the normal wadmanager.

Thank you Malc. I tried it.. However I get the error -1. I think it cant read the card proberly. Weird because I know it worked before.