Hacking PC won't recognize Wii WBFS External HDD

[saucelord]

Here's the thing: I got an external HDD with 500gb full of Wii games. I use an usb adapter.
It works completely fine when I plug in my Wii and use USB Loader GX to play games.

The problem is that I can't get my PC to recognize the HDD anymore, no matter what I try. I simply get the message "USB device not recognized" on the lower right corner of my screen and, after that, it won't even show in Disk Management. I also can't format the HDD -- I would lose a bunch of valuable Wii games and would have to go through the trouble to download all of them again.

Things I have tried:
>using WBFS manager (couldn't detect my hd)
>using Wii Backup manager (couldn't detect my hd)
>plugging in into every other USB port available
>plugging in another PC - it shows the same error message
>using Windows USB troubleshooting

It looks like my system refuses to recognize my HDD no matter what. I can't format the drive even if I wanted too, it doesn't show on Disk Management or anywhere else on the PC.
I have gone through hundreds of forum threads but none had the solution to my problem. So, I humbly ask, please gbatemp, guide me on what to do.

EDIT: SOLVED
Looks like the problem was the case adapting the HDD. I tried another case and my computer recognized the external HD with no trouble. The case I was using before were QGeeM 2.5'' cases bought in AliExpress. They're NO GOOD (for pc at least).

 

[XFlak]

You didn't use ustealth did u? If so, u might need to run it again to unhide the drive.

In terms of formatting, try your luck with one of these tools
https://www.lifewire.com/free-disk-partition-software-tools-2624950

I've used EaseUS and paragon in the past, and while not featured in the list I've also had success with Acronis.

Good luck

Edit: also there's a wbfs2fat.py tool that I would normally recommend, which would convert your HDD to fat32 while preserving your games (if all goes well). You can try this but I'm not sure if it will work if it can't even detect the hard drive.

 

[rip-it-up]

dont you need to assign it a letter?
i had this problem with a switch sd card and my pc, it kept losing its letter

 

[Alexander1970]

Hello.

dont you need to assign it a letter?
i had this problem with a switch sd card and my pc, it kept losing its letter

If the HDD is/was WBFS formatted (not NTFS or FAT32) then Windows should also assign a Drive Letter.
When you connect it to a Windows PC,a Message appears,that the Drive is not "readable"/No Access and want to re-format it.

You can read it with WiiBackup Manager or WBFS Manager (no longer recommended because of Errors in LIBWBFS").

Here's the thing: I got an external HDD with 500gb full of Wii games. I use an usb adapter.
It works completely fine when I plug in my Wii and use USB Loader GX to play games.

The problem is that I can't get my PC to recognize the HDD anymore, no matter what I try. I simply get the message "USB device not recognized" on the lower right corner of my screen and, after that, it won't even show in Disk Management. I also can't format the HDD -- I would lose a bunch of valuable Wii games and would have to go through the trouble to download all of them again.

Things I have tried:
>using WBFS manager (couldn't detect my hd)
>using Wii Backup manager (couldn't detect my hd)
>plugging in into every other USB port available
>plugging in another PC - it shows the same error message
>using Windows USB troubleshooting

It looks like my system refuses to recognize my HDD no matter what. I can't format the drive even if I wanted too, it doesn't show on Disk Management or anywhere else on the PC.
I have gone through hundreds of forum threads but none had the solution to my problem. So, I humbly ask, please gbatemp, guide me on what to do.

Maybe some other Device (SD Card for Example ?) uses now the same Drive Letter ?
Maybe you should check in "Computer Management -> Drive Management" if the HDD appears there.

Maybe your HDD Controller/Enclosure has some Issue ?
Or maybe the HDD is faulty or broken....


Thank you.

 

[rip-it-up]

Hello.



If the HDD is/was WBFS formatted (not NTFS or FAT32) then Windows should also assign a Drive Letter.
When you connect it to a Windows PC,a Message appears,that the Drive is not "readable"/No Access and want to re-format it.

You can read it with WiiBackup Manager or WBFS Manager (no longer recommended because of Errors in LIBWBFS").



Maybe some other Device (SD Card for Example ?) uses now the same Drive Letter ?
Maybe you should check in "Computer Management -> Drive Management" if the HDD appears there.

Maybe your HDD Controller/Enclosure has some Issue ?
Or maybe the HDD is faulty or broken....


Thank you.

I understand what your saying but because the sd card (exfat) didnt have a letter it wasnt showing up.
so i was thinking if the wbfs dosent have a letter it wont ask to format?

 

[Alexander1970]

Thank you.

I understand what your saying but because the sd card (exfat) didnt have a letter it wasnt showing up.
so i was thinking if the wbfs dosent have a letter it wont ask to format?

Maybe because they (SD Card + HDD) use the SAME Drive Letter ?
By the Way,which Operating System do you have please ?

Thank you.

 

[godreborn]

if you have a sata station or another hdd enclosure, you could check if it's the enclosure you're using. it sounds like possible drive failure. I can sympathize. you should invest in a sata station if you don't have one. that's what I used to format my ps4's internal hdd to rid myself completely of my banned account. the one I have can do 2.5" and 3.5" drives (different sata connection for each).

 

[saucelord]

Hello.



If the HDD is/was WBFS formatted (not NTFS or FAT32) then Windows should also assign a Drive Letter.
When you connect it to a Windows PC,a Message appears,that the Drive is not "readable"/No Access and want to re-format it.

You can read it with WiiBackup Manager or WBFS Manager (no longer recommended because of Errors in LIBWBFS").



Maybe some other Device (SD Card for Example ?) uses now the same Drive Letter ?
Maybe you should check in "Computer Management -> Drive Management" if the HDD appears there.

Maybe your HDD Controller/Enclosure has some Issue ?
Or maybe the HDD is faulty or broken....


Thank you.

EDIT: SOLVED
Looks like the problem was the case adapting the HDD. I tried another case and my computer recognized the external HD with no trouble. The case I was using before were QGeeM 2.5'' cases bought in AliExpress. They're NO GOOD (for pc at least).

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

if you have a sata station or another hdd enclosure, you could check if it's the enclosure you're using. it sounds like possible drive failure. I can sympathize. you should invest in a sata station if you don't have one. that's what I used to format my ps4's internal hdd to rid myself completely of my banned account. the one I have can do 2.5" and 3.5" drives (different sata connection for each).

This was exactly the issue for me. Thank you.

 

[godreborn]

EDIT: SOLVED
Looks like the problem was the case adapting the HDD. I tried another case and my computer recognized the external HD with no trouble. The case I was using before were QGeeM 2.5'' cases bought in AliExpress. They're NO GOOD (for pc at least).

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------


This was exactly the issue for me. Thank you.

both the wii, and the virtual wii (even more so), are said to destroy hdds if you leave them on or plugged in when the system is off. I've experienced something like this, so I put my hdd in an enclosure (sabrent) that has a toggle switch. I flip it off when not in use.

 

[AkikoKumagara]

both the wii, and the virtual wii (even more so), are said to destroy hdds if you leave them on or plugged in when the system is off. I've experienced something like this, so I put my hdd in an enclosure (sabrent) that has a toggle switch. I flip it off when not in use.

Never had this problem with my WD External HDD (My Passport Ultra). It's been plugged into both consoles while powered off for a combined total of multiple years at this point.

 

[godreborn]

well, many have, including me.

 

[XFlak]

Do u generally have the priiloader setting enabled to shut down fully (I. E. To red instead of yellow)? When shutdown fully to red my understanding is that the HDD is getting zero power, effectively doing the same thing as the power switch on your HDD enclosure.

But yes, without this enabled your HDD would be idling for long periods in between using your wii and probably shorten its life.

 

[AkikoKumagara]

Do u generally have the priiloader setting enabled to shut down fully (I. E. To red instead of yellow)? When shutdown fully to red my understanding is that the HDD is getting zero power, effectively doing the same thing as the power switch on your HDD enclosure.

But yes, without this enabled your HDD would be idling for long periods in between using your wii and probably shorten its life.

I fully shut down which may explain my not experiencing this issue that's apparently(?) common.