Homebrew [RELEASE] Aroma Environment for Wii U

[ADHD1977]

Got aroma up and runnig, autoboot also.

Thx everybody for the input/info..

Question: how do i get homebrew store and things like NUSspli on aroma ??.

Or is this not possible yet ??

Now i only have the DS3 bloopair app in my menu.

I started with a new fresh SD aroma install.

 

[Alexander1970]

Got aroma up and runnig, autoboot also.

Thx everybody for the input/info..

Question: how do i get homebrew store and things like NUSspli on aroma ??.

Or is this not possible yet ??

Now i only have the DS3 bloopair app in my menu.

I started with a new fresh SD aroma install.

https://maschell.github.io/homebrew/2022/09/05/aroma.html

When this blogpost gets released, not every single plugin I mentioned will be available, but I’ll try to add them as soon as I can.

Loading homebrew from the Wii U Menu / WUHB (Wii U Homebrew Bundle)​

This feature has been teased and discussed quite a lot already. With Aroma the way of loading homebrew will change. Previously it was loaded by a dedicated homebrew launcher, which loaded the executable in the memory and then ran it (in the case of a .rpx it’s a bit more complicated though). Now with the latest version of Mocha it’s really easy and clean to run homebrew with just a few lines of code. Instead of having to rely on the homebrew launcher, we can now explore options.


In a time where a forwarder channel gets created for every single homebrew, it’s an obvious choice to support this form of loading homebrew. Aroma will provide a plugin, which scans the .rpx and .wuhb files on your SD card and display them on your Wii U Menu. Thus, you would be able to launch homebrew from the home menu, without actually installing anything!


This is where WUHB, the Wii U Homebrew Bundle format, comes into play. It allows homebrew applications together with additional data to be stored into a single file. This simplifies distribution and installation. Besides the executable (.rpx), a WUHB file embeds meta information (splash screen, icon, name of application/author) and can hold up to 4GiB of additional files. These additional files can be accessed via /vol/content like a “real” channel. The homebrew toolchain wut has built-in support for creating .wuhb files, please take a look at the wut examples.


At the time of writing this, it will only be possible to load homebrew directly from the Wii U Menu. Creating a homebrew launcher alternative would be possible, but I decided to not spent any time on that. Parsing the meta data from a .wuhb and launching a .rpx/.wuhb is really straight forward, if anybody wants to create a “modern” homebrew launcher and needs assistance, let me know on the Aroma Discord.


Note 1:.elf homebrew are not and will never be supported by Aroma due to technical limitations. To continue using these homebrew apps, you need to launch into Tiramisu. Note 2: Not all .rpx files will be compatible out of the box. Make sure the application doesn’t launch it’s own exploits and implements the ProcUI loop properly. If you have trouble with this please join the Aroma Discord.

 

[ADHD1977]

@Alexander1970,

OK thx for the info, but i am not so far into getting this.

Can someone explain how to get anything on my wiiu and how to do so in simple terms/steps.

Can i get hbl and app working and how do i do that.

Read youre post, but still dont get it/know how to do it.

Im a noob on all of this stuff.

 

[Alexander1970]

@Alexander1970,

OK thx for the info, but i am not so far into getting this.

Can someone explain how to get anything on my wiiu and how to do so in simple terms/steps.

Can i get hbl and app working and how do i do that.

Read youre post, but still dont get it/know how to do it.

Im a noob on all of this stuff.

Because it is a BETA and @Maschell has a lot to do for sure,it will take time,until then all common homebrews will also run or the developers of the homebrews will have adapted their tools.

As I read from his Blog,a Homebrewfile in .rpx Format placed in

SD Card:\wiiu\apps\Folder named of the Homebrew\*.rpx File

should make the Homebrew visible on the Wii U Menu.

But please note,maybe some Tools / Homebrew will maybe not working at the moment.


Good Luck.

 

[ADHD1977]

@Alexander1970,

Thx this noob is gonna try..

 

[BaamAlex]

This is great news. Will the wiiu.guide website be updated to use this as default?

Technically there is no need to. Aroma is just another environment for the wii u. The setup procedure is theoretically the same. You just put the aroma files on the sd instead of tiramisu.

 

[Alexander1970]

Hello Master
@Maschell

To give maybe one of the first Feedback Posts:

- Installation is really very,very simple and without any Danger.Perfect.
- Boot Time ist very fast,impressive !!!
- The Installation Package with a few Modules was very kind from you,thank you,makes it a little easier then copy all single Files in the associated Folders.
- The blocking Update Message is very,very important,hopefully we never need it again.
- Found maybe a Issue with the App Store - when quitting it stays on the App Screen.
The HOME Button has no Function but you can safely turn off the complete System via the Wii U PAD.

Thank you.

 

[NinStar]

I'm a bit confused about one detail, is the arrangement of the icons on the wii u menu saved on the SD card or somewhere else?

I'm asking this because I just noticed that when I run Aroma everything is all over the place on my Wii U Menu, but when I go back to Tiramisu everything returns to the way it was organized before.

EDIT: I took a look inside my SD card and found the files are indeed there.

 

[leonardorg]

Does it works on version 5.5.3 or is it safe to update now ?

 

[BaamAlex]

Does it works on version 5.5.3 or is it safe to update now ?

Read the first post. It works up until the latest firmware.

 

[leonardorg]

Read the first post. It works up until the latest firmware.

It says that is compatible with the latest firmware, but It says nothing about previous firmwares...

 

[BaamAlex]

It says that is compatible with the latest firmware, but It says nothing about previous firmwares...

It works on previous firmwares because no major changes were made in 5.5.4, 5.5.5 and 5.5.6.

 

[Powerful]

First off thank you so much for the work you’ve put into this to accomplish one of the greatest things to come. Also I have figured out how to use .elf files and rednand with aroma kinda. So what you do is install CBHC or the hbl channel first. If you installed cbhc uninstall it right after, but keep the channel as it’ll be there leftover. It’ll basically serve as imo a better hbl. Next if you want to use aroma set it to default auto boot like usual or let the installer menu pop up doesn’t matter. I prefer aroma autoboot holding x. Next when you want to use aroma and boot into aroma your .elf files and hbl channel will not work, but if you boot the installer exit the menu it’ll keep your patches and you can boot into hbl and use .elf or whatever you want as if you had cbhc or mocha enabled at boot. To use rednand youll have to use the CFW booter in the hbl since the payload version will try to boot but end up in a blackscreen. Don’t use mocha as it won’t ever launch rednand anymore as far as I can test, and disable the settings in mocha as I believe this causes a freeze upon exiting apps in both tiramisu and aroma. Hope this helps people as I’ve been stressed giving up rednand and .elf’s. It’s not perfect but it’s pretty good

 

[sion_zaphod]

Link to region free plugin does not work. Also this plugin is not included in the bundle. Sig Patches are the clincher if I'm going to make Aroma default over Tiramisu.
Is there any word on when system update 5.5.6e will be released? I've disabled autoboot in prep for the update but it hasn't dropped yet.

 

[ArgoRV]

First of all. Thanks to @Maschell @GaryOderNichts and everyone involved in the Scene of this amazing console

I might want to ask a few questions about the use of Aroma. Regarding of what i've read in OP, Blog & Discord.

1) WUPS plugins (.mod files) cannot be loaded yet, right?
2) For what i see. TCPGecko will not run until rpx is available, right?
3) Is there any Discord with progress or suggestions of upcoming plugins?

 

[BaamAlex]

Is there any word on when system update 5.5.6e will be released? I've disabled autoboot in prep for the update but it hasn't dropped yet.

5.5.6 is only for usa console iirc.

 

[V10lator]

Question: how do i get homebrew store and things like NUSspli on aroma ??.

You just put the .rpx files to sd:/wiiu/apps/ (no subfolder). In case there's an Aroma/ WUHB release available (like with NUSspli) you put the .wuhb file to the same folder instead.

 

[Noctosphere]

congrats @Maschell and @GaryOderNichts

Are they gonna be awarded the "developper" rank?

 

[niuus]

Great news. I'll add the files, toy around with it, and wait until it matures a bit. Awesome news for the Wii U scene, congrats to @Maschell and everyone involved.

 

[Clutz450]

Technically there is no need to. Aroma is just another environment for the wii u. The setup procedure is theoretically the same. You just put the aroma files on the sd instead of tiramisu.

I meant like how wiiu.guide used to be all about setting up haxchi or CBHC on your Wii U. But once Tiramisu was available, the site removed those guides and now only lists using Tiramisu as an option when hacking the Wii U. I was just curious if Aroma is going eventually going to become the next new default way to mod your Wii U and run homebrew and if the site was going to remove all talk of Tiramisu.