Hacking USB Loader GX, Japanese VC games and Guitar Hero 5

VanackSabbadium

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It's strange that the game doesn't work on real nand either. even when launch from sysmenu and not from usbgx? the game is the same region than your NAND?


neek doesn't screw your Wii, on the contrary.
it's a way to keep the wii untouch, and run everything from SD or USB as if it was your real Wii data/sysmenu/etc.
if you need a guide https://gbatemp.net/posts/6592730 (might not be easy to follow, sorry)
compared to the emuNAND you use currently, it's only a file (/sneek/kernel.bin on SD or usb) and that's all. then in USBGX you can go to game settings, and change the emuNAND mode from Full to Neek.
it'll be a little longer to boot, oh and when you exit the game you are still in neek ! you need to reset/power off the console to exit neek and launch usbgx again. you can install "nk2o" channel on your emuNAND to automatically reset the console on game exit.


Wiki account created!
check your mail to get/change the password.

Cyan, i have a little update since your last post.
I followed your guide, and after a little bit of trouble (unfortunately ModMii and NUS Downloader do not work properly on Linux, so i had to wait to use my PC at work, which runs Windows), i made it to create my Neek NAND!
And you know what?

All my games that did not work on emuNAND, now work without issues!
I had troubles with:

  • Castlevania ReBirth (WiiWare)
  • Mario Tennis (N64)
  • Paper Mario (N64)
  • Megaman (NES)
Now they work in neek mode!
So well, i think i have to thank you again for that.
Still, Life Force (NES) does not work. It seems to be working if i change video mode and region to NTSC/USA with AnyRegionChanger in Wii Mod Lite, before running the game.

I just have a question: i installed nswitch channel on emuNAND to reset my console automatically in real NAND, but i don't know if that's working, because if i start the channel itself, it tries to mount my USB drive but fails, and then of course tries to boot my SD (which works) but it doesn't find any kernel.bin, since my sneek folder is on my USB drive.
However, when i exit a game in neek mode, it resets to my System Menu and everything seems to work fine.
Is there a way to exit directly to USB Loader GX again after booting a game in neek mode?

I'm going to update the Wiki as soon as i get all my games working!
Thanks again!
 
Last edited by VanackSabbadium,

Cyan

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you didn't need Modmii to use neek.
just dump your NAND, instead of making a clean empty one from scratch.

games you had trouble with, are known games requiring neek.
especially castlevania.



Paper Mario works with cIOS rev17 and rev19 base 57.
if it doesn't work with ANY BASE using v8, then you can mark that game as "not working" on the v8 column.

Same for Mario tennis, it works with cIOS rev17

Megaman doesn't seem to be in the list at all?
again, be sure you tested all bases before marking it as not working with the cIOS version you tried.


in fact, almost all games will work with neek, whether they work on sysNAND/emuNAND or not.
But setting and using neek takes longer than using emuNAND redirection with IOS on realNAND. booting neek, and exiting/reseting the console/returning to the loader is not the best, when it works without neek then don't use it!


Life force is PAL or NTSC game?
some games need to use the corresponding neek NAND region.
for Japanese game you need japanese NAND (created in modmi in that case, unless you have a japanese Wii).

Life Force (NES) does not work. It seems to be working if i change video mode and region to NTSC/USA with AnyRegionChanger in Wii Mod Lite,
Don't do that.
Neek has a hiden menu (press 1 or 2 on the wiimote).
enable the region free option in neek settings.
Ah, you need font.bin in /sneek/ folder to see that menu.
if you used modmii it certainly added it for you!
if not, I'll find a link.

I just have a question: i installed nswitch channel on emuNAND to reset my console automatically in real NAND, but i don't know if that's working, because if i start the channel itself, it tries to mount my USB drive but fails, and then of course tries to boot my SD (which works) but it doesn't find any kernel.bin, since my sneek folder is on my USB drive.
However, when i exit a game in neek mode, it resets to my System Menu and everything seems to work fine.
Is there a way to exit directly to USB Loader GX again after booting a game in neek mode?
hmm, it shouldn't try to mount USB if you launch that channel when in neek mode!
it first check if you are in emuNAND mode. if you are, it reset the console.
if you are not, THEN it tries to init and mount devices. well, I'm not even sure it does that, as it tries to launch bootmii (as IOS254), then bootmii mounts your SD.
when you are in sneek, your SD Card is not available (it's seen as your real NAND by the console, it doesn't know it's redirected to SD. for the console you don't have an SD card inserted).

emuNAND: nswitch -> reset console
realNAND: nswitch -> bootmii launcher IOS254 -> sd:/bootmii/armboot.bin -> /sneek/kernel.bin

I think new nswitch is working like usbgx, so maybe you installed the new version?
realNAND: nswitch -> check SD/USB for kernel.bin, but if it does that when you are in sneek then SD is not available. in uneek, usb is not available. unless you enable a special option to allow FAT32 access to the same neek mounted partition.

if you manually launch that channel on neek, it should reboot the console (like when you exit a game from neek, as you said it's working).

to return to USBGX directly, you need to use either bootmii@boot2 or priiloader.
that's why you shouldn't use Neek as your normal, everyday environment. use realNAND and "emuNAND Full" option in the loader, only use neek for problematic games.
 
Last edited by Cyan,

VanackSabbadium

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you didn't need Modmii to use neek.
just dump your NAND, instead of making a clean empty one from scratch.

Yeah, but the part "without Modmii" required to use NUS Downloader, which doesn't work on Linux either.
However i already had dumped my NAND on USB Loader GX

Paper Mario works with cIOS rev17 and rev19 base 57.
if it doesn't work with ANY BASE using v8, then you can mark that game as "not working" on the v8 column.

Same for Mario tennis, it works with cIOS rev17

Alright, i'm gonna try them. Well, i have a question: i downloaded the cIOS rev17 and cIOS rev19 installers, but i think they replace the same spot, which is IOS249. Is there a way to select another spot?

Life force is PAL or NTSC game?

NTSC game. It's the only NTSC game which doesn't start at all. Blank screen and controllers do not respond.

Don't do that.
Neek has a hiden menu (press 1 or 2 on the wiimote).
enable the region free option in neek settings.
Ah, you need font.bin in /sneek/ folder to see that menu.
if you used modmii it certainly added it for you!
if not, I'll find a link.

I know that, but i'm trying to run Life Force from USB Loader GX using "emuNAND neek" option. I'm not inside Neek yet so i can't "region free" anything... Maybe?

that's why you shouldn't use Neek as your normal, everyday environment. use realNAND and "emuNAND Full" option in the loader, only use neek for problematic games.

I know that. 95% of my games work on emuNAND without issues. Neek is my last chance for games which only work on realNAND (like Castlevania Rebirth). I'm not planning on doing it for everyday use.

Thank you again for your support.
 

Cyan

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Yeah, but the part "without Modmii" required to use NUS Downloader, which doesn't work on Linux either.
However i already had dumped my NAND on USB Loader GX
no, there is no need to use NUSD either (you can, but Crediar's neek installer app (for windows only, but NUD is too) downloads all the required files for you without the need of nusd.

i downloaded the cIOS rev17 and cIOS rev19 installers, but i think they replace the same spot, which is IOS249. Is there a way to select another spot?
Not from the installer.
rev17 install itself in BOTH slot249 and 250.
rev19 I don't remember if you can choose the slot, or if it also install both in 249 and 250, but at least it allows you to choose a base IOS.

You have two choice:
install cIOS with installer. dump them with BlueDumpMod. edit the slot with a tool on PC (I'd pick ShowMiiWad for the easy steps, and because I already have it readily available, but there are many)
or
Use modmii to generate the cIOS you want, in the slot you want.
(re)install with a wad manager.

here modmii will be faster.
and if it doesn't allow you to pick the slots you want (it has specific existing hardcoded slots/base), you can still use showMiiWad to change the slot of the wad.


also remember that the old cIOS don't support subfolders and the emuNAND need to be located on the root. not in "sd:/nands" but in "sd:/"
you'll have lot of folders on your root then.

I recommend SD instead of USB, as it has all the requirement (MBR, single partition, FAT32, 32k/cluster, 512b/sector)

I know that, but i'm trying to run Life Force from USB Loader GX using "emuNAND neek" option. I'm not inside Neek yet so i can't "region free" anything... Maybe?
once you setup neek for the first time, you can (should?) launch neek system menu one without autobooting a game.
go to USBGX > option > features > launch neek.
it'll launch neek system menu. from here you can setup neek like you want (region free mainly, that's all)
reset the console once setup.
 
Last edited by Cyan,

VanackSabbadium

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You have two choice:
install cIOS with installer. dump them with BlueDumpMod. edit the slot with a tool on PC (I'd pick ShowMiiWad for the easy steps, and because I already have it readily available, but there are many)
or
Use modmii to generate the cIOS you want, in the slot you want.
(re)install with a wad manager.

here modmii will be faster.
and if it doesn't allow you to pick the slots you want (it has specific existing hardcoded slots/base), you can still use showMiiWad to change the slot of the wad.

Done with ModMii, i have wads in my USB drive, i have to install them. I'll do it this weekend.
My system will be:

IOS245 -> cIOS rev17
IOS246 -> cIOS rev19 base57
IOS247 -> d2x v8 final base56
IOS248 -> d2x v8 final base57
IOS249 -> d2x v10 beta52 base56
IOS250 -> d2x v10 beta52 base57
IOS251 -> d2x v10 beta53-alt base58

what do you think?

also remember that the old cIOS don't support subfolders and the emuNAND need to be located on the root. not in "sd:/nands" but in "sd:/"
you'll have lot of folders on your root then.

Oh man, don't tell me that i have to put all nand folders inside main directory... What a mess XD

once you setup neek for the first time, you can (should?) launch neek system menu one without autobooting a game.
go to USBGX > option > features > launch neek.
it'll launch neek system menu. from here you can setup neek like you want (region free mainly, that's all)
reset the console once setup.

Alright, i launched neek system, but it's strange, i have no "region free" option.

shSXpDd.jpg


This is 2nd menu (button 2 on Wiimote). With button 1 i can select the game into the "disc".
Any advice?

Thanks
 

Cyan

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what do you think?
I think you chose randomly without really thinking about what you'll need, or what the IOS you selected are.

IOS247 -> d2x v8 final base56
IOS248 -> d2x v8 final base57
IOS249 -> d2x v10 beta52 base56
IOS250 -> d2x v10 beta52 base57
these are duplicate.
v8 final and v10 r52 are only renamed version. they are identical and have the same compatibility.
installing the same base of both v8 and v10 is therefore useless. look at the wiki page, they are in the same column as they are the same cIOS.
at least, you could try different bases (I removed v10 entirely, these are useless to install):


IOS247 -> d2x v8 final base38
IOS248 -> d2x v8 final base53
IOS249 -> d2x v8 final base56
IOS250 -> d2x v8 final base57


as for having a r53, that's a good idea! as some games are not compatible with r53 (just dance) but work fine with r52, so installing it in slot251 is a good idea.
What's a bad idea is using base58 which has a very poor compatibility with games.
if you test a game with v10 r53 base58, you won't know what the problem is ! either v10 r53 or base58 or both ?
personally, I would install :
IOS250 -> d2x v8 final base57
IOS251 -> d2x v10 beta53-alt base 57

that way, you have identical base to compare compatibility with the cIOS version.
both 250 and 251 use base57, now you can check whether a game work with r53 or not and don't have to worry whether it's a problem with poor IOS58 compatibility or not.

it's only one of a good way to test.
there are other ways to properly test, like having :
d2x v8 final base58
you don't have that cIOS version + base58 at all. some game work with 53 or 58 but not 56 or 57 (spongebob boating bash)

but base53 should be very very rarely required as "unique working base". other bases should work too.

About rev19 :
you'll only have base57.
some game would work fine only with base38.
so, if you test a game with rev19 and it doesn't work, you can't really confirm that rev19 doesn't work at all. only that rev19base57 didn't work, but you don't know if rev19Otherbase are working until you try them all. only then you could mark rev19 as not working.

It's a lot of test to properly fill and fix the wiki table.
as I know you can't do all these bases for each IOS version, just add in the comment column the base you tried with each cIOS version. (still lot of work, but less than having to test all possible combinations)

up to you to decide which slot to use.



Now, for your tests, in order of common usage:
try both base57 and base56.
if a game work with both, there is nothing to tell or mention. mark the game as working.
if it works only with one (either 56 or 57), then mention the base you tried and their compatibility in the comment.
if none worked, now you can start trying other bases.
if no base worked with d2x v8, now you can try rev17, rev19, rev20, rev21, d2x v4, etc. (yeah, they are not part of the wiki compatibility table, doesn't prevent to mention it in "other version" column and in the comment if you find the one working)


in fact, v10 r53 is kind of a bonus. I doubt it would have better compatibility if all other tests failed, on the contrary. it will have less compatibility.
but as some users still use that version, knowing that a game is not compatible with it, but work with others will help.


don't tell me that i have to put all nand folders inside main directory...
unfortunately, old cIOS didn't allow subfolders for redirected NAND.
it's explained on the wiki, at the top, that you'll need specific setup to comply with old version if you want to use them.
alternative is to not use old version, and use neek instead. neek will work with 99% of games. (not all, it's not a miracle solution)

Alright, i launched neek system, but it's strange, i have no "region free" option.
the menu has more page, I think you change page with +/- on the wiimote.
 
Last edited by Cyan,

VanackSabbadium

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v8 final and v10 r52 are only renamed version. they are identical and have the same compatibility.
installing the same base of both v8 and v10 is therefore useless. look at the wiki page, they are in the same column as they are the same cIOS.

Oh, i did not know that, thanks for the explanation. It saves me some slots for other bases.

personally, I would install :
IOS250 -> d2x v8 final base57
IOS251 -> d2x v10 beta53-alt base 57

That's a good idea, i'll do it.

About rev19 :
you'll only have base57.
some game would work fine only with base38.

Alright, so you think that's a good idea to put rev19 base38 and rev19 base57 together in different slots? I have many of them empty...
My idea is now this:

  • 244: cIOS rev17
  • 245: cIOS rev19 base38
  • 246: cIOS rev19 base57
  • 247: d2x v8 final base38
  • 248: d2x v8 final base53
  • 249: d2x v8 final base56
  • 250: d2x v8 final base57
  • 251: d2x v10 r53-alt base57
That should be good for enough tests.

as I know you can't do all these bases for each IOS version, just add in the comment column the base you tried with each cIOS version.

Of course i'll do that. Even though i want to contribute, i don't have so much time to try ALL different combinations of cIOS and bases XD

unfortunately, old cIOS didn't allow subfolders for redirected NAND.

That's not really a problem, it was just a complain. I gotta remind that i have to change my settings in USBGX, but that's not an issue.

the menu has more page, I think you change page with +/- on the wiimote.

Well, i'm confused. I can't believe that i did not try that. If so, maybe i was too tired by my night shift @ work. However i'll try that soon.
 

Cyan

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  • 244: cIOS rev17
  • 245: cIOS rev19 base38
  • 246: cIOS rev19 base57
  • 247: d2x v8 final base38
  • 248: d2x v8 final base53
  • 249: d2x v8 final base56
  • 250: d2x v8 final base57
  • 251: d2x v10 r53-alt base57
to me it makes more sense now.
there's no base58, but I really don't know which one would be better between old rev19 or v8 base58.
58 is usually for the USB accessories, so as long as it's not a game with USB support (Wii speak for example) you shouldn't need 58.
and I suppose lot of old games were released before IOS58 existed, so maybe it's not really important. You could try it (overwrite your 251) after you completed the current tests and narrowed the non working games. no need to install too much slots, the console doesn't have unlimited space :P
 

VanackSabbadium

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to me it makes more sense now.
there's no base58, but I really don't know which one would be better between old rev19 or v8 base58.
58 is usually for the USB accessories, so as long as it's not a game with USB support (Wii speak for example) you shouldn't need 58.
and I suppose lot of old games were released before IOS58 existed, so maybe it's not really important. You could try it (overwrite your 251) after you completed the current tests and narrowed the non working games. no need to install too much slots, the console doesn't have unlimited space :P

Alright, thanks for the tips. You made me discover a brand new world. My Wii has been taking dust for years, and now it has a new life (i've also installed RiiConnect24).
I'm gonna do some tests and update the wiki.
I don't think i'm gonna write anymore here unless i encounter some sort of problem or issue that i did not know before.

:)
 
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