Hacking USB Loader GX

[GreyWolf]

@GreyWolf Could it really brick ? You should have always access to priiloader by holding reset, even if the autoboot channel is deleted, no ?


BTW there is something I "dreamed" for a long time : is it possible, in any way, to check if the boot.dol that the forwarder (or autobooter) wants to load is here, and if not, boot the System Menu instead ? In my current setup, with Priiloader + forwarder dol installed, if I forget to plug my HDD, I have a nice black screen. I know it's stupid to forget its HDD when autoboot is ON, but I'm just curious.

I'm curious too if it's possible, in any way, to add something in USBLoader GX to let us synchronize wiimotes directly in the loader ? This would be really a big step for everyone that is using USBLoader GX as the "main" interface of the wii.

EDIT : of course I'm not asking to add these features, I only want to know if it's technically feasible.

I'll fix up the forwarder to do that this weekend. that's how it should behave anyway, IMO.

I'm not sure about the remote sync but I've been working on a library to edit config without the system menu. I'm not sure if there's a way to trigger sync with libogc but I'll look.

Just to let you know, just dance 2014 is working! Thanks for your help. Now I just need to figure out how I can download all the dlc songs...

There are ways to trick it into thinking the DLC is all unlocked but that stuff isn't allowed here, I don't think. The limited edition tracks like the Doritios code ones are no longer available, though.

 

[tswntk]

Had my HDD freeze at initilizing everytime using the USB Loader GX forwader, found a solution so if anyone else has the same problem:

from https://www.reddit.com/r/WiiUHacks/comments/67miry/vwii_anyway_to_get_usb_loader_gx_to_recognize/

• Make sure your drive containing Wii/Gamecube games (I recommend using uStealth on it) is in Port 1 (back bottom slot)
  
  
• Put your drive containing Wii U games in Port 0 (back top slot)*

First of all, use d2x cIOS installer and setup like this:


CIOS Base Slot
d2x-v10-beta53-alt 56 249
d2x-v10-beta53-alt 57 250
d2x-v10-beta53-alt 58 251
Next, go into USB Loader GX (from the forwarder channel) and change the following settings:

Loader Settings

• Loader's IOS: IOS 251
• Game's IOS: IOS 251
• Quick Boot: OFF

(you may need to exit USB Loader GX and load it up again for the above changes to take effect)

There is quite a number of problem with this setup:

1. Here is a Wii section, if you are talking about WiiU specifically, you should clearly state that in the very first sentence.
2. d2x-v10-beta53-alt has a lot of compatibility issues and won't work for many users though I see it is required for your setup with Wii games in port 1. It works for you, great but don't expect it to work for everybody
3. cios base 58 has the lowest compatibility and is the the slowest compared to base 56 and 57 and is generally not recommended for game loading.
You should set loader's IOS to 58 instead unless that won't work with your setup. Game's IOS should be set to a cios base 57/56 and if that doesn't work with a specific game, then switch to another one in the per game setting.

 

[M7L7NK7]

Yeah that's why I mentioned it was for the forwader and the reddit link says vwii but i'll edit it to avoid confusion.
And I only posted it because I tried using 58 and this was the only way I could get it to work after hours of trying

 

[Badablek]

I'll fix up the forwarder to do that this weekend. that's how it should behave anyway, IMO.

I'm not sure about the remote sync but I've been working on a library to edit config without the system menu. I'm not sure if there's a way to trigger sync with libogc but I'll look.

Marvelous ^__^


It would be interesting to see how the System Menu manages wiimotes, as we can synchronize it at the boot screen or anywhere / anytime in the System Menu (even in-game if I remember).
If you find a way to do it in USBLoader GX, it would be amazing

 

[Cyan]

I wanted to answer both you and Milenko, but I see it's already done
Thanks greywolf and tswntk.


Greywolf :
if you make a new forwarder (5.2), I'll update sourceforge too. It's easy to default to sysmenu if all fails, just two added lines. shouldn't take long to make the new version.
making a wad of it, I would love if we could update Fix94's vWii NAND loader to work on both Wii and vWii, so only ONE wad file !
Since Crediar released a way to check vWii (CAFE string), we should be able to add both NAND loading method in a single .app file, using only one .app for both wii and vwii

I don't know if we can sync wiimote inside homebrew, but if you find it that would be wonderful


Some users reported issues when booting from the forwarder to USB (no SD inserted), I don't really remember the exact cause. Maybe I wrote it in my blog's loader status page. would be great to fix it too.
but it's not a high level issue, I rarely get that report.


Milenko :
I'll add few info.
Plugging the vWii HDD in slot1 is not needed anymore. that guide you linked from reddit was written before Nintendont fixed the drive order.
plugging the "gamecube HDD" on higher slot was required, it's not anymore.
it has nothing to do with the USBLoader's compatibility, but only nintendont compatibility.

So, using r53 is not needed anymore.
You can still do it if you want, but you might have issues with Wii games.
If all you want is gamecube games, then you don't even need a cIOS.

You tell users to use cIOS base58 for "game's IOS" (slot251) but base58 has very bad compatibility.
I'd suggest, if you want to keep your setup, to only use cIOS base58 for loader's IOS, and set slot250 for game's IOS (base57). tswntk already said so, but it's important for game compatibility, better say it twice


If you want to "reset" your setup and get everything working better (because r53 has issues with some games and emuNAND) :
vWii HDD in Port0
WiiU HDD in any port (might even be a good idea in front, reserve port1 for vWii HDD's Y-Cable)
install d2x r52 base57 in slot 249, use that slot by default for game's IOS.
set loader's IOS to 58
set the loader to mount port0, multi OFF, mount at boot ON.
Update nintendont to get the version which doesn't try to mount wiiU HDD even if plugged on higher port than gamecube's HDD.

If all you want is gamecube, you could even use USBLoaderGX 1269_mod3 (I should really complete it, it's been more than 2 months :s) which boot faster than ever ! that version even works when launching from WiiU WiiVC.

 

[M7L7NK7]

I appreciate that you wrote all that out but Nintendont is all set on my Wii U homescreen as a forwader
I have my HDD for Wii U games with Mocha spoofing it as an SD for Loadiine, and the setup I posted for USB Loader to play just Wii games... which was the only way I could get my HDD recognized after hours of trying, amd yeah it's wrong and unorthodox but I only posted it as a last resort if someone had tried everything and it didn't work

edit: I guess the point is I don't get a lot of it but that set up seems to work fine for loading Wii games from the Wii U menu so it does the job

 

[Cyan]

if it works, that's all that matters

Oh, and you have both WiiU HDD, and a WiiU FAT32 emulated one (using mocha FAT32 and /usr/ folder)?
or just the FAT32 HDD with loadiine for wiiu games? I guess you could use the same HDD for both wii and wiiu then?

anyway, like I said, it works so don't fix it !

 

[M7L7NK7]

Yep I just have a regular HDD that vWii recognizes just fine and the Wii U really wants to format but Mocha tells it it's just an sd card

 

[Willsito_GG]

Yep I just have a regular HDD that vWii recognizes just fine and the Wii U really wants to format but Mocha tells it it's just an sd card

Hello everyone,

One question regarding Mocha, now that you mentioned, and sorry because I know this is not a Mocha thread.

Secondly, I want to tell my experience regarding the following:

I had been testing both the Mocha "0.2 FAT32 MOD", and the normal one, configuring it with the CBHC, to make my Wii U able to launch all the time with this modes, and I have the following considerations:

Configuration:
- Just put the .elf "FAT 32 MOD" file in the wiiu/apps/Mocha folder, instead of the previous 0.2 one.
- I had to replicate the content of my SD card in the HDD.

Considerations:
- It worked and loaded pretty well with my FAT32 HDD (including all the Virtual Wii stuff).
- Loadiine and Loadiine Y (DLC MOD version:y.1.0.1 ra0ba461) games worked the same good as before.
- The only problem that was caused, and this was common for both Mocha, is that when I exit from Homebrew Launcher, the console started to make a noise, and it gets frozen.

Why when I leave the Homebrew Launcher, the console gets frozen???

Thanks in advance,

Best regards

Eipok

 

[Cyan]

no idea.
freeze is probably because of a bug in mocha beta. maybe a patch done wrong, or re-applied twice.
maybe one day Dimok will work on it again, but wiiu is becoming old now, not sure it will be ever fixed.
You know, the "USB seen as SD" is a bug? it's not a feature and not what was intended by its developer. we are just abusing a bug to make it useful !

maybe the best chance you'll have to get a working FAT32 support (or redirection to) usb would be with plugin system currently in development.

 

[Willsito_GG]

no idea.
freeze is probably because of a bug in mocha beta. maybe a patch done wrong, or re-applied twice.
maybe one day Dimok will work on it again, but wiiu is becoming old now, not sure it will be ever fixed.

maybe the best chance you'll have to get a working FAT32 support (or redirection to) usb would be with plugin system currently in development.

Interesting the FAT 32 Plugin System! Is there any thread already open in GBATemp?

 

[Cyan]

Maschell is working on it.
it's a CFW with plugin support.

there is already some working patches, like HID2Vpad, Padcon, SDCafiine, SwapDrc, screenshot, etc.

https://gbatemp.net/index.php?posts/7833438
github release : https://github.com/Maschell/WiiUPluginSystem/releases
list of current plugins : https://github.com/Maschell/WiiUPluginSystem/tree/master/plugins
Latest news : https://twitter.com/MaschellDev

 

[M7L7NK7]

lol really? I only use Mocha for the SD as HDD I didn;t know it was a bug.

 

[Cyan]

when Dimok tried to enable FAT32 library to USB (fat32 is usually used for SD access only), he noticed that the USB became the "first device", which is usually the SD slot. He intended to fix that bug, but didn't have time to work on that project anymore so he released the sources as is for someone else to fix it. nobody did, and instead we compiled it this way, using the bug to redirect SD to USB. it's still beta and buggy, not all write function are emulated to FAT32 lib, so WUP installer or file creation/copy don't work. currently, only read is working.
so when an app request "first device" expecting the SD card, the firmware mount the first USB instead.
I don't remember if the "second device" is the second plugged USB or the SD. but it's very rare for apps to request 2 devices at the same time, they usually don't need to copy files between SD/USB. maybe only FtpiiU does?

 

[M7L7NK7]

That's crazy that a problem became a feature

 

[Cyan]

heyy, that's not the first time a problem becomes a feature !

when NDS got hacked (2004-2006?) one of the homebrew was a virus, bricking the NDS by editing the memory and making it crash at boot.
When 3DS came out, that same virus was used to hack the 3DS by bricking the NDS mode purposely to crash the 3DS mode and run unsigned code.
Who knew a bad program years ago would be useful on a future console?

 

[RandomNameAndNumber]

Hollywood v0x21
Console ID: 141379026
Console Type: Wii
Shop Channel Country: United States (49)
Boot2 v4
Found 85 titles.
Found 48 IOS on this console. 16 of them are stubs.

IOS3 (rev 65280): Stub
IOS4 (rev 65280): Stub
IOS9 (rev 1034): No Patches
IOS10 (rev 768): Stub
IOS11 (rev 256): Stub
IOS12 (rev 526): No Patches
IOS13 (rev 1032): No Patches
IOS14 (rev 1032): No Patches
IOS15 (rev 1032): No Patches
IOS16 (rev 512): Stub
IOS17 (rev 1032): No Patches
IOS20 (rev 256): Stub
IOS21 (rev 1039): No Patches
IOS22 (rev 1294): No Patches
IOS28 (rev 1807): No Patches
IOS30 (rev 2816): Stub
IOS31 (rev 3608): No Patches
IOS33 (rev 3608): No Patches
IOS34 (rev 3608): No Patches
IOS35 (rev 3608): No Patches
IOS36 (rev 3608): No Patches
IOS37 (rev 5663): No Patches
IOS38 (rev 4124): No Patches
IOS40 (rev 3072): Stub
IOS41 (rev 3607): No Patches
IOS43 (rev 3607): No Patches
IOS45 (rev 3607): No Patches
IOS46 (rev 3607): No Patches
IOS48 (rev 4124): No Patches
IOS50 (rev 5120): Stub
IOS51 (rev 4864): Stub
IOS52 (rev 5888): Stub
IOS53 (rev 5663): No Patches
IOS55 (rev 5663): No Patches
IOS56 (rev 5662): No Patches
IOS57 (rev 5919): No Patches
IOS58 (rev 6176): USB 2.0
IOS60 (rev 6400): Stub
IOS61 (rev 5662): No Patches
IOS62 (rev 6430): No Patches
IOS70 (rev 6912): Stub
IOS80 (rev 6944): No Patches
IOS222 (rev 65280): Stub
IOS223 (rev 65280): Stub
IOS236[36] (rev 65535, Info: rev 3351): Trucha Bug, ES Identify, NAND Access
IOS249[56] (rev 65535, Info: d2x-v10beta53-alt): Trucha Bug, NAND Access, USB 2.0
IOS250[57] (rev 65535, Info: d2x-v10beta52): Trucha Bug, NAND Access, USB 2.0
IOS254 (rev 65280): Stub
BC v6
MIOS v10
Report generated on 03/14/2018.

So here is my current issue. Firstly, I have no idea what I am doing. NONE. However, my system remains unchanged since the last time I couldn't figure it out. EVERYTHING works great.

I am having issues with 2 games, both call of duty (Mw3 & Blackops). I hate COD, but the point is that it does not work. I read a tutorial, and watched a video that involved changing IOS. I COULD do what they show, but want to know IF I can based on my current setup, and find out if there is a good tutorial. I have found a few, and am confuzzled.

I really have no idea how I got this far. I am tech saavy, but this wii thing just is odd. Is there some place that explains cIos etc and all these numbers? I want to better understand what is happening and why. Anyone can follow someone elses' instructions, but understanding it is more important right now.

Thanks again for reading my wall of text.

 

[Cyan]

Call of Duty require a cIOS based on IOS 57 (because there's no cIOS55, but 57 works fine)
Look at your syscheck report, you have a cIOS based on 57 !

slot 250 report having [57], and it's d2x v10 r52

Telling the loader to use that slot for that game will fix your problem.
USBLoaderGX > Call of duty > option > game options > IOS : 250
Save, and try the game.

you should :
1. replace your slot 249 with d2x r52 base 56. (run d2x installer again to do that)
2. install bootmii as IOS (run hackmii installer from HBC to do that)

THEN :
DO NOT FOLLOW youtube (or any video or other tutorial) telling you to install/edit/whatever your current IOS setup. don't install wads, don't run installer, don't run "automating tool to fix your console" (which usually break more things than it fixes).
Your setup is fine. don't change your IOS.



If you don't want to replace your cIOS in slot 249, then don't use it at all !
set the loader to always use slot250 for EVERYTHING (not just Call of Duty) :
USBLoaderGX > Settings > Loader's settings > Loader's IOS : 250
USBLoaderGX > Settings > Loader's settings > Game's IOS : 250

Is there some place that explains cIos etc and all these numbers?

Many place and many posts here on the forum.
But I plan to write a guide with everything at the same location, a stickied guide or something like "noob guide for USB Loaders".
There's just too much info to write so I don't know when it will be ready, but If I wrote a guide/wiki every time I had to explain something in the forum, instead of replying to the question, it would be written for ages.


But really, just "read" the syscheck, everything is self explanatory. each line has information that you need to understand.
if you don't, that's just good sense : you followed a guide which told you to install "d2x r52 base 57 in slot 250" ... and you see there's a line named "250[57]" .?.... ohhhhh it matches the number you chose, is that coincidence?
no need to follow superior degree college to read a log file.

 

[RandomNameAndNumber]

Many place and many posts here on the forum.

Thanks for the suggestion. I changed the 2 offending games to run on 250. They seem to work.

MY issue is that I have done all this over a few years doing little bits at a time. I did a similar HDD mod to my Xbox, and honestly it makes sense. It was so similar to "windows" in structure. This Wii & its system are foreign to me. Yes, I now have my ultimate Wii, but I couldn't tell you how it works or why it works, or even how the heck I managed to pull it off. I used random instructions & videos all over the web before I found this great site & its knowlege. I know I am late to the party, but have this desire to understand what I did. I want to know how it works in a way that most people probably don't is what I am getting at. After reading around, I am somewhat shocked that I have not bricked my unit. However, the more I fiddle without knowing what I really am doing, the more I think it is possible. I think knowing more/everything will allow me to really get the most out of this system now and in the future. It makes a great emulator for almost all old NES systems.

Thanks again for the great tutorials & hard work.

 

[Cyan]

I understand a lot of people are late to the party, like you said, and some old users might just get interest in understanding what they used for years (because when you are young, you only want to play, and later you start being curious about how things work).
that's why I would like to write a IOS and cIOS guide (and other things) once and for all, which could easily explain how the console is working "under the hood".
I don't know yet how I should or will present it, nor how much I'll write. it kind of frighten me when I think about it, but like I said above I already explained it soooo many times every time someone asked that it shouldn't be that hard

I just wonder where I should place the level, very easy or too techy.... might not please everyone. and if I do both, it will take a lot of time to write, or rewrite.
I'm thinking about writing a "closed guide" (closed thread, new kind of guide where I could just add things and refer to it when users ask about anything on the forum!), not sure it's a good idea yet. But I think I'll go that way.
I think the "closed thread" idea might help, so I can post a new message like "new chapter", and don't have pages of questions between each. it's maybe selfish to have a private thread, but I don't see it like that, I see how it can help better.



The wii also has a file and folder structure, if you look at it with a FS explorer (Wiixplorer, or ftpii).
The "IOS" are in fact just folders (numbered folders), and inside you have the hardware's driver.
nintendo chose to create multiple different drivers, instead of using and updating only one. Each game just select the one it needs to function properly.
the cIOS (custom IOS) are in fact not fully custom but patched IOS based on existing ones. "cIOS base56" means it's based on IOS installed by nintendo in folder 56, hacked added patches to add features like USB loader capability, and the result is installed in another slot (249 for example)

there, I just wrote a mini guide just for you
that's this kind of thing I want to detail in my future guide.