Usbloadergx Not Working on Startup but Does if Hard drive Reconnected

[Bobby3xR]

I am running usbloadergx on my Wii u's vWii. Every time I do this with the hard drive connected, it gets stuck at reinitializing devices. Here's the weird part though. I found that if I run usbloadergx with the hard drive disconnected then it will show waiting for Hdd with the 20 second timer. If I now connect the hard drive, it boots usbloadergx with no issues and I can play my Wii and gamecube games. Anyone know how to make it work all the time without the work around? I'm using an western digital easy store 1 tb drive with a y cable if that helps as well. Any help would be appreciated and thanks!

I have a duplicate post out there by accident . It won't let me edit the title so I created another one.

 

[Sypherone]

Thats strange to me that it will work afterwards. But check this guide in the Wii section thats extra created for such issues and verify your setyp.
USB Loader GX Troubleshooting guide

 

[Bobby3xR]

Thats strange to me that it will work afterwards. But check this guide in the Wii section thats extra created for such issues and verify your setyp.
USB Loader GX Troubleshooting guide

Appreciate it. I am thinking it might be a version issue. I'm going to play around with it and when I find the answer I'll post it. Appreciate your help! Thanks!

Post automatically merged: Jan 6, 2023

Thats strange to me that it will work afterwards. But check this guide in the Wii section thats extra created for such issues and verify your setyp.
USB Loader GX Troubleshooting guide

So the issue is not the version. I think I found the problem but I am not sure how to fix it. Basically when I power on the wii u, the hard drive is on like I can put my hand on it and feel the fan inside. When the vWii is launched, the hard drive is still on as indicated by the small light but if I put my hand on the drive the fan is no longer spinning. If I launch usbloadergx this way is when the issue occurs. If I disconnect and reconnect the drive while in vWii anytime before launching usbloadergx the drives fan is active and it works. So I think the drive is going into an idle state when switching from wii u to vWii. I actually confirmed this too since I have another modded wii u with a different hard drive that does not have this issue. Any idea how to keep the vWii from sleeping the hard drive?

Post automatically merged: Jan 6, 2023

Appreciate it. I am thinking it might be a version issue. I'm going to play around with it and when I find the answer I'll post it. Appreciate your help! Thanks!

Post automatically merged: Jan 6, 2023

So the issue is not the version. I think I found the problem but I am not sure how to fix it. Basically when I power on the wii u, the hard drive is on like I can put my hand on it and feel the fan inside. When the vWii is launched, the hard drive is still on as indicated by the small light but if I put my hand on the drive the fan is no longer spinning. If I launch usbloadergx this way is when the issue occurs. If I disconnect and reconnect the drive while in vWii anytime before launching usbloadergx the drives fan is active and it works. So I think the drive is going into an idle state when switching from wii u to vWii. I actually confirmed this too since I have another modded wii u with a different hard drive that does not have this issue. Any idea how to keep the vWii from sleeping the hard drive?

Nevermind scratch that. The issue still happens. I decided to use a forwarder from the wii u and the drive is still spinning and I have the issue still. On the latest version of usbloadergx I have the same issue but the work around doesn't work as usbloadergx crashes and takes me back to the vWii menu. The version I was on before was v3.0 1271. Welp back to the drawing board.

 

[Ouaz]

I don't know if it'll help you, but I have the same problem with a Wii and a Weblack 500 Go, a crappy "multimedia box" from 2007, with a Samsung HD501LJ HDD inside (I got the thing for free). It has a power supply cable and a USB 2.0 port.

1) If the HDD is connected and turned on, UsbLoaderGX doesn't detect it during launch, and after the "Waiting for HDD..." 20 seconds, it boots in Channel Mode ("HDD not initialized")

2) If I unplug the USB cable during the "Waiting for HDD..." message, and plug it back directly and turn the HDD on again, the message resets and the HDD is detected after ~10 seconds. UsbLoaderGX shows all games at start.

3) If I launch UsbLoaderGX with the HDD not connected but turned on, and I connect it during the "Waiting for HDD" message, the HDD is not detected. (!)

As I don't want to plug/unplug the USB cable each time (best way to worn out the Wii USB port), I did that:

- I disabled "Mount USB at launch" in ULGX settings.
- I launch ULGX with the HDD plugged in and turned on. ULGX starts in Channel Mode.
- I go to "Hard Drive Settings" and click on the first line "Game/Install Partition" to mount it manually. The FAT32 partition appears after ~10 seconds (it has also a NTFS partition with some games, everything load and run fine in ULGX, whatever is the partition, with "Multiple Partitions" enabled)...

... except GC games, because Nintendont 6.499 never detects the HDD, whatever I try.

- If I launch Nintendont through ULGX, the console freezes and requires a hard reboot.
- If I launch Nintendont through the SD card, then choose USB to mount the HDD, it says "FAT 32 device can not be opened".

------------------------------------

The annoying part of this, is that I have to tick again the Wii games filter in the top bar menu after each launch (as ULGX starts in Channel mode each time, it seems the filters are reset to Channel and GC games only, I don't undertstand why).

I also put some apps on the HDD, to check if it is detected by the Homebrew Channel. The 3 points listed above happen exactly the same way, but with the Homebrew Channel.

When launching HBC with the HDD connected, I get a black screen. If I unplug the USB and plug it back directly, HBC interface appears and detects the HDD after ~5 seconds.

In my case, I think the Weblack enclosure is at fault here. There's maybe some sort of software layer that prevents the HDD to boot directly, or prevent homebrew apps to detect the HDD "on the fly". Luckily ULGX detects it with a manual mount, but Nintendont... doesn't.

I could try to change the enclosure for a simple one, but I'm lazy to buy it just for that (it's a 3.5" HDD moreover). And except the detection problem, Wii games load and run well.
For GC games, I use USB sticks with Nintendont through UGLX, and it works well too, so...

PS: the HDD has no power if only connected through the USB port. Plug the power supply is mandatory, another hint that the enclosure could be the culprit. (I think the Wii can power itself a external HDD through the USB port, if I'm not wrong.)

------------------------------------

In your case, it seems the Western Digital Easy Store 1 To, comes with some utility softwares built-in (WD Backup and stuff), so maybe the problem is the same (a software layer interfering during HDD detection).
Maybe.

 

[Bobby3xR]

I don't know if it'll help you, but I have the same problem with a Wii and a Weblack 500 Go, a crappy "multimedia box" from 2007, with a Samsung HD501LJ HDD inside (I got the thing for free). It has a power supply cable and a USB 2.0 port.

1) If the HDD is connected and turned on, UsbLoaderGX doesn't detect it during launch, and after the "Waiting for HDD..." 20 seconds, it boots in Channel Mode ("HDD not initialized")

2) If I unplug the USB cable during the "Waiting for HDD..." message, and plug it back directly and turn the HDD on again, the message resets and the HDD is detected after ~10 seconds. UsbLoaderGX shows all games at start.

3) If I launch UsbLoaderGX with the HDD not connected but turned on, and I connect it during the "Waiting for HDD" message, the HDD is not detected. (!)

As I don't want to plug/unplug the USB cable each time (best way to worn out the Wii USB port), I did that:

- I disabled "Mount USB at launch" in ULGX settings.
- I launch ULGX with the HDD plugged in and turned on. ULGX starts in Channel Mode.
- I go to "Hard Drive Settings" and click on the first line "Game/Install Partition" to mount it manually. The FAT32 partition appears after ~10 seconds (it has also a NTFS partition with some games, everything load and run fine in ULGX, whatever is the partition, with "Multiple Partitions" enabled)...

... except GC games, because Nintendont 6.499 never detects the HDD, whatever I try.

- If I launch Nintendont through ULGX, the console freezes and requires a hard reboot.
- If I launch Nintendont through the SD card, then choose USB to mount the HDD, it says "FAT 32 device can not be opened".

------------------------------------

The annoying part of this, is that I have to tick again the Wii games filter in the top bar menu after each launch (as ULGX starts in Channel mode each time, it seems the filters are reset to Channel and GC games only, I don't undertstand why).

I also put some apps on the HDD, to check if it is detected by the Homebrew Channel. The 3 points listed above happen exactly the same way, but with the Homebrew Channel.

When launching HBC with the HDD connected, I get a black screen. If I unplug the USB and plug it back directly, HBC interface appears and detects the HDD after ~5 seconds.

In my case, I think the Weblack enclosure is at fault here. There's maybe some sort of software layer that prevents the HDD to boot directly, or prevent homebrew apps to detect the HDD "on the fly". Luckily ULGX detects it with a manual mount, but Nintendont... doesn't.

I could try to change the enclosure for a simple one, but I'm lazy to buy it just for that (it's a 3.5" HDD moreover). And except the detection problem, Wii games load and run well.
For GC games, I use USB sticks with Nintendont through UGLX, and it works well too, so...

PS: the HDD has no power if only connected through the USB port. Plug the power supply is mandatory, another hint that the enclosure could be the culprit. (I think the Wii can power itself a external HDD through the USB port, if I'm not wrong.)

------------------------------------

In your case, it seems the Western Digital Easy Store 1 To, comes with some utility softwares built-in (WD Backup and stuff), so maybe the problem is the same (a software layer interfering during HDD detection).
Maybe.

Appreciate the info! At this point I'm all out of ideas. I thought it was usbloadergx problem. I was using 3.0 1271 and tried 1272 and 73 but all give the same issue. I tried their latest release but that just doesn't work on any hard drive I try. I think the hard drive is going idle is the issue though I can't prove it 100%. If that's the case, it might be a power save feature built into the drive. I saw this post too which made me think it had to be it



When I try to launch USB Loader GX or a WiiGSC/Crap forwarder, it gets stuck on Initalize USB Device

"This is a somewhat common issue. It stems from the USB drive not activating properly when your Wii is turned on from standby mode (amber/yellow power LED). The easiest workaround for this is whenever you plan on using USB Loader GX, press and release the power button so the LED turns green. Then, press and hold the power button until the LED turns red. Then, press and release the power button to turn the LED green. Your Wii wil now boot and you can use USB Loader GX without any issues"

If I figure out I'll let y'all know. I appreciate all the info and suggestions!

 

[godreborn]

Hdd might fail to initialize quick enough.

 

[impeeza]

Hdd might fail to initialize quick enough.

That was the isue for me, had to change the enclosure of disk and problem resolved.

Later change the disk for a SSD drive un a USB adapter and now all works better

 

[godreborn]

That was the isue for me, had to change the enclosure of disk and problem resolved.

Later change the disk for a SSD drive un a USB adapter and now all works better

Yeah, my wiiu hdd is like that. You have to wait a few moments to get quick start to work. Tried a very short usb cable, thinking it might make a difference, but it didn't.

 

[Bobby3xR]

Hdd might fail to initialize quick enough.

Mine doesn't seem to initialize at all . Unplugging it and plugging it it forces it. Also it might be overkill but I confirmed it's the hard drive because it happens on wii flow too. I guess I'll get another hdd or see if there's a way to fix the current one. Thanks everyone for the help! Really appreciate it!

Post automatically merged: Jan 8, 2023

Dang didn't fix the issue but looked promising. Posting here in case it helps someone out there. There is a hidden option in the wii u setting to turn off hdd sleep. It didn't work for me but man it sure sounded like the solution .

https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2...ard_drive_performance_by_disabling_sleep_mode

 

[blackb0x]

I've just released r1281, so you could try using that.

https://gbatemp.net/posts/8856063

If it still doesn't work then you could set the loaders IOS to 251 and restart your console.

 

[godreborn]

the turning off sleep function is only if a wiiu formatted drive is going to sleep iirc.

 

[Bobby3xR]

I've just released r1281, so you could try using that.

https://gbatemp.net/posts/8856063

If it still doesn't work then you could set the loaders IOS to 251 and restart your console.

Thank you for the suggestion! Just installed r1281 and the issue still exists. I changed the IOS to 251 and I get past the part where I was but when the ui loads I get a message saying the drive was not initialized and it just shows the apps that were on the vWii nand. I don't think the issue is with usbloadergx per se (wii flow had the same kind of issue). When the vWii is launched the drive spins down (internal fan - I can feel it if I put my hand on it) on the transition. If I reconnect it spins up again and from here forward it works. I have an older wd drive I used for my other wii u for usbloadergx and that seems to be the main difference as the older one stays spinning. I guess the newer models have some kind of power save feature built in maybe?

 

[Sypherone]

You may also check if your using a MBR partition table on the drive, as Nintendont requires MBR (not GPT).

I dont think its a timed spinn down, as the mentioned time between turning on the console and launching a USB Loader is to short. But you may check the settings inside the drive with some tools. As some drives are configured from the factory to automatically spin-down after a set number of minutes of inactivity, which could cause issues.

• For Seagate FreeAgent drives download software here.
• For WesternDigital (WD) drives is the WD-IdleDisable-Tool available.
• If the drive supports it, on Linux with hdparm # hdparm -I /dev/sdX drive information can be viewed. And the spin-down time can be disabled with # hdparm -S 0 /dev/sdX. In case its a SCSI drive exists sdparm.

 

[Ouaz]

Maybe a silly question...

As a said earlier, my HDD has two partitions:
- FAT 32, 195Go, Primary and active
- NTFS, 270 Go, Primary
- MBR partition table

In ULGX 1272, when I mount manually the HDD, FAT 32 appears in "Game/Install partition" once the drive is mounted.
In ULGX 1280 (and now 1281, but I didn't install it yet), NTFS appears first, once the drive is mounted.

Could it be possible that the NTFS partition is detected in first by apps, although Partition 1 is FAT 32, and Partition 2 is the NTFS one?
This would explained why Nintendont can't detect the FAT partition ("FAT device can not be opened"), maybe?

I ask, as I'm short of ideas, then I'll check with Testdisk to rewrite the MBR, who knows...

Note: I formatted the HDD with a big FAT 32 partition at first, but there was ~20Mo unallocated, so I thought that was the cause of the HDD not being detected. Partitioning the disk in 2, there's no unallocated sectors, but Nintendont can't still detect it.

Note 2: in ULGX 1280, the HDD mounts very fast, like 2-3 seconds. In r1272, it took ~10 seconds. Well, OK, I take it. ^^

 

[Sypherone]

I say it simple, check this sections :

• USB drive and Y-Cable (HDD/SSD)
• Standart cios setup
• Alternative cios setup
• Partition settings

If finally nothing works your drive seems not to be supported. Not every HDD/SSD runs well with it. Especially Flashdrive pens, USB keys, USB sticks, are very problematic. Micro-, SDadapter tend never to work.

 

[Ouaz]

If finally nothing works your drive seems not to be supported.

Actually, it is supported, as I can mount it manually in ULGX, all Wii games are listed on two different partitions, each loading and running well. It's just the HDD is not mounted at launch, and not detected by Nintendont (and by the Homebrew Channel, except if unplug/plug the HDD while HBC is started). As long as it is not detected "on the fly" by the HBC, ULGX is not at fault, nor Nintendont.

Cios setup is good (Slot 249 base 56, Slot 250 base 57, both d2x-v10-beta52)

But I maybe found something though: when I disable "Multiple Partitions", and mount the HDD (port 0, lower one on the Wii's back), NTFS is always shown first in Game/install Partition (it should be FAT 32 as it is the Partition 1).

When I display the game list, it shows only Wii games that ARE on the NTFS partition (this is OK), but if I tick "Gamecube games" in the top menu bar, it lists the 2 GC games that ARE on the FAT 32 partition !?! (this is not OK ^^)

If I switch to the FAT32 partition, Wii games on the NTFS partition are no more displayed (OK), and only games (Wii+GC) on the FAT32 partition are displayed (OK too).

In summary, GC games are always displayed whatever is the selected partition, although they are only on the FAT 32 partition, not on the NTFS one. (Could explained why Nintendont does not detected the FAT32 partition?)

I checked with Tesdisk, everything is OK, FAT32 as Partition 1, NTFS as partition 2, after a Quick Search (I wrote the MBR again to be sure though).

So maybe the FAT32 format is at fault here. I used Guiformat to convert NTFS to FAT32, maybe something went wrong... (FAT32Formatter didn't work, stuck at "initializing partition", even in "Quick format" mode)

NOTE: before someone said it, yes, I first formatted the whole disk to FAT32 (a big FAT32 partition) with Guiformat, and the problem was the same (not detected at launch by ULGX, only by mounting it manually, not detected "on the fly" by the HBC, not detected by Nintendont).

That's why I investigate the Guiformat "path" now. ^^

@Bobby3xR : which software did you use to convert your NTFS partition to FAT32 ? Can you mount manually your HDD in ULGX, and is the FAT32 partition detected by Nintendont?

Thank you.

 

[impeeza]

you can use EaseUS, MiniTool Partition Wizard to convert NTFS to FAT32 without loosing data.

 

[godreborn]

you can use EaseUS, MiniTool Partition Wizard to convert NTFS to FAT32 without loosing data.

that might now cost money. the free version is extremely basic.

 

[impeeza]

that might now cost money. the free version is extremely basic.

that's true, also you can use https://gbatemp.net/threads/medicat-usb-a-multiboot-linux-usb-for-pc-repair.361577/

 

[godreborn]

that's true, also you can use https://gbatemp.net/threads/medicat-usb-a-multiboot-linux-usb-for-pc-repair.361577/

aomei can do this as well, but it most likely costs money too, just can't recall. might be able to find a cracked version, dunno.