Hacking Wii Hard Drive mod possible?

[Rocco Savadgie]

Hello All,

The long time console hacker Destop of CrazyNation fame made a great hard drive mod that replaced the GC DVD drive a few years ago. For a while people were hoping Viper or Qoob would produce a new hard drive mod chip using his published details, but those two chip makes just disappeared.

http://www.crazynation.org/GC/GC_DD_INTERFACE/interface.htm -> click on the 1,2,3 links on the bottom left for pics.
http://www.crazynation.org/GC/

I wish the Wii mod chip makers could work on something cool like this rather than pumping out cheap and nasty clones of each other. Would be a nice feature

What do you think?

edit - first link changed since direct linking to images is disabled on that site.

 

[Hooya]

The tricky part is getting the Wii to run unsigned code. I think this would be the first step in getting any hard drive to communicate with the Wii. Even if you are trying to load ISO files that have digital signatures (like we are burning for use with current gen modchips) there would have to be some sort of code running that tells the Wii to run that ISO from a source other than a DVD drive.

Once that is cracked we'll see all sorts of stuff based on homebrew Wii firmware.

 

[Mangofett]

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Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request.

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When I click the image.

 

[Scha]

Once a mod chip is released that allowes unsigned code to run, or someone figure out how to get theire own code to execute on the Wii, my guess is that it will happen pretty quick. You'll plugg in a HD in the USB port and your good to go.

The problem is getting unsigned code to run. There might be some sneaky bastard stealing nintendos private encryption key right now and we can burn discs with home made code tomorrow, or it might never happen. My guess its still far away.

 

[niklasnyfiken]

You don't need unsigned code to run to add harddrive support. Just replace the DVD drive with a harddrive and the Wii will think it's talking to the DVD drive.

 

[adrian783]

i really really don't think its that easy...

 

[Rocco Savadgie]

The way Destops mod works is that the gamecube thinks it is talking to the DVD drive, even though it is a HD. He had a huge 10 page thread on the Dextrose.com forum about it with even more tech details, but now Dextrose.com is gone(??)

 

[niklasnyfiken]

i really really don't think its that easy...

Just because something can be explained in one sentence doesn't mean it's easy, because it's not.

 

[WunSick]

This is [PROBABLY] never going to happen for a few reasons.

Cost & Design: The hdd mod was just a FPGA emulating the DVD drive, and using the hdd as storage instead of a disc. Very expensive to make, even on a mass scale, I think when I was going to have one of my buddie's factories make it, it was like close to 120$ a pop.

SD SLOT: If they make any progress (which they will soon im sure) at truely hacking the wii, they will use the SD slot for storage and loading. Granted the firmware within the Wii only supports 2gb, any homebrew solution could allow 4gb cards to be used which u can get off newegg for like 80 bux... you can even buy 2gb sd cards for 25$

Time: The time it would take to research, document, build, test, and release the information for a drasticly different setup with more protection (ie GC never signed anything, whereas wii everything is signed, and unless we have keys, we are stuck) would take so long, by this time im sure FlashWii would be long since done and we would probably have many little SD - CF - HDD converters out there like the psp does.


EDIT: didnt read a few of the posts, BUT, actually a USB hard drive will most likely happen. but no mods such as the Crazynation mod.

 

[source]

Wunsick: interesting answers all the way

are you doing research or in the modchips thing or just very well documented?

 

[WunSick]

I have just had my hands in a good deal of modifications. plus i do alot of this on my own and with other team members. Google WunSick

heh

 

[spas]

HDLoaders are all nice but the Wii is too small and compact for that sort of thing. I would be happy with a none mod chip or solderless option.

When thinking of crazy ways to make HD Loaders I thought:
what if you were to make a disc with a wire coming out of it on the disc is a little eye that emits optical information the same as a disc. The disc consists of two parts the outer part which consists of a wire with a disc connected to it and a inner part which is connected to the outer part with tiny ball bearings which also transfer the data. You insert the disc into the console the wire sticks out the drive spins the disc but only the inner part of the disc because of the ball bearings around the inner section. Then the device (ie a computer) sends the information down to the disc in the right order to the magic optical projector which fools the drive into thinking its reading a cd. The drive seeks information which the optical projector then requests from the computer.

YES its stupidly far fetched
YES its too expensive to do
YES it was a crazy kooky hair brained concept

 

[openchip]

HDLoaders are all nice but the Wii is too small and compact for that sort of thing. I would be happy with a none mod chip or solderless option.Â

When thinking of crazy ways to make HD Loaders I thought:
what if you were to make a disc with a wire coming out of it on the disc is a little eye that emits optical information the same as a disc. The disc consists of two parts the outer part which consists of a wire with a disc connected to it and a inner part which is connected to the outer part with tiny ball bearings which also transfer the data. You insert the disc into the console the wire sticks out the drive spins the disc but only the inner part of the disc because of the ball bearings around the inner section. Then the device (ie a computer) sends the information down to the disc in the right order to the magic optical projector which fools the drive into thinking its reading a cd. The drive seeks information which the optical projector then requests from the computer.

YES its stupidly far fetched
YES its too expensive to do
YES it was a crazy kooky hair brained concept

he, actually not so far fethced at all - there has been a floppy disk emulator, it looks like floppy and works in floppy disk drive, but mimics the magnetical behaviour to the original drive can read from it.

doing the same for DVD, could also be possible, pretty advanced technology may be required, but not so impossible