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GAF Wii Homebrew thread: Homebrew, emulators, USB disc installs! Easy tutorial!

omgkitty

Member
UltimateIke said:
If you rip the disk yourself with Cfg, it splits dual layer games into two parts so they will work with FAT32.

Ahh I didn't know that. Guess that would solve my problem. Will I still have to install USB Loader and d2x to get it to run? I have gotten up to this point and I am a little iffy about this part. Thinking I might just stick with the disc and Gecko OS. Is using d2x and USB fairly safe? I literally just bought this Wii and would be mad if I messed it up.


UltimateIke said:
Who did you order the game from to get it so quickly? It was on the 25th you were asking in the |OT| where to import from. I've been waiting since the 15th and still don't have it.

A friend of mine ordered it a while ago and got it in a few days ago. He's been working a lot so he let me borrow it for a few days to check it out. I didn't have any other Wii games so I figured I would try and see if I could get the USB Loader to work while I wait for my copy to ship.
 
omgkitty said:
Ahh I didn't know that. Guess that would solve my problem. Will I still have to install USB Loader and d2x to get it to run? I have gotten up to this point and I am a little iffy about this part. Thinking I might just stick with the disc and Gecko OS. Is using d2x and USB fairly safe? I literally just bought this Wii and would be mad if I messed it up.
Anything in the Wiki is safe if you follow the instructions closely. I use d2x and USB Cfg Loader for all of my games. It's very useful.
 

Clipper

Member
MikeDub said:
So I am trying to upgrade to boot2v4 and I get through the whole confirmation process but then it asks me to choose where to load a WAD from, choosing SD card causes the update to be cancelled, where am I supposed to get this WAD from?

edit: nvm, i bailed out and just updated the shop channel as that was all i was after.
This is likely because you used a Wiibrew version of Dop-Mii. I've been meaning to update those steps for the Wiibrew version for a while, so I'll probably go do that now as I have a little time.
 

Magnus

Member
Ah, thanks. What should the file/folder structure be for an SD card in order for it to be recognized by USB loader? I've scoured the various wikis in the OPs, and what I've gathered is that I should have a separate partition (FAT32, ideally) just for USB loader data. Gonna give that a try.

Thanks for everyone's help!
 

Clipper

Member
Magnus said:
Ah, thanks. What should the file/folder structure be for an SD card in order for it to be recognized by USB loader? I've scoured the various wikis in the OPs, and what I've gathered is that I should have a separate partition (FAT32, ideally) just for USB loader data. Gonna give that a try.

Thanks for everyone's help!
You don't need a separate partition, that's a very old requirement. The best way to format the SD card is FAT32, though, yes. All the instructions you need are in the GAF Wiki. Just click Mario or my tag.

 

omgkitty

Member
UltimateIke said:
If you rip the disk yourself with Cfg, it splits dual layer games into two parts so they will work with FAT32.

Where exactly do I find this? It sounds useful but I don't know what this is. Also, I'm on a Mac so I know that's probably going to be an issue.
 

Magnus

Member
Clipper said:
You don't need a separate partition, that's a very old requirement. The best way to format the SD card is FAT32, though, yes. All the instructions you need are in the GAF Wiki. Just click Mario or my tag.


I'm an idiot; I figured out exactly what I had wrong with my folder setup.

Thanks for all the help man, got it working.
 
omgkitty said:
Where exactly do I find this? It sounds useful but I don't know what this is. Also, I'm on a Mac so I know that's probably going to be an issue.
http://gwht.wikidot.com/usb-loader

Cfg is short for the Configurable USB Loader app. If you have the Homebrew Channel installed, it's easy to add the loader. It allows you to copy games (as an ISO or specialty .wbfs format) to SD and USB devices and load the games without the disk in the drive.

If you format your hard drive as NTFS, you can use the ISO you mentioned earlier with the loader. Well, if you were on Windows that is. I don't know if you can format a drive as NTFS on a Mac.
 

omgkitty

Member
UltimateIke said:
http://gwht.wikidot.com/usb-loader

Cfg is short for the Configurable USB Loader app. If you have the Homebrew Channel installed, it's easy to add the loader. It allows you to copy games (as an ISO or specialty .wbfs format) to SD and USB devices and load the games without the disk in the drive.

Ohhhh okay. I thought this was something I was going to do on my computer. I still haven't installed the USB Loader yet. Guess I will do that and try it out! Appreciate your help!
 

Meier

Member
Hi all, thanks for the hard work putting this together.. bookmarked the wiki and will take a look at following the steps this weekend as I wait for my Xenoblade Chronicles to arrive.

Quick question -- if you use the option to rip the game and boot it off the USB/SD, will the save game still be compatible in the instance you delete the rip and try and resume playing with the physical disc later? I've never done any sort of modding so I am completely in the dark about compatibility type issues..
 
Meier said:
Hi all, thanks for the hard work putting this together.. bookmarked the wiki and will take a look at following the steps this weekend as I wait for my Xenoblade Chronicles to arrive.

Quick question -- if you use the option to rip the game and boot it off the USB/SD, will the save game still be compatible in the instance you delete the rip and try and resume playing with the physical disc later? I've never done any sort of modding so I am completely in the dark about compatibility type issues..
Yes. I've tried it just to be absolutely sure. The save file is the same regardless of whether you're using the disc or loading from an external source.
 

Meier

Member
SecretMoblin said:
Yes. I've tried it just to be absolutely sure. The save file is the same regardless of whether you're using the disc or loading from an external source.
Cool, thanks! I am really anxious to play Xenoblade but it'll be fun to fiddle around with the system while I wait. I have played it so sparingly over the years... maybe this will give me nudge to actually play some of the games I have.
 

donny2112

Member
Just got Xenoblade Chronicles in the mail. Same setup as before (SDTV with composite cables), but Xenoblade works! (At least the beginning part.) Only tried StartPatch method, but the others would probably work, too. Seems to just be Pikmin 2 that's a problem for me. Still waiting on the converter in the mail on that one, though.
 

FlyinJ

Douchebag. Yes, me.
So, I'm going to Letterbomb my Wii to play Xenoblade.

Something that isn't really explained on the Homebrew page is what happens when Nintendo updates the firmware after I've Letterbombed it, installed Homebrew and the app that allows for region-free playing?

Does it brick the console if I try to install the new Firmware from a retail disc/off the net? Does it just happily install it, letting my Homebrew channel and region-free app exist?
 

Fuzzy

I would bang a hot farmer!
FlyinJ said:
So, I'm going to Letterbomb my Wii to play Xenoblade.

Something that isn't really explained on the Homebrew page is what happens when Nintendo updates the firmware after I've Letterbombed it, installed Homebrew and the app that allows for region-free playing?

Does it brick the console if I try to install the new Firmware from a retail disc/off the net? Does it just happily install it, letting my Homebrew channel and region-free app exist?
In the past all new firmware did was stop you from using HBC for a bit if you didn't have HBC up to date. If Nintendo brings out a new firmware you should never update right away just to make sure everything will still work without problem.
 

Clipper

Member
Yeah. If there is a new firmware upgrade, check back in this thread and on the site. I always update there how to handle the update.
 

FlyinJ

Douchebag. Yes, me.
Clipper said:
Yeah. If there is a new firmware upgrade, check back in this thread and on the site. I always update there how to handle the update.

What is the turnaround on that? My main concern is I definitely want to play Skyward Sword Day 1... I guess I could settle for Day 2 or 3 :)
 

Fuzzy

I would bang a hot farmer!
FlyinJ said:
What is the turnaround on that? My main concern is I definitely want to play Skyward Sword Day 1... I guess I could settle for Day 2 or 3 :)
Usually a day or two but if SS is like other games with updates you'll be able to ignore it and play it any way.
 

Clipper

Member
Actually, turnaround is usually before release, due to the blasted pirates typically getting their hands on things a week before the actual launch. Even if we don't know until launch, if the game asks you to update, switch off your Wii instead. Use any of the region free techniques to launch the game instead, as they also ignore updates. The game will almost certainly work like that, but if not, we'll have a solution, probably within hours of the launch.
 

FlyinJ

Douchebag. Yes, me.
Clipper said:
Actually, turnaround is usually before release, due to the blasted pirates typically getting their hands on things a week before the actual launch. Even if we don't know until launch, if the game asks you to update, switch off your Wii instead. Use any of the region free techniques to launch the game instead, as they also ignore updates. The game will almost certainly work like that, but if not, we'll have a solution, probably within hours of the launch.

Excellent. Thanks for all the info guys.
 

Magnus

Member
G'damn, had Xenoblade playing off an SD card perfectly two days ago. Just tried it again now and it'll get stuck on "Booting game" (the blue screen within USB Loader).

Did I accidentally change an option somewhere?

And are load times (or anything else) significantly improved playing from SD compared to disc?
 

Clipper

Member
Magnus said:
G'damn, had Xenoblade playing off an SD card perfectly two days ago. Just tried it again now and it'll get stuck on "Booting game" (the blue screen within USB Loader).

Did I accidentally change an option somewhere?

And are load times (or anything else) significantly improved playing from SD compared to disc?
Hmm, this sounds familiar to a problem someone else was having. Unfortunately, it wasn't ever really clear what caused it. I suggest you try some of the per-game settings for the game in Cfg (save them off when you find a set that works). The video option is probably the primary suspect, but the country patch and a few others might have a positive affect too. What type of TV and cables do you have again?

As for load times, I think SD is still faster than disc, but I'm unsure. I know for a fact that USB is faster than both, though.
 

Magnus

Member
I can't remember the specific option, but I fiddled with something in 'Manage' that had 'Country' in the name. It was off or disabled, and I changed that. Worked!

But I'm quite positive I didn't need to do that to have it work the first time, haha.

Thanks Clip!
 

Kunohara

Member
I just want some clarification on something.

I have installed everything up to the USB loader. I will be using an SD card instead of a USB drive to play games.

This may seem like a silly question, but do I need to still have the usb-loader directories in the sd card that will have the games on it? Also, which is the best formatting for an SD card? Would I still need to format the sd card in windows before using the loader, or will usb loader do it when I run it for the first time?

Thanks.
 

HolyCheck

I want a tag give me a tag
sooo... stupid question..

I have all the wii homebrew channel / bootmii or what ever stuff all up and running..

how do I get wiimc working? I actually have no idea where to start or what to do.. I downloaded the program and put the folder in my apps folder on my sd card but i dont see it anywhere :(

I am horrible at doing this kind of stuff. tyia!
 

Clipper

Member
Kunohara said:
I just want some clarification on something.

I have installed everything up to the USB loader. I will be using an SD card instead of a USB drive to play games.

This may seem like a silly question, but do I need to still have the usb-loader directories in the sd card that will have the games on it? Also, which is the best formatting for an SD card? Would I still need to format the sd card in windows before using the loader, or will usb loader do it when I run it for the first time?

Thanks.
SD cards almost always come formatted as FAT32, and this is the best format type, so there should be no need to reformat the card. Yes, you do need to have all the directories used during the installation on the SD card, although you can remove or replace files you don't need if you want some more space (although it will only save a few MB). The only absolutely necessary things are sd:/apps/usbloader/boot.dol, sd:/apps/usbloader/meta.xml and sd:/usb-loader/config.txt.

HolyCheck said:
sooo... stupid question..

I have all the wii homebrew channel / bootmii or what ever stuff all up and running..

how do I get wiimc working? I actually have no idea where to start or what to do.. I downloaded the program and put the folder in my apps folder on my sd card but i dont see it anywhere :(

I am horrible at doing this kind of stuff. tyia!
You need to set it up so the boot.dol, meta.xml and icon.png files are in a subdirectory of the apps directory of any name you like (although WiiMC is probably best in this case). So you'll have sd:/apps/WiiMC/boot.dol etc.
 

Kunohara

Member
Clipper said:
SD cards almost always come formatted as FAT32, and this is the best format type, so there should be no need to reformat the card. Yes, you do need to have all the directories used during the installation on the SD card, although you can remove or replace files you don't need if you want some more space (although it will only save a few MB). The only absolutely necessary things are sd:/apps/usbloader/boot.dol, sd:/apps/usbloader/meta.xml and sd:/usb-loader/config.txt.

Awesome, thanks alot.

Actually, one more question. I just realized that I can move the files that BootMii backed up onto my computer to free up space on the SD card, and I can just use that instead of buying another one. What exactly are the files that Bootmii puts on the sd that is essentially the back up of the wii itself? I basically kept all the files on the sd card when I was installing HBC, ISO248 thing, the d2x and the USB loader. I figure I can delete all that (except the USB loader of course), and just move the Bootmii files to my computer to free up space.
 

Clipper

Member
Kunohara said:
Awesome, thanks alot.

Actually, one more question. I just realized that I can move the files that BootMii backed up onto my computer to free up space on the SD card, and I can just use that instead of buying another one. What exactly are the files that Bootmii puts on the sd that is essentially the back up of the wii itself? I basically kept all the files on the sd card when I was installing HBC, ISO248 thing, the d2x and the USB loader. I figure I can delete all that (except the USB loader of course), and just move the Bootmii files to my computer to free up space.
Yes to everything there.

As for BootMii, it puts a few small files on there that are actually BootMii itself (it only installs a small stub into the Wii). If you did a backup, that should be in a 528MB or so file.
 

Kunohara

Member
Clipper said:
Yes to everything there.

As for BootMii, it puts a few small files on there that are actually BootMii itself (it only installs a small stub into the Wii). If you did a backup, that should be in a 528MB or so file.

Awesome. Can't wait to try it out.
 
Quick question for anyone in the know:

Does Super Smash Bros. Brawl have Gamecube controller support through Configurable USB Loader? I know the steps for some of the homebrew stuff are very clear about removing Gamecube memory cards/controllers, so I just want to be absolutely sure that the controller would work in-game.
 
SecretMoblin said:
Quick question for anyone in the know:

Does Super Smash Bros. Brawl have Gamecube controller support through Configurable USB Loader? I know the steps for some of the homebrew stuff are very clear about removing Gamecube memory cards/controllers, so I just want to be absolutely sure that the controller would work in-game.

The few things that suggest removing GC stuff is only when installing it. You can leave it in for games all you want once that's done.
 
hikarutilmitt said:
The few things that suggest removing GC stuff is only when installing it. You can leave it in for games all you want once that's done.
Thanks! I was wary about ripping SSBB and MKWii for that reason, but it's good to know nothing bad will happen.
 

Vagabundo

Member
Clipper said:
What you want to do is:
  1. Perform the Upgrading steps for the HBC (there is a separate section for upgrading instead of installing).
  2. Update the Wii using the game disc or the Internet (this is safe now).
  3. Install IOS236 if you never installed it (if you don't remember if you did, do it again anyway).
  4. Install d2x.
  5. Upgrade Cfg to the latest version and perform the meta.xml steps.
  6. If you use a forwarder, install this one, as your old one is probably too old.
In other words, just upgrade everything via the steps described in the tutorial.

Just a quick question clipper: in part 2 should i follow the instructions for upgrading boot2 to v4? DO I need it? It's complaining about a missing wad file when I try it.
 

Clipper

Member
Vagabundo said:
Just a quick question clipper: in part 2 should i follow the instructions for upgrading boot2 to v4? DO I need it? It's complaining about a missing wad file when I try it.
It's not really that important any more. However, it would be great if you could test it out for me as I am unable to actually test it (it refuses to install for me as I'm already on v4). What is the wad that it is asking for and are you trying to do the online or offline install?
 
I haven't played a retail game on my Wii in forever. It's just been used for VC and Netflix. But now I want to play Xenoblade, yet when I try to launch a HD loader (I seem to have 3 of them? Not sure why?) through the Homebrew Channel I get a black screen or the Wii hangs on the loader's intro screen. Can't even get to the point where I install Xenoblade. HD seems to be fine and I don't think I've installed any official updates since the last time I used it...

Anyone know how I can fix this? Thanks!
 

Clipper

Member
Rummy Bunnz said:
I haven't played a retail game on my Wii in forever. It's just been used for VC and Netflix. But now I want to play Xenoblade, yet when I try to launch a HD loader (I seem to have 3 of them? Not sure why?) through the Homebrew Channel I get a black screen or the Wii hangs on the loader's intro screen. Can't even get to the point where I install Xenoblade. HD seems to be fine and I don't think I've installed any official updates since the last time I used it...

Anyone know how I can fix this? Thanks!
Upgrade all the homebrew to the latest version using the guide linked in the second post and my tag.
 
Clipper said:
Upgrade all the homebrew to the latest version using the guide linked in the second post and my tag.
Thanks! Knew the solution had to be obvious but it's been so long since I messed around with this stuff that I'd forgotten everything I knew.

Gonna finally change this drive from WBFS to FAT32. I've put that off for way too long.
 
how do i export save file from usb loader? I want to play it on pc and do not want to restart xenoblade from the beginning lol.

EDIT: Derp. figured it out lol.
 
Question: So I followed the GAF tutorial to install the Configurable USB Loader, but about 70% of the time when I load the app, no music will be playing, and when I go to boot a game, it'll get stuck at "Booting Wii Game, Please Wait..."

Why is this happening?
 

RPGCrazied

Member
Clipper said:
Yes, but I don't recommend it as it involves hacking the menu, which comes with a bricking risk.

Oh well. I notice if you have an email it will stay on. Maybe I'll email myself and don't read it? Not like I get email's on my Wii.
 

Clipper

Member
Mr. Wonderful said:
Question: So I followed the GAF tutorial to install the Configurable USB Loader, but about 70% of the time when I load the app, no music will be playing, and when I go to boot a game, it'll get stuck at "Booting Wii Game, Please Wait..."

Why is this happening?
Did you put Cfg's base directory onto the USB or SD?
 

Vhalyar

Member
I have a Wii at 4.3U, so I just tried the LetterBomb method to get started with the homebrew but no red envelope shows up in the message board. Tried to repeat the steps a few times but no dice.

Since I do have Smash but only own an HDSC card I guess I'm screwed out of Xenoblade until I can get my hands on a regular SD card? Blah :(
 
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