HD issues with USB loaders

Hi guys. Before I start, I'll let you know that I've searched the forums for a solution to my problem to no avail.

I've managed to install HBC, CIOS249rev14 and a few different HBC USB loaders (without pestering you guys for any help).

The problem I'm having is with my USB hard drive. In order to get it to work, I : -

• Start the wii
• Start HBC
• Start USB Loader GX (It tells me there is no HDD and starts searching and counting down from 30)
• Switch on the HDD
• It finds the HDD and asks me whether Iwant to use CIOS249 or CIOS222
• I select 249 (haven't got 222, isn't that for guitar hero?)
• It now tells me that the drive needs formatting.
• Now I exit USB loaderGX and enter any USB loader (including GX) and the drive is recognised along with the games.

Once this is done, I can turn off the Wii and turn it back on and it will recognise the drive fine. When the HDD is powered off however, I have to complete the steps again.

If I don't complete those steps, the hard drive always appears as "needs formatting" and shows four partitions that "Cannot be formatted" (the drive only has one partition).

I have tried the following usb loaders :

• Ultimate V7
• SDUSBloaderv1
• USBloaderv1
• USBloader GX

If nobody can help, I at least hope my work around helps others who are having trouble.

PS. Does anybody else feel ripped off when they see how small the Wii Play and Wii Sports files are? lol

Thanks guys,

Dave :)

I will shed a tear of joy for you my friend... you are the best!!!:D If only every single poster was like you... the world would be better...

Yes I will help you out. Download WBFS manager (it is a pc application) HERE(it comes with USBLoaderGX, if yours is outdated, you may want to swich)

So you install, run, connect the drive and load with WBFS manager. It will format your drive correctly (dunno why, loader did not do a nice format on my drive either) And it will also be able to load your games from pc to HDD(windows don't recognise WBFS). That's all, enjoy!

Hey Messie I like rule 3. Makes reading so much easier! :)

Dave -- This seems like either a drive issue or a cIOS issue. I must say the process you must go through seems a right pain. Most people would not bother to go through this level of complication.

Are you new to USB loaders? If rev 14 is the only one you've ever used you might like to try cIOS 38 rev 13 or 13b, even down as far as cIOS 36 rev 10 which still works with everything. You'll lose NAND emulation but is that high on your priority?

Check your drive against the compatibility list USB Devices Compatibility List - WikiTemp and see if it has known issues.

PS. Yeah Wii Play is so small it's such a waste of disc. Let's not kid ourselves though the only reason we bought it was for the controller.

LOL I made thet up when I read a post of 10 lines with no punctuation at all. By the end of the 10th line my brain had started leaking from my earholes and nose...:D

Hi again and thanks for your help.

I am new to the loaders (and the world of Wii hacking to be fair).

I haven't tried anything less than rev14, so I'll give rev10 a go if it works as good. I'll try this first and leave the idea of reformatting my drive as a last (second!) resort as I've installed a few games on it.

I get the feeling that it is a compatibility issue or some kind of usb driver issue, but it's definitely something that is fixable (as the work around works). It's just a question of whether I can fix it, or it's the way the loaders / cios are coded. The latter meaning I don't stand a chance lol (aside from trying older cios).

I can see why a dodgy format may be the case, so reformatting with the tool on my PC is a viable plan B.
The work around is a pain. I personally don't mind it apart from it niggling me that it's not 'as it should be'. The main thing is making it accessible to the kids.

Worse case scenario: A new hard drive with plenty more storage anyway.

Thanks again.

Dave :)

What HDD are you using? I used to do something like you are doing to get my drive to work, I use a Seagate FreeAgent Desk. My problems went away when I installed cIOS rev14.

I'm using an "Easy IDE" (cheap IDE - USB adaptor I got from Ebay a while ago) connected to a ExcelStor 80GB Hard Drive.

I've tried connecting a 40GB before with worse results (although I've updated some drivers since, so may be worth another shot).

I haven't had chance to try much yet except for updating USBLoaderGX via the application. The same errors occur, but now it doesn't tell me the drive needs formatting if I turn it on while it is scanning for it, it just works. That's a lot better.

It might be worth me trying to reinstall rev14 again. I just don't like messing with the Cios if I can help it.

I've done the same set up for my brother when it comes to homebrew and CIOS, so I'll set up a loader for him on his more recent external drive. See if that works better for him. If so, it's going to be the drive or the adaptor that isn't 100% compatible.

Thanks for all of the help guys, I'll keep you posted.

Dave :)

Call me old fashioned but I prefer stuff that just works. If I had a drive that was flaky and needed plugging in at a certain time for it to perhaps work some of the time I'd change it. Cheap solution = Cheap result.

Looks like they changed that page on the USB loader device compatiblity page.

Yeah, you're right. Having to turn it on as it scans for the drive now doesn't feel like "it doesn't work" though. Much better than having to scan, exit and reload. Just got to get the cover images to download now. I don't suppose you know if they serve PAL images do you? (The titles are different by one letter. You'd think they'd link to the same image though...).
:):):):):):)

You may want to go with a HDD that is made to sit next to your computer, not one that suppost to go in your computer. I've seen a 500GB Seagate external HDD for as low as $65.00 USD. Some peeps have problems with hard drives in enclosures emitting a bit of RF into the audio/video cables, which then affects the video quality.