Are your Wii discs scratched, cracked, or just lost? Want to make an easily accessible copy of all your Wii games? To back up your games, you need to make a soft mod of your Wii and install a backup program. Softmoding means modifying the Wii system software with a hack so you can install a backup program. This article will walk you through all the steps to softmod your Wii, install the backup software, and copy discs.
Steps
Method 1 of 6: Preparing to Modify the Wii
Step 1. Take whatever you need
In order to modify the console and make a copy of the games, you will need a few things. You will need an SD card to copy the jailbreak files from your computer to the Wii. You will also need an external hard drive large enough to store multiple games. Game sizes can range from 1GB to 6GB, so look for a drive with at least 250GB to fit your entire game library.
To run the USB backup system, you will need to modify your Wii. This is done directly using special programs, so you don't need any tools. In this article, you will learn how to modify your Wii
Step 2. Find out the version of your set-top box
To install the correct hack, you need to know which version of the operating system your Wii is running on. Turn on the console.
Open the Wii menu, then tap Settings. The OS version will be displayed in the upper left corner
Step 3. Download the appropriate hack for your Wii version
For system versions 4.2 and below, download the correct hack for the Bannerbomb program. If your system version is 4.3, you will need a suitable licensed game and hack. In this article we are using LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga. You will need a Return of the Jedi game disc and save game.
Method 2 of 6: Softmodding Wii Versions 3.0-4.1
Step 1. Download and unzip a suitable Bannerbomb hack
Also download the installer for the "HackMii" program.
Step 2. Insert SD card
If you are using an SD card that is already in use by the STB, rename the Personal folder to avoid problems.
Step 3. Make a copy of the files
Copy the contents of the "bannerbomb" archive file to your SD card while maintaining the file structure. Copy the “installer.elf” file from the “HackMii” bootloader and rename it to “boot.elf”.
Step 4. Remove the SD card and turn on the set-top box
Insert SD card. Open the Wii Menu, click Data Management and then Channels. Select the "SD" tab.
Step 5. Confirm the pop-up message
When you insert the SD card, a window appears with the message “Load boot.dol / elf?”. Select "Yes" to continue with the softmodding process.
Step 6. Install "Homebrew Channel" and "DVDx"
Use the arrows to navigate to the menu and press the "A" button to select. The Homebrew Channel software lets you install your own software, and the DVDx utility lets you play DVD movies on the Wii.
Step 7. Complete the installation
After a few seconds, you will see a message about the successful completion of the installation of the Homebrew program. You can return to the Wii Menu and access Homebrew from the Channels at any time.
Method 3 of 6: Softmodding Wii Version 4.2
Step 1. Download and unzip a suitable Bannerbomb hack
Also download the installer for the "HackMii" program.
Step 2. Insert SD card
If you are using an SD card that is already in use by the STB, rename the Personal folder to avoid problems.
Step 3. Make a copy of the files
Copy the contents of the "bannerbomb" zip file to your SD card while maintaining the file structure. Copy the “installer.elf” file from the “HackMii” bootloader and rename it to “boot.elf”.
Step 4. Remove the SD card and turn on the set-top box
Insert SD card. Click on the map icon.
Step 5. Confirm the pop-up message
When you insert the SD card, a window appears with the message “Load boot.dol / elf?”. Select "Yes" to continue with the softmodding process.
Step 6. Install "Homebrew Channel" and "DVDx"
Use the arrows to navigate to the menu and press the "A" button to select. The Homebrew Channel software lets you install your own software, and the DVDx utility lets you play DVD movies on the Wii.
Step 7. Complete the installation
After a few seconds, you will see a message stating that the Homebrew installation was successful. You can return to the Wii Menu and access Homebrew from the Channels at any time.
Method 4 of 6: Softmodding Wii Version 4.3
Step 1. Download and extract the Return of the Jedi hack
Place the files on the SD card while maintaining the integrity of the files.
Step 2. Insert the SD card into the set-top box
Turn on the Wii, open the menu and select "Data Management". Open the Saves menu, select Wii and then the SD tab. Copy the Return of the Jedi save game suitable for your region.
Step 3. Start LEGO Star Wars
Load save. After starting the game, go to the lane on the right and change the character. Select a character named Return of the Jedi. This will start the jailbreak process.
Step 4. Install "Homebrew Channel" and "DVDx"
Use the arrows to navigate to the menu and press the "A" button to select. The Homebrew Channel software lets you install your own software, and the DVDx utility lets you play DVD movies on the Wii.
Step 5. Complete the installation
After a few seconds, you will see a message about the successful completion of the installation of the Homebrew program. You can return to the Wii Menu and access Homebrew from the Channels at any time.
Method 5 of 6: Installing backup software
Step 1. Download the required program
To install it, you will need to install several additional utilities on the Wii, which has already been soft-modded. Download the latest version of DOP-Mii and cIOS iauncher software.
Step 2. Extract the "DOP-Mii" program to the SD card
Keep the file structure intact. Insert the SD card into the box and open the Homebrew channel. Run "DOP-Mii" from the list of programs and select "Install IOS36 (v3351) w / FakeSign".
Select "Yes" when asked to apply NAND permissions and download patches from the internet. Select "Yes" again when you see the recovery message. You will end up on the Homebrew channel. Pull out the "SD" card and insert it into your computer
Step 3. Extract the cIOS installer to the Applications folder
Keep the file structure intact. Insert the SD card back into the box and go to the Homebrew channel. Open the "cIOS" installer. Select "IOS36" from the program version options.
Step 4. Select "Network Installation"
Confirm your selection by pressing the "A" button. After successfully completing the installation, the program will ask you to press any button to restart the Wii.
Step 5. Prepare your external drive
Connect it to your computer. You need to download a program that will format your hard drive for the Wii file system. WBFS (Wii File System Backup) is a free and open source program that you can use to format your disk.
- Connect the external drive and launch the WBFS program, select it from the drop-down menu. Make sure to select the correct drive, because after formatting, all information on that drive will be lost.
- After formatting is complete, disconnect the external drive from the computer and connect it to the lower USB port of the set-top box.
Step 6. Install "USB Loader"
Insert the SD card into your computer. Download the latest version of the free USB Loader GX software from the website. On the website, you can download a launch file that automatically places the files in the appropriate sections on the SD card.
Step 7. Launch USB Loader GX
After copying the files to the SD card, insert it into the box and open the Homebrew channel. Select “USB Loader GX” from the list of programs.
Method 6 of 6: Copying Wii Games
Step 1. Insert the game disc
With the USB Loader program open, click on the install button. Depending on the size of the game, this process can take several minutes. After the game has been copied, it will appear in the main USB Loader window.
Repeat this step for all the games you want to copy
Step 2. Download the cover
On Wiimote, press 1 to open the cover download menu. You can choose between several different types of images, including covers and disc images.
Step 3. Start the game
To start playing, you can select any game from the list. Using the top buttons in the USB Loader program, you can also change the display of games.