Hardware Hacking Homebrew Custom Firmware

[netsurf012]

Hello Wii U fellows,
I've just bought a JPN Wii U recently, gone through many articles and forums to learn to setup, homebrew and hacking stuff. I'm a developer and like to hack things to make it better + DIY.

My plan is trying to make a custom firmware for Wii U like what's we have with Android phone.

My idea is using nand extract to decrypt and extract file system from a nand image, modify it and repack as a single package e.g. zip file. This ROM package and use a homebrew to extract to Wii U FS.

There are many things to do and learn but I believe this approach can work and open a whole new world for Wii U. It is a tech treasure in my perspective. I would like to open this thread for discuss the best / current ways to do and know how Base for others who interesting in this field.

TODO: add list of tool and guides here for nand stuffs, Wii U file system structure.

Topic to discuss:
1. How region lock work? Is it involved hardware keys or just software config.
2. Hardmod to use SD card in place of nand chip. There is a hardmod to dump and restore nand memory using SD card bridge. I believe we can complete replace the nand chip with a SD card using same method.
3. Did anyone tried to replace the wifi card or antenna to improve the rediculous network speed on Wii U?
4. TO BE CONTINUE...

Thanks for reading and helping

 

[Sypherone]

https://wiiu.hacks.guide/#/
https://wiiubrew.org/wiki/Main_Page
For better WLAN, you might try to mod it with external antennas. Someone did it for better WiiU gamepad conection. WiiU controller extender mod

 

[netsurf012]

https://wiiu.hacks.guide/#/
https://wiiubrew.org/wiki/Main_Page
For better WLAN, you might try to mod it with external antennas. Someone did it for better WiiU gamepad conection. WiiU controller extender mod

Thanks for the link (your link is broken), the mod for external antenna is good but I'm thinking about the Wii U internet connection, if we can get a decent speed it can be very useful for watching online video and download, NAS for game storage may be.

The wiibu.hack and wiiubrew wiki indeed helpful resource, I'm reading bunch of article there and using them as my main reference + up2date sources.

 

[Sypherone]

Ah Ok, the link is fixed.
Yes the WiiU uses a 2,4 Ghz wlan connection for internet. And 5,2 Ghz for the gamepad. So maybe, or for sure, the 2,4 Ghz connection can also be moded with an external antenna.
But for simplicity get a ugreen usb to ethernet adapter, with a supported chip to work with WiiU, for 10 bugs (i havent compared the speed yet).

 

[netsurf012]

Ah Ok, the link is fixed.
Yes the WiiU uses a 2,4 Ghz wlan connection for internet. And 5,2 Ghz for the gamepad. So maybe, or for sure, the 2,4 Ghz comnection can also be moded with an external Antenna.
But for simplicity get a Ugreen usb to ethernet adapter, with a supported chip, to work with WiiU for 10 bugs (i havent compared the speed yet).

Yeah, lucky I have Nintendo USB LAN adapter, and it is 10x speed compared with wifi. But this kind of adapter is hard to find nowadays.
Wifi mod would be useful for portable Wii U

 

[Sypherone]

Na, on Amazon:
ugreen Ethernet for Wii(U)
(fake) Nintendo ethernet adapter

 

[V10lator]

My idea is using nand extract to decrypt and extract file system from a nand image, modify it and repack as a single package

So fw.img modification which was done like a decade ago but is the worst of all CFW experiences in history?

 

[V10lator]

1. How region lock work? Is it involved hardware keys or just software config.
2. Hardmod to use SD card in place of nand chip. There is a hardmod to dump and restore nand memory using SD card bridge. I believe we can complete replace the nand chip with a SD card using same method.
3. Did anyone tried to replace the wifi card or antenna to improve the rediculous network speed on Wii U?
4. TO BE CONTINUE...

1. Tiramisu is region free, so why care? Also as Tiramisu is a software this question should be self-explainatory? As a dev you clearly are able to read Tiramisus sources and see how it makes the console region free, right? (Hint: You need to exploit CafeOS, then find a flaw in that high-privileged mode to exploit IOSU, then just patch some checks in RAM. Wait, you don't even know the difference between CafeOS and IOSU? Can't see why Tiramisu needs a PPC and an ARM compiler? Well...)
2. That's something discussed on the experts channels. Till now nobody cracked it through.
3. Yes, multiple times: Search the forums. Best bet is to use a LAN adapter instead of WiFi through.
4. Please not, you're just repeating really old and long abandoned ideas.

 

[netsurf012]

So fw.img modification which was done like a decade ago but is the worst of all CFW experiences in history?

I'm not tried fw.img with tiramisu yet, is it like rednand?

1. Tiramisu is region free, so why care? Also as Tiramisu is a software this question should be self-explainatory? As a dev you clearly are able to read Tiramisus sources and see how it makes the console region free, right? (Hint: You need to exploit CafeOS, then find a flaw in that high-privileged mode to exploit IOSU, then just patch some checks in RAM. Wait, you don't even know the difference between CafeOS and IOSU? Can't see why Tiramisu needs a PPC and an ARM compiler? Well...)
2. That's something discussed on the experts channels. Till now nobody cracked it through.
3. Yes, multiple times: Search the forums. Best bet is to use a LAN adapter instead of WiFi through.
4. Please not, you're just repeating really old and long abandoned ideas.

1. Region free is not region change. I have made my console region free with both Tiramisu and modify the sys_prod.xml already.
Problem is the whole system is still locked with origin region because of system app like in JPN version don't have any language other than JP. It would be easier with other region like the USA or EUR.
I'm new to this console and PPC + low level code as well. Working with some embedded system and IoT, but this one come with complex OS. I know little about CafeOS and IOSU + hardware architect using by Wii U. I did read some stuffs about devkit but not get my hand dirty yet, would be soon when I have more time.
2. Seem doable, the wiring is simple, but need some skill with soldering that is blocking people from trying it. I have toolkit to do with IoT stuffs, so it is feasible to me. Will try this sometime, may be when I get an addition Wii U console for backup
3. I have the LAN adapter and it work great, but still want to make the wifi work better. Antenna mod would be first to do. 5Ghz wifi card mod will be later if I can get any that fit the socket + specs, would be something that using by Nintendo, so it can use exists driver.
4. Why? I just think because the idea is getting old while we're getting more knowledge about it + better tool, it would be more chance to do. Only one thing is there will be less community, people want to mess with this hardware. Idea or project usually need right time and right person to do. I don't know about Wii U until a month ago and think that because of legacy hardware + software, it would be fun to play with haha.

About tiramisu, I see it is using a flaw in the browser to exploit the system and execute arbitrary code, this allows it to inject change + binary to the system. As I understand it is something like soft root in high level, the lower level like bootloader is not accomplished by any loader yet.