Questions about IOS

Afternoon all,

I’m currently running a Wii with System Menu 4.2E on it. So far I’ve only installed the Homebrew channel, and I’m about to install Bootmii as boot2, which I understand is the best option to take as it allows for backups to be taken and restored of the underlying Wii software.

I have a few questions about IOS versions that I’d appreciate an answer on. I’ve run a few searches for this information but most of that places that talk about it already assume you know what they are.

So, what exactly IS an IOS? How does that differ from a cIOS?

My aim is to get some kind of media player loaded onto the Wii so I can stream Avi files from my Windows PC over wifi, play DVD’s directly on the device and possibly put a few Emulators in place. I did try to install WiiMC but it said I needed IOS58, and so began my search for information.

Looking here:- [wiibrew.org] suggests that my 4.2 Wii should have IOS70 on (* actually thinking back I remember seeing IOS61 mentioned when trying to install WiiMC...), which I’m presuming is a later version than IOS58. Does that mean that in order to get the WiiMC running I need to downgrade my Wii in some fashion? I’ve found an Install IOS58 Homebrew package but I’m wondering if it’ll impact of the Wii’s basic job of playing games.

So, all this waffle is basically a long way of asking someone to explain to me what an IOS actually is, what it does, why I need to worry about it and what changes I can make to it.

Phew!

I’m looking forward to your patient help!

Rob



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/07/2011 04:31PM by Robmonster.

The Wii has 2 processors, one mainly used for security, the ARM processor. On the ARM processor IOS runs, the Input/Output System. When a game, or other wii application asks IOS when it needs to use Wii specific hardware like the NAND internal memory, bluetooth (Wii Remotes) but the classic GC hardware is wired to the main one. Several different versions of IOS are on any Wii, so as to maintain backwards compatability with older games. IOS 58 is special in that it has USB 2 support, eliminating the need for a cIOS to implement it. a cIOS is an IOS which has special things added on to it, such as USB 2 (before IOS 58 came out) and ZOMG PIRACY (which Wiibrew discourages).

dop-Mii Wiibrew Edition is the best way to manage your IOS's. You can install IOS's, either from wads or from the Nintendo Update Servers, and patch them so they have the Trucha Bug (And old way of installing things) (I've been gone a loooooong time). Use it to install a vanilla IOS 58, then if you want USB 2 in Homebrew Channel re-install Homebrew Channel. Installing new IOS's will NOT impact on game-playing compatability, and the reason many games have updates is to make sure they have the IOS they need. They only negative installing IOS's have is to take up a minute amount of space on the Wii's NAND.

If you want to know what MIOS is, it's a special IOS that manages Gamecube mode.

IOS's used by the Wii System Menu usually follow the pattern x0 e.g. IOS 30 for menu 3.2, 3.3, IOS 70 for menu 4.2, IOS 8- for menu. Often Nintendo overwrites old system menu IOS's with stubs that do not function when they release a new menu often, and also try to "stub out" cIOS's to stop piracy (but in the past have epicly failed, stubbing IOS's that are used for non-piracy homebrew)



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/07/2011 08:06PM by metroid_maniac.

Brilliant, thanks very much for that excellent explanation.

Rob