Wii setup guide

1. What you need

• A Wii (any model, including the Wii Mini's SD-only limits aside — a full Wii with USB is assumed).
• An SD card (2–32 GB, FAT32) for installing homebrew.
• A USB hard drive or flash drive for the games, formatted FAT32 (see step 5).
• The Wii and this server on the same LAN.

2. Install the Homebrew Channel

The Homebrew Channel is the launcher that runs everything else. The easiest, up-to-date method is the “Let's Go Gambling / str2hax / LetterBomb” style exploit guide at wii.hacks.guide — follow it end to end. When done you'll have the Homebrew Channel installed.

Download / reference: https://hbc.hackmii.com/

3. Install USB Loader GX and Nintendont

These are the apps that actually launch games from the USB drive — USB Loader GX for Wii games, Nintendont for GameCube games. Put each app's folder in SD:/apps/<appname>/, then launch it from the Homebrew Channel.

• USB Loader GX — Open Shop Channel · GitHub
• Nintendont — Open Shop Channel · GitHub

USB Loader GX can install a channel and launch Nintendont for you, so you mainly interact with USB Loader GX.

4. Install FTPii

FTPii is the tiny FTP server this app talks to. Copy its folder to SD:/apps/ftpii/. This app pushes staged games to the Wii over FTPii — it does not need USB Loader GX to be running.

• FTPii — Open Shop Channel

5. Format the USB drive and pick the right port

• Format the USB drive as FAT32 (not exFAT/NTFS). USB Loader GX and Nintendont read FAT32 most reliably. Large drives can still be a single FAT32 partition with the right tool.
• Plug the drive into the Wii's bottom USB port — the one nearest the stand. That port is the reliable one for USB Loader GX; the top port often isn't detected.
• This app already lays the files out exactly how the Wii expects: /wbfs/<Title> [ID6]/ for Wii games and /games/<Title> [ID6]/ for GameCube. You don't arrange anything by hand.

6. Find the Wii's IP address

• Easiest: launch FTPii — it prints the Wii's IP right on the TV, e.g. 192.168.1.50, along with the port (21).
• Or on the Wii: Wii Settings → Internet → Connection Settings → (your connection) → Test Connection shows the assigned IP.
• Tip: give the Wii a DHCP reservation in your router so its IP never changes.

7. Point this app at the Wii

Open the Sync page and enter the Wii's IP from step 6 (e.g. 192.168.1.50) — it saves instantly, no restart, and the Wii can be powered off when you set it. Also set the FTPii root there, usually /usb.

FTPii exposes each device as a top-level folder, so staged wbfs/ and games/ land at /usb/wbfs and /usb/games. (You can also preset WII_IP/FTPII_ROOT as container env vars — they're just the initial defaults.)

8. Start FTPii and let it sync

• On the Wii, open the Homebrew Channel and launch FTPii. Leave it running.
• This app polls for FTPii every 20 seconds. Within one poll it detects the Wii and starts transferring every staged game that isn't synced yet.
• Watch progress on the Sync page. It's slow and runs in the background — a 1 GB game can take 15–40 minutes. You can close the browser; the server keeps going.
• When a game finishes it's marked synced in the Library and the file is kept on the server (your archive). Deleting from the Library is a separate, explicit action.

Cheat codes (optional)

• Tick “Fetch cheat codes” when you add a game, or hit Cheats on a staged game in the Library. This downloads community Gecko/Ocarina codes for that game's ID and stages them, so they sync to the Wii with the game.
• Turn cheats on in the loader: in USB Loader GX open the game's settings → Game Load → Ocarina (cheats) On, then pick codes. For GameCube, enable Cheats in Nintendont's settings.
• Cheat files land in a txtcodes/ folder on the drive. If the loader doesn't see them, point its txt cheat path at the USB drive (this is a known per-loader setting to verify).
• Codes are community-made and free — separate from the game. This app never provides game files.

Then: play

Move the USB drive back to the Wii's bottom port (if you unplugged it), launch USB Loader GX for Wii games or Nintendont for GameCube games, and your transferred titles appear in the list.