Installing WiiFlow 2.1 on your Wii
Posted by 
September 14, 2010 •
After quite a long while, the Wiiflow team has finally, publicly released Wiiflow 2.1. The new version of Wiiflow includes several new features that make it a compelling choice for your USB loader like FAT/NTFS loading support, mp3 support, WIP patches, BCA codes (NSMBWii), in-menu nunchuck support, as well as an updated language.ini file.
If you’re updating from Wiiflow 1.x, don’t fret. It’s as easy as pie 🙂
WiiFlow 2.1 Features:
- Fast and easy to use
- User friendly controls.
- Stable (according to testers)
- Doesn’t flicker on old TV’s
- Compatibility with almost all games though some games require special attention.
- Properly supports the 3 latest versions of Hermes’ IOS 222 (v2-5.1)
- Properly supports the latest versions of Waninkoko’s IOS 249 (v14-19)
- Comes in five (5) flavors : running under IOS 249, IOS 222, IOS 223, IOS 224, IOS 250
- Parental control
- Themes Support
- Installed on HDD if you have a FAT partition
- Sounds and music
- Cover downloading, HQ (1024×680) and localized (WiiTDB.com)
- Ability to display more than 100 covers on screen (HQ covers)
- Loads games from WBFS, FAT32 and NTFS
- Loads channels from the Wii’s NAND
- Allows ocarina cheats in games
- Allows automatically returning to a specified channel on exit
- Ability to show fanart for each game (WiiFanArt.com)
- Ability to view video trailers for each game.
- Ability to sort games in up to 11 custom names categories.
Important Note: If you’re not versed with the jargon that this post uses, stop before installing anything and post a question first. Unlike a PSP Phat which can be easily revived once bricked, it’s quite hard to do the same for a Wii so BE VERY CAREFUL.
WiiFlow 2.1 Requirements:
- A softmodded Wii
- Working Homebrew Channel, Priiloader or anything similar
- A working cIOS (cIOS38Rev14 or cIOS38Rev17 recommended, however 223, 224 and 250 are also supported)
- SD Card with at least 100MB free (or a FAT partition on your USB HDD)
- WBFS formatted USB HDD
- WAD Manager on your SD Card
- A copy of WiiFlow. Download the version you’ld like to use:
Important Note: Due to a lot of changes, also in the configuration files, you might experience problems when you upgrade your current version to this new version. In case you experience unexpected behavior, or a code dump, please try to start from fresh.
WiiFlow Installation
As with the original Wiiflow release, you have several options when installing Wiiflow 2.1. You can run it off via the HBC or install it via a forwarder channel. Each option has some pros and cons so pick your the installation method akin to your needs.
For complete details you can check out this page.
Now on with the installation.
Run Wiiflow 2.1 via the Homebrew Channel
This is the simplest way to run Wiiflow but will leave you out of the more interesting features of the application. Plus you’ll have to run wiiflow via HBC everytime instead of just clicking a channel.
- Download the proper Wiiflow version you want to use (see above in the requirements)
- Extract the WiiFlow archive to the “apps” folder on either your SD Card / Fat Partition on your Hard Drive.
- Launch Wiiflow via the HBC
Simple right?
Run Wiiflow from via a Forwarder channel
A forwarder channel is simply a channel on your Wii Menu that launches Wiiflow. It’s not the easiest way to install Wiiflow but it’s definitely the most rewarding.
Important Note: If you’re going to install Wiiflow on your SD Card, you need to have it on the slot everytime you boot up your Wii.
This is the most basic installation of WiiFlow:
- Download the proper Wiiflow version you want to use (see above in the requirements)
- Download the WiiFlow Forwarder Channel
- Copy all the required files into your SD Card / Fat Partition on your Hard Drive
- Extract the WiiFlow archive to the “apps folder on either your SD Card / Fat Partition on your Hard Drive
- If done properly, you should get the following path
[code]
SD:\wiiflow\language.ini
[/code] - Connect your SD/HDD to your Wii and boot it up
- Run the Homebrew channel and from it the WAD Manager.
- Copy the boot.dol file from the Wiiflow directory (the one you’ve extracted in step 4) and place it on the root of your SD / hard drive. If you’re upgrading your Wiiflow installation, you can skip this step if you’re going to use the same boot.dol or simply replace it with the one you’re going to use.
- On the WAD Manager select the cIOS you wish to use (or simply the cIOS version of Wiiflow that you’ve downloaded) and install ‘WiiFlow-WFBJ(honey).wad’
- Wait for the Installation to Finish and you’re done.
If you encounter any problems, just post a comment 🙂
source WiiFloWiki
Tags: WII, WiiFlow, Wiiflow 2.1
your instructions make no sense regarding how you install this new wiiflow as a channel.. where is the r92a-WiiFlow_222 WAD? Thats what I need.. not this forwarder channel crap. I tried to follow these instructions “# Download the proper Wiiflow version you want to use (see above in the requirements)
# Download the WiiFlow Forwarder Channel
# Copy all the required files into your SD Card / Fat Partition on your Hard Drive
# Extract the WiiFlow archive to the “apps folder on either your SD Card / Fat Partition on your Hard Drive
# If done properly, you should get the following path
view source
print?
1 SD:\wiiflow\language.ini”
but for what? And it’s not clear.. do you put the boot.dol in the apps folder on or on the root of the SD Card?? you just say Copy the boot.dol file from the Wiiflow directory (the one you’ve extracted in step 4) and place it on the root of your SD / hard drive. If you’re upgrading your Wiiflow installation, you can skip this step if you’re going to use the same boot.dol or simply replace it with the one you’re going to use.
………………………………………………………
This whole thing smells bogus. I’ve installed many MANY WAD’s.. and they almost all end up as channels unless it’s an IOS.. so why is this any different? My previous version of Wiiflow was a WAD installed.. so where’s my new WAD, huh? Tell me that and we’re all in great shape. ‘Cause this here Run Wiiflow from via a Forwarder channel crap is TOTALLY HOKEY 4 Real!!! WE WANT WAD’s! WE WANT WAD’s! WE WANT WAD’s!
Did you somehow miss these:
2.1a2 cIOS 222 version
2.1a2 cIOS 223 version
2.1a2 cIOS 224 version
2.1a2 cIOS 249 version
2.1a2 cIOS 250 version
I don;t understand.. I use IOS249 for almost everything.. but Wiiflow started crashing all the time and it wouldn’t work with the newest Metroid.. so I finally found one that worked.. the download you posted is already open on my desktop (now I have 2) r92a-WiiFlow_222 and in that RaR is the apps folder, in that wiiflow_222, which is a boot.dol.. it works fine.. but if I install one of the WAD’s in the RaR the app crashes immediately.. I try using IUOS 222 when installing it and it crashes.. ’cause my system uses IOS 249.. and if i try to install it using IOS 249 it just crashes.. so am I doomed to have to use this via HBC then?
Looks like it. Are you trying to install wiiflow on an sdcard or an hdd?
sorry, slept for a day.. uhm, I’d like it as a channel, but it seems like I am being forced to have it on the SD card.. only the one I listed above works properly now, I tried every other version and it crashes almost immediately.
There’s no advantage to having it as a channel instead of a forwarder. The advantage of having it on the SD card is that the latest versions can automatically download and self-update. You can’t do that with a WAD for obvious reasons.
The advantage of having WiiFlow as a channel instead of using a forwarder channel is that forwarder channels generally do not contain the code required for waking up a sleeping USB hard drive. That bit about not being able to automatically download and update a WAD version of the loader is erroneous: the channel version of USBLoaderGX has been able to update itself for quite some time now. There’s no reason why WiiFlow shouldn’t be able to do this and, now that it’s become open source and USBLoaderGX is kinda defunct, we can only hope the developers decide to create a channel version that has the update ability sometime in the near future.
The way USBLoaderGX worked is a lot messier than you make it sound. There are hundreds of USB drives that have been tested with WiiFlow, so you’ve got plenty to choose from. I got a 500GB WD 2.5″ drive for $60, it never sleeps and it works flawlessly. That said, there are WAD versions of WiiFlow out there, but the developers have no plans to support taking it in that direction. Using a forwarder allows users to install WiiFlow on the SD card or on the USB drive and provide much more flexibility. They’re not going to give that up to support a flaky USB drive that likes to sleep when there are cheap alternatives which work 100% perfectly.
Sorry I am kinda a newbie at this. I have installed HBC and CIOS236. When I try to install the wiiflow249 it loads up to 100% and then freezes my unit and controller flash’s.
I also used wiiflow 1.1 to do this and not the updated version, that shouldnt matter I dont think though. Can someone help?
Sounds like either the download for the Wiiflow installer was corrupted, redownload and try again.
still didnt work. I tried the lite and mirrored version from the first site if you google “wiiflow”. Seems a few other sites end up linking to that same one(dont want to name drop another site on your thread)
All 3 load to 100% and then freeze. Seems as if everything prior i have down works fine. Any other ideas?
Ah, I think I know what the problem is. Switch CIOS versions so (up/down)grade.
Wiiflow’s installation is dependent on that.
when i try i get error 2011 or something like that and i cant download the file
Can you specify which file are you downloading?
when i open wiiflow, it shows a picture of where to insert the usb and thats it.. help???
You need to have a USB-connected hard drive installed so that Wiiflow can load games off it. Otherwise, edit the wiiflow configuration so it’ll look for games on your SD card instead
Thank you.