Completely Reset Xbox 360 To Defaults Options

[Seiya]

I recently purchased a used Xbox 360. It works fine and it's not modded in any way. How can I completely reset it to factory defaults? I mean wiping the hard drive, all the saves, settings, and anything else like that so it acts as new as possible.

[hardcandy]

First, do not delete anything until the serial number is transferred. You may delete some info needed to ID the xbox in transferring the serial number.
If the previous owner had a Live account or registered the Xbox360, they may have to transfer ownership to you. May need to call Microsoft Xbox support to find out how to transfer the serial number to your Live account.

If you have a live account already set up,

Live Migration

I would guess go to the System blade, go to Memory, then delete any videos,demos,music,etc you do not want. Go to Network, see if their is an option to reset to factory defaults. Then reset Video and Audio to factory default (if there is an option).


This post has been edited by hardcandy: Apr 15 2008, 09:50 PM

[hardcandy]

Also, had to let you see this article posted here back in February 2008. If you know the person, that is one thing. If you bought it from an ad or a friend of a friend, be careful.

Buying Used Xbox

[Seiya]

First, do not delete anything until the serial number is transferred. You may delete some info needed to ID the xbox in transferring the serial number.
If the previous owner had a Live account or registered the Xbox360, they may have to transfer ownership to you. May need to call Microsoft Xbox support to find out how to transfer the serial number to your Live account.

If you have a live account already set up,

Live Migration

I would guess go to the System blade, go to Memory, then delete any videos,demos,music,etc you do not want. Go to Network, see if their is an option to reset to factory defaults. Then reset Video and Audio to factory default (if there is an option).

I don't understand what you mean by transferring the serial number. Isn't the SN on the back of the Xbox 360? Also, Can you only have one Xbox Live account per Xbox 360? I know the person who sold it to me, so I can get them to help me. Can I just call MS, have them transfer the ownership and warranty info to me, and make my own Xbox Live account?

Keep in mind when replying that I know very little about Xbox 360 or Live. I have an old Xbox that I use for XBMC, but that's about it.

[hardcandy]

I would go ahead and set up a Live account first:
Setting up a Live account Silver is free, gold is approximately $52/year (if you have to pay tax).
Then call and have ownership of the xbox transferred to you.
Then you will be good to go. You can delete any videos,demos,games,music,etc you do not want by going to System-->Memory.
The serial number is tied to a particular Live account or may have been registered by the previous owner. If you need any official support in the future, you will need the serial number transferred to you. If you want to open a Live account and have this xbox as your primary xbox, they will need to transfer the xbox to a Live account you set up. This way, any downloads will be connected to your gamertag/Live account.

This post has been edited by hardcandy: Apr 16 2008, 03:46 PM

[scuba156]

what has restoring an xbox got to do with the serial number? you can register a console before or after restoring a console...

get your friends full name, address and phone number (or just get him) and ring MS support. ask to transfer the consoles onwership to you. that is just incase the console dies and you wish to ship it off to MS, you will not come across ownership issues in the future. you can create a live account and use the xbox in what ever manner you please without transfering the ownership to you.

the closest way to get an xbox to default settings, is to go to the system blade > memory then press Y and go to format, and then select Yes. then go to system blade > network settings and select restore setting to default. then once again go to system blade > initial setup and go through the setup process.

an optional step to reset video settings is to turn the xbox on with no disc in the tray using a controller and hold the Y button and the right trigger as its booting up. the xbox will reset and the video settings will be set to default (480i)

This post has been edited by scuba156: Apr 16 2008, 05:57 PM

[hardcandy]

what has restoring an xbox got to do with the serial number? you can register a console before or after restoring a console...

In case he needed the owner info if he had bought it from someone he did not know.
And why format? Why not look at the contents before you erase them? What if there is a video, game demo, or music you want to keep? In this case he did state he wanted everything erased, but I have found out from experience that it is better to check the contents before tossing them. You never know what you may find.

[scuba156]

any information needed to transfer ownership of an xbox 360 is not stored on the xbox itself, except by looking under account management > contact information. but the gamertags windows live ID and password is needed to view it. otherwise, it would be a huge security risk

because, as you stated, he is asking to restore it to factory settings, not factory settings minus things. by law, and the live TOS, he doesnt have the rights to keep anything stored on the xbox HDD, even if the content in question is free via the marketplace. its all licensed to the one user only

This post has been edited by scuba156: Apr 16 2008, 06:15 PM