Update: We just word from Major Nelson telling us that "the problem has been fixed, but any incomplete d/l's need to be deleted and completely re-downloaded." Hopefully this freezing issue can be put to rest.
Ever since the August Xbox Live dashboard update and the maintenance that happened late last month, there have been a few Xbox 360 owners who are reporting console freezes when attempting to connect to Xbox Live. This problem - which we've heard reports of and has been talked about at length on the Xbox.com forums - seems to stem from the dashboard's management of background downloads. How we understand it, the console freezing occurs after a piece of content (music, trailer, DLC, etc.) is downloaded off the XBLM and then the 360 is turned off prior to the download's completion. This creates an incomplete file on the HDD and the next time the console is turned on and attempts to connect to live, everything locks up.
Ever since the August Xbox Live dashboard update and the maintenance that happened late last month, there have been a few Xbox 360 owners who are reporting console freezes when attempting to connect to Xbox Live. This problem - which we've heard reports of and has been talked about at length on the Xbox.com forums - seems to stem from the dashboard's management of background downloads. How we understand it, the console freezing occurs after a piece of content (music, trailer, DLC, etc.) is downloaded off the XBLM and then the 360 is turned off prior to the download's completion. This creates an incomplete file on the HDD and the next time the console is turned on and attempts to connect to live, everything locks up.
We've contacted Microsoft in hopes of getting some sort of acknowledgment or update of the problem, but have yet to receive a response. But fear not those of you who are experiencing console freezes, because we have a step by step plan that'll attempt to fix your problem. Just follow the steps after the break and hopefully your console will quit freezing. If it doesn't solve your problem, well, at least you can say you tried.
Steps to Try and Fix 360 Freezing at Start-up
- 1) Turn off your Xbox 360 and physically disconnect it from the internet by either unplugging the ethernet cable or disconnecting the wireless adapter.
- 2) Turn on your Xbox 360 and sign into your account. You should NOT be connected to Xbox Live.
- 3) Navigate to the "System" blade and choose the "Memory" option, then select your storage device.
- 4) Now search. Look through all the system folders then find and delete ALL incomplete content files. You can spot an incomplete file by the yellow exclamation point icon. Remember to delete ALL incomplete files
- 5) Once all the incomplete content files have been deleted, turn off your Xbox 360.
- 6) Reconnect your Xbox 360 to the internet by plugging back in the ethernet cable or wireless adapter.
- 7) Turn on your Xbox 360, connect to Xbox Live and hopefully your problem is solved.
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
10-08-2008 @ 5:24PM
robbie7 said...
OMG. i knew it! I had this exact problem the day after the update. i was downloading PES 09 demo, decided to go on GTA. there was an update for it which sent me offline. then my xbox frooze after the update. switched it on/off, started freezing when my 360 was loading up xbox live. I tried switching it on and off like five times, at first i thought it was my internet. but by chance (with abit of knowledge) i decided to delete the download that was incomplete on my hard drive (PES 09 demo). I was back online straight away.
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10-08-2008 @ 5:31PM
CABALLOTE said...
Haven't experienced anything like that. Only on my pc. ;) Btw, xbox live is free for pc. ;) and you still get achievements. ;) And it rocks... ok, I'll stop ;)
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10-08-2008 @ 6:42PM
useedems said...
Well, you get what you pay for right guys?
/ducks
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10-09-2008 @ 4:55AM
RedSonRising said...
even after deleting the incomplete files and clearing the cache my downloads are still failing.. everything i try to download from XBLM freezes..
strangely i had to transfer licenses to my replacement console and everything downloaded just fine.
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10-09-2008 @ 5:17AM
RedSonRising said...
this is extremely frustrating.. ive wasted so much time trying to figure this out only to realize i cant fix it myself..
any word when m$ plans on fixing this or are we gonna have to wait till the NXE comes out?
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10-09-2008 @ 7:25AM
Hidesquadron1 said...
If it is of any help to anyone, I had the symptoms that lead me to this solution, and it seems to have worked. I suggest everyone, regardless of whether or not you had the problems that lead to this article, take the time to clear out those temporary files. You clear out some space on your Hard Drive, and you may keep yourself from experiencing the problem sometime in the future.
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10-09-2008 @ 10:42PM
El Capitaine said...
i had this problem as well...every time i rebooted my 360 i was anxiously hoping that it wouldnt RROD... then a quick google search and it figured it out. glad its finally fixed, as the auto arcade trials would often cause this.
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10-10-2008 @ 2:28AM
John said...
This post saved my Xbox 360 a trip out the window. By following the steps I was back up and functioning even after Live connected. Thanks much.
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