Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

New Xbox One Experience update causing hard drive troubles for some users

By

don mattrick and xbox one
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Xbox One owners enrolled in the Preview program might want to hold off on updating to the Windows 10-inspired “New Xbox One Experience” dashboard for the time being. That’s because, as a number of Reddit users, including myself, have reported, consoles with NXOE installed are failing to format newly connected hard drives

“I was one of the lucky ones that was able to get 2TB My Passport Ultra external hard drive for $29.99 this past weekend,” one user wrote. “But now, when I am trying to set it up to format it for Games and apps, I come to the part where I can name the hard drive, briefly see the keyboard and current title ‘External’ before it quickly goes away and replaces it with the blue spinning circle. I’ll wait but nothing will ever happen.”

Recommended Videos

I had a similar experience this morning after purchasing a Seagate Game Drive and attempting to format it specifically for games and apps. As I noted in my own Reddit post, the Xbox recognized my drive as a media device, but when I’d attempt to format it, a loading screen would appear on infinite loop. I even tried replacing the drive partition and formatting to different file systems, including NTFS, exFAT, and FAT32 to no success.

Related

When I took the issue to the official Xbox Support Twitter account, the rep suggested power cycling, which of course I’d already tried, again to no success. They then advised that I remove my account from the system and repeat the power cycle process. While this did inspire a number of on-screen messages reminding me that I’d run out of space on my hard drive, it did nothing to resolve the issue.

It seems the only way to format and use an external hard drive on the New Xbox One Experience is by reverting back to the old one. While you can accomplish this using Microsoft’s Offline System Update Diagnostic Tool, it’s recommended that you try other troubleshooting issues first. Unfortunately, there don’t seem to be any that work.

Has anyone else run into similar issues with the NXOE? What did you do to solve them? Share your experiences in the comments section below.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Gabe Carey
Gabe Carey
Former Digital Trends Contributor
A freelancer for Digital Trends, Gabe Carey has been covering the intersection of video games and technology since he was 16…
Best deal ever? Get 80% off PureVPN and an Uber Eats voucher
A close-up of a computer monitor displaying a generic VPN.

Everyone should sign up to a virtual private network, so if you're looking for VPN deals, here's one that you wouldn't want to miss -- two years plus three extra months of PureVPN's Max Plan at 80% off for just $4 per month, for a total of $108 for 27 months. That's $16 in savings per month for dependable online protection, and to top it off, you'll be getting an Uber Eats voucher worth up to $30. We're not sure how much time is remaining on this offer though, so if you're interested, you're going to have to sign up for the subscription immediately.

Why you should sign up for PureVPN Max Plan
A VPN is a necessity in this digital age because it will protect your data from being accessed by cybercriminals. It will also help you get around any geoblocking restrictions as you can have your device appear as if it's located in another part of the world. PureVPN is one of the best VPNs for these purposes, as it uses a global network of more than 6,500 servers that are located across dozens of countries.

Read more
Razer’s most boring product is also one of its best
The Razer Iskur V2 gaming chair in an office.

Razer isn't exactly known for subtlety. This is the company that released a Bane-like RGB face mask, a headset with haptic feedback, and most recently, a mouse pad that has RGB lighting from corner to corner. The Iskur V2 chair is an exercise in subtlety, however, and a change of pace that pays off for Razer in a big way.

There's nothing special about the Iskur V2 at first glance. It's a gaming chair fit with the usual racer-style back and some green trim to let you know it's a Razer product. But there are no motors promising immersive haptic feedback, and no RGB leaving you tethered to a wall outlet (yes, Razer has done both in a chair before). The Iskur V2 is just a well-designed, comfortable chair, and that's exactly why it's so impressive.
Out of the box

Read more
Best OLED monitor deals: Get an OLED screen from just $450
Marvel's Spider-Man running on the Samsung Odyssey OLED G8.

Up to a couple of years ago, OLED technology only really existed in OLED TVs and very-high-end monitors that cost thousands and thousands of dollars. Luckily, the prices have come down quite substantially, even on the best OLED monitors, especially as the market gets more saturated with options. That means that if you tend to use a monitor for the majority of your content consumption, such as gaming, then you can grab an OLED monitor for a great price and experience amazing visual fidelity and reproduction.

To that end, we've gone out and scoured all the major retailers and brands to find our favorite OLED monitor deals out there and compiled them below. That said, if you haven't quite found what you're looking for, or feel you aren't ready for an OLED monitor, be sure to check out some of these other great monitor deals.
LG UltraGear 27-inch gaming monitor -- $660, was $1,000

Read more