How to Turn a Flash Drive Into a Xbox 360 Memory Unit

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: May 6, 2021

If you're running low on storage for your Xbox 360, don't buy that new hard drive just yet. You can convert many of the USB drives that you may have laying around into Xbox Memory Units, which will allow you to install games, download files, and store game saves. The drive will need to be at least 1 GB in size in order to use it with your Xbox 360.

Steps

1
Update your console to the latest version. This will ensure that your formatted drive has the most functionality possible. You'll be prompted to update when connecting to Xbox Live if there is an update available.
2
Plug a USB flash drive into the Xbox 360. You can use drives up to 2 TB in size. The drive will need to be in FAT32 format, and have at least 1 GB of storage. NTFS, FAT, and Mac and Linux formats are not supported. If your USB is the wrong format, you'll need to use a computer to format it using the FAT32 file system. See How to Format a Flash Drive for detailed instructions.

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3
Press the Guide button on the controller to open dashboard. You can do this from within a game or while on any menu.
4
Open the "settings" screen and select "System Settings." This will open a new menu.
5
Select the "Storage" or "Memory" option. The label will vary depending on which model Xbox 360 you are using.
6
Select "USB Storage Device." This will open the "Configure USB Device" menu.
7
Choose either "Configure Now" or "Customize." "Configure Now" will automatically convert the entire USB drive to the Xbox 360 storage format. Selecting "Customize" will allow you to choose how big you want the Xbox 360 partition to be, which will allow you to use the drive for other things. When you select "Customize," use the slider to set how much space you want to dedicate to Xbox 360 storage.
- If you don't see these options, your USB drive either does not have at least 1 GB of storage available, or is not formatted with the FAT32 file system. Make sure that your USB drive has enough storage to work with the Xbox 360.
- Your Xbox 360 will reserve 512 MB of space on your drive for system files, so the size will appear slightly smaller.^{[1]
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8
Wait while the USB drive is configured and tested. Your Xbox 360 will format and test your USB drive. If the USB drive passes the test, it will become available for USB storage.
- Older drives may be too slow to work with the Xbox 360. If your USB drive does not pass the test, you'll need to try a newer drive.
9
Find your newly formatted drive. You'll be able to select your USB drive as you would any other storage location on your Xbox 360. It will be listed as "USB Storage Device" in the "Storage Devices" menu that appears when you download files or save your game.^{[2]
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- Items stored on your Xbox USB storage device are not viewable on a computer.

Community Q&A

Question

Will configuring my flash drive tamper with my already stored information?

Community Answer

Yes. The information stored on the flash drive needs to be backed up before configuring.
Question

Do you have any other tips if these methods are not working?

Community Answer

The flash drive needs to be 2 - 32 GB, formatted FAT32 , and plugged into the front USB port.
Question

What should I do if I do not see "Configure Now" or "Customize"? Do I need a new flash drive?

Community Answer

Yes because your USB choice is either not at least one GB, faulty, or not formatted to fat32.