Xboxist

What do the Red Xbox 360 Error Lights Mean?

Despite the best efforts by Microsoft, the Xbox 360 console is not the most sturdy piece of hardware on the market. From time to time, users will inevitably experience one of the dreaded “red light errors” on the system. Fear not, because not all of these problems are fatal. Some of them can be easily repaired, while others, like the dreaded Red Ring of Death, will require the unit to be sent back to Microsoft for refurbishing. Generally, Microsoft is pretty good at getting a new unit out to customers who’ve experienced this problem, so all in all it is not the end of the world if your Xbox 360 dies on you.

The way that the 360 communicates its health to the outside world is via three LED rings on the front of the console. Normally these are green, but when one of them turns red, you know there is trouble. Here is what each of the red light errors mean and what you can do to fix them:

1 Red Light -- If one red light starts to flash on the xbox 360 console, this usually indicates either a DVD drive error or a hard drive error. You can tell which one it is by looking at the code number displayed on the screen. E64, E65 and E66 are DVD drive errors, while E67, E69 and E79 are hard disk errors. The E74 error indicates a failure with either the GPU or the HANA graphics scaler chip. If it is a hard drive error, try disconnecting your drive and rebooting to see if that fixes the problem. If it is a DVD drive error, your problem may have been caused by a recent firmware update. Try restoring to an earlier version of firmware, using the instructions below:

2 Red Lights -- If you see two red lights flashing on the front of your console, this indicates an overheating problem. You should immediately unplug your 360 and take it to a well ventilated place indoors to cool off. DO NOT place your 360 in a refrigerated space or put it outdoors, this will not help. Just let it cool off at room temperature for 2 hours or more. Afterward, try placing it in a well-ventilated area and rebooting. To avoid overheating, make sure that you use your console in the upright position, always heep it away from external heat sources and dust, and make sure that the fans are operating properly.

3 Red Lights -- This is the fabled “Red Ring of Death” problem, and it affects the largest number of Xbox 360 owners. The name of this error is the “General Hardware Failure” and the problem could be related to any number of things. This error means that someplace inside the unit, a component is not functioning properly, and it usually requires a trip to Microsoft to fix. Here are some steps you can try to address the problem yourself:

4 red lights – This seems like it should be the worst error of the bunch, but actually it is one that can sometimes be fixed by the user. The 4 red light error indicates a problem with the A/V connector cable. The first thing to do is make sure that the cable is connected securely at both ends, and restart the console. If this doesn’t work, try cleaning the metal end of the connector cable with a cloth and blowing out any dust/debris from the connector pins. Finally, you can try replacing the A/V cable with an alternative one to see if this resolves the problem.

Hopefully one of the fixes we have suggested will resolve the problem for you. If none of the above suggestions work, the best thing is to contact Microsoft customer support and ask for help. In the United States, Customer Support can be reached at 1-800-4-MY-XBOX (1-800-469-9269).

If your 360 is no longer covered under warranty, these resources may help you repair your system at home:

XBox 360 Red Light Fix

Xbox Secrets Revealed

Everything4360 Download & Game Backup Service