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First Time Buyer's Guides
Get Help
Here, we'll provide some technical support by covering some frequently-asked questions about Xbox 360 hardware and common issues. If you have other questions or issues you can't find here, be sure to visit GameSpot's Xbox 360 Answers, where the most common questions have already been answered--and where you can ask more of your own, if you need to.
My Xbox 360 stopped working and there are three red lights around my power button!
The RROD, or "Red Ring of Death," refers to the dreaded ring of three red lights that encircle your Xbox 360's power button when the console malfunctions, usually due to a faulty power supply. If you're seeing orange lights when the console is powered on, you might try switching to a different power outlet, but generally speaking, when you see the red ring, it's usually time for you to physically ship your console out to Microsoft for repairs. Visit Microsoft's Xbox support site for more details.
Why do I see red lights near the power switch?
Having one, two, or three red lights may mean different things. A fully functional console will have no red lights. One red light means a hardware failure has occurred--typically you will see an additional error code onscreen that may indicate a hard drive issue. In this case, try turning off your console, removing the hard drive, and turning the console back on. If your console is functioning normally, the issue might be your hard drive. If that doesn't work, you may have other problems. Visit Microsoft's Xbox support site for more details.
Two red lights means the console is overheating, at this point the fans will kick in at their highest speeds to cool down the system. Three red lights, or the red ring of death, results in no onscreen error code. Four red lights means there is an issue with the AV cable, most likely meaning that it needs to be reseated. Visit Microsoft's Xbox support site for more details.
Is Xbox Live down?
Check Microsoft's status report page for up-to-date reports.
Need more help? Visit GameSpot's Xbox 360 Answers for more help, or request technical help directly from Microsoft at Microsoft's Xbox support site.


