Set up and use the HDD Eraser app on Xbox 360

The HDD Eraser app is used to format your Xbox 360 flash memory and hard drive to remove everything but the operating system. This app will permanently and completely delete all user data, ensuring that no-one will be able to recreate or access your personal information on the hard drive or flash memory after you’ve used the app.

App requirements

To use the HDD Eraser app, you need the following:

To be signed in to an Xbox Live account)
At least 12 megabytes of available space

Download the HDD Eraser app

On your console, sign in with your Xbox Live-enabled gamertag.
Go to apps, and then select Browse Apps.
Browse for and select HDD Eraser to download and install the app. After the download, the Download tile will change to Play Now. Select Play now to use the app.

To start the HDD Eraser app later, go to video, My Video Apps and then HDD Eraser.

Run HDD Eraser

Go to Browse Apps on the Apps hub. Select See All on the Social hub, select HDD Eraser, and then select Play now.

Once the app is launched, there are a few steps to confirm that you want to completely delete all data from your flash memory and hard drive. Select A to continue.

A second warning screen will state that all data on your Xbox 360 console will be deleted. Select A again to continue.

The HDD Eraser app will calculate how much data will be deleted.

A screen then shows an estimate of how long it will take to delete your data and “zero write” your drive so that all data will be permanently unrecoverable. Select A to continue.

To ensure that you don’t accidently run the HDD Eraser app, you will be prompted to enter a button combination to begin the erase process. On your controller, press the Y button, then the A button, and then the X button to start the process.

Once the process has started, there is no way to cancel it. Do not turn off your console or interrupt the process once it has begun.

Important If the console is unplugged or loses power in the middle of the format operation, the hard drive will become unformatted and not usable by your Xbox 360 console. If this happens, use the format function from the System Settings menu to rebuild the file system on the hard drive. Once this is done, the hard drive will be usable again by the console. For instructions on how to format a storage device for your Xbox 360 console, see “Format a storage device” at Xbox 360 storage.