New Xbox Console Update Essentially Removes External Storage Drive Limits

Microsoft has shared good news for Xbox users: They are going to make it possible to use external USB drives with sizes larger than 16TB on their consoles. This feature is currently being tested by members of the Xbox Insiders program, specifically those who have reached the Alpha Skip-Ahead tier. It’s expected to be available for everyone in a few weeks.

Microsoft announced that they now support external USB drives exceeding 16TB, ensuring your favorite games are easily accessible at any time. To maximize the space on these larger drives, newly formatted ones will be divided into several partitions to accommodate games and applications. Consequently, you’ll notice multiple devices listed under storage devices.

Individuals with external hard drives larger than 16TB that have been previously formatted won’t experience any issues with this update, as Microsoft mentioned. However, it’s important to reformat these devices in order to utilize the improved support.

It’s also worth mentioning that games optimized for Xbox Series X|S consoles can’t be played directly from an external USB drive. Instead, they can be utilized to store game data which can then be transferred onto the console’s SSD or an NvME SSD expansion card.

Since there was no specification about a new capacity limit for an external drive in the blog post, it appears that if you want to store plenty of data, using a high-capacity external hard drive such as a Seagate 24TB model could be suitable for storing backups of your games.

It’s great news for those aiming to maintain a vast collection of games, as game install sizes have been growing year by year. A storage capacity of 16TB is certainly sufficient for a multitude of indie and previous-generation titles. However, modern games such as Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, and Stalker 2: Shadow of Chornobyl tend to consume significant storage space.

For Xbox updates, the inaugural Developer Direct livestream of 2025 commences on January 23. Among the games showcased will be South of Midnight and Doom: The Dark Ages, along with a secret title that Xbox is saving for the event. Additionally, Game Pass members can preview the fresh additions and departures in the service this month.

Read More

2025-01-22 18:39