HOW TO: Hotswap with XboxHDM v1.9 (Super Tutorial)

I was reading a tut in xboxscene(the art of hotswapping)that says that u can/should backup your /C using XBROWSER. Should i and can u tell me how? that tut is saying stuff that yours doesn't.

 

Q) You can/should backup your /C using XBROWSER. True?

A) Not really. You can easily download a clean copy of the C:\ files (Link provided)


Q) After the xboxhdm is installed, the pc shuts off!?

A) Unless your PC is a mind reader it can't turn itself off. Also, XboxHDM doesn't install, it's merely the vehicle that allows us to prepare and reformat the drive.

Basically, once you get to the end of the XboxHDM preparation, you can shut down the PC yourself, just not the Xbox.


Q) I don't want to blow my pc up!

A) Unless you fall over the PC, spill a drink into it or start poking it with a screwdriver, the chances of doing any damage to the PC are minuscule at best. Maybe 1\500...

 

Hi,

I am trying to do a hotswap following the tutorial. When I get to the part where you type in xboxhd and hit enter, I get a mssg saying "No disk drive found on /dev/hda (Primary Master)!"

I have 1 cable from the motherboard to my cd drive, and another from the motherboard to the hard drive on the xbox.

Does anybody know why it can't find the xbox hd?

Thanks
sheeshman

 

You've definitely done the first part of the tutorial correct? The Xbox HDD is being powered from the Xbox and you have an Error 12 on your screen!?

 

Hi,

Yep I am getting an error 12 after I unplug the DVD on the Xbox.

My original error is 16. (It's my nephew's box and he tried some kind of softmod and messed up his dashboard)

I tried it like 10 times and got the same mssg.

For the heck of it I tried a reboot from the recovery screen (leaving the xbox hd connected to my computer and the recovery disc in the cd tray.

My computer (and the recovery program) did recognize the seagate hd from the xbox (ST310014ACE) but said it was "locked". And I went into my bios and verified that the seagate was the master primary and the cd is the secondary.

Thanks for any help you can give me. Maybe it's my timing on removing the IDE cord on the box?

 

No, the Error 12 takes the "timing" out of the equation.

The Hotswap procedure allows us to bypass the locked stage and manipulate the drive.

Just ensure that after the Error 12, you unplug the DVD IDE cable, connect the PC IDE cable to it (Error 12 still on the screen and XboxHDM already loaded to first screen) that you allow a minute for the drive to be recognised!

Also ensure that your BIOS is set to 'Auto'.

 

Sorry to be a pain, but yes I was doing it like the tutorial says using the error 12 to get the unlock, but when I type in xdboxhd, the hard drive is not even recoginized.

 

It says nothing is connected to the /dev/hda primary master (or something like that)

Everything starts out fine (comp bios on auto detect with just the cd connected and powered and nothing else, error 12 on xbox with dvd unplugged on xbox, recovery prog running on comp, plug comp primary ide ribbon to xbox hd, wait for comp to recgonize hd, enter 1) but when I type xboxhd, I get "nothing is connected to the /dev/hda primary master" (or something like that)

Oh well. If anyone has any other ideas of what I could be doing wrong any info would be appreciated. I can't figure out why my comp cant recgonize the xbox hd until I tried a reboot, even with the bios on auto detect. (yes I know I am not supposed to reboot but I just wanted to see if the comp would/could identify the xbox hd even if it's locked)

 

Not sure why it doesn't work! Are you using the version XboxHDM i provided?

Try a different cable, also try booting the Xbox without unplugging the DVD and see if the white 'Microsoft' comes up!

 

Nope, no white Microsoft logo. It goes from the Xbox logo straight to error 16 with all cables plugged in, and from the Xbox logo straight to error 12 with the DVD cable unplugged.

And it sounds like the hd clicks only once on startup in any situation. Guess I got a paperweight.

 

Hmm, if she was dead you'd get an Error 7, not 16!

Strange one.

Only thing I can suggest is to try a different PC. Some motherboards just don't like our process!

Old PC's work good (P3, etc)

 

First off, thanks for the guide. I was getting error code 16 on boot. :-( Followed your guide, and error code 16 is gone! Now I'm getting a 5 on bootup. I'm guessing it's because I used HDD Unlock to unlock it. That's because XboxHDM said my drive was locked. MHDD didn't work, I have an ST310014ACE so the firmware trick doesn't apply, and I was desperate. Thing is, I don't have a backup of the EEPROM (stupid me, I know).

Now, your guide says that your method works for people who don't have their EEPROM, but I'm guessing you didn't factor in someone using HDD Unlock as part of the process. I don't have an EEPROM reader device, and I don't think I have the chops to construct one on my own. Am I boned, or is there some solution to my error code 5 that I missed out on in all my frantic thread-crawling today?

 

Sadly your only course of action now is either an eeprom reader or a modchip!

 

Was given another xbox over the weekend and its displaying error 16, so thought Id have a go at fixing it with xboxhdm, im following the guide to the point where I type "xboxhd" I get an error saying the xbox hard drive is locked and some options will be disabled if I continue

Im starting the xbox with the DVD IDE unplugged so I would of thought that would of unlocked the HD, anyideas on how to fix this so I can continue ?

 

@chunkhead - thanks anyway. I figured as much. Ah well, at least that'll avoid problems like this in the future.

@jakks - that's exactly what happened to me, which is why I resorted to HDD Unlock. Don't do that unless you have your EEPROM to relock it afterwards. I just learned the hard way.

 

Ive had another go

This time I didnt unplug the DVD drive so I got error 16

xboxhdm found the HD, got to the part where Its says

Building C - Drive

then I get this error when it starts to crete drive E

Building E - Drive
mount : mounting /dev/hda50 on /xbox_tmp failed : invalid argument
Continue copying files from /xbohdm/e (yes/no)

I can click yes, but it just goes back to the screen when I select new hard drive from scratch, plugged everything back into, reset the console and I still get error 16 :S

Any clues ?

 

Do you guys have a v1.6 Xbox by any chance?

You can also try the original method for removing the HDD...

Simply unplug the Xbox HDD when the white microsft logo comes up (but Error 16 doesn't display this...)

 

Im using v1.9

Think Ill have ago at what you've suggested above if that doesnt work, think Ive got a paperweight

UPDATE : Doesnt work, So Ive given up

 

Chunckhead i have a question. I don't know if its possible, can you replace an unlocked hard drive by doing a hotswap and let the xbox attempt to lock it? My cousin doesn't own a own a computer and some how he got ahold of a 120 gig hard drive for his birthday and wants to upgrade. I guess the hard drive birthday present was an indirect statement or insult to my uncle from his boss for him not to be so tight with his money. Out here in Mexico especially in a small town where agriculture is the economic revenue, where im at right now on vacation, there are not many pc available and I cannot open a pc in the Cyber Palacio so that I can lock the drive. The manager got all paranoid. I guess i'll just pay him 200 pesos for it and bring it back with me to the states if it can’t be lock this way.