Resetting your Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X is a quick and easy way to delete all the personal data you have stored on console if you are planning to sell it or give it away.
A factory reset may also help resolve crashes, glitches and other issues you have when using your game system.
You can check out this step-by-step tutorial at Seeking Tech to see how you can restore your Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X to its original factory settings.
How to factory reset Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X
In order to factor reset your Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X, you need to do the following:
1. Press the Xbox button on your controller to bring up the Guide menu.
2. From the Guide menu, navigate over to the “Profile & system” tab.
3. Once you are in the “Profile & system” tab, select Settings.
4. Inside the Settings menu, select System from the list of options on the left side.
5. In the System menu, select the “Console info.”
6. In the “System Console info” menu, select the “Reset console” option.
7. You will be asked if you want to reset your console.
Here you will have multiple options:
The “Reset and Remove Everything” option will remove all personal data, games and apps you have stored on your Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X. You can pick this option if you are planning to sell your console or give it away. This is also a last resort option if you are experiencing issues with your console.
The “Reset and Keep my Games & Apps” option will reset the Xbox operating system and will delete any corrupted data. You will be able to keep your personal data, games and apps with this option.
The last option is to simply cancel the factory reset and return to the “System Console info” menu.
How to factory reset Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X by using a USB drive
To factory reset your Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X by using a USB drive, you need to take the following steps:
1. Before we begin, it should be noted that you will need a Windows PC with internet connection and USB port. You will also need a USB flash drive that has been formatted as NTFS with at least 4 GB of space.
2. After meeting the aforementioned requirements, plug the USB flash drive to your computer.
You need to make sure you don’t have any other files on the USB flash drive. If you do, delete or move them to your PC.
3. Download the Xbox Restore Factory Defaults file to your Windows PC.
You can do so from the official Xbox website with this link.
4. If the file doesn’t save automatically, click on the Save option.
5. After the download has been completed, right click on the file and then select the “Extract all” option from the pop-up menu.
5. Next, you need to locate the $SystemUpdate file and then transfer it over to the root folder of your USB flash drive.
6. After the transfer is completed, unplug the USB flash drive from your computer.
7. On your Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X, make sure that your console is completely turned off.
8. With your game console powered off, unplug the power cable and Ethernet cable (if you are using one to connect to the Internet).
9. Wait 30 seconds.
10. After the allotted time passes, plug the power cable back into your console.
11. Plug the aforementioned USB flash drive, which has the $SystemUpdate file on its root folder, to a USB port on your console.
12. If you have an Xbox Series S, you need to press and hold the Pair and Xbox buttons on the console for 10 to 15 seconds.
If you have an Xbox Series X, you need to press and hold the Pair and Eject buttons on the console for 10 to 15 seconds.
13. You should hear two power-up tones from your console when holding the correct button combinations.
The first tone indicates that the console has detected an update from the USB flash drive.
The second tone indicates that the update file from the USB flash drive has been installed.
13. After hearing the second power-up tone, you can release the two buttons you have been holding down.
14. The console will then reboot.
15. After your Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X has been rebooted, you can safely unplug the USB flash drive from the console’s USB port.