XB1 Hard Resets are a good idea! (Thanks, Snowowl!)

[Madd_Hurricane]

I created this thread to get the word out that doing a hard reset at least once a week like I do can help with some issues, and you should make it a habit to hard reset your XB1 console. Follow these steps:1: Push and hold the lighted X on your console (not your controller) for a few seconds until your console shuts down.2: WAIT until the light on the power brick turns orange, then remove the plug from the wall or the wall-side plug from the power brick.3: WAIT until the power brick light turns off entirely, then remove the power plug from the back of your console.4: WAIT about 3 minutes, then insert the power plug back into your console.5: Insert the wall-side plug into the wall or power brick (whichever one you unplugged from). The power brick light should briefly light up white, then turn orange.6: Turn your console on, and wait until it fully boots up before attempting anything.Big thanks to Snowowl for sharing these tips! Feel free to correct me if any info is incorrect.

[Speedster996]

Bit of a silly question, I know, but is hard-resetting the console bad for it? I do it once, sometimes twice a week just to keep it running smoothly, not that I run into any issues if I don’t. But you are force-shutting it down - you think it cause undue wear and tear on the hardware?

[Madd_Hurricane]

@Speedster996

Bit of a silly question, I know, but is hard-resetting the console bad for it? I do it once, sometimes twice a week just to keep it running smoothly, not that I run into any issues if I don’t. But you are force-shutting it down - you think it cause undue wear and tear on the hardware?

I don’t think once a week will cause unnecessary wear and tear on your console. I probably wouldn’t do more than that, though, unless you have a game or system update, in which case you should ALWAYS hard reset your console immediately after the update is complete. I personally do my weekly hard reset on Tuesday since that’s when most of Forza’s updates come out anyway, so that the post-update hard reset would also count as my weekly hard reset. Occasionally, an update will land on a different day of the week and I end up having to do another hard reset, but it’s hard to plan in advance when they don’t give advance notice of some of their updates.

[Speed_Demon996]

@Hurricane221798

@Speedster996

Bit of a silly question, I know, but is hard-resetting the console bad for it? I do it once, sometimes twice a week just to keep it running smoothly, not that I run into any issues if I don’t. But you are force-shutting it down - you think it cause undue wear and tear on the hardware?

I don’t think once a week will cause unnecessary wear and tear on your console. I probably wouldn’t do more than that, though, unless you have a game or system update, in which case you should ALWAYS hard reset your console immediately after the update is complete. I personally do my weekly hard reset on Tuesday since that’s when most of Forza’s updates come out anyway, so that the post-update hard reset would also count as my weekly hard reset. Occasionally, an update will land on a different day of the week and I end up having to do another hard reset, but it’s hard to plan in advance when they don’t give advance notice of some of their updates.

This is useful info, think I should start hard-resetting my console too every now and then. Why is it necessary to do HRs after updates?

[Madd_Hurricane]

@Speed_Demon996

@Hurricane221798

@Speedster996

Bit of a silly question, I know, but is hard-resetting the console bad for it? I do it once, sometimes twice a week just to keep it running smoothly, not that I run into any issues if I don’t. But you are force-shutting it down - you think it cause undue wear and tear on the hardware?

I don’t think once a week will cause unnecessary wear and tear on your console. I probably wouldn’t do more than that, though, unless you have a game or system update, in which case you should ALWAYS hard reset your console immediately after the update is complete. I personally do my weekly hard reset on Tuesday since that’s when most of Forza’s updates come out anyway, so that the post-update hard reset would also count as my weekly hard reset. Occasionally, an update will land on a different day of the week and I end up having to do another hard reset, but it’s hard to plan in advance when they don’t give advance notice of some of their updates.

This is useful info, think I should start hard-resetting my console too every now and then. Why is it necessary to do HRs after updates?

It’s no different than when your computer tells you that updates are available and that applying those updates will require that you restart your computer, and once you hit “Restart” it will install those updates right before it shuts itself down and then turns itself back on. This is so that your computer runs more smoothly. The same principle applies for XB1 as hard resetting your console right after ANY update is complete will allow your console to run more smoothly. In the early days of me having my XB1, I didn’t know about the hard reset technique and so after just several updates my console seemed to be a bit slow at times, and once I learned about the hard reset technique I tried it and it made a big difference in performance, so now I do it after ANY update (game or system), and I suggest you do so as well.

[xJeffmanx]

@Hurricane221798

It’s no different than when your computer tells you that updates are available and that applying those updates will require that you restart your computer, and once you hit “Restart” it will install those updates right before it shuts itself down and then turns itself back on. This is so that your computer runs more smoothly.

This actually isn’t correct. Your computer restarts when it’s doing certain updates only due to the fact that it can’t update some of the system files while they are in use by the operating system. It has nothing to do with keeping it running smoothly, it’s just so that it can process the updates during the reboot cycle when the files aren’t being used.

Of course, rebooting any device once a week or so if it’s constantly powered on is a great idea, simply to clear out anything running in memory/cache and give it a fresh slate to work with. If you power off your console and keep it in energy saving mode, then there shouldn’t be any reason to follow this “hard reboot” once a week. If you leave it in instant-on mode, then it’s probably not a bad idea to restart it or give it this hard reset from time to time.

Personally, I keep mine in instant-on mode, and I restart it about once every two weeks. I only hard-reset it if it acts up for any reason.

[SatNiteEduardo]

@xJeffmanx

If you power off your console and keep it in energy saving mode, then there shouldn’t be any reason to follow this “hard reboot” once a week.

This actually isn’t correct.

I have used energy save mode since launch and whilst that does “minimize” the recurrence of most issues there are some that do need a reboot and for some reason it appears Forzathon needs hard reboots as opposed to energy save mode.

My console gets turned off daily but still has problems so each Friday before I do Forzathon I do a hard reset now.

I suspect the logic for this is that the console actually is not fully off even in energy save mode.

[Speed_Demon996]

@Hurricane221798

@Speed_Demon996

@Hurricane221798

@Speedster996

Bit of a silly question, I know, but is hard-resetting the console bad for it? I do it once, sometimes twice a week just to keep it running smoothly, not that I run into any issues if I don’t. But you are force-shutting it down - you think it cause undue wear and tear on the hardware?

I don’t think once a week will cause unnecessary wear and tear on your console. I probably wouldn’t do more than that, though, unless you have a game or system update, in which case you should ALWAYS hard reset your console immediately after the update is complete. I personally do my weekly hard reset on Tuesday since that’s when most of Forza’s updates come out anyway, so that the post-update hard reset would also count as my weekly hard reset. Occasionally, an update will land on a different day of the week and I end up having to do another hard reset, but it’s hard to plan in advance when they don’t give advance notice of some of their updates.

This is useful info, think I should start hard-resetting my console too every now and then. Why is it necessary to do HRs after updates?

It’s no different than when your computer tells you that updates are available and that applying those updates will require that you restart your computer, and once you hit “Restart” it will install those updates right before it shuts itself down and then turns itself back on. This is so that your computer runs more smoothly. The same principle applies for XB1 as hard resetting your console right after ANY update is complete will allow your console to run more smoothly. In the early days of me having my XB1, I didn’t know about the hard reset technique and so after just several updates my console seemed to be a bit slow at times, and once I learned about the hard reset technique I tried it and it made a big difference in performance, so now I do it after ANY update (game or system), and I suggest you do so as well.

Oh, I see. Well, why can’t I just give it the Restart command? Do I absolutely have to hard reset?

[Tatl360]

Wouldn’t be easier to just set up your console to the “slower start up” mode? (I forgot the name, should be something to save energy)

Or just unplug it for the night. The internals of the AC brick are not magical, they don’t store energy forever you know…

This whole remove power plug is just not a good idea. It will become loose. I remember reading in forums (because I’m not one who does this) people claiming their Xbox 360 cables were all loose because they used to remove it “displicently”. (I don’t know if this word exists in english but it seems to fit these: “blithe”, “feckless”, “careless”)

Also, FYI, it’s explicitly written on the Nintendo 64 (!) insctruction booklet to avoid unplugging cables unnecessarily.

[SatNiteEduardo]

@Tatl360

Wouldn’t be easier to just set up your console to the “slower start up” mode? (I forgot the name, should be something to save energy)

Or just unplug it for the night. The internals of the AC brick are not magical, they don’t store energy forever you know…

This whole remove power plug is just not a good idea. It will become loose. I remember reading in forums (because I’m not one who does this) people claiming their Xbox 360 cables were all loose because they used to remove it “displicently”. (I don’t know if this word exists in english but it seems to fit these: “blithe”, “feckless”, “careless”)

Also, FYI, it’s explicitly written on the Nintendo 64 (!) insctruction booklet to avoid unplugging cables unnecessarily.

Yes turning off at the power point achieves the same thing.

But unplugging should not damage anything unless people do so by tugging the cord rather than correctly holding the plug.

[Speed_Demon996]

Hey, I always keep my console on Energy Saving mode. I turn off power to the brick from the wall outlet, so I don’t have to remove the plug. I think you can get a socket installed in you wall that comes with a power cutoff switch.