How do I get started using a USB flash drive and how do I set up a security system?

You see the following error message when you try to sign in to Xbox Live:

Sorry, something's wrong with your Microsoft account. Go to https://account.live.com for help.
Status code 8015D003

This may mean that there's a problem with your Xbox profile.


Solutions

To resolve this issue, try the following solutions.
Solution 1: Verify your Microsoft account security information

1. Go to Microsoft account. If you forgot your password or it doesn't work, reset your password.)
2. Click Edit security info.
3. Verify your security information. For example, verify the Phone number, Alternate email address, and Security question information.
4. Sign out of your Microsoft account, and then sign in again.
5. Try to sign in to Xbox Live again.

Solution 2: Clear the system cache

1. Press the Guide button on your controller.
2. Go to settings and select System Settings.
3. Select Storage or Memory.
4. Highlight any storage device, and then press Y on your controller. (It doesn't matter which storage device you select; the cache will be cleared for all storage devices.)
5. Select Clear System Cache.
   Note Repeat this step three times.
6. When you are prompted to confirm storage device maintenance, select Yes.
7. Repeat steps 4-6 three times to fully clear the cache.

Solution 3: Move and then redownload your Xbox Live profile
Note If you want to use a USB flash drive or a USB hard drive to complete these steps, you must format the USB flash drive or USB hard drive for Xbox storage. (See USB flash drive support for Xbox 360.)

1. Move your profile to a USB flash drive or USB hard drive. To do this, follow these steps:
   1. Plug the USB drive into your console.
   2. From the Dashboard, go to settings and select Storage.
   3. Select All Devices.
   4. Select Profiles, and then select your gamer profile.
   5. Select Move.
   6. Select the Memory Unit that you want to move your profile to.
      Note A Memory Unit can be a USB flash drive, a USB hard drive, or the Xbox 360 Hard Drive. Be sure that you move the profile to a USB flash drive or a USB hard drive.
   7. Remove the Memory Unit from your console.
2. Redownload your profile. For details, see Download, move, or delete your Xbox Live profile.

USB flash drives are small, convenient storage drives. Place data such as pictures, photos and text on them quickly and efficiently and then carry it to another computer for copying to its hard drive.

A USB flash drive that has security enabled in it must be 'unlocked" before it can be used, which becomes difficult if the password has been lost. Because the security on the USB flash drive is rudimentary, a number of methods, from built-in software to optional programs, can remove the security so that the drive can be used.

Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the PC. Right-click on the icon of the USB flash drive when it appears on the desktop of a Windows-based computer. Select "Format" from the pop-up menu. Follow the command prompts in the window that appears to format the USB flash drive. Click "Done" in the confirmation window when it appears. The USB flash drive can now be used because the security has been removed from its storage space. Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the Mac. Double-click on the Mac's Disk Utility program, which comes free with the OS X operating system and is in the "Utilities" folder on the hard drive. Select the icon of the USB flash drive in the left column of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Select the "Erase" tab at the top of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Click on the "Format" check box on the right side of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Select "Fat (32)" from the drop down menu below the "Format" check box. Click "Format" at the bottom of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Click "Format", again, in the confirmation box that appears. Quit the Disk Utility program when the formatting is done. The USB flash drive can now be used because the security has been removed from its storage space. Download a password protection program to the computer's desktop; for example, the free TrueCrypt password protection program (see the link Below). http://www.truecrypt.org/downloads Double-click on the icon of the password protection program when it has fully downloaded. Follow the command prompts to install the program onto the computer's hard drive. Restart the PC after the installation has been completed. Double-click on the password protection program to launch it. Wait for the password protection program to recognize the USB flash drive and display disc letters for the drives attached to the computer in the left column of its main program screen. Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the computer. Wait for a letter to appear in the left column of the password protection program's main screen. Use the mouse to click once on this letter which represents the USB flash drive. Click on the "Volume" or "Volume Tools" button to open a new window. Click on the "Next" button in the new window. Erase the password in the "Password" column of the new window that appears. Erase the password in the "Confirm password" column. Click on the "Next" button to go to a new screen. Select "Traveler Disk Setup" from the drop down menu below "Tools" at the top of the password protection screen. Click on the "Open Explorer window for mounted volume" check box in the new window that appears. Click the "Create" button at the bottom of the window. Click the "OK" button on the confirmation window when it appears. Quit the password protection program. Drag the icon of the USB flash drive to the Trash or right-click on it and select "Eject" from the pop-up menu. Remove the USB flash drive from the computer's USB port. Plug the connector of the USB flash drive back into the computer's USB port. Double-click on the icon of the USB flash drive when it appears on the desktop to open its window now that the security password has been removed. Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the PC. Go to "Start" and select "Run" from the pop-up menu. Enter "regedit" into the text column that appears and press the "enter" key to run the registry editor. Press the "Browse" button on the registry editor's main screen and navigate to the following path on the computer's hard drive: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\StorageDevicePolicies" Click "OK" to close the window. Double-click on the "WriteProtect" text that is in the right column of the registry editor's main screen. Enter "O" into the "Value Data box" in the window that appears. Click on the "OK" button to close the window. Quit the registry editor program. Restart the PC. Double-click on the icon of the USB flash drive that is on the desktop to open its window and access the files now that the security write protection has been removed.

Hope this helps.

USB flash drives are small, convenient storage drives. Place data such as pictures, photos and text on them quickly and efficiently and then carry it to another computer for copying to its hard drive.

A USB flash drive that has security enabled in it must be 'unlocked" before it can be used, which becomes difficult if the password has been lost. Because the security on the USB flash drive is rudimentary, a number of methods, from built-in software to optional programs, can remove the security so that the drive can be used.

Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the PC. Right-click on the icon of the USB flash drive when it appears on the desktop of a Windows-based computer. Select "Format" from the pop-up menu. Follow the command prompts in the window that appears to format the USB flash drive. Click "Done" in the confirmation window when it appears. The USB flash drive can now be used because the security has been removed from its storage space. Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the Mac. Double-click on the Mac's Disk Utility program, which comes free with the OS X operating system and is in the "Utilities" folder on the hard drive. Select the icon of the USB flash drive in the left column of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Select the "Erase" tab at the top of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Click on the "Format" check box on the right side of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Select "Fat (32)" from the drop down menu below the "Format" check box. Click "Format" at the bottom of the Disk Utility program's main screen. Click "Format", again, in the confirmation box that appears. Quit the Disk Utility program when the formatting is done. The USB flash drive can now be used because the security has been removed from its storage space. Download a password protection program to the computer's desktop; for example, the free TrueCrypt password protection program (see the link Below). http://www.truecrypt.org/downloads Double-click on the icon of the password protection program when it has fully downloaded. Follow the command prompts to install the program onto the computer's hard drive. Restart the PC after the installation has been completed. Double-click on the password protection program to launch it. Wait for the password protection program to recognize the USB flash drive and display disc letters for the drives attached to the computer in the left column of its main program screen. Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the computer. Wait for a letter to appear in the left column of the password protection program's main screen. Use the mouse to click once on this letter which represents the USB flash drive. Click on the "Volume" or "Volume Tools" button to open a new window. Click on the "Next" button in the new window. Erase the password in the "Password" column of the new window that appears. Erase the password in the "Confirm password" column. Click on the "Next" button to go to a new screen. Select "Traveler Disk Setup" from the drop down menu below "Tools" at the top of the password protection screen. Click on the "Open Explorer window for mounted volume" check box in the new window that appears. Click the "Create" button at the bottom of the window. Click the "OK" button on the confirmation window when it appears. Quit the password protection program. Drag the icon of the USB flash drive to the Trash or right-click on it and select "Eject" from the pop-up menu. Remove the USB flash drive from the computer's USB port. Plug the connector of the USB flash drive back into the computer's USB port. Double-click on the icon of the USB flash drive when it appears on the desktop to open its window now that the security password has been removed. Plug the USB connector of the USB flash drive into a USB port on the PC. Go to "Start" and select "Run" from the pop-up menu. Enter "regedit" into the text column that appears and press the "enter" key to run the registry editor. Press the "Browse" button on the registry editor's main screen and navigate to the following path on the computer's hard drive: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\StorageDevicePolicies" Click "OK" to close the window. Double-click on the "WriteProtect" text that is in the right column of the registry editor's main screen. Enter "O" into the "Value Data box" in the window that appears. Click on the "OK" button to close the window. Quit the registry editor program. Restart the PC. Double-click on the icon of the USB flash drive that is on the desktop to open its window and access the files now that the security write protection has been removed.

Hope this helps.

Do other devices work at those ports? If you are using a hub, try a different port directly on the computer (if you haven't tried them)? (It's not clear from your description of the problem.)

If other devices do not work, check if the USB ports are disabled for security or power-savings. (The first is in the Device Manager (Windows 7 - Start > Control Panel > System and Security > System). The second is in the advanced settings from the Screen Saver (Right click on the desktop and chose Personalize, then Screen Saver then Change Power Settings).)

For a laptop, you might try turning off the computer and removing the battery, power cord and all peripherals for several minutes before reconnecting. Otherwise try to update the USB drivers or uninstall them and let the computer reinstall them.

If only the flash drive doesn't work, check if it will work on another computer. If it doesn't, it probably has failed. The pins on the USB connector can get damaged or the flash memory can fail. Recovering the data from the drive may be possible for a company that specializes in the service (but is not a given). If your flash drive is under warranty, the company will replace it but will not recover your data.

I hope this helps.

Cindy Wells

To update on Xbox LIVE:

1. Connect your Xbox 360 console to the internet. If your console is not connected already, see Connect to Xbox LIVE.
2. On the console, go to My Xbox, and then select System Settings.
3. Select Network Settings.
4. Select Wired Network or the name of your wireless network if you are prompted to do so.
5. Select Test Xbox LIVE Connection.
6. Select Yes if you are prompted to update console software.

Copy the Update to a USB Flash Drive If you don't have an Xbox LIVE account or have a slow Internet connection, using a USB flash drive is a good option.
Note: The USB flash drive must use the FAT32 file system.
Update using a USB flash drive:

1. Connect your USB flash drive to a USB port on your computer.
2. Click here to begin downloading the update folder. Save it as "$SystemUpdate9199.zip" anywhere on your computer.
3. Unzip the File.
4. Copy the contents from the unzipped folder onto the root of your flash drive.
5. Safely remove the flash drive from your computer and plug it into a USB port on your Xbox 360 console. If your console is on, turn it off, then back on. The update program will start automatically.
6. Select Yes when you are prompted to update the console software.

Flash drives are used like floppy discs. Take off the cover, plug in the drive to a USB port and wait for the computer to acknowledge it. Usually it will get a drive letter assignment of E: unless you have multiple optical drives or a card reader that may have that drive letter in use. Transfer files by copying them in the file explorer. I like to have two windows open (one with the folder the file is starting in and the other the window for the contents of the flash drive).

Alternatively, open the file in the appropriate program and (for most OS versions) File > Save As and browse to the flash drive. Check the file name and click OK.

To use a file on any computer, open the file explorer and browse to the flash drive. Double click on the file and the associated program (or another that handles that file type) will open if it is on that computer. Then you can edit the file. If you are using a different computer, when you return to your main computer. Transfer the file back to the Documents (My Documents) or other folder in the File Explorer.

Make sure the USB port is active (try another if the flash drive doesn't work). Some USB ports can be disabled for power savings or security. On Windows the first is an Advanced Setting from the screen saver. The second is found in the device manager (Control Panel > System and Security > System for Win7).

I hope this helps.

Cindy Wells

Check for a write-protection switch. This switch, when engaged, will lock the contents of the flash drive and is a very common security feature. It is generally located on the side of the flash drive, and has an "enabled" or "on" position, and an "off" position. Slide this into the "off" position.

Override password security. If your flash drive has password security, but you have forgotten the code, you can try to override the security feature by going to the Start menu and selecting "Run." A dialogue box will pop up, into which you should type in the path to the file on the USB drive you want to access. Note: This only works on USB drives with very simple security. If the security is complex, this will not wor

3Format the flash drive. If nothing else works, you can always format your USB flash drive, which will set all your write protections back to default. From there, you can customize them however you want, but all your data will be lost. To format the flash drive, go to the My Computer, right-click your drive and select "Format." A status bar will pop up. Once the status bar disappears, you can change the write-protection settings on your flash drive without incident.

If you have a write-protected flash drive that you need to access, it can be difficult to change it to allow you access, especially if it is a security-optimized flash drive. However, there are a few practical steps you can take to change the write-protection on a flash drive.


#1

Check for a write-protection switch. This switch, when engaged, will lock the contents of the flash drive and is a very common security feature. It is generally located on the side of the flash drive, and has an "enabled" or "on" position, and an "off" position. Slide this into the "off" position.

#2

Override password security. If your flash drive has password security, but you have forgotten the code, you can try to override the security feature by going to the Start menu and selecting "Run." A dialogue box will pop up, into which you should type in the path to the file on the USB drive you want to access. Note: This only works on USB drives with very simple security. If the security is complex, this will not work.

#3

Format the flash drive. If nothing else works, you can always format your USB flash drive, which will set all your write protections back to default. From there, you can customize them however you want, but all your data will be lost. To format the flash drive, go to the My Computer, right-click your drive and select "Format." A status bar will pop up. Once the status bar disappears, you can change the write-protection settings on your flash drive without incident.

Hope this might help

Thanks

Most flash drives are formatted in FAT32 - back up your data first. You may be able to reformat the drive in XP and higher versions of Windows. Start > Control Panel > System (System and Security in Win7) > Administrative Tools > Computer Management > Storage > DisK Management. Make sure the USB drive is not active (ready to remove). Delete the current volume (Action > All Tasks) on the flash drive. Then format the USB drive using the NTFS standard. (Make sure you do not reformat C: unless you are prepared to reinstall your OS)

A simpler way to get more data on a FAT32 drive is to use folders. The total number of files in the home directory (E: (if C: is the hard drive and D: is the optical drive)) is the critical limit on a FAT32 drive. (I remember a limit of 512 files but that might have been FAT16).

Third-party partitioning solutions can also be used.

I hope this helps.

Cindy Wells.