The beta was scheduled some time ago, but it has been pushed back while a few things are fixed and added. (Installed game support, STFS metadata, UI tweaks)

It’s pretty close to being ready, but I have no ETA. Keep watching the site for updates!

It’s been quiet on here lately. FATXplorer v2.5 is almost done and I want to start getting the hype going. I am proud of what I have created in the past few months and I am thrilled to finally share this feature that has been kept secret for many months.

FATXplorer is an explorer for the file system we all know as FATX. Ever since version 1.0, many designs have been drafted and pushed out into the public domain in the form of releases. I thought I hit the perfect design in version 2.0. Inspired by the FlashFXP FTP application, I created a simple file transfer system between two windows. It seemed like a good idea at first, but as development progressed, the scale of just creating the browser extended to the point where it was difficult to manage. As a single developer, it is very difficult to replicate professionally created solutions. The current version of FATXplorer still features this FXP styled transfer system. However, it isn’t the way I had envisioned it in the beginning.

After the release of v2.0.4, I was seriously considering another design. I didn’t like the current browser. It is slow and not as efficient as browsers such as Windows Explorer. I thought for a few weeks on some new designs until something came to mind. “Why reinvent the wheel?” is the exact phrase that came to mind.

Windows Explorer is a beautiful, efficient, and seemingly flawless file system browser. Ideas of integration came to mind. After some research online, I discovered the technology required to integrate FATXplorer into Windows.

How is this going to work? It’s time to show you the most exciting feature coming in v2.5 that is going to eliminate that extra step.

Starting in v2.5, you will immediately notice a redesigned device detection system. All devices are loaded into a panel where you choose what you want to do with them. I this case, we are focusing on the Windows Integration button.

*Click*

You can integrate any partition on the storage device into Windows as virtual disks that function the same way as a flash drive. One you select “Done”, it processes the device and this is the result:

If I wasn’t the developer, but a visitor who just saw those pictures, the reaction would be hard to describe, but it would probably involve my jaw dropping to very low levels.

Moving on, what you are seeing now is the Content Partition of my memory unit integrated into Windows. So what can I do now? Everything…

Explore the depths of my device:

Edit files directly on the device. No extraction. No injection. Just do what you do every day: right-click a file and open in something:

Open my game saves in my favorite editors. Browse the disk folder structure just like you would on your computer:

Those are all the pictures I have to show you. Basically, everything you can do on a flash drive you can do here. Copy, move, delete, create files and folders, browse folders, edit files directly, use the Windows right-click menu, and more! The features go on and on. You should read the Windows Explorer documentation for more information.

Also, IO operations are fast. Not quite as fast as FAT32 (performance tests were run), but it is pretty close in performance.

Eliminating that extra step

To further elaborate on the tagline of this feature, consider the following flow charts:

Normal Device Explorers: Find file on device->Extract file->modify file->inject file

Technical details of the above: Consider the file to be 60 MB in size. All 60 MB are read from the device and written to your computer. You then modify which is likely to be a small amount of data in the file. Then, 60 MB of data is read and then written back to the device. That’s a lot of IO, which is time you spend just sitting there watching progress bars.

FATXplorer v2.5: Find file on device->modify file->save file

Technical details of the above: Consider the file to be 60 MB in size. In whatever application you use, the file data will be carefully handled by Windows. It will only read the file data you want to use, which is rarely the whole file. So if you want to modify a small amount of data, it is only going to read and write a small amount of data. This is a huge improvement from the previous step.

Eliminating that extra step means eliminating the extraction and injection step. Which both of those steps eliminated, you can manage your Xbox 360 storage devices in a much more efficient manner.

Thank you for reading. Beta testers will be encouraged to test this feature during their testing period. This feature is due in the complete v2.5 release, which will also feature USB formatting beyond 16 GB.

This is going to be a great release. Make sure to subscribe for the latest news regarding FATXplorer v2.5.

Also, remember that all upgrades are free. Prices on v2.5 have not been finalized yet. Buy FATXplorer now and get a free upgrade to v2.5 once it is released! Select the “Purchase” tab up top for more information.

v2.5 of FATXplorer is almost here. It is bigger than ever, meaning there is more room for problems. As 1 developer, it is difficult to find every single problem by myself.

Help make the v2.5 release the biggest and best release ever by volunteering to test. To volunteer, please post a message in the comments detailing how you would help test and what you have available to you (storage device wise).

NOTE: You can only test if you are a licensed customer. This is a technical preview, so if you are not are technically advanced user, it is not recommended that you try out these builds.

Accepted candidates will be emailed with links to the beta builds. Make sure your email on this site is accurate!

I look forward to seeing some comments!

~Eaton

Testing completed, update coming within the next few days.

I am testing out some new partition code and I want to make sure it will work with OEM drives before I push out an update.

By OEM drives, I mean a drive that is genuine and recognizable by a retail system. Basically, a drive with a valid security sector.

If you have any of the below drives that are not crossed out, please comment or send a message to support.

20 GB

60 GB

120 GB

250 GB

320 GB