Xbox 360 Bad Storage

Bad Storage is a project for unlocking up to 2 TB internal storage for those using the Xbox 360 Bad Update exploit.

How it works

When the Xbox 360 kernel initializes the disk at boot time, the security sector is verified and if the disk size is larger than the size indicated in the security sector, the disk size will be truncated to match it. This is why drives larger than 500 GB can’t be used in their full capacity.

Beta 36 introduces a tweak to the HDD formatting process. The root cluster is set to 0, which is invalid. This results in the kernel loading the partition, but all attempts to do anything with it will fail because the kernel now sees the root directory as corrupt. This is important to avoid the system adding content (like the Cache folder) that would result in actually corrupting your data. What Bad Storage does is:

  1. Unmount the partition.
  2. Modify kernel partition objects to utilize the full disk capacity.
  3. Patch the kernel to always use the correct root cluster value.
  4. Re-mount the partition.

This results in your drive’s full capacity being unlocked while also supporting avatars and OG Xbox backwards compatibility.

Bad Storage Release History

DateVersionNotes
10/13/20251Initial release

How to get it

Download the latest XeUnshackle which has it built-in

Or, for advanced users, compile it yourself using the source code on GitHub.

Non-genuine drives

You still CANNOT use just any drive for this. Here is why. When a genuine disk is loaded, the kernel objects are all set up, the partitions, including the backwards compatibility and avatar ones, are loaded and applied. When a drive fails verification, none of that happens. Even if there was a way to reload everything after boot, the avatar update requires a reboot to apply, resulting in a loop that would ultimately end in a compromised experience.

Fortunately, this should not be much of a concern. Thanks to SSD Maker, it is easy to set up a 2 TB SSD for use with this.

It is possible this may change in the future as the community continues to build on the Bad Update exploit but this is the reality at this moment in time.

Hard-drives vs. solid-state drives

It is recommended that SSDs are used because flashable ones can be easily found new today. While you can use hard-drives, even 3.5″ ones, they will need to be pre-2020 Western Digitals. It is unlikely HDD Maker will expand support beyond that, so choose an SSD instead. 🙂

Supported drives

Refer to the list here for SSDs that will work. For HDDs, any pre-2020 Western Digital will work.

Step by step instructions

  1. Purchase a compatible large capacity SSD. More info here.
  2. Flash the SSD using FATXplorer’s Xbox 360 SSD Maker.
  3. Format it as an Xbox 360 HDD in FATXplorer’s Formatting Tools. You will get a message asking if you on plan on using this device with Bad Update and Bad Storage. Say Yes and complete the formatting.
  4. Copy any content onto the drive that you want there right away, like any homebrew dashboards and games.
  5. Download the latest version of XeUnshackle. Overwrite the files in the BadUpdatePayload folder on your USB. Don’t forget the new .dll file – it is required.
  6. Put the drive and USB in your console and execute the exploit. If Bad Storage succeeds, you will see your full capacity drive in Storage. If it fails for whatever reason, an XNotify will pop telling you why.
    • Your drive will not show as larger than 500 GB until after Bad Update/Storage is executed. Attempts to do anything with the drive in this state will result in errors, but that is nothing to worry about and is intentional to avoid data corruption.

Bad Storage errors and solutions

Bad Storage will pop an XNotify when something goes wrong. Here are some common messages and what they mean:

No internal disk connected.

  • This means the drive bay is empty, or you haven’t pushed the drive in all the way. This is a physical connection issue.

Disk not genuine/flashed. Flash using FATXplorer.

  • You need to use FATXplorer’s HDD or SSD Maker on the drive first. You can’t just put any drive in without preparing it.

XeUnshackle will also display the status of Bad Storage in the UI:

Applied

  • Bad Storage executed successfully and you are good to go.

Skipped

  • See the Formatting section below. If you do not plan on using Bad Storage, this is the expected status.

Failed

  • An error occurred. See above messages for details.

Missing

  • BadStorage.xex.dll was not found. Copy it to your BadUpdatePayload folder.

Formatting

Drives intended to be used with Bad Storage should not be formatted on the dashboard – before or after execution. FATXplorer beta 36 or newer should be used in order to format it the correct way. When formatting as an Xbox 360 HDD in FATXplorer’s Formatting Tools, you will get a message asking if you on plan on using this device with Bad Update and Bad Storage. Say Yes and complete the formatting as normal.

Larger than 2 TB support

There are complications with porting the XL patches to Bad Update. You would lose backwards compatibility and avatars, for example. Enjoy 2 TB without compromises for now – maybe something will come of this in the future. 🙂

JTAG/RGH

Drives formatted for Bad Storage can technically be used interchangeably on JTAG/RGH consoles, but a special patch will be required.

The Bad Storage XEX/DLL should not be run on JTAG/RGH consoles. Nothing bad will happen, there is just no point in doing so.

Cost

The DLL module is free/open source with relaxed license terms. FATXplorer’s Formatting Tools are also free to use. SSD Maker however is currently a paid feature if you want to go the SSD route.

Future updates

It’s possible Bad Storage may be the vehicle to deliver TRIM and XL support in the future, so keep an eye out for updates!

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