The holiday season means many gamers found new consoles tucked underneath their Christmas trees. As a result, many people are plugging in their newXbox Series Xand Xbox Series S consoles for the first time.
However, this also means moving all of their old games to the new hardware. There are two main ways to transfer games between an Xbox One and anXbox Series Xor Series S, and this guide will walk users through both processes.
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First, it’s worth noting that not everything needs to be moved over manually. Profile and Account information transfer automatically the first time a user signs in on their new console. This includes Gamertags, Gamerscore,the always important Achievements, the user’s friends list, and their parental control settings. Users can also download any games they previously purchased through the Xbox Live Marketplace, and they’ll have access to any saved games stored on the cloud.
Moving Games and Apps with Network Transfer
The simplest method for moving data to a new Xbox is the console’sNetwork Transferfunction.Network Transfer lets users move gamesbetween any Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S console on the same home network.
After connecting both consoles, press theXbox buttonon the Xbox One Controller. Next, underProfile & system,navigate toSettings > System > Backup & transfer > Network transfer, then check the box for“Allow network transfer.”
Next, repeat the same steps on the Xbox Series X/S. After that, select the Xbox One from the list of connected devices. Choose the games and apps to transfer over, then click“Copy selected.”Depending on the number of games and apps, it may take a while before the transfer finishes. Launching a game or app on the receiving console will pause the transfer.
Moving Games and Apps with an External Drive
Users can also transfer games between consoles with anyUSB3 compatible external storage drive. After plugging the drive into the Xbox One, select the option“Format storage device.”
The system will then ask users to name the device and if they want to set it as the primary storage drive. Note that formatting the drive also deletes all other data on the device. After the external drive finishes formatting, press the Xbox button and go toSettings > System > Backup & transfer > Backup my settingsand choose the option“Back up to device.”
Once the settings are backed up, return toBackup & transferand select“Hard drive transfer.”Next, choose the games and apps to transfer and choose either“Copy selected”or“Move selected.”Once the transfer is complete, users can unplug the drive from the Xbox One and plug it into their newXbox Series X or Series S. Users can play their Xbox One games directly from the external drive or copy them into the console’s internal drive.
To transfer the gamesfrom the user’s external driveto the Series X/S internal drive, open theSettingsapp, navigate toSystem > Storage, select the external drive, and click“Transfer.”Once again, choose the games to transfer, then select either“Copy selected”or“Move selected.”Finally, select the internal drive and hit“Copy”or“Move”to initiate the transfer.
