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Xbox 360 Repair Tutorial

Xbox 360 consoles are manufactured by Microsoft Corp., and can display red-light errors when they overheated internally. High heat stress on internal hardware in the console will cause your machine to slow down, freeze, and eventually display red-light errors. You can fix these issues with a new layer of thermal paste on your Xbox 360's CPU and GPU under the heat sinks, which conduct heat away from them. The process will take about 30 minutes.

Things You'll Need

Torx screwdriver (Size 7)
Thermal paste

Instructions

- 1
  
  The Xbox 360 console will display red-light errors if the internal hardware overheat.
  
  When the Xbox 360 plays a DVD, the console's hardware components can become very hot, which can cause red-light errors. It is ideal that you limit game play to one hour to let the machine cool off regularly. The Xbox console will operate normally with lower internal temperatures and will not show red lights.
- 2
  
  You can prevent solder damage by putting new thermal paste under the heat sinks to improve heat conductivity.
  
  Xbox 360s are equipped with a small fan inside, but the fan does not completely fix heat-related issues. The solder that binds the CPU and GPU to the Xbox 360 motherboard can be damaged by high heat inside the console, causing poor system performance and red-light errors. You can prevent solder damage and remedy heat stress inside the Xbox 360 by applying new thermal paste to the top of the Xbox 360's CPU and GPU.
- 3
  
  Your Torx screwdrive will open the console so you can access the CPU and GPU heat sinks.
  
  Use your Torx screwdriver to unscrew the screws beneath the console's case. Pull it open and inspect the CPU and CPU. Find the CPU and GPU (metal heat sinks rest above each), take off their heat sinks and apply new thermal paste to the top of the CPU and GPU. The paste should be applied evenly across the whole surface of the chips. Return all heat sinks, cable and screws to their proper positions and reseal the case on the Xbox 360 (the plastic cover snaps back into place). Your console will then be repaired and no longer display errors.

Xbox 360