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My Xbox 360 Has Stopped Recognizing My Hard Drive for Media Sharing

Besides playing video games or DVDs, your Xbox 360 console is also a media sharing device that is capable of streaming music or video files from a computer on your network. If the console has suddenly stopped recognizing your computer's hard drive and won't load any media files, there is likely an incorrect setting that needs to be adjusted. Checking the streaming settings on your computer and the network settings on the Xbox lets you narrow down the source of the problem.

Turn On Streaming
- The Microsoft Windows operating system includes a network setting to turn media sharing on or off, depending on whether you want your files to be available to other devices on the network. If the option has been turned off, your Xbox console won't recognize the media on the computer's hard drive. To turn on sharing, open the "Windows Media Player" program and click the "Turn on media streaming" option in the "Stream" menu.
Media Center Extender
- If standard streaming through Windows Media Player isn't functioning, the "Windows Media Center" program also lets you configure your Xbox 360 as a media extender. To turn on the media extender feature, open the program through your computer's "Start" menu and click "Add Extender" in the "Tasks" heading. Access the "My Xbox" menu on your console, select "Windows Media Center" and note the eight-digit security key. Start the streaming process by typing the security key into the Media Center window on your computer.
Windows Firewall
- Your computer must have the Windows Firewall program enabled when it first establishes a connection between Media Player or Media Center and the Xbox 360. If the firewall is turned off, neither media program will install the proper updates necessary to interact with your console. To manually turn on the firewall, type "services.msc" into the "Start" menu's "Search" box and click the icon that appears. Open the entry labeled "Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing" and click "Start."
Reset Network Settings
- An incorrect system setting on the Xbox 360 may prevent the console from interacting with your home network and recognizing other devices such as your computer. The "System Settings" tab in the "My Xbox" menu has a feature that allows you to wipe out the current configuration and return to original factory settings. To reset all the settings, navigate through "Network Settings," "Configure Network" and "Additional Settings" and then choose "Restore to Factory Defaults."

Xbox 360