The few times that NV froze on me, I've been able to just press the power button to shut down the xbox. I may have had to hold down the power button for a couple seconds to get it to work, don't really remember. I would think that this is better than pulling the power plug, but apparently using the power button to shutdown the Xbox during a game freeze is still considered a hard reset that can potentially harm your console?

I've shelved NV until the patch comes out, but I remember reading a post someone made on this forum about an alternative to a hard reset which could be better for your Xbox. This person said to hit the disc eject button which will bring up a menu that will allow you to access the dashboard.

Is this really the best option? Will the disc still be spinning when it comes out? If the disc is still spinning in the tray couldn't that be harmful to the disc since the disc isn't actually supposed to be spinning while making contact with the tray. Could this method also be harmful to your optical drive as well?

I've never done the eject method, so I don't know if it works or what happens. On my PC, I've had to eject discs that were still being attempted to be read. It seems like an unnatural thing to do as the disc comes out spinning and rubbing against the disc tray.

I'd just like a some more info on this. When you press the eject, does the Xbox actually take the time to properly stop the disc from spinning before ejecting it? Would this method work if the game was installed on the harddrive?

Always install on the hard drive and if you're not sure about the disc just try it with a regular cd and see what heppens. I've had no problems hitting eject opposed to hard power off . You should never have to unplug your xbox

Yeah, I've used the eject button on my Xbox before, but never in the middle of playing a game, or when a game is frozen. I will never know what happens when I hit eject on a frozen game until I try it on a frozen game.

I'm not too clear on whether or not you're saying that you personally use the disc eject as opposed to the hard power off in a game freezing situation.

For all I know, the disc tray might not actually come out if you hit the eject button in the middle of gameplay and/or freezing, maybe you just get the menu? I'd just like a reply with a little more information that addresses my questions.

Never unplug the console unless it is your last resort. If the power-off is not working, walk away for 20minutes and try again before unplugging it. A sudden negative surge in power can easily kill a piece of hardware as sensitive as the xbox360, and every time you do, you're rolling a dice where 4 of the 6 sides result in "You're f*cked".

Ejecting the disc during a freeze does not always work. Sometimes it does, and it certainly doesn't hurt to try, especially if you're considering pulling the power cord out. One telltale sign that using the power button itself doesn't hurt the console, is if you open the disc tray, and power-off the console without closing it, the console will power off, and the disc tray will close (Indicating it still is receiving stand-by power), however if you unplug it in the same situation, the tray will remain open, indicating no power is being brought to the console, and the surge at the moment of disconnect, could have overwhelmed the hardware.


Also, if possible, connect a 360 (And any sensitive electronics) to a protector with a voltage stabilizer(Not a standard surge-protector, for some reason these can be a liability with the 360) and preferably a battery draw backup, that allows a safe shutdown instead of a sudden cease in power. This is especially important if you live in sunny California during the summer.

Oh, and to answer some of your questions.

-> Yes the console will properly stop the disc from spinning. When you open the tray and notice the delay from open-close and the console light is flashing, that's the drive resetting to Idle and stopping any spinning disc in there.

-> Installing to the hard drive is always to your benefit. A hard drive has many less points of failure than the complicated disc-reading process, and it is also quieter and runs cooler. If you pop the disc out with the game installed to hard drive, it will still put you to the dashboard, since the disc is still required for DRM purposes (The console will read the lead-in at startup, but nothing else) having the disc in the tray and console is still a necessity.

-> Overall, opening the disc drive is the second best way to shutdown the console, and the best option, if the game is frozen and it works in the first place, to reset the console. Under normal circumstances, using the xboxguide software to return to the dashboard is the best way to idle the console, opening the disc drive forces this with a slightly more stern hand, powering off the console naturally (Through the software guide or from pushing the button) has a slight chance to cause hardware damage, only if something is already compromised. Pulling the plug, or otherwise suddenly killing the power is never a good solution outside of a last resort scenario, and inadvisable in all circumstances.

Disc eject for the win!

Thank you very much, ugly_guy. You've answered all my questions, and it seems that ejecting the disc should be the first thing you do if your game freezes so you can reload the game without having to shut down and immediately restart the console. Very good to know!