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Considering buying 2nd xbox - can I use my live account on both?

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Old 02-05-2011, 11:17 AM   #1
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Considering buying 2nd xbox - can I use my live account on both?

Hi guys I have a slim console downstairs and want to buy a hdmi elite for upstairs. I know I can use my xbox live account on both (not simultaneously obviously) and it means I'll need to recover my profile every time I want to switch consoles-is that right?

Is there a better way if doing this by saving the profile to a USB device which is compatible with old and new xboxes?

Basically what should I be aware of when buying a 2nd console!

Many thanks
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Old 02-05-2011, 11:26 AM   #2
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Yes, I do this all the time with a USB memory card. Very easy.

Although I have two old xboxs not one of the new ones, but that shouldn't be a problem.

Quick and easy. No recovery required.

James.
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Old 02-05-2011, 11:52 AM   #3
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The only thing you have to be aware of is that when you buy something on one console, it will only work on that console. If you want to use it on the other console then you have to be signed into live. Hope that made sense.
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Old 02-05-2011, 12:35 PM   #4
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Thanks guys. I don't buy anything on there so that should be fine.

Can anyone confirm whether kinarduk's solution will work with an elite and a slim?
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Old 02-05-2011, 2:34 PM   #5
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Yeh any usb memory stick will work on both.
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Old 02-05-2011, 3:49 PM   #6
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Fantastic where about do I go on the dashboard in order to export my profile? And import come to think about it.. Never done anything regarding xbox hard drive management before
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Old 02-05-2011, 9:39 PM   #7
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Will I need to copy the profile from console A to console B via the USB stick each and every time I want to play on console B or could I do it once and then not need to do it every time? (does that make sense!) I'm basically after finding this out before I click buy.

Thanks
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Old 02-05-2011, 10:07 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tikigod19 View Post
Will I need to copy the profile from console A to console B via the USB stick each and every time I want to play on console B or could I do it once and then not need to do it every time? (does that make sense!) I'm basically after finding this out before I click buy.

Thanks
Gamertags, game saves, DLC and games can be accessed directly from the USB stick, so all you'll need to do is move your gamertag(s) and game saves to the USB stick then plug that into whichever 360 you're using at the time. You don't need to keep copying your gamertag and saves to the hard drive, then back to the USB stick every time you swap consoles, so it's a simple and painless method of playing across multiple 360s.

When you get your USB stick, plug it into the 360 and go to My Xbox - System Settings - Memory. You'll see the USB stick listed and then you can click on it and choose to configure it for use as a 360 memory device. Once that's done, you can move items to it from the same section of the dashboard (the Memory section of System Settings) and you can even move a bunch of things to the stick in one go. It's dead easy to figure out when you actually try it.

Last edited by DJSigma; 02-05-2011 at 10:10 PM.
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Old 03-05-2011, 8:25 AM   #9
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Fantastic thanks for your detailed reply. It sounds dead simple.

So are you saying in theory I could save gamertag, save games etc all to a USB stick and as long as that is plugged into whatever console I'm playing I can basically use thar memory stick instead of the hard drive? Therefore I never need to copy the data across after the initial copy?
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Old 03-05-2011, 9:39 PM   #10
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Originally Posted by tikigod19 View Post
So are you saying in theory I could save gamertag, save games etc all to a USB stick and as long as that is plugged into whatever console I'm playing I can basically use thar memory stick instead of the hard drive?
Yep, you can do exactly that.

Quote:
Originally Posted by tikigod19
Therefore I never need to copy the data across after the initial copy?
That's right. The 360 can read and write data direct from/to the stick, so you never need to copy the data across once it's on the USB stick.
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Old 11-05-2011, 1:00 PM   #11
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this is great info thanks.
One final question before I buy my 2nd console.

If I copy my profile over initially and then on xbox A my rank in a certain game goes up, without copying to the USB again, if I plug that USB into xbox B will I be the higher rank in the same game?

I understand that if the ONLY copy of the profile was on the USB stick then I would play from that stick and therefore any changes would save to the stick in real time.

however is it actually possible to use a profile that is only located on that stick, or would I need to copy it to the local xbox hard drive each time before signing in?

I've lost myself there.. hope that makes sense
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Old 11-05-2011, 6:11 PM   #12
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Your making it sound more complicated than it is.
Once you have copied your profile to the memory stick you would then copy the save file of what ever game you are planning to play on the 2 machines on to the memory stick as well. Thats it.
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Old 11-05-2011, 7:06 PM   #13
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Yeah, it's dead simple.

Gamertags and saves go on the USB stick. The 360 treats the USB stick the same as a hard drive. You connect the USB stick to the 360 you're using and play your games. As your gamertag and saves are accessed direct from the USB stick, just like they would be if you were using a hard drive, everything is always up to date. Apart from initially moving your gamertag(s) and saves to the stick, you never have to move or copy them again.
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Old 11-05-2011, 7:13 PM   #14
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nice advice. thanks
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Old 11-05-2011, 7:25 PM   #15
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BTW, Tiki, you should just go ahead and do it. I've tried to explain in a reasonable amount of detail, but perhaps that's making the process sound more complicated than it is. When you do it, you'll see that it's totally painless and works flawlessly, so you'll be able to do exactly what you wanted and just move the USB stick back and forth between consoles without having to copy things to/from the hard drive every time.
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Old 13-05-2011, 6:52 PM   #16
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+1, I do exactly this and have a slim in the lounge and an Elite in the bedroom so EXACTLY the same setup

Just put your profile and saves on the stick and move it between consoles. The only thing I've found is Crysis 2 glitched on me so I put the save on the HDD. I went to play it on the other 360 so just deleted the old save on the stick and copied the new one over and then onto the HDD of the other console. You shouldn't have to do that though.

If you're using both a lot, I'd recommend a decent USB stick. I use an 8GB OCZ Rally2. Fast read and write and very reliable.

Hopefully for the next xbox, Microsoft will change how this works as lots of people have more than one console. I sometimes get into bed, fire up the xbox and realise the USB stick is downstairs
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