This page is for the first Xbox system, not the series of consoles. For this, see Microsoft Xbox 360, Microsoft Xbox One, and Microsoft Xbox Series X and S.

Microsoft's idea of “taking a cue” from Sony to enter the video games market. Releasing on November 15th, 2001 in North America, the Xbox's specifications boil down to a custom Pentium III CPU, 64 MB of RAM (upgradable with modding), and GeForce 3 based graphics capable of outputting up to 1920×1080(!!) with presumably >24-bit true color. These were very powerful for the time, and essentially equated to a desktop PC crammed into a console's form factor. Combined with a strong games library and powerful modding scene, the Xbox ended up selling 24 million units, complete with a record-breaking launch sales figure of 1.5 million - making it enough of a success (despite monetary losses at Microsoft) to afford the release of a successor device.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_(console)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_technical_specifications

Whether these emulators support operating systems for these consoles is unknown; it must be looked into further. Consoles without meaningful OSes are not included.

http://xbmcxbox.blogspot.com/2013/03/complete-list-of-emulators-for-original.html

3DO Comp. 3DO – 3DOx Alpha

Atari 2600 – Stella Xbox, Z26X

Atari Lynx – LynXBox, mednafen, HandyX

Bandai WonderSwan (Color) – rarch, WonderSwanX

Coleco ColecoVision – AdamX, KolekoX

NEC TurboGrafx-16 – HuGoX v10, MednafenX-PCE, XPCE-X, rarch

Nintendo 64 – Surreal64, PJ64-X, Daedalus X

Nintendo DS – DesmumeX 0.87

https://www.1emulation.com/forums/topic/35774-desmumex-v087-new-update

Nintendo Entertainment System - FCEUltraX, NestopiaX, MednafenX, Nester X, XNES, rarch

Super Nintendo Entertainment System – ZsnexBox, xSnes9x, Snes9Xbox, Snes9x X, rarch

Nintendo Game Boy (Color) – XBoyAdvance, GBAX001, eXtremeGB, Gnuboy, rarch

Nintendo Game Boy Advance – XBoyAdvance, ARM2x86/GBA, U-VBAx, GBAX001, rarch

Nintendo Pokémon Mini – PokemonMiniX

Nintendo Virtual Boy - XVBoy

Sega Genesis – NeoGenesis, Xenesis, Dgen, Gens_xport, Gens-x, rarch

Sega Master System – DegaBox, MekaX, Dega-X, Centipede, Kaster-X, SMSPlusX, rarch

Sega Saturn – Yabause Community Edition

https://digiex.net/threads/yabause-community-edition-public-a1-0-download-sega-saturn-emulator-for-xbox.13685/

Sony PlayStation 1 – PCSXBox

patches and binaries currently support Darwin 8.0.1 only

One of the more obscure OSes ported to the Xbox. Darwin is in essence, Apple's FOSS component within Mac OS X, or in other words, the parts of OS X's kernel that Apple release to the public. While capable of running as an independent OS, certain proprietary blobs within OS X itself makes it so Darwin is not just “FOSS OS X”, but rather an “alternative” way to use Apple's code. As for the port itself, it is limited due to the obscure nature of the OS. Only Darwin 8.0.1 (base of OS X 10.4) is supported, and it requires a 128 MB RAM Xbox. While it does boot in some capacity, further levels of functionality are unknown and may be limited.

http://web.archive.org/web/20090219230924/http://xbox-linux.org/wiki/Darwin

working directly from the CD without the need to install or change

An old liveCD based distro with official Xbox support, among others. At the time, it was optimized to run on weaker hardware, with 1.4.1 seemingly being the most recent version to support it. The front page advertises creating “clusters” of Xboxes running this distro, which sounds intriguing.

http://web.archive.org/web/20090312061622/http://dynebolic.org/

http://web.archive.org/web/20090307234750/http://www.dynebolic.org/index.php?show=available

This device runs an operating system which is known to emulate various devices with EOPs. See the AmigaOS, Classic Mac OS, DOS, MSX, and SHARP x68000 series pages.

Fedora, the classic distro in it's “core” form, on Xbox. Installation is purportedly quite easy, requiring only a disc, HTTP server, and a method of input. Very few “Xbox-specific” patches are required in Fedora to make it work, which makes this port of Fedora function quite similarly to an average PC port.

https://sourceforge.net/projects/xbox-linux/files/Fedora/

http://web.archive.org/web/20090308005358/http://legacy.not404.com/XFedora4

you can fetch patches for FreeBSD 5.4-RELEASE and 6.0-BETA1

At a surprisingly comprehensive stage of support, considering the age of the system. As of 2022, one can still see the xbox page on the main FreeBSD website, with it claiming that FreeBSD has supported Xbox since version 6's stable release. It is important to note that an up-to-date Cromwell BIOS is required to make this work.

https://www.freebsd.org/platforms/xbox/

https://www.reddit.com/r/freebsd/comments/16ff7n/xbox_i386_still_supported/

http://web.archive.org/web/20081216090905/http://www.xbox-linux.org/wiki/FreeBSD/Main_Page

Gentoo now officially includes support for the xbox via an x86 system profile

A Gentoo install that was “officially released“ by the Gentoo project. Quite like Fedora, this version of Gentoo has not been highly altered for the Xbox hardware. Install only requires a LiveCD and the usual input methods.

http://web.archive.org/web/20080910213128/http://gentoo-wiki.com/Gentoo_for_Xbox

/experimental/x86/xbox/ from 2006-8 gentoo mirror links

a patch system created from the ground up

One of the higher quality Linux distributions available for the Xbox. As apparent from the name, this is a fork of Gentoo. Unlike the original Gentoo, however, GentooX is loaded with patches and modifications to make it highly optimized for the Xbox's hardware. Among the many unique features it possesses, is a custom patching and package installation program, various methods of installing (partitions), and varying editions of the OS depending on one's needs (all are free, of course). To be specific, there is a “Home”, “Media Center”, and “Pro” edition. The “Home” edition is likely of interest to most, as it comes loaded with programs and works out of the box. “Media Center” is quite self explanatory in it's addition of media center functionality, while “Pro” comes as only a command line, allowing the user to customize the install to the fullest if they wist. Not to be confused with the GentooX repository on GitHub!

https://archiveos.org/gentoox/

https://sourceforge.net/projects/xbox-linux/files/Gentoox/

https://web.archive.org/web/20210511174711/https://gentoox.shallax.com/

Very little information is available for this online, it seems. Despite NetBSD being the BSD most notorious for supporting weird hardware, it seems to have been outclassed on the Xbox by FreeBSD…

http://ftp.riken.jp/NetBSD/misc/jmcneill/xbox/

The project is finished now (the port is not completely finished)

Appears to be the 2nd best BSD available on the Xbox. Unlike FreeBSD, this is not completely “stable” and has not received a similar amount of maintenance and “upkeep” over the years. Despite this, it still works for the most part (without X).

http://undeadly.org/cgi?action=article&sid=20070706150902

http://web.archive.org/web/20081211183250/http://tobias.schroepf.de/doku/doku.php?id=xbox:porting_openbsd_to_the_xbox

Whether these emulators support operating systems for these computers is unknown; it must be looked into further. PCs without meaningful OSes are not included.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IePzKSqLKcY (past 31:00)

http://xbmcxbox.blogspot.com/2013/03/complete-list-of-emulators-for-original.html

Amstrad CPCs - ArnoldX 5, CoinOPS

https://www.cpcwiki.eu/index.php/Emulators

Apple IIs - kegsX V5, Apple ][ soul captor

Atari 8-bits - AtariXLBox V8.05b

Atari STs – WinSTonX

CHIP-8 – Chip8X

https://digiex.net/threads/chip8x-v4-download-chip8-superchip8-emulator-for-xbox.13730/

Commodore 64 - Vice64 XV11, Frodo-X

Commodore Amigas - WinUAEx lite v19, UAE-X

Commodore PETs - VicePETX

Commodore VIC-20 - Vice20X

MSXs – BlueMSXBox, FMSXbox

Sharp X68000s - X68000X v6

Sinclair ZX Spectrums - DidntXSpectrum 5, FuseX, DreamSPEC, SpeXtrum

x86 – DOSXbox, Bochs

Mandrake Linux 9.0 as a host operating system and ran Windows 2000 within a virtual PC

This is the method that results in people running Windows on the Xbox. Despite how appealingly awful that sounds, they were just running it in QEMU within a Linux install.

http://www.psphacker.com/run-windows-98-on-the-xbox/

https://www.zdnet.com/article/hackers-make-xbox-into-a-windows-pc/

ReactOS can be either installed to your Xbox or started via Live CD

Originating from the mid-2000s, this port of ReactOS has garnered some more work and attention in recent years. ReactOS itself is a FOSS attempt of replacing Windows, with their goal being to create an OS that can run any Windows program up to a certain point, without depending on any Windows modules or libraries that they haven't recreated themselves. As for the Xbox port, well, it boots, works, and actually functions in a significant capacity. Of course, ReactOS itself is not finished, so this does mean that things are still quite incomplete, with much of the hardware not having any drivers. Installation is possible, alongside running a Live CD.

https://reactos.org/wiki/Xbox_Port

https://reactos.org/wiki/Xbox_Port_Tests

https://reactos.org/wiki/Xbox_Port_Roadmap

https://reactos.org/wiki/Install_ReactOS_on_Xbox

The OS that comes by default on every Xbox. A few interesting options and things one can do, but homebrew just blows it out of the water.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7hRb2BXL1A (better vid)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfEK7j7fOGQ

It is based on the SLAX LiveCD

An Xbox version of the SLAX distro, which in itself is a version of Slackware optimized for Live CDs and other such “impermanent” loading. This Xbox port appears to be loaded with programs and functionalities. Some blurbs on the archived front page describe the lightweight nature of the distro (43 MB), and it's swift boot time (10 seconds).

https://sourceforge.net/projects/sxb/

http://web.archive.org/web/20051211210329/http://www.keckstar.com/nuke/html/index.php

a version of GNU/Linux for the Xbox

The source of all these distros, being the project that ported the kernel to the system in the first place, plus creating a compatible dual boot BIOS. In itself, however, these links are primarily a source for loading programs, distro installations, and other things that get you to a more proper install.

https://xboxdevwiki.net/Main_Page (OG wiki mirror)

https://github.com/XboxDev/cromwell

https://sourceforge.net/projects/xbox-linux/

http://web.archive.org/web/20090314115049/http://www.xbox-linux.org/wiki/Main_Page

A tiny Linux distribution that basically only runs rsyncd” (2nd link only)

Recent attempts of bringing back contributions to Linux on the Xbox, including experiments with porting 3.x and 4.x kernels. As of now, the only efforts of meaningful prominence (link 1) have been inactive since August 2020. What level of porting they accomplished is unknown.

https://github.com/XboxDev/xbox-linux

https://www.antoneliasson.se/journal/xbox-linux-pc-bios-xbox-hybrid-bootable-iso/

small (currently about 50mb) but fully functional Linux distribution

A variant of DamnSmallLinux for the Xbox, and possibly the most appealing distribution of Linux available from the Xbox. Similar to sXb, DSL is a very small distro, coming in at only around 50 MB, yet it is loaded with programs and capabilities, like a web browser, an IRC client, an email client, office programs, and much more, all in a graphical environment. When looking at the sourceforge page, retrospective looks at Xbox Linux, and just general popularity, it seems that X-DSL could be the most popular distro for Xbox too. The only downside is that 1.6 version Xboxes may have troubles with running it. A Live CD is also available for this distro.

http://xbmcxbox.blogspot.com/2013/09/install-linux-xdsl-on-original-xbox-via.html

https://web.archive.org/web/20090517073749/http://www.x-dsl.org/wiki/Main_Page

https://www.xbmc4xbox.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=566 (best version available online? some sort of custom version with even more optimizations, tweaks, and programs)

https://sourceforge.net/projects/xbox-linux/files/X-DSL/

Xebian comes as a bootable live CD which is used for installing the base system

A version of Debian that is somewhat custom tailored for the Xbox. Capable of running X, Xebian is available as both a Live CD and an install. Outside of some minor changes to the base system, Xebian functions very similarly to a proper desktop install of Debian, despite it's custom tailoring.

https://sourceforge.net/projects/xbox-linux/files/Ed_s%20Xebian/

http://web.archive.org/web/20090311005221/http://www.xbox-linux.org/wiki/Xebian

A port of MiniVMac. Despite a lack of good information online, this does appear to have the capability to boot and run these older versions of Mac OS, although all input was emulated in version 0.1. As for version 0.2, well, that needs experimentation…

https://www.xbox-hq.com/html/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2688

https://digiex.net/threads/xmac-beta-v0-2-download-macintosh-plus-emulator-for-xbox.13765/

https://web.archive.org/web/20081018234456/http://www.darcelf.tk/ (glitchy site)

Xbox-enabled version of Ubuntu

This time, this is a version of Ubuntu (circa 2008) that has been tailored for the Xbox, rather than being a full on distribution. Not to be confused with “Xubuntu”, a modern distribution that is aimed at being lightweight. Available as a Live CD or proper install, xUbuntu is apparently capable of running on either an Xbox or a full on PC.

https://sourceforge.net/projects/xbox-linux/files/xUbuntu/

http://web.archive.org/web/20090130045047/http://xbox-linux.org/wiki/XUbuntu

Various other distributions that have been listed on the ConsoleMods wiki. This is actually a very helpful page for a generalized installation tutorial, although it doesn't cover information about the OSes available like on our wiki.

https://consolemods.org/wiki/Xbox:Linux

Despite how many of these there were, none of them were any good. Presumably, nobody cared to develop these to a higher level when everyone could just run Linux and use full on Firefox.

https://digiex.net/threads/linksboks-v0-99-download-xbox-web-browser.13825/

First of all, this runs at 480p and the framerate is very close to 60 fps unlike the Dreamcast version which is currently at 20-35 FPS.

A Minecraft clone which has been ported to a large variety of devices. Has a reasonable variety of blocks and features.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xypFfVsJdeE

https://gitlab.com/gameblabla/gameblabla-website-files/-/tree/simp/files/og_xbox

The final release of the MTV Music Generator series, and the only one to release on a non-Sony system. Like the other MTV Music Generators, this is a piece of software that allows users to create their own songs using a large realm of samples and effects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6yElzfbxyo

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_Music_Generator_3:_This_Is_the_Remix

For general information, see the Game Console Revisions Overview.

Huge thanks to the ConsoleMods.org Xbox Wiki for supplying a lot of this information. They're in the sidebar for a reason!

There is one version of this console.

The first Xbox console. 4 controller ports up front, a power button and DVD drive. AC, Ethernet, and AV to the back, with a hard drive inside. This setup stayed the same across the Xbox’s life, with the only external change being to the DVD drive’s tray. This is important, as it allows the user to identify which DVD drive it is. Thomson: U shape. Phillips: U, with a wider-than-U circle at the tray’s center. Samsung: weird “U” with angles on the left/right, plus two large nearby circles. Hitachi: wide “U” with two small distant circles to the left/right. One can check the excellent /r/originalxbox/wiki/revision link for a visual guide. Generally, the Thomsons suck, the Samsungs were well regarded (ish), the Phillips should be OK, and the Hitachis are in 1.6s only, but might be OK. Remember, you can swap DVD drives, sometimes from other devices (PC DVD drives, for example), as the stock ones are all hit-or-miss in quality and reliability.

There are five revisions within the Xbox.

Quick guideline for identifying DVD drives

https://xboxdevwiki.net/File:Xbox_drivedetermination.png

Thomson (the worst - 1.0 and 1.1 only): Long “U” shape, like the end of a hotdog

Phillips (probably the best - 1.1 and later): Fat “U” shape, with a visible circle at the end - like a bedpost

Samsung (also very good - all): 2 smaller circles to the left and right of the main cut out, with the main cut out being asymmetrical on the left/right axis

Hitachi-LG (alright - 1.6 only?): Very fat “U” shape with NO visible circle at the end, plus two very small circles to the left and right of the main cutout

Likely the least reliable Xbox revision, but it’s one of the best for EOPs. These systems feature a GPU fan, a bad “Foxlink” PSU which is prone to spontaneous and bombastic failure, and a high chance to have the worst DVD drive of all Xboxes, the Thomson (stock 1.0s can only have Thomsons or Samsungs). However, they feature the Conexant video encoder, which is seemingly the best quality over component (don’t use RGB, 480i res cap). They also have a 1MB TSOP chip, which is where the BIOS is located. A 1MB TSOP chip allows more versatility in flashing a new BIOS, although this also can be done on a modchip. Lastly, there’s open RAM slots, which allows upgrading up to 256MB (from 64). Remember, this rev has the leaky clock capacitors (as for the others except 1.6/some 1.4s). Overall, the reliability of these may be poor, but most of the weak parts (DVD, fan, PSU, caps) can be replaced. For EOPs, they’re quite great. To identify: Manufactured from 01/01/2001 - 07/31/2002. Serial number: LNNNNNN 20/21/23XXX (only the 2nd part matters; some 23s are 1.1). Kernel versions 3944, 4034, 4036, and 4627.

RECOMMENDED OVERALL

For the most part, these are similar to the 1.0, except the GPU fan is gone, the DVD drive can be better (with the introduction of Phillips drives), the PSU has received some improvement (still - be wary of it), and the USB controller isn’t a separate PCB. In other words, these have the Conexant, a 1MB TSOP, and the additional RAM slots. Plus, they’re a bit quieter and cooler than the 1.0s. This makes these systems one of the best for EOPs. Remember to swap the leaky clock capacitors! Furthermore, beware of the Foxlink PSUs which can fail very bombastically and spontaneously, although this is a bigger issue in 1.0 Xboxes. To identify: Manuf. 08/18/2002 – 01/25/2003. Serial 2nd half starts with 23-25. Kernel either 4817 or 4972.

With these systems, some things have changed significantly, mainly the TSOP shrinking to 256KB. The PSU is also a more conventional ATX type, making replacement easier. Not much else is different, although they are a bit quieter and cooler than the 1.1s. RAM can still be added, as for the ability to modchip. The 1.3’s are identical, except one irrelevant LPC pin has been removed. Remember to swap the leaky clock capacitors! To identify: Manuf. 12/01/2002 – 07/26/2003. Serial 2nd half starts with 30-32. Kernel either 5101, 5530, or 5713 (shared with 1.4/1.5s).

More has changed with these systems, and they don’t appear to be good changes. First of all, the TSOP is still 256KB. The video encoder has been changed to the Focus encoder, which doesn’t have the best reputation (although some may prefer it). Furthermore, modchips and RAM additions both will work. Also, many of these will not have the leaky clock capacitors, but check anyways. 1.5s most likely don’t exist, and if they were produced, it was only for a very short period of time. To identify: Manuf. 07/23/2003 – 04/10/2004. Serial 2nd half starts with 33. Kernel either 5101, 5530, or 5713 (shared with 1.2/1.3s).

BEST RELIABILITY

Easily the least desirable for EOPs. These systems have underwent serious motherboard changes, in a way that cripples hardware modding for all but the most devoted (ie. modchipping is very hard). One cannot even add more RAM. Continuing on, the XCalibur encoder in these systems cannot handle 480p output without difficulty; oddly though, they do RGB (not YPbPr) better than earlier revisions… without >480i res. Anyway, “b” revisions also use a low quality type of RAM. However, this revision is quiet and reliable, and it doesn’t have the notorious leaky clock capacitors; it’s worth considering for a non-EOP user. Since those bad caps were swapped, don’t replace them for now. To identify: Manuf. 03/14/2004 - 09/06/2004; 09/13/2004 - ? (1.6b). Serial 2nd half starts with 41, 43 for 1.6b. Kernel version: 5838. Shielding visible on bottom of AV port.

LOWEST PRICE couldn’t be assigned.

https://www.retrorgb.com/xbox.html

https://consolemods.org/wiki/Xbox:Versions (easy identification, read for DVD drives!)

https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=64176 (1.6 component sucks, RGB better)

https://www.reddit.com/r/originalxbox/comments/g53d41/what_are_advantages_of_tsop/

https://www.ogxbox.com/forums/index.php?/topic/1515-which-version-of-the-original-xbox-is-the-best-10-12-13-14-15-or-16/ (pro-1.0/1.1 take)

https://www.reddit.com/r/originalxbox/comments/8bwi5k/favorite_xbox_revision/ (various takes)

https://www.reddit.com/r/originalxbox/comments/e1zloe/best_motherboard_revision_and_components/ (pro-1.1 take)

https://www.reddit.com/r/originalxbox/comments/eq3b9e/best_motherboard_revision_and_dvd_ranking/ (anti-1.0 take)