Use a Mac to Burn Xbox360 Backup Games

Adapted from my original article How to Burn Xbox 360 Games on a Mac.

If you want to burn backups of your original Xbox 360 games, you're going to need to have a modded Xbox 360.  The Xbox360 is really particular about reading burned games, so each step needs to be done just right.  Thanks to advances in software, this can finally be done on a Mac without using virtualization software like VMWware or Parallels. Get out your blank dvds and lets get started.

Step 1.  Get some Verbatim DVD+RW dual layered (DL) discs. Do not use any other kind of blank DVDs! I know Verbatim's blank DVDs are expensive, but they work almost 100% of the time and will save you money and frustration in the long run.  When you're ready to burn a back up, put one of the blank DVDs in your Mac and wait for it to cue up.

Step 2. Close all the programs you don't NEED to be reunning and open up the iBurn software.  You'll notice that your DVD info is not yet displayed.  Click the "Refresh" button to populate the recorder field with your blank DVDs and burner information.

Step 3. Dual layered blank DVDs divide the data up to burn on two separate layers, and the Xbox 360 is really particular about where that division is.  Set the layer break to 1913760 to make sure the 360 can read the blank DVDs correctly.

Step 4. You want to set the recording speed as low as possible.  This helps ensure data is written to blank DVDs correctly. If even a tiny bit of data is written wrong, the burned game won't work.  2.4x is the recommended speed for burning to blank DVDs.

Step 5. Once everything is set, drag your ISO image into the drop area and click the "Burn!" button.

Step 6.  Some games may need to be "stealth patched".  If your game needs stealth patching, you'll be prompted to do that now.  Just click "Patch" to proceed. Once it's done patching, you'll be asked if you want to burn.  Click "OK".  The burning may take up to an hour, and can be really finicky.  The best idea is to walk away from your computer.  You don't want any running processes to slow it down. That can cause errors and chew through blank DVDs really quickly.