Activating Your Dev Kit

The procedures in this topic are typically performed only by the asset manager of your department. In order to authorize your console to be a development kit for the development and testing of your game or app, your asset manager must complete one of several processes.

Important This topic outlines the process for activating your Xbox One S dev kit, or your Xbox One X Retail Test Kit. To activate an Xbox One X dev kit, see Setting up your Xbox One X Dev Kit.

Acquiring a dev kit certificate

When you purchase your development kit, it is enabled as dev kit capable device through the Entertainment Developer Store (EDS). After you complete the order, the entitlement will be automatically associated with your publisher account on the Microsoft Dev Center website. Once the kit arrives, you must let Xbox Live know it was received by the party which ordered it.

Option 1: Activate your development kit by using a QR code

After your dev kit arrives, notice that each box has a QR code printed on it.

Figure 1.  A sample QR code.

To use a QR code to activate a dev kit

  1. Use a device that has a camera and a QR code reader app installed on that device.
    For example, use a webcam attached to Windows together with a Windows-based QR code reader app, or use a camera in a smart phone with a QR code reader app installed.
  2. Scan the QR code, which contains the URL of an XDP login page.
    On your device, the QR code reader app opens a web browser and loads the XDP webpage from the URL stored in the QR code, or first shows a login page.
  3. Log into XDP.
    The device details page appears, similar to the following figure. Only the Name and Description fields can be changed.
  4. Enter the name and description for the console.
  5. Click the Confirm button on the page.

If you try to scan the QR code for a device that has already been registered, you will not be able to go through the above steps. In this case, you will see an error message that the device is already registered. If the device is registered to you, you will be taken to the device details page.

Option 2: Manually activating a development kit

If you cannot use the QR code, you can manually activate your dev kit. In order to do this, you need to have the necessary rights on XDP, which come from having the appropriate role. If you do not have the appropriate role, contact your XDP administrator and have him or her associate the entitlement with your dev kit. If you do not have the appropriate role, you will not see the Manage option.

Note

At least one person in your company should be designated as an XDP administrator. However, if no one in your organization can access XDP, contact XDP Help (xdphelp@microsoft.com).

To associate an entitlement with a dev kit

  1. Log in to the Xbox Developer Portal at https://xdp.xboxlive.com/.

    Tip To access XDP, you need to be using the private mode in your browser. Otherwise, you will receive a 404 error. In Internet Explorer, this option is activated by clicking InPrivate Browsing on the Tools menu.

  2. Click Manage to display the menu.
  3. Click Console Conversion.
    This displays a screen similar to the following figure.
  4. Enter the serial number of your console in the search box on this screen. Search for that serial number.
  5. Pick the title displayed in the search results. If no results are shown, choose an available tile with None as the title.
    This brings you to the entitlement page.
  6. Enter the console ID for your dev kit.
    You can find the console ID on the box for the dev kit and in the console settings.
  7. Enter a name and description for this dev kit on the entitlement page.
  8. Click Submit.

After a dev kit is activated, and the development environment is installed, the dev kit must be restarted. After restarting, the dev kit is ready for testing and development. For information about installing the development environment on your dev kit, see Installing the XDK and Dev Kit Software.

Granting permissions to products

To test or work on a product, you need to have permission to use that product. This permission is controlled through security groups in XDP. Products can be restricted to certain users, to certain consoles, or to both. For more information about XDP and the concept of content isolation, see XDP - Configure Access.

Setting the sandbox

After you have converted your console to a dev kit, you will need to set the sandbox. Sandboxes are an integral part of the testing and development environment.

For information about converting your console to a dev kit, see Changing from Retail to Dev Kit Mode.

For information about configuring your dev kit, see Configuring Dev Kit Settings.