Set up Xbox Live

Step 1
On the Xbox 360, open the Dashboard and select System (the far right screen). Then select Network Settings > Test Xbox LIVE Connection.

Step 2
If you’re currently signed into Xbox Live with a profile, you’ll be prompted to sign out. The console will then run through a series of tests for the Ethernet (wired) connection to the PC.

Step 3
If the console passes each test and ends with NAT: Open, that’s all there is to it – press the Y button on the console controller to return to the Xbox Dashboard.

Troubleshooting

If the Xbox 360 fails any of the Xbox Live Connection tests, press the X button on the controller to repeat them. If you still have no luck, disconnect and reconnect your mobile broadband connection on the PC, then re-run repeat the appropriate sequence of steps to set up Internet Connection Sharing – keep all the settings the same.

It’s worth repeating this process a number of times if it doesn’t work – it took us several attempts before the Xbox 360 would establish a connection and complete the tests.

If the console still refuses to establish a connection to the PC, or if the NAT setting result shows ‘Strict’, you may have to reconfigure the firewall settings on your PC.

If you have a third-party firewall installed, try disabling it temporarily and running the Test Xbox LIVE Connection tests again. If this solves the problem, you’ll need to enable the firewall and forward these three ports:

88 (UDP)
3074 (UDP)
3074 (TCP)

Alternatively, you can put the Xbox 360 (via its IP address) in your firewall's DMZ. This means that it won’t be protected by your firewall, but that’s not a problem for a games console.

If you use either port forwarding or the DMZ, you’ll need to know your Xbox 360’s IP address. By default, its IP address is assigned automatically and will change each time it goes online. You need to change this to a static IP address – one that never changes.

On the Xbox 360, open the Dashboard and go to System > Network Settings > Edit Settings (or select Edit Settings from the Test Xbox Live screen). Make a note of the IP Address, Subnet Mask and Gateway.

Press the A button on the controller, then select Manual. You can then select the IP Address, Subnet Mask and Gateway in turn and enter the values noted above. Select Done when you’re finished and the console will prompt to test the connection again.