If you are the owner of an Xbox 360 there is a good chance you have heard of the red ring of death. Those red lights on the front of the console cause thousands of gamers every year some sort of inconvenience. If you are made aware of what actually causes red ring of death on your Xbox you should be able to prevent it.

1. One red light is telling you that your games console has a hardware failure. Now this is very broad so to help you further an error code is shown on the TV. This is a letter 'E' followed by two numbers. A hardware failure could be a fault with your a/v cable or perhaps your hard drive has an issue. Most of them can be rectified simply.

2. Overheating is the reason behind two red lights on your Xbox 360. Overheating can be caused by your console's vents being clogged up with dust restricting the airflow going through the machine. Lots of people keep their consoles in entertainment units or tightly packed bookcases both will limit the cool air your Xbox will receive. These issues can be made worse if you play your console for long periods or leave it on while downloading. Good ventilation is a must for the running of your console.

3. 3 red lights on the red ring of death are indicating a general hardware failure. The main cause of this is when the console overheats some of the solder on the mother board becomes brittle and breaks. Normally this is when you send your Xbox back to Microsoft for repair. But it is possible to fix it yourself if you don't fancy being without your games console for around 6 weeks.

4. If you have 4 red lights on the front of your console then your Xbox is having problems detecting the a/v cable. This could be something silly like it has come out slightly and just needs pushing back in. You could also need to replace the cable, before rushing off to buy a new one though try borrowing a friend's to see if that's the problem.

Being mindful of the causes of red ring of death errors on your Xbox 360 can help you to prevent them. If you are unlucky enough to be suffering from the rrod there is lots more information online or Xbox repair guides for you to download all to help you solve this unfortunate issue.