Microsoft is testing an Xbox disc to digital feature that would let players convert their physical game collection into permanent digital licenses. The report comes from The Verge, which cited people familiar with the company’s plans.
The tool follows Sony‘s announcement that it will stop producing physical discs for new PlayStation games starting in January 2028. It suggests Microsoft may be weighing a similar shift away from physical media.
Unlike Sony’s approach, however, the Xbox feature would preserve some value in existing disc collections rather than making them obsolete.
How Xbox disc to digital conversion works
According to The Verge’s sources, players would insert a compatible disc into an Xbox Series X|S and install the game as usual. The console would then grant a digital usage right for that title, tied to the player’s Microsoft account on that specific console.
The digital license would follow the disc if it changes hands. A player who sells or lends a disc to someone else would allow that person to unlock the same digital right. That person could do so by inserting the disc and signing in with their own Xbox profile, according to the report.
Because the license follows the disc rather than the original buyer, secondhand sales and rentals could keep functioning much as they do today. Each new owner would be able to unlock their own digital copy simply by inserting the same disc into their console.
Once granted, the digital right would function like a standard purchase made through the Microsoft Store. Players with a Game Pass subscription could stream a converted title through Xbox Cloud Gaming. Titles that support Xbox Play Anywhere could also be accessed on PC and handheld devices.
The feature is expected to work with console bundle discs as well. It would unlock any bonus content that originally shipped with the disc, including downloadable content added after release.
Not every disc will qualify
The Verge’s report notes one significant limitation: some Xbox One discs may not be compatible. Microsoft has reportedly told internal testers that support depends on how and when a specific disc was manufactured. Some older pressings may lack the technical requirements the feature needs.
Only discs for Xbox One and Xbox Series X are expected to work. Discs for Xbox 360 and the original Xbox will not be supported, according to the report.
The Disc-to-Digital feature is currently in internal testing. References to a codename, “enable Disk2Digital,” reportedly surfaced in the Xbox PC app’s code as early as May.
A possible link to Microsoft’s next console
The timing raises questions about Microsoft’s next Xbox console, reportedly codenamed Project Helix. The Verge reports that Microsoft has not finalized whether Helix will include a built-in disc drive.
If the company moves to an all-digital system, a working disc-to-digital conversion tool would give existing disc owners a way to preserve their purchases. They would not need to buy new copies.
Microsoft has not commented publicly on the report.