Simple Xiso Drive

Simple Xiso Drive is a lightweight utility that allows you to mount original Xbox ISO files (.iso, .xiso, .cso), Xbox ISO CHD files (.chd) and ZArchive (.zar) files as read-only virtual drives or directory mount points. Built on Dokan for Windows and FUSE 3 for Linux and macOS, it provides high-performance, read-only access to Xbox Disc Video File System (XDVDFS) contents directly from your file manager.

The application is designed for extreme memory efficiency and supports Windows x64/ARM64, Linux x64/ARM64 and macOS x64/ARM64.

Features

• Cross-Platform: Native executables for win-x64, win-arm64, linux-x64, linux-arm64, osx-x64 and osx-arm64.
• Broad Format Support: Handles standard Xbox ISO dumps (Sector 32), rebuilt "XISO" formats (Sector 0), Dual-Layer/Hybrid discs (Game Partition offsets), and CISO-compressed images (.cso, including split .1.cso part sets).
• Xbox ISO CHD Support: Mounts Xbox ISO images stored as CHD (.chd) — any CHD format version and codec (zlib, lzma, huffman, flac, zstd) — with on-demand hunk decompression via the CHDSharp library. CD and GD-ROM CHDs are rejected; the decompressed image must contain an XDVDFS filesystem.
• ZArchive Support: Mounts .zar archives directly — either the archived game tree or a single embedded XISO image — with on-demand zstd decompression (no extraction or temp files).
• Virtual image.iso: The --image-iso option also exposes the raw Xbox image as image.iso at the mount root, for emulators that only accept a disc image (such as xemu). CISO and CHD images are decompressed on demand; a ZArchive directory tree is synthesized into an XISO in memory with XISOSharp's layout primitives — nothing is extracted to disk.
• Zero-Config Mounting: On Windows, drag-and-drop an ISO/XISO/CISO, CHD or ZAR onto the executable to automatically mount it to the first available drive letter (M: through R:).
• Flexible Mount Points: Mount ISOs as Windows drive letters (e.g., Z:) or NTFS folders, and as any directory on Linux and macOS.
• Automated Bug Reporting: Includes a built-in telemetry system that securely reports filesystem crashes to the developer via the PureLogic Code API.
• Update Checker: Automatically checks for newer versions on GitHub to ensure you have the latest compatibility fixes.
• Read-Only Safety: Ensures the source ISO or ZAR remains unmodified.

Install dependencies

The release bundles are framework-dependent single-file executables, so the .NET runtime and the mount driver for your platform must be installed before the app can run.

1. Install the .NET 10.0 Runtime (all platforms)

Download and install the .NET 10.0 Runtime (the base runtime; the Desktop Runtime is not required):

• https://dotnet.microsoft.com/download/dotnet/10.0

Verify with:

dotnet --list-runtimes

Look for an entry such as Microsoft.NETCore.App 10.x.x.

2. Install the mount driver

Platform	What to install	Verify
Windows	Dokan 2.x - run the installer, then restart Windows so the driver loads.	Test-Path "$env:SystemRoot\System32\dokan2.dll" returns True.
Linux	FUSE 3 - sudo apt install libfuse3-3 fuse3 (Fedora: sudo dnf install fuse3 fuse3-libs; Arch: sudo pacman -S fuse3).	/dev/fuse exists (otherwise sudo modprobe fuse) and fusermount3 is on PATH.
macOS	macFUSE - allow the system extension when prompted. macOS 15.4 or later can use the FSKit backend, which needs no kernel extension.	The app starts without a "macFUSE (libfuse3) was not found" error.

3. Download and extract

1. Download the archive for your OS and CPU from the latest release: win-x64/win-arm64, linux-x64/linux-arm64 or osx-x64/osx-arm64.
2. Extract it to a folder of your choice (for example C:\Tools\SimpleXisoDrive or ~/opt/simplexisodrive).
3. On Linux and macOS the executable bit is already set; on Windows run SimpleXisoDrive.exe.

See Installation for the detailed, step-by-step guide.

Documentation

Comprehensive documentation lives in the docs folder and is published twice from the same Markdown sources:

• Documentation site (GitHub Pages): https://purelogiccode.github.io/SimpleXisoDrive/ - rendered with a side menu built from docs/_data/navigation.yml and docs/_layouts/default.html.
• GitHub wiki: the same pages with a side menu driven by docs/_Sidebar.md.

Start here:

• Installation - dependency install steps (runtime, Dokan, FUSE), installing, upgrading.
• Linux and macOS - FUSE/macFUSE prerequisites, usage, and platform notes.
• Getting Started - your first mount, drag-and-drop, unmounting.
• Command-Line Reference - arguments, options, exit codes.
• Troubleshooting - every known error with causes and fixes.
• FAQ - short answers to common questions.
• Architecture - components, mount lifecycle, threading.
• Building - build, test, and the CI/release workflow.
• What's New - release highlights.
• XDVDFS Format - on-disk structures and supported variants.
• Privacy and Networking - telemetry, endpoints, offline use.

The full documentation map (Virtual File System, Services, Glossary, Testing, Contributing and Release History) is on Home.

How to use

Windows

Drag-and-drop (easiest)

1. Drag an .iso, .xiso, .cso, .chd or .zar file onto SimpleXisoDrive.exe.
2. The app picks the first free drive letter from M: through R:, mounts the image read-only and opens File Explorer.
3. To unmount: click the console window and press any key (or press Ctrl+C).

Command line

SimpleXisoDrive.exe <image-file> <mount-path> [options]

Argument / option	Description
<image-file>	Path to the .iso, .xiso, .cso, .chd or .zar file. The extension may be omitted when the file can be resolved.
<mount-path>	Drive letter such as Z: or Z:\, or an existing empty NTFS folder.
-l, --launch	Open Explorer at the mount path after mounting.
-d, --debug	Show verbose Dokan debug output.
-i, --image-iso	Also expose the raw Xbox image as image.iso at the mount root (for emulators such as xemu).

SimpleXisoDrive.exe "D:\Games\Halo.iso" Z:
SimpleXisoDrive.exe "D:\Games\Halo.chd" Z: --image-iso
SimpleXisoDrive.exe "D:\Games\Halo.zar" "C:\Mounts\Halo" -l

Press Ctrl+C in the console to unmount.

Linux and macOS

SimpleXisoDrive <image-file> [mount-path] [options]

• <image-file>: Path to the .iso, .xiso, .cso, .chd or .zar file.
• <mount-path>: An existing empty directory. When omitted, a temporary directory is created, printed after mounting, and removed on unmount.
• Every option listed above works the same on Linux and macOS.

mkdir -p ~/mnt/halo
SimpleXisoDrive ~/Games/Halo.iso ~/mnt/halo
SimpleXisoDrive ~/Games/Halo.chd ~/mnt/halo --image-iso
SimpleXisoDrive ~/Games/Halo.zar --launch

Unmount with Ctrl+C, fusermount3 -u <mount-path> (Linux) or umount <mount-path> (macOS).

See Getting Started and the Command-Line Reference for every behavior and exit code.

Technical Details

• XDVDFS Parsing: Uses the XISOSharp library to traverse the Xbox-specific binary tree structure, including rebuilt sector-0 images.
• CHD Parsing: Uses the CHDSharp library to decompress CHD hunks on demand (all CHD versions V1–V5 and codecs), exposing the decompressed Xbox image to the XDVDFS parser. Only CHDs whose decompressed image is a valid Xbox ISO are mounted; differential child CHDs must be merged with their parent first.
• ZArchive Parsing: Mounts the ZArchive directory tree with on-demand zstd block decompression, and detects a single embedded XISO image automatically.
• Mount Backends: Dokan on Windows (DokanNet); a small, self-contained FUSE 3 interop layer on Linux and macOS (libfuse3 / macFUSE), with the platform-specific structures for Linux x64/ARM64 and macOS.
• Shared Core: The image parsing, virtual file system and services live in SimpleXisoDrive.Core; the Windows and Unix front ends only implement the mount backend and CLI.
• Cycle Detection: Includes safety checks to prevent infinite loops in corrupted or malformed ISO images.
• Mount Sanitization: Automatically handles mount point strings (e.g., converts Z:\ to Z:) to satisfy Dokan driver requirements.
• Smart Permissions: Automatically adjusts Dokan options based on Administrator privileges to ensure the highest success rate for mounting.

Common failures and fixes

Symptom	Fix
The Dokan runtime library (dokan2.dll) was not found	Install Dokan and restart Windows.
Warning: The Dokan driver (dokan2.sys) was not found	Reinstall Dokan and restart; mounting may fail until the driver loads.
libfuse3 was not found	Install FUSE 3 for your distribution (see Install dependencies).
/dev/fuse was not found	Load the kernel module: sudo modprobe fuse.
fusermount3 was not found on PATH	Install the fuse3 tools package.
macFUSE (libfuse3) was not found	Install macFUSE and allow the system extension.
Image file not found at '<path>'	Check the path and quote it if it contains spaces. A directory with exactly one image, or a missing extension, is resolved automatically.
'<path>' is not a valid Xbox ISO/XISO image	The file is a PC ISO, an encrypted Redump-style dump, incomplete, or uses an unsupported layout. Convert it to XISO first.
'<path>' is not an Xbox ISO CHD	The decompressed CHD is not an Xbox ISO (for example a CD, GD-ROM or Xbox 360 image). A differential child CHD must be merged with its parent first.
'<path>' is not a valid ZArchive (.zar) file	The archive is corrupt, is not a ZArchive, or uses an unsupported version. Re-create it from the original image.
Could not find an available drive letter (M-R)	Free one of M:-R: or pass an explicit mount path.
fuse: mountpoint is not empty	Use an empty directory as the mount path.
Something's wrong with the Dokan driver	Right-click and Run as Administrator, reinstall or update Dokan, then restart.
Write operations fail	The volume is read-only by design; copy files out to a writable location instead.
macOS refuses to start the downloaded binary	Remove the quarantine attribute: xattr -d com.apple.quarantine SimpleXisoDrive.

The Troubleshooting page lists every message in detail.

FAQ

What formats can I mount? Xbox ISO/XISO (.iso, .xiso), CISO (.cso, including split .1.cso sets), Xbox ISO CHD (.chd) and ZArchive (.zar, a directory tree or a single embedded XISO).

Does it modify my image? No. The image or archive is opened read-only and every mutating operation is denied.

Can I copy files from the mounted volume? Yes, copying out to a normal writable location works like any other read-only drive.

Can I mount several images at once? Yes, start one instance per image; each gets its own mount point and console window.

Does it support Xbox 360 or Xbox One images? The ISO/CHD parsers are XDVDFS-only. A .zar tree is exposed as-is whatever produced it, but its contents are not parsed.

Does it need an internet connection? No; the update check, launch statistics and crash reporting are advisory and can be blocked (see Privacy and Networking).

Do I need FUSE on Linux and macOS? Yes. Linux needs FUSE 3 (libfuse3 plus the fuse3 tools); macOS needs macFUSE. See Install dependencies.

More answers are in the FAQ.

Support the Project

If you find this tool useful, consider supporting development:

• Star the Repo: GitHub Repository
• Donate: https://purelogiccode.com/Donate

License

This project is licensed under GPL-3.0.

SimpleXisoDrive is an independent, community project and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Microsoft Corporation. "Xbox" and "Microsoft" are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies and are used here only to describe compatibility and file formats.

• DokanNet: MIT License.
• Dokan Library: LGPL/MIT.
• CHDSharp: MIT License.
• libfuse: LGPL-2.1 (Linux).
• macFUSE: BSD-style licenses.

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Developed by Pure Logic Code.