Back in August, Microsoft unveiled its plan to help physical game owners carry their libraries forward in an increasingly digital landscape, which is a new feature that essentially enables players to make digital copies of their physical games. Initially exclusive to Xbox Insiders, Microsoft is now rolling out its disc-to-digital licensing program to all users.

As detailed in an Xbox Support post, the new feature is limited to Xbox Series X and Xbox One games. Exactly how many games in the vast combined library of both consoles' generations are supported at launch is not clear, but Microsoft says that for a number of possible reasons not games are eligible. And right now, no Xbox 360 or original Xbox games support the new feature.

Your discs just got a digital upgrade today! 💿

Now, all players can experience the benefits of digital with most XBOX Series X and XBOX One physical discs: https://t.co/TuUdSr7Or8 pic.twitter.com/IVgrV2NY4v

All you have to do to claim a digital license for a game is insert a disc while signed into your Xbox account. A pop-up message will tell you when the license has been created, and you can then play the game in question without the corresponding disc needing to be in its drive. If you don't get confirmation, it's probably because you've already generated the digital token for that game. Either that, or it isn't supported.

Games that have been digitized will have a badge next to them in your game library, so you can easily see which ones you still need to add. If you want to add a whole bunch in sequence, Microsoft advises you to turn off the "play disc automatically" setting on your Xbox, so you can easily swap discs in and out without being booted straight into a game every time you load a different one.

When an Xbox game is part of the Xbox Play Anywhere program, it can also be installed and played on your PC. Discs will continue to work as normal once you have your digital license, but the license is tied to that disc, rather than your account, so if you sell or lend it to someone else, the license would transfer to their account instead when they insert the disc into their console. This sounds more dramatic than it is, as it just means the second-hand market will continue to function as it always has.

Microsoft has provided a detailed FAQ for niche cases like Ultimate Edition games or multi-disc titles, so be sure to read through that if you're unsure about certain games in your library. Obviously the Xbox Series S is a non-starter here, as it doesn't have a disc drive.

Xbox rolling out this technology now seems to suggest that it's future-proofing existing game libraries ahead of the next Xbox, which is still codenamed Project Helix, and may not include a disc drive. PlayStation is yet to announce a similar feature of its own, despite controversially announcing at the beginning of the summer that it will cease physical game production for new PS5 games in 2028.