PS4 Hard Drive Failure? | Reasons, Symptoms and Solutions
One of the worst situations PS4 users may encounter is that when the PS4 hard drive fails. If the failure is serious, PS4 won’t work at all. Otherwise, low-level failure may cause lagging/slowness in the performance of PS4 or even crashing. The bad thing here is that it’s not an uncommon issue, rather it’s one of the most happening ones. And whether you have experienced PS4 hard drive failure before or not yet, it’s always good to educate yourself about this situation in order to know how to deal with it properly when it happens.
PS4 HDD Failure Types
There are two types of PS4 hard drive failures—Mechanical Failure and Logical Failure.
Mechanical Failure
While most components of a PS4 are electrical, the hard disk is one of the few mechanical parts. Thus, it will inevitably fail at some point. This type of failure occurs when the read-write head or other components become faulty as a result of normal wear and tear.
Logical Failure
This refers to non-physical failure, or in other words when damage occurs in a hard drive’s file structure or software rather than the actual hardware. Many factors can contribute to logical failure, including malware infections, human error, and corrupted files. Sometimes the failure can be extensive enough that the system will not boot up. In most cases of logical failure, a hard drive recovery software can successfully restore data because there is no damage to the drive’s hardware.
PS4 HDD Failure, Symptoms & Reasons
There are several different types of PS4 hard drive failure. There’s the obvious one, where your PS4 HDD stops working entirely. Perhaps your console doesn’t even recognize it when it starts up and you see a message saying your PS4 has no hard drive (Error Code CE-34335-8), or perhaps your PS4 console begins booting and just can’t get through the boot process.
There are also more subtle PS4 HDD failures, where the drive appears to be working, but there are problems. Your PS4 may occasionally freeze, you may hear unusual sounds from the drive, or you may experience data corruption.
Any sort of clicking noise from a mechanical drive is a bad sign. This indicates the head, which reads and writes the data from the platters on the drive, has failed. It’s best to shut down the drive completely to avoid further damage and go back up the PS4 HDD data if they are valuable to you. You won’t hear any strange noises from a solid-state drive, as they have no moving parts.
Hard disk failure refers to a situation when a hard disk drive starts malfunctioning and the stored information becomes inaccessible. Unluckily, a hard disk drive has a limited lifespan. The normal lifespan of the hard disk drive is somewhere between 3-5 years. It simply depends on how much work the hard disk drive does on a day-to-day basis. Also, the environmental conditions play an essential role in determining the lifespan of the hard disk drive. Being a hardware device, the hard disk drive is prone to severe issues and faults. PS4 hard drive failure is one of the most annoying situations you can ever face.
So, because PS4 hard drive is a mechanical device, it’s subject to wearing out, even if you treat it better than your own children. Around 60% of hard drive failures occur through predictable mechanical failure, with the remaining 40% of failures occurring through misuse.
The Symptoms
Hard drives are susceptible to failure in a number of ways, so the symptoms of a failing hard disk can vary. It should be noted that some of the symptoms below can also be signs of other problems, and are not necessarily indicative of a hard drive failure. In cases of uncertainty, it is best to take in the PS4 console for a professional assessment by a technician.
Some of the most common signs of failing hard drives include:
- Unusual or excessive heating.
- Repeated read or write disk errors.
- Frequent PS4 crashes or freezing, whether during booting or carrying out tasks.
- Folders and files cannot be accessed.
- Disappearing data.
- Hard drive is powered but cannot perform routine functions.
- PS4 system can’t recognize the hard drive or it displays nonsensical characters.
- Hard drive is accessible but it lags or appears to “hang”.
- Unusual noises, including unexplained clicking, screeching or grinding.
In general, all game consoles have problems, but you don’t need to panic about hard drive failure unless one or more of the above symptoms appear.
The Reasons
Below are the top 6 common reasons for PS4 hard drive failure.
- Manufacturer’s Fault. It’s the topmost reason behind hard drive failure. Sometimes the manufacturers sell hard drives without proper testing. It may happen that the hard drive is faulty, so it fails to function after few weeks or months.
- Overheating. Inadequate ventilation and cooling in and around your PS4 hardware can cause severe damage to the equipment. Overworked hardware with little or no downtime and smoke or fire damage can wreak havoc on a system.
- Physical damage to your PS4. Any type of physical force, such as bumping, jarring, or dropping your PS4 may lead to physical damage to the hard drive. If your PS4 is in use at the time of the impact, the read/write heads may touch or gouge the disks, causing damage to the platter’s magnetic surfaces where the data is embedded. This is known as a head crash. Even if your PS4 is powered down, the likelihood of jarring your PS4’s components is still present.
- Power Voltage Surges. A power surge caused by lightning strikes, interference with power lines, or by any event which causes the flow of energy to be interrupted and then restarted. Power surges can result in data loss when the read/write heads fail to function properly.
- Water Damage. Moisture caused by flooding or even by spilling a liquid onto your PS4 is almost assuredly bad news. Water will have devastating effects on a PS4’s electronic parts and disk components, possibly even causing unwanted electrical currents which can further damage your PS4.
- Corrupted files. Improperly closing a game/app, turning off your PS4 before closing files, and installing new game/application can cause files to corrupt. Power failures and accidental PS4 shut downs can contribute to corrupted files, and causing damage to the hard drive.
Solutions
You can easily fix logical failure of PS4 hard drive that might cause PS4 to freeze. Unless your PS4 hard drive starts making noise, one of the following suggested solutions can fix that problem.
- Rebuilding PS4 database.
- Resetting PS4 to factory settings.
- Reinstall the game/app with which PS4 freezes.
Sometimes PS4 hard drive doesn’t make any noise, and it works fine for a while before freezing. This is probably because of the existence of bad sectors. You can fix that only by connecting your PS4 hard drive to a PC, and perform a CHKDSK operation on your drive. If that doesn’t work, go and perform a FULL format operation and it should do the job perfectly.
Perform a CHKDSK Operation
To perform CHKDSK on the PS4 hard drive, do the following:
- Open a Command Prompt. For Windows 8.1 and 10 right click on Start and select Command Prompt (Admin). Windows 7 users press Start and type cmd into the search box, then press Ctrl+Shift+Enter to open Command Prompt with the required administrator privileges.
- The basic Check Disk syntax is quite simple:
Chkdsk [drive:] [/f to fix or /r to recover bad sectors] [/x force dismount of drive]To run a simple scan for errors just supply the drive letter:
Chkdsk C:
To scan and fix errors use /f or /r to scan for bad sectors and fix the errors. This second option will take a long time as all drive sectors will be scanned and those that are damaged will be repaired.
Chkdsk C: /f or Chkdsk C: /r
Note you can use either /f or /r but don’t need to use both. The /x option can be used to dismount a drive before repairing although this won’t work on the C drive and it will still need to be checked and repaired during the next boot.
Perform a FULL format
If the CHKDSK thing didn’t work for you, you can do a FULL format on the PS4 hard drive. We have already published a detailed articles on how to format the internal hard drive of PS4. So, please click the link and learn how to do that.
Note that just because you’re experiencing system problems doesn’t mean you have a dead or dying hard drive. It’s important to do some basic troubleshooting to detect if your PS4 hard drive is actually the source of problem.
For example, if your PS4 doesn’t detect the hard drive during the boot-up process, you should open its case and check the cables that connect the hard drive to the motherboard and power supply. Unplug the cables and plug them back in, ensuring you have a solid connection. Your hard drive may just have a cable that’s come loose (For more details, please check the PS4 Error CE-34335-8 Fix.)
But what if PS4 hard drive fails due to a mechanical reason and it gives noise?
You have to seriously consider upgrading PS4 internal hard drive with a new and solid hard drive. As for your data, if the drive still has some life, you can try to backup all your data before replacing it. Either from PS4 or just connect it to a PC and perform a drive clone operation.
Conclusion
One of the worst situations you can face during the gameplay is when PS4 crashes or just stops working entirely. Even worse when this persists and keeps happening. You’re lucky enough if the problem is only related to your PS4 hard drive, as you can do it yourself without the help of others.
In all cases, PS4 hard drive must be replaced with a better and stronger drive. You’ll gain improved performance and solid reliability with the new drive.
(SU-42118-6) is the error code I’m receiving I’ve tried manually loading the updates then because my blu ray disc had recently quit working so I replaced that because I found indication that it was a hardware issue what else could it be?the drive works fine
Please check out this article:
https://www.ps4storage.com/ps4-error-code-su-42118-6-fixed/
I need help.. so after not playing my ps4 for months I finally pulled it out the box. My initial goal was to get it out reset it and sell. After getting it in safe mode to really do a whole factory reset (initialize) reset, it began the reset process then failed cause my Wi-Fi but then I tried for a second time & this time it showed me a screen telling me to connect my DualShock 4 (assuming my remote I did) but my son unplugged it. Unfortunately now I’m getting a “cannot start ps4 , cannot access storage system, & press the power button for 1 second to turn off ps4 (CE-34335-8)” message on my screen. I have no idea what to do 🤦🏼♀️
It sounds like you’re encountering some issues with your PS4 during the reset process. The error code “CE-34335-8” usually indicates a problem with accessing the storage system of the PS4. Here are some steps you can try to troubleshoot the issue:
Remember that initializing your PS4 will erase all data on it, so make sure to back up any important data if possible. If you’re not comfortable with performing these steps yourself, consider seeking help from a professional technician or contacting Sony support for assistance.
Bro my ps4 is stuck in safe mode. Lemme explain, when I power it on it says, “Checking system storage status” after that it instantly goes to safe mode and say “Connect dualshock 4 using USB cable” so I do and then it goes to the next screen that tells me to connect a USB device with 60 or more GB’s including and initialization update file so I do that and on the next screen it asks me if I want to initialize (please note it will only let me chose the option out of the other 6 in safe mode for some reason) so I click initialization and same I’m sure about it wiping all users and data. So I do that and it’s initializing….. until in stops and I get the error code that says cannot initialize and then it powers off and starts the process all over again IT KEEPS SAYING CANNOT INITIALIZE AND ITS STUCK IN SAFE MODE AND THE ONLY WAY I CAN GET IT OUT IS TO INITIALIZE BUT IT WON’T
It sounds like your PS4 is in a boot loop and is unable to initialize. There are a few things you can try to fix this:
If you have tried all of the above and your PS4 is still in a boot loop, you may need to contact Sony for further assistance.
Here are some additional tips for troubleshooting PS4 boot loop issues:
My ps4 at first was working fine, I was in a ps party with a mate and my game randomly froze and I couldn’t turn off my ps4. So my mate tells me to unplug it, so I listen to him and unplug it. I plug it back in and turn it back on and it did the whole checking storage status thing, except something was odd. It was stuck at 0% for a while then it said Cannot start ps4. I unplugged it and tried starting it in safe mode and it said Cannot start ps4 and cannot access system storage, I may just take it somewhere to be fixed but I would really love to know what has happened
It seems that your PS4 may have encountered a hardware or software issue, possibly resulting in corrupted system storage. Unplugging the console abruptly during its operation can lead to data corruption and hardware failure.
When the PS4 freezes and does not respond, it is recommended to try holding down the power button for about 10 seconds to force it to shut down. Unplugging the console may cause damage to its hardware.
The error message you received indicates that the PS4 cannot access its system storage, which is where the operating system and data are stored. This can happen due to a corrupted hard drive or a malfunctioning system software.
You can try troubleshooting the issue by following the steps outlined by PlayStation support. This may involve re-installing the system software or replacing the hard drive if it is found to be faulty.
If you are not comfortable performing these steps yourself, it is recommended to take your PS4 to a professional repair service or contact PlayStation support for assistance.
I’m having an issue with my PS4. When I turn it on it starts to load normally the ps logo pops up for a second and goes away immediately. Then the black screen. Sometimes it doesn’t even show the logo and tv screen says no input. Sometimes it will flash ps logo and health warning message then black screen but the tv never shows that there isn’t video input. It thinks it’s there. I noticed the box at top of tv says 1080p and disappears and then comes back over and over while the screen is still black. Every now and then it will flash like it’s starting to get a signal but nothing comes up. The PS4 is loaded up I’m pretty sure because I can hold the ps button on the controller for the menu hit x and it goes into rest mode. Also the light on top is white like normal. If I hit the ps button to come out of what I’m guessing is rest mode it never recognizes the input. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
It seems that your PS4 is encountering an issue with the video output or the HDMI connection between the console and the TV.
Here are a few things you can try to troubleshoot the problem:
If none of these steps work, it may be a hardware issue with the PS4’s HDMI port or video output. In this case, you may need to contact PlayStation support or take your PS4 to a professional repair service to have it fixed.
Got a PS4 Pro a few months ago on offer up and haven’t had any major issues with it until recently. I tried playing The Last of Us Part 2 for the first and it literally freezes and glitches with every cut scene
There was no Hard Disk Drive (HDD) detected. Unplug the PS4TM console’s power cord and remove the top cover. Verify that the HDD is properly installed. If you are still having problems, the HDD may be corrupted or faulty, or your console may require service.
The PS4 has recently started to lag in the PS menus and in select games. Is this an indication of a bad hard disk, or is there another reason?
Switch off the electricity and turn off your PS4 for around a minute. Step 2: To make the PS4 operate without any external devices, unplug the external hard drive and switch it on. Third Step: Restart the PS4 and attach the external hard disk. Step 4: Switch on your PS4 once more.
I purchased a PS4 Pro a few months ago at discount, and up until recently, I had no significant problems with it. The first time I tried to play The Last of Us Part 2, it literally froze and glitched during every cut scene.
There is no Hard Disk Drive (HDD) found. Remove the top cover, unplug the power cord, and turn the PS4TM console off. Verify that the HDD is installed properly. If you are still having problems, either your console has to be serviced or the HDD may be corrupted or defective.
So I bought a ps4 on offer up and when I turned it on it said corrupted data so I put it in safe mode and initialize the PS4 with the USB and fix that problem but after playing on it, it started to lag, freeze and it Completely shut down and when I turned it back on it re-download the software and an error keeps on popping up where it says somethings wrong with my software update and it lags on the menu and when I put it to rest mode after a couple of hours it turns off and said I unplugged it and i’ve tried every option on safe mode and it did nothing only fixed it for 30 minutes and it went back to the same problem and I got another PS4 that my friend let me try out and switched out the hard drive to that one and for a while there were no lag, freezing, or crashing for a while but eventually It did the same Thing on my friends PS4 so I was wondering do you think it’s a hard drive problem?
Yes, definitely it is. But in some cases even changing the PS4 hard drive to another HDD won’t resolve this issue, as some of our clients reported. What we used to advise them is to replace their PS4 HDD with an SSD instead and it worked perfectly in almost all cases.
Why an SSD will work yet another HDD won’t? Well, it’s because of power supply degradation. It’s a long technical story that you don’t need to waste your time listening to it.
So what I suggest to you is to get an SSD for your PS4 and hopefully your issue will be resolved entirely.
hello i am wondering if a hard drive being crashed or faulty can drop my fps and also if it can make lag spike online as offline and i try to reset no success and when i try to format my ps4 and reinstalling system software I have this error code su 42-1186 my ps4 lag spike online and offline
and i cannot change hard drive because of this error code su-421186 help me please i dont know what happpen
yes, a faulty hard drive can generate all these symptoms. You better try first to full-format the PS4 internal hard drive before considering a new replacement.
Hi i have recently been having issies with my ps4 slim shutting off within 5 minutes of powerring on. It wont shut off if im reinitializing it or in safe mode however as soon as i have it reset and log in to my psn it shuts off. if i dont sign in it works jut fine. if i sign in and dont do anything it will stay idle. soon as i try to load any game or app it makes a clicking noise and shuts off then makes another clicking sound after its off. any idea what might be the cause of this. Thanks ^-^
Since you’re hearing a clicking noise, then it is your hard drive dying. You better consider upgrading your PS4 internal hard drive to resolve this issue.
first and foremost, a huge thanks for all the assistance provided to all the posters here as the sheer volume appears daunting in the least. My issue is probably simple, but for lack of a better phrase, I’m a bit of a technotard. On my PS4 Pro I had an issue with corrupted data messages and frequent crashes, but only on a certain downloaded game and on certain ships after a game update. Redownloaded numerous times with no fix. Did the database rebuild, no fix. Checked for PS update and always had the same update available after numerous executions. Eventually, a game update resolved the issue, then less than a week later I shut down for the night and the next day when I started PS it couldn’t start, and 7)init/reinstall op system was the only option selectable. Followed the directions after borrowing a USB to download to a stick (in proper format the second time). When attempted to plug into PS 1st issue was stick would not fit in the front ports so I used the rear USB port. The first question is does the port matter for reinstall? Second, when plugged into the rear it is coded cant access system storage, does this indicate the hard drive needs replaced. Bear in mind I have to borrow a USB and any cables necessary for connection. I only play 5 games and watch a little Youtube here and there and just want it to work. Your continued assistance to the entire gaming community is greatly appreciated, especially by us less tech-savvy old schoolers (I remember when Atari was released and the undisputed champ lol)
Welcome to our website and thanks for your nice compliments.
Apparently, you have issues with the PS4 internal hard drive. It seems there are some bad sectors that cause that particular game to behave weirdly the way you saw it. Then because you have not resolved this issue, the bad sector number increased in your PS4 hard drive which eventually resulted in the case you are in now.
What you have to do the very first thing is: FULL-format the PS4 internal hard drive on a PC. Afterward, insert it back into the PS4 and install the PS4 system software. This should have resolved your issue temporarily until you replace the PS4 internal hard drive. It can last a few months without causing you an issue, but once an issue happens again, the next step should definitely be to replace the PS4 internal HDD.
As for your questions:
1). does the port matter for reinstall?
Ans: NO.
—
2). When plugged into the rear it is coded cant access system storage, does this indicate the hard drive needs replaced.
Ans: It means your hard drive has some issues that must be fixed. It doesn’t necessarily mean replacement. You have to full format it first and see if this problem is resolved or not. If not, then yes, you need to replace it.
My ps4 says checking system storage and then ps4 wont turn on without updating to newest version so I turn it on in safe mode and do the update and it continues to say the same thing
Your PS4 internal hard drive seems to need maintenance. Go full format it first on a PC then try it again (read this guide for more details).
I’m not sure if this is too late already to reply to but first I want to say thank you for responding to all these people, I know it’s a pain for a console to stop working.
Recently, my PS4 told me to restart it so I did. It sent me to safe mode and said I need to reinstall the software update from playstation.com so I grabbed my USB and did as it said. I connected my USB & reinstall it. It goes to 100% and looks like it’ll work but then the screen goes black and I go back to the safe mode.
It’s also telling me that the USB is not connected? Error : SU-41333-4
I’ve already tried option 7 on safe mode which I know delete all data from playstation ( which I don’t really mind )
I just need help because I can’t afford to buy a new console or HDD at the moment!
You are welcome Diana and we are pleased to help you.
According to your description of the issue, it seems your PS4 internal hard drive is malfunctioning. But the good news is that it also seems the issue is not major. You only need to FULL-format the PS4 internal hard drive (as illustrated in this article) and you’ll be fine.
My ps4 has been performing real slow lately even though I’m connected to the internet. For some reason when I would leave it in rest mode, I would come back the next day to it saying I turned it off improperly and it did this multiple times. I think this may be the problem but I’m not sure. Don’t know what I should do. I’ve rebuilt the database twice and that did not fix it.
The next step should be is to full initialize the PS4 and reinstalling the PS4 system software from scratch. Let’s assume it’s a software-level issue before considering it a hardware issue.
If that doesn’t work for you, please come back for further assistance.
Hi there, I’ve been having trouble with my PS4 for a few weeks now and I need help. So every time I tried to play a game, it would say the same thing. “Cannot continue using the application because it is corrupted. Delete it and reinstall it from the library.” So I did this multiple times to multiple games and this didn’t work, so I rebuilt the database 3 or 4 times and that didn’t work, so I read that the only thing I could do now to fix it is to initialize the PS4, and that’s what I did, but it didn’t work. So I bought a new 50 dollar hard drive, and that worked for a few days, but I noticed that any games I would download, it would take 2-3 days to download, and now it’s doing it again. I can’t play any games and it’s extremely frustrating. It’s saying the same thing. “Cannot continue using the application because it is corrupted.” I don’t know what to do anymore and I need help. I have an extended storage device if you think that would have any affect on it
If your PS4 is old, this is one of the common issues that occur to the system. The hard drive no longer receives enough power to run it at its fullest, therefore it generates errors. (You can read more on what happens when the PS4 doesn’t receive enough power)
Fixing that needs a good experience and not every technician can do it and in many cases it may require that you replace the power supply or even the motherboard.
The quickest and easiest solution for this situation is to use an SSD. Get a 500gb SSD for your PS4 or 1tb (check this list) and this error should vanish for so long.
Why does an SSD help? Because it consumes LESS power than HDD, and it accommodates to power instability and surges.
Hope that helps you.
Alrighty so I ordered an ssd card and my PS4 was working pretty well last night, apart from some network issues, and one of my games still wasn’t working but I wasn’t to concerned, but now it’s not working anymore, so I imagine I need to send it in for repairs now. Still, thank you helping me out. I really appreciate it
I am sorry to hear that. Yes, it seems you have a serious power issue that an SSD was only a temporary solution. It might be the power supply that needs fixing.
Can you please do us a small favor and tell us, when you get your PS4 back from repair, what the problem was and how it got fixed? We would appreciate that too much and it will benefit our readers also. Thanks.
Nice So my mom Broke me PS
great news and great mom.
I’m having an issue due to power voltage surge when it restarted it forced me to initialize my ps4 after I did that when it started working again I tried loading a disc game and then it would load to a point and show x cannot start application and I cleaned all my discs properly please how can I fix it.
Can you repair a faulty internal hard drive for ps4 or just get a new one?
It seems a hard drive failure. You can “try” to repair it by performing a FULL-format on it. You need to connect it to a PC first before carrying out this process.
If that doesn’t work, you may need to perform a low-level format on your PS4 HDD. This requires a special software such as the HDD LLF Tool.
My ps4 keeps turning off by its own and it is very slow on the menu and sometimes my games keeps getting corrupted for no reason and also when i try to reboot the database, it says ‘cannot rebuilt database’ and gives me an error code ( sorry for bad english )
It seems you have an overheating or power issue. Please check these two articles:
1- PS4 overheating
2- PS4 defective power supply.
If you’re sure these issues are not applicable to you, you may want to clear the CMOS memory.
Hello so my ps4 at first it was lagging and then once I was updating the system software and the power cut down and then entered safe mode than I fixed that and then I could only download one app because my ps4 keeps lagging like crazy and now it keeps freazingII and turning off and when turn it on it says system software problem and database problem and I managed to fix the database problem in safe mode but it keeps all the problems again why? Is it because of my hardware or somthing like that?
Your PS4 hard drive got defective by the power outage. Try to full-format it on a PC, and if doesn’t work, you need a new one.
So my data on my ps4 is constantly being corrupted to the point that even my cloud saves seem to be corrupted. If I were to get a new ps4 would my cloud saves be corrupted or would they work again?
Another thing is I was getting the notification “The data for the following application is corrupted. Delete the application from the Ps4 and then download again”. Because this kept happening I finally caved and deleted and reinstalled. But after I did that the game wouldn’t let me past a certain point of the menu. So I finally reinitialised my ps4 in hopes this would help. It did not. Now a completely different game gives me that same notification telling me it’s corrupted and to delete it. I’m not sure what to do. Would buying a new Ps4 help me?
I don’t advise you to buy a new hard drive at this point unless you try everything you can and nothing works. I strongly ask you to full format the PS4 internal hard drive first before doing anything else. This process helped many users revive their hard drive and restore its original performance. But that won’t last long, if the HDD fails for the second time (this might happen after a few months), you must consider buying a new PS4 HDD replacement.
I ended up just going with a new hard drive. From what I was reading on the internet it was worth it. And so far since having it it definitely has been worth the money. Regardless thank you for the advice. This site has given me a lot of info
I am glad that you eventually found a resolution for your issue. Thank you for your feedback that might help some readers.
If your cloud saves were uploaded from a malfunctioning/failing hard drive, then yes, most probably they’re also corrupted. It’s not inevitable, as the game saves might be stored on undamaged sectors on the hard drive and they remained intact. Trying your luck is the only way to find out.
Hi, it was hard to find some support to the PS4 besides go and get it to a repair shop. I can see a lot of relevant and helpful information about PS4 problems here, but it took time to find this. Anyhow, thanks for that, keep up the spirit.
I have read most of the comments, but I did not see anything similar to my case:
1. In one game at a point out of the blue the PS4 PRO (barely 2y old) threw out the disk and showed
“Cannot continue using the application.
The data for following application is corrupted. Delete the application from the hard drive and reinsert the disc again”
2. After I did that, this error happened again fairly quickly in the same game. After that my system froze in some settings menu, while I tried but had no chance to backup anything. I had to unplug the PS4 at the end since it simply did not react to any buttons at all.
3. Restarting the system it stated, it could not start the PS4 system, so I had to restart it a couple of times after I finally got the chance to initialize with the update file for reinstall, wiping the hdd.
4. Everything worked out for a while again, but then this issue repeated very similarly while playing the same game again. By now at least I have learned to backup my save games after every game session. :/
5. So I did the whole process again. I still thought this just might be a bug of the specific game causing a logical issue. Something that could normally be fixed easily by a chckdsk-tool.
6. Well then it happened again in another game after quite a while though. I even reinstalled most of my games filling the hdd by then without any issues. But again it was just lost effort. And this time after the reinitialization I could not install anything anymore – besides the system itself. So it would boot up, but anything I tried to download or install from disk has failed. (Showing corrupted data with a ripped icon on the desktop instead of the game, showing “Cannot install. CE-34016-4”, “An error has occurred. CE-34706-0” errors and so on.) Finally I got a “Cannot access system storage. CE-33570-8” msg. An I did not even get to the safe mode menu anymore.
7. Quite clearly my hdd has died… and I also got familiar with the whole reinstall procedure. I also started to feel a bit of regret – why did I buy a console? Since I wanted a plug and play experience without having to be an IT expert. Right. And this time I am depending on just one company’s support. :/
8. Anyhow, luckily I got a secondary 1TB hdd in my laptop. Before I buy one, I wanted to try to insert that. I tried formatting it as FAT32 (with a tool) then as NTFS with the same result:
After I inserted it into the PS4 PRO, it would start up to safe mode, where I only get the option to reinstall the system. (I did this procedure 4 or 5 times from the same stick I still use. (So it is in Fat32, the right version of the updated reinstall file is placed as PS4/UPDATE/PS4UPDATE.PUP and the stick does fit into my PS4 😉 .)
After I get some warnings that I need to reinstall the system with version 8.03 and I would loose all data it goes on until “Initializing System” shows up with the bar, but when it hits around 30%(a bit different every time) it aborts abruptly by showing “Cannot initialize. (CE-33567-4)”.
Now I don’t really know how this issue comes to be, but I love the error messages on the PS4. And I thought others are bad with those :).
Anyhow after I have read your thread here, I think the hdd should be just fine. It is currently “slow” formatted as NTFS but as I wrote, I already tried FAT32 before as well. It also worked and still works just fine in my laptop.
(Currently I am formatting the original hdd just to test how it works, but it does behave strangely and emits strange noises sometimes while finally being able to format.)
My problem is, that I am not sure that if I get a new hdd it will be different. The hdd from my laptop should work just fine.
Have you got an idea please?
Thanks in advance,
Dan
Hi Dan,
Can you please clear the PS4 CMOS memory? I think it may by somehow cause this problem. If that doesn’t work, the PS4 power supply or the PS4 power cord might be the culprit.
Try with the CMOS memory first then come back to us with your feedback. We love to help.
Hi, sorry for the double posting, please delete my second identical post below. My original posting seemed to be lost when I revisited.
As to the problem:
1. I formatted the original PS4 PRO hdd by now (it took 12 hours (!) with many strange occasional noises) and reinserted it into my PS4 PRO. I then could reinitialize my system without any errors. Still, after restarting to boot up the system for the first time it showed again: “PS4 cannot start. Please connect you controller via USB and press the PS-button. So the hdd seems to be absolutely unusable. BUT it shows, that the USB stick and the data on it is just fine.”
2. I got a Samsung 250GB EVO SSD today from a friend for testing and with that (it was formatted NTFS) the whole procedure worked as supposed. I have reinstalled some games from disk by now and downloading some smaller games also worked like a charm.
3. After I saw how much I have to unscrew to get to the CMOS I skipped that for now. 🙂 I hope that the problem is solved and that particular laptop hdd just does not work with th PS4 PRO. (It does work fine again in my laptop though.)
Lets see, how stable my PS4 system works for now…
I have to say, I would not have accomplished this without your page, which really gives some great support.
Hi Dan,
I am glad that your problem has been resolved (as it seems).
As for the first point, the original PS4 Pro hard drive seems very damaged and must be disposed of. The clicking noise is a very clear sign of the end of its life.
As for the second point, that proves it’s a storage device issue. It’s just quite strange how the PS4 system didn’t accept the new hard drive, but I suspect it’s a power issue. I think that the hard drive isn’t getting enough power, and since it requires more power than SSD to operate, it keeps failing. As for SSDs, they are light on power, so with the power shortage your console undergoes, the SSD can easily accommodates to this situation.
I reckon this is a very logical explanation for your case, and eventually specialized tests can prove it right or wrong.
Anyway, congrats for reviving your console 🙂 and you’re very welcome any time to ask us for support.
Thanks for your quick and helpful answers. Though I don’t like the idea of eventually having an underpowering issue 🙂
The SSD is doing a great job, I like how its a little faster.
I will try to test a different hdd when I get the chance and hope that it works, to make sure the problem is not caused by a power issue.
(I could bring up the reasoning against this theory, that with the original hdd it still went through the reinitialization procedure many times without any errors and still even booted up when I already got the error message with the laptop hdd.
Anyhow, if there is any news concerning this, I will make sure to post it here.
Until then, thank you once again.
You’re very welcome Dan, your feedbacks are really informative and helpful that enrich the subject of this topic. We very much appreciate that. So, thank you!
Good day, my ps4 says checking storage and then the screen just turns black. I only care for my capture galley clips 🙁 is there any way I can salvage them??? My brother passed away and I had a lot of clips of me and him playing together and never deleted them I feel really sad because I probably won’t be able to see those clips again.
Hi Bryant,
You can’t really assure it’s the hard drive that causes the problem, it might be the RAM or graphics card or even the motherboard. What you can do is to remove the PS4 hard drive first and insert it into an external HDD enclosure, then connect it to a PC to check whether it’s healthy or not. According to our long experience with hard drives they don’t suddenly fail without a warning, and if they fail for any reason there are good chances to recover stored data from them. So don’t lose hope.
Just do as I’ve told you and tell me what have you found in order to help you further.
my ps4 won’t initialise and it can’t initialise
Your PS4 HDD is failing for sure.
I’ve read a bunch of these reply’s but none seems to exactly hit my issue.
While playing COD:Modern Warfare, my system will crash, no warning, no errors. The screen goes multicolour scramble and then shuts off. It takes 2 power button presses to fire it up again, and it tells me the system wasn’t shut off properly.
I have taken apart and cleaned, I have re seated the drive, I have rebuilt database, I have re downloaded the whole game, I have re-applied thermal paste. It worked for two separate 1 hour+ gaming sessions since the thermal paste, with no problems.
It is crashing again.
You said: “It worked for two separate 1 hour+ gaming sessions since the thermal paste, with no problems.
It is crashing again.”
That indicates it’s a heating issue. It’s either the fan or the CPU itself. Check the fan whether it works properly or not. If it does, I am afraid that your PS4 CPU is defective and generating too much heat that the fan can’t dissipate.
The solution is to take it to a repair shop to check the CPU and confirm it’s the reason.
Hello my ps4 has start freezing in fifa first the textures loading in slow on cod then sometime long loading times and crashes back and when I switch it back on it checks hard drive tried multiple thing nothing helps the finally full format and reinstalled all games but it the same as before now it’s just asked me to get drivers from ps. Com and put on memery stick and reboot is the HD done I got new one coming if it doesn’t work where do I look next
Usually the hard drive is the main culprit for such a case, but the graphics card might be another reason, although that’s rare. If you replace the PS4 internal hard drive and the problem still persists, no one can help you but a technician who have to diagnose your PS4 and find out the real source of the problem.
My hdmi cord got damaged while it was in rest mode plugged in. Its the ps4 pro. The only thing I can get it to do is go in safe mode and start the process for rebuilding, initialization, and update the system software, I can see it starting the process but it never finishes then before going in rest mode again automatically. I’m not tech savvy. I need help
It’s the PS4 hard drive undergoing some bad sectors. You need to pull it out and connect it to a PC then perform a FULL format on it (read more). That should repair the PS4 HDD and restore its original performance.
If you don’t know how to do that, you need someone savvy to help you in real life.
Please do help, I recently bought a PS4 online and it was working perfectly except for sounding like a plane taking off when I’m launching games. For the past 3-4 days it has been switching off abruptly and I do not know why. IT will play for 10-15 minutes sometimes even less, then just switch off. What could the problem be?
The PS4 fan seems not working properly. Once this happens, the PS4 CPU will overheat and in a short time the PS4 will shut down in order to protect the CPU from burning out.
Go to a technician to replace the fan for you, it’s not costly.
I had the same problem, after a few minutes the ps4 would turn off, no power whatsoever, I had to plug it out and back in to get it back on. Took it to tech store who after a few days told me they couldn’t find anything wrong, I brought it home it has worked perfectly since. This was about a year ago. My guess is to leave it plugged out for a long time, and I read that it’s better to have the ps4 plugged directly into the socket on the wall, not in an adaptor with other devices.
What do I do if my ps4 has been in and out of being stuck in safe mode for the last couple of weeks, and when I initialized it, it started working again, but a couple hours later i tried different options of turning to back on, and when i held down the power button for a long time without hearing the safe mode beep, it turned on and brought me to the home screen? Do i need to replace my hard drive?
You need first to try to full format the PS4 internal hard drive. This should resolve this problem temporarly. If it does, it means the problem is with your PS4 hard drive and you have to consider to replace it with a better and newer drive.
Ps4 cant access system storage help
Read this post please.
If my internal hard drive stopped working can I use an external hard drive as a replacement? I get an error message saying “cannot connect access system storage”
No, it’s not possible. the internal hard drive must be replaced.
what does it mean if my screen is flashing from ps4 to black screen and when i turn it off it dosent want to coe back on
It’s a power issue. Probably your PS4 power cord or power supply is damaged.
im having an issue with my hard drive, since it needed an update it went into safe mode and now i have to initialize it, but whenever i do, it gets stuck at 99%, do you have any idea what is causing it to be that way?
most probably there’s a bad sector on your hard drive that causes the problem. You need to FULL format it in order to fix that issue.
My PS4 Pro is having serious technical issues. It started when I would not be able to put it into rest mode (it would turn off randomly and give prompt that I didn’t safely shut down)
The I could not restart the PS4. It says it can not communicate with the hard drive. I took it to a repair shop where they said they reinstalled the software and it “seemed to be ok”
2 weeks later the problem came back but worse. The PS4 randomly turned off again and would not restart stating the same communication issue.
I now just bought a new SSD and tried replacing the old internal with it. Once again I get the same issue. At this point I have no idea what to do because I can’t even get it into safe mode.
It seems there’s a serious issue with the PS4 motherboard. The SATA slot seems to be defective and causing errors. Only a well-versed technician can fix it.
My ps4 isn’t as new but I’ve only had it for a year when I turn it on it takes a little longer to check storage system and when it boots up it freezes and doesn’t let me click my profile then when I go onto a game it freezes and kicks me out the game and closes my whole system I’ve resetted my ps4 and rebuild database nothing works and it also says I don’t have the new update but when I’m on it says I have the latest update 7.51
This is apparently a hard drive issue. Try first to full format it, if it doesn’t work still, you have to consider a new PS4 internal HDD replacement.
Thanks for the reply and how do you Format and could you explain it simply and also is it possible to format the ps4 while in safe mode and lastly how to format in simple. Thanks Really Much!
You’re welcome. Please read this article for more details. If you face any problem with formatting the PS4 internal HDD, read the comments below that article as there are several solutions.
Also, it’s not possible to format the PS4 internal HDD while it’s still inside the console. You have to pull it out and connect it to a computer in order to perform that.
Another thing I would like to ask is that do you lose your VR Games you paid for after you paid for it and you have done safe mode option 7. Now hear me out before you say anything. So in my previous comment :
So my PS4 keeps on saying checking System Software, and then goes into Safe Mode which then says Connect a USB Storage device that contains an update file for reinstallations for version 7.55 or later. You can download the update file for reinstallation at playstation.com.
I have then tried(no.5) rebuilding database,(no.4) restore default settings, (no.1) restart PS4,(no.7) update system software and initialize ps4 (reinstall system software ) and no.7 had been the only that has been working but now the same thing is happening more frequently. Please inform me more about fixing and leaving safe mode without losing data. I’m pretty sure its the hard drive but can I still get more advice and help.
So you can clearly see I have ran into the problem ^ multiple times and that I then realized to get back all my VR Games back I have to pay for them e.g. Beat Saber is a VR Game that I had and now I have to pay full price to get it back. Please leave your thoughts.
I don’t have the sufficient knowledge to help you here. But if you’re afraid to lose your games, why not back up them on an external hard drive, then when you format the internal HDD, restore them. Everyone does that nowadays.
So my PS4 keeps on saying checking System Software, and then goes into Safe Mode which then says Connect a USB Storage device that contains an update file for reinstallations for version 7.55 or later. You can download the update file for reinstallation at playstation.com.
I have then tried(no.5) rebuilding database,(no.4) restore default settings, (no.1) restart PS4,(no.7) update system software and initialize ps4 (reinstall system software ) and no.7 had been the only that has been working but now the same thing is happening more frequently. Please infrom me more about fixing and leaving safe mode without losing data. I’m pretty sure its the hard drive but can I still get more advice and help.
This is usually a result of a failing hard drive. It means there’re bad sectors that impact the drive’s functionality and cause these errors. You have to full format the PS4 internal hard drive to get over it.
If I tried full formatting and it doesn’t fix the issue where would I then swap or fix my hard drive and if I full format will all my online storage data with the PS PLUS Membership be erased?
Your online account with the data stored in it will remain intact, don’t worry.
So I tried on multiple laptops (both Acer) snd tried multiple Hard Drive and usb cables etc but none of the times has the Hard Drive been read. We tried different USB Holes but overall it doesn’t appear in This PC but it is recognized on Device and Printers but I don’t think it is possible to Full Format on there. Please reply ASAP because I really need the help. Thanks!
Have you checked if it appeared in “Disk Management”?
I’m having a problem with my ps4. There was a power outage in my neighborhood and my electric shut off in my house while I was playing a game on my ps4. Ever since then my ps4 crashes, lags, said it is disconnected from servers, etc. I believe it is my hard drive that is the issue. Will initializing the ps4 to factory settings help with this issue?
Power surges cause damage to hard drives. You have to full format the PS4 hard drive on a PC first in order to eliminate any logical bad sectors. If that doesn’t work, consider seriously replacing the PS4 hard drive with a new drive.
Followed Thomas Graber’s post about using ddrescue to save data. Would like to reach out to him for some additional info in using this process. Any way you could connect me with him or if he sees this post, he could contact me??
Just reply to his comment here and he will get notified by email about that. I cannot reveal any personal information of our readers. Once he agrees to contact you, I will provide both of you with each other’s email address via email.
I have a issue where any game or app I start it says ce34878 I had a problem with PS4 turning off by itself before but it fixed automatically but now I have this problem when I start a game such as Fortnite it shows some weird sparkling lights and then give the error
Kindly check out this article.
Hello there, I think I posted on someone else’s comment so you didn’t get to see this but I’ve been having issues with my Ps4 pro. For a while now my ps4 only lets me play some games smoothly while other games suffer for example Battlefront 2, Apex Legends, Cod WWII. these games run smoothly without problem. But other games like GTA5, Skyrim, Fallout, Red dead, Have horrible frame rate issues and bad lag. How come I can play some games without issues and others can’t be played without having bad FPS? Please help.
That’s because the portion of the hard drive where those games are installed has bad sectors. Try to full format the internal hard drive in order to restore the original performance. This shall work for you.
Thank you for the response, But I don’t know How and can’t full format my Ps4 Pros internal hard drive, even with the instructions, But thank you. Would it be easier and still work if I just buy another hard drive and install it?
It will surely still work. If you’re going to buy a new hard drive for the PS4 Pro, I strongly suggest you get an SSD for that purpose.
My PS4 slim will not complete won’t update software systems. Error code SU-42118-6 shows up after the attempt to download occurs and then it says turn off pS4. What should I do to fix this-is it the hard drive?
Try first to full format the PS4 hard drive. This will most probably fix that issue. If not, there’s no other solution but replace the PS4 hard drive.
Hi Again, I can’t see my original comment on your reply, sorry for starting a new thread (you might want to check if the comment is hidden?)
I followed your excellent instructions that I received via email. The only issue I faced was when attempting to format the disk using the Disk Management application, once I’d cleaned it via DISKPART, the option for FAT32 was not available, only NTFS or exFAT.
So instead, I used DISKPART to format it, specifying FAT32. I could see the progress of formatting in the Disk Management window as well as in the command prompt. At the end of formatting, the error “virtual disk service error the volume size is too big” came up. Figuring that Windows was struggling to use FAT32 on a 1TB drive, I then chose exFAT.
Formatting this way was successful, and I was successful in reinstalling the PS4 operating system.
Performance of the console is still very laggy even in the main screen menu’s unfortunately – I’ve ordered the Samsung QVO 1TB SSD to see if this helps.
Hi again Glen and thanks a lot for your nice feedback.
You have connected the PS4 hard drive to your computer externally, that’s why it had troubles formatting it using FAT32. So, good you went with exFAT.
I can see your mistake here is that you haven’t performed a FULL format. What you did was a quick format that won’t repair the bad sectors on the hard drive that cause the performance issue.
But anyway, since you have bought an SSD, it’s not a loss. An SSD is much better and will make your gaming experience smoother.
Actually I did a full format, it took around 3 hours to complete.
The PS4 is still problematic, even I as type I got the CE-36329-3 error. I just hope it is HDD related and my replacement SSD fixes it for good, otherwise this could get expensive!
Thanks again for all your help, and for maintaining this excellent guide.
Oh, the CE-36329-3 Error is notorious, and in many cases just replacing the PS4 hard drive is the solution.
Would you mind to write us about your experience with the new hard drive replacement and whether it resolved the issue or not? This will enrich the topic and help us write better guides for our readers.
Thank you too.
Good news. The PS4 lives again! The problems were almost certainly down to faults on the stock HDD.
The problem started when playing Fallout 76 upon entering a new environment where the game would need to load. This would crash the game. Performance deteriorated to the point where I couldn’t even enter the game. Then the operating system became laggy and would crash without any interaction from me after a time. This continued to happen even after a full format and reinstall, so I suspect that the disk has been physically damaged at some point and now it’s deteriorated (despite only being 18 months old).
The SSD peforms superbly. Installation was simple, no formatting required, just plug in and go. Operating system was installed very quickly, games load much more quickly and textures load almost instantly in the games themselves.
Glad I followed this guide, thanks!
Thanks a lot Glen for all these details. I’m happy you eventually resolved the issue. Additionally, SSD’s are not only speed monsters, they are way much reliable than HDD’s. That means you can enjoy gaming without any storage performance failure/delinquency.
Just make sure to keep at least 15% of the SSD capacity as a free space. This helps SSD maintain the peak performance.
Hey,
Great guide, thank you for taking the time to put it together. I have an issue where when I plug my HDD from my PS4Pro into my PC to run chkdsk, I cannot as the disk is not assigned a drive letter.
When I list disks using DISKPART, I can see the disk listed. When I open disk management, it is also there but right clicking on it (where I would normally assign a drive letter), all the options are greyed out.
Have you seen this before? Can you help?
Thanks, Glen
Hi Glen,
You’re welcome and thanks for your nice compliment.
Here’s the detailed solution for your problem. Please provide us with your feedback after you try it.
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Note: After erasing the PS4 hard drive and reformatting it in the Computer Management window, you should perform another full format to overwrite any sectors of data that might remain. To do so, click “Computer” on the Start screen, and then right-click the new drive letter for the drive. Click “Format” on the pop-up menu, and then disable the “Quick Format” option. Leave the current “Capacity” and “File System” selections intact and click “Start.” Click “OK” In the confirmation window, and then wait for Windows to perform a full format of the drive. Depending on the size of the drive, the format may take a few minutes or it might take several hours.
My ps4 fell nothing happened at first but a couple of weeks later it said all data was corrupted then it went into safe mode and asked for a reinstallation file I tried to initialize it and it worked but the PlayStation was super slow and now it keeps saying all the data was corrupted and it cannot open any games and it usually cannot start properly do I need to replace get a different hard drive?
And it makes a clicking noise when the PlayStation is on
This assures the defectiveness of the hard drive. Get a new one.
Yes, your PS4 hard drive is defective.
If I full format my hard drive from the internal, does it stop and reduce the heat because my ps4 kept shutting down by itself when I leave it for like almost an hour. My ps4 kept freezing and crash everytime when I start playing and when I turn on the ps4. I tried rebuild database and initialize the ps4 multiple time but it didn’t work. My ps4 kept getting hot at the back of the console and I don’t know the fan of the console worked.
You have to first clean the PS4 and check its fan. It’s rare that the hard drive is the suspect for this issue. So, most probably it won’t help you. Please visit this page for more details on this issue.
My ps4 pro has been lagging bad lately. I can get to a game and start it up but any heavy loading my ps4 acts like it’s just too much to handle and lags. It’s also been going into safe mode on its own even when I turn off the ps4 the right way. Then when it loads up there’s 4 different “screens” on my tv. Like the login screen there will be 4 of them across my tv. So I just restart and it goes to normal. But the lag is just ridiculous. I can just be sitting at the loading screen of a game doing nothing and the music will go in and out. Can’t move up and down the menu. It’s so frustrating. This is the first PlayStation to ever crap out on me. I’ve tried everything so I’m guessing I should connect to a pc and check the sectors?
Yes, this is mandatory in your case. For more details, please visit this page that addresses the PS4 slowness issue in details.
My PS4 is not good, when i start the ps4 it keep showing checking system storage of the percentage and when the ps4 logo showed after, i got an error of (CE-36329-3). I tried to play every game but it kept freezing but not only that, it everything on ps4 like ps4 home screen, the bar on the left screen, notification as i press and highlighted the icons but it froze. I rebuild database and delete everything with new system software by using the usb multiple time but didn’t work. The final thing is when i play all of the sudden, the console is heated up as it turn off automatically also when in rest mode when i tried to download games. I don’t know what to do, i brought the ps4 last year, i got nothing.
Please visit this page to resolve the (CE-36329-3) Error issue.
My PS4 pro is really laggy in main menu and in general or just with freeze and crash. Have formatted hdd and computer says it’s healthy but still lots of lag or crashing. Should I upgrade hdd or do you think there is a different problem. I have also rebuilt database and initialized.
Please visit this page that addresses this issue in details.
Hello there, congrats for the good work 🙂
My ps4 was working pretty good until i installed cod warzone which is i think a quite heavy game.
Around the 3rd day of playing the graphics started having issues. Here are some screenshots https://imgur.com/a/3SH0lx0
The next day the problem continued plus at the end of every online game, the application would crash and i would have to either close the application if i managed to do so quickly, or unplug the ps4 because the whole system would crash. During restart i would have the CE-34878-0 error.
The next two days the problems continues plus tthe menu in the ps4 would start to slow down. I also played ufc3 and the game crashed after the end of a fight and i restarted the system again with the same error. During these days i also got the CE-36329-3 error.
I unplugged the console for 1 minute, i rebuilted the database, i reinstalled the game, i opened the top case and cleaned the fans but the problems continued.
Then i fully initiallized the system and got the ce-33563-0 error. iI updated the system software but my menus would still lag.
Then i tried to download again the cod warzone, after some time i got the “cannot download” message and from then on i basically cannot operate my system. It has gone to the “blue light of death” condition.
From the majority of my symptoms and after reading your comments here i get to the assumption that the hdd is having problems.
But beacuse it started with the polygon graphics and glitches i’m worried that there maybe be a problem with the gpu. Or both.
You believe a new hard drive or formatting the one i have, would solve the problem? Or there might be a problem with gpu, or the thermal paste?
Glad to hear back from you
In the meantime I did the full format of my hdd on my pc (exFAT , it didn’t have the FAT32 option) put it back on, got my software on a USB, started from safe mode, did the step 7 there, installed the software successfully, ps4 restarts and during the checking storage loading bar it goes to the “blue light of death again”. Black screen, you can hear it working, blue light on the power button and nothing else you can do.
If you have already formatted the hard drive and this happened to you, it might be the PS4 power supply then. I don’t recommend buying a new hard drive because apparently it’s not the reason.
You can try to re-format the hard drive and repeat the whole process again. If it didn’t work still, most probably the power supply needs maintenance.
Hi Dimitris,
Apparently the internal hard drive is malfunctioning. The glitches you got can also be caused by a defective hard drive as the graphics card will receive a corrupted data that couldn’t render properly.
It’s enough to full-format the PS4 hard drive on a PC. This shall eliminate all these errors and restore its original performance.
Please provide us with your feedback once you fulfill this operation in order to enrich this topic and help other readers who suffer. Thanks
In the meantime I did the full format of my hdd on my pc (exFAT , it didn’t have the FAT32 option) (at the end of the format I got a message “cannot assign disk” because I had it to be assigned at the “d” slot and unluckily at that time I had inserted a USB stick to put the ps4 system software and the stick had automatically been assigned at the “d” slot. But the format seemed to be complete so I proceeded) put it back on, got my software on a USB, started from safe mode, did the step 7 there, installed the software successfully, ps4 restarts and during the checking storage loading bar it goes to the “blue light of death again”. Black screen, you can hear it working, blue light on the power button and nothing else you can do
Hi again Dimitris,
I am sorry to hear that. I think you have to give it another try and format it again. Try this time with DOS command. To learn how to do that, please visit this page.
hello yes so either your ps4 hard drive failed in witch case you would lose all your data unless its in online storage however the file must be in a folder named UPDATE inside that folder put PS4 then the update inside that folder witch should be called PS4UPDATE.PUP or something it should already be named so you should not change it if its from the right page from there you take it out and put it in your ps4 from witch safe mode should pop up and you can use the same method however you might lose your data i know how annoying it is i thought my ps4 was broken if this dose not work id consider getting a new hard drive that fixxed the problem for me and all in all its better then losing the console i hope i was of help and sorry for the miss spelling im typing this fast
Thanks for this nice addition, it’s much appreciated. May that help someone who faces the same problem.
Hello, my hard drive doesn’t make sounds or anything. But the PS4 have little freezing cuts during gameplay or cinemática, for example skyrim. Do you think is the hard drive or the termic paste? Please help
It can be both, but the easiest thing to start with is the hard drive. Try to full format it in case there’re bad sectors. Once done and the problem persists, it means the inside of the PS4 must be absolutely cleaned. If none worked, eventually you have to replace the thermal paste.
Recently, my playstation has be crashing upon playing games for a certain period of time, it varies/ For example I would play apex legends and all of a sudden, the sound cuts out, the textures go blurry, then the game itself crashes. It takes me to the error screen and then it freezes. The only way to unfreeze it, is to turn my PS4 completely off. Also, I can’t even get Netflix to work and there are corrupted data pictures under the PS4’s TV section where it says “Netflix; Trending.” In addition to that, Apex Legends randomly deleted itself the other day as well. Is this an indication of a bad hard drive or hard drive failing? I have done everything diagnostic wise and it hasn’t helped. My PS4 boots up just fine, its just been crashing completely upon playing games and the corrupted Netflix issue.
Yes, the source of these problems are the failing hard drive. Please try pulling out the PS4 hard drive then connect it to a PC and perform a FULL format. This shall restore the original performance of the hard drive and eliminate all its errors.
hello i need help.my ps4 wont start and when i start it it goes to safe mode and just you can reinstall system software and when i do it it stops on 99% and i wait for about 3 hours but still was on 99% and i cant do anything just unplug it from the wall or press power button for 30 sec to turn it off and i’m asking what should i do. its because of my hard drive or something else.should i change my hard drive or it can be fix ? thanks for reading. 😀
Yes, apparently your PS4 hard drive is suffering from bad sectors. Try to full format it and that shall fix this issue.
Please help 🙁 My PS4 started going really slow about 2 weeks ago, took forever to go through menus and would sometimes connect me into a Bo4 lobby 4 mins late, I have tried Initializing, restoring default settings, update system software, and none have worked and am now stuck in safe mode loop. When I rebuild the database I can get it to boot up, but the menu’s are still a bit slow sometimes and when I download games it will download half way then say error and shut down the PS4. If it is a HDD issue, can I buy an external one or should I replace the internal, thank you! Also getting error CE-36329-3 an error has occurred in the system software
Hi Greg,
Apparently your PS4 internal hard drive is defective and suffering from bad sectors. The only way you can resolve this issue is to full format the PS4 internal hard drive.
Eventually, getting an external hard drive won’t help in this case.
Hello, I initialized my PS4, I downloaded my account and went to download my games again. When I did that it gets about 1/4 of the way the says “Cannot download error” then shuts off and gives error (CE-36329-3) I dont know what to do 🙁
Apparently your PS4 hard drive has malfunctioned and suffered from bad sectors. Go and perform a full format for it on a PC. Please read this article for more details.
Heya,
I was wondering if you were able to help me by giving some advise on a problem I have been having with my PS4.
Basically there was a power-cut when my PS4 was in rest mode whilst I was at work and when I got home and turned it on it takes a while to fire up it then says “cannot start the PS4”. so I connect the dual shock 4 and it’s in safe mode but the only option it gave me was the “initialise (re install software), so I downloaded the software which was around 1gb and it said it couldnt read the usb and that there was an error so I re formatted the usb to exFAT and it started to do the initialising process and got to 100%, then it went onto updating the software but as soon as that hits 100% the PS4 turns off and I’m back to square one. It has done it about 10 times now and the file directions and names are all correct as I’ve looked up what they should be and it still pops up saying the usb Storage Device is not connected every couple of times. I was wondering if I needed to get a new HDD or if formatting it would help.
Sorry this is so long winded but any help would be very much appreciated and gratefully received.
Many thanks
Amy
Hi Amy,
You don’t need a new hard drive at the moment as long as it doesn’t make a loud noise. Just pull it out, connect it to a PC and perform a FULL format (full not quick). What happens in your case is that there exist some bad sectors on the hard drive that caused this situation. Formatting it on a PC should eliminate them and restore the hard drive performance.
Please read this article, it may help.
i have really bad frame rate issues when play apex legends or cod. i rebuild the data base and deleted things also tried switching from the 24hz automatic to off and still nothing
Bad frame rate is related to the graphics card. Take it to a technician and tell him to reball the PS4 graphics card, and it should work then.
Hi, I’ve tried rebuilding the database and reinitializing but my PS4 still ends up freezing and hanging and sometimes shutting itself down.
It needs a FULL format then. Apparently there exist some serious bad sectors on your PS4 HDD.
everytime is try to reboot my ps4 halfway it gets a error message i cant even reboot my ps4 i cant do anything
You have to format the internal HDD of PS4.
My Ps4 has been corrupting since december and has happened 3 times already. This morning I tried starting Minecraft and it crashed and to me to the error. I clicked on report problem and it went to a black screen and turned off. I then booted it back of but it got stuck on 27% and said Cannot start the Ps4.
Idk if this is caused by my external drive I purcgsed or is because I had this ps4 for 5 years already. I need help.
This is mostly caused by a corrupted PS4 internal hard drive. Please view this page for more details.
Hey i have problem, My Ps4 cannot start, won’t initialize, cannot rebuild database, can’t update via usb, don’t know what to do
So I was using my ps4 normally and left it in rest mode doing some updates, when I came back it was turned off and when I turned it on took me to safe mode with the message cannot start the ps4 connect the DualShock and that I needed to update the firmware via usb, downloaded the file and says cannot update via usb, tried rebuilding database couldn’t either, finally I tried initialize and it gets to about 56% and says that cannot initialize. I’m out of options, if anybody have any suggestions it would be very helpful🙏🏻.
Also Is making like a clicking noise that didn’t do before.
Ps: Excuse me for my English, is not my first language.
Hi Miguel,
Apparently your PS4 hard drive is dying. Clicking sound is a serious symptom of a dying hard drive. You have to get a new one. You may visit this page and pick the one that suits you best.
Hello. I hope this message reaches you in time.
I have been having this problem with my ps4 slim for quite a while now and I really need help because I can’t go out to get it fixed at the moment.
At first the problem was that my ps4 takes a long time do do everything and freezes regularly, it even used to take a long time to come on. I decided to buy a new hard drive off amazon, a seagate barracuda 2tb. I got it today and everything was working fine and I started noticing the clinking sound, now the hard drive isn’t working and I just got it today. Please what is causing these problems and what do I do
Apparently the new hard drive is dying (it’s a physical defect, so you can do nothing but return it).
What you can do is to try to repair the old PS4 hard drive if it’s still functioning. I think you had to try that before buying a new hard drive, as in most cases the PS4 hard drive can be easily repaired. The best thing you can do now is to FULL format it in order to eliminate bad sectors that most probably cause this issue.
Hey guys, I’m having a very similar issue to Miguel here. I recently bought a 1TB ps4 pro I think? All I had on it was gtaV which I had purchased on the playstation store. All was fine, except it sounds like a jet engine and like to get hot on the bottom (I started keeping it on its side for better air circulation).
Then one day ot crashes on me, and upon reboot it asked me to install the latest update via USB (it was in safe mode when it turned on, but without the menu. My only option was to get a usb and follow the instructions to download the update). So naturally I bought a USB, downloaded the first file off of the Playstation website, and gave it a shot. Didn’t work.
After reading a little, I decided to try the second download option from the PS website, which I had learned needs to be done for a new hard drive. It worked.
Up until yesterday, when it crashed again. It had me reinstall the update via usb again, the same one I still had on the usb I used before. I did, and when I tried to reinstall gta it just kept giving me a black screen amd shutting down. It got stuck in rest mode a couple times, I rebuilt the database and whatnot all to no avail. I had no idea about any of this before today, but reading though your site has taught me a lot, you guys are amazing.
The point I’m at now – I’m convinced I am in need of a new hard drive, as my ps4 gets hot, sounds like a jet engine, and recently started to do the all-dreaded clicking.
I’ve tried initializing it after following the steps prior to doing so. I left it to do its thing as I took care of some other chores, and returned to a screen that says cannot initialize, and gives me the error code CE-33563-0.
Time for a new hard drive? Seeing as I just purchased this ps4, I’m not worried about losing anything on it. I already lost the few videos of gameplay I had saved, R.I.P.
I just want to make sure that a new hard drive will solve the issue because I’m fairly certain that’s the problem here, but dont want to ruin another hard drive if theres something else going on (I still dont know how electronics work)
If there’s a clicking sound coming out from your console, then yes, the hard drive is dying and must be replaced as soon as possible. If you delay, it may badly affect the CPU (it’s getting hot because the CPU cannot properly process the corrupted data received from the hard drive). This will harm it, so be careful.
If you’re looking for a good PS4 hard drive replacement, please choose one from this collection. I recommend going for an SSD as it’s way more reliable than classical hard drives.
so my game started freezing and and after it freeze it will power off on its own and i tried to rebuild database and it worked for a hour and after that it will power off and start freezing again and now it is stuck on safe mode reinstall system software or cannot connect to ps4
That’s a failing hard drive and apparently it suffers from lots of bad sectors. The best thing to do instead of replacing it is to FULL format it. Connect it to a PC and perform a full format, and your hard drive will become healthy again.
I’ve had two instances where i had to reinstall system software manually downloading it onto an usb device. This time its not allowing the system to re.ad the ps4update.pup file that i have downloaded, the same site i have used before. l have downloaded and erased it off of my computer several times, i formated the usb, used a different usb all the steps. Before i buy a new hard drive i want to know if the corrupted hd is preventing it to read from the usb. Becase safe mode is the only thing that i can bring up, it goes straight black screen after initial ps load.
No, a new hard drive will not help you work around this problem. I think you haven’t stored the update file in the right directory. It should be stored in this path name -> /PS4/UPDATE/ (make sure all letters are caps).
Additionally, check your USB storage device with a computer and see if it’s healthy or not.
Please come back with your feedback for further assistance.
Hi there buck-a-roo,
Now i gots a question for yuh. My playstation four cuts off after no more than an hour of gaming. I’ve cleaned what i could out of it (after a good five years of never being cleaned). Well now, i cleaned everything but the heat sink vent, because my power supply cord is pretty much glued to the dang system. So i cant really remove everything likes i want to. However, my system has been shut off in the middle of gameplay over 6 times in the last 2 years because random power outages. Now my question is, do you think i just need to replace the Hard drive or try to get the heat sink cleaned and do that Full format thing a ma bober you recommends.
PS4 hard drive failure doesn’t cause this issue. It’s either the CPU or the power cord. I think you have to fully and thoroughly clean the inside of the PS4 and even replace its thermal paste in order to resolve this issue.
My PS4 was telling me to install Ver 7 via USB. It then did a system “update system storage” which took like an hour and half. Then it said “updating system storage “. It then wouldn’t update via internet. Then I got it to update via i internet, booted up and when i put a disc in it froze. Then I disconnected the drive hooked it back up, had to install the update again, then when it booted up it rebuilt the harddrive and seems to be working perfect. Is my drive bad? Should I get a new one?
No, that was just an abrupt halt that all hard drives will have. Since it’s working fine now flawlessly, you don’t have to worry.
Yea so my and my parent were arguing about sending it back to service but I want to replace the hard rice so it won’t take so long what would be more valid
Depends on the problem. You haven’t described your problem to me in order to understand what suits more.
My 2tb hard drive stop working I did everything and nothing happen even format the hard drive but the ps4 keep me in the safe mode loop for my luck I have the original 500gb so I switched it. But I put the 2tb hard drive as a external and the ps4 read it and can save the files in him any reason for this to happen?
Apparently the PS4 internal hard drive is corrupted and suffering from bad sectors. You better connect it to a PC and format it. Please follow the instructions in this guide.
Hi my PS4 has crashed recently and I had
to reinitialize it. Recently my PS4 went off
after I put it in rest mode. The PS4 will now
not start up. I bought a Seagate external
hard drive and downloaded the full system
software. When I initialzed it, it went to 99%
and froze. What should is wrong and what
should I do?
Apparently the PS4 internal hard drive is failing. According to your description, your hard drive suffers from bad sectors that must be fixed. Please read our guide to how to fix bad sectors of the PS4 hard drive.
So I have just recently reinstalled a new 1 TB hard drive by Western Digitals and have had it for about two weeks now. I have had problems with trying to start l applications and inserting discs. When I go to start an application it doesn’t freeze, but I can’t click off and the ps4 is not responding to any buttons and will freeze on loading. When I manually push the power button it will say that it is shutting down, but in reality it stay like that until I unplug it. Also when it is running every few minutes or so it makes a sound like a fan starting up then stopping. Also it won’t accept discs some times even though it has no discs on it.
Let me better understand your situation so I can give you a good answer.
Please answer these questions:
1. Does this problem happen with all applications and all Dics, or just some of them?
2. If you try to play a video or watch it on YouTube, does any thing wrong happen?
3. During the first two weeks of using the new hard drive, did you notice any suspicious behavior on the PS4?
The problem with freezing on the game loading has only happed on Ark, but now it works just fine and it happens on a different game too, but now they both work just fine. With the first two weeks of having the new hard drive the only problems I have had are that some games such like Ark are crazy laggy sometimes and the hard drive still makes the sound of a fan powering up and then stopping only to keep repeating. I know that I might not have any problems I am just very cautious so when I have signs that the ps4 has problems I freak out. Let me know if I am just make things out of thin air or if there actually is a problem. Thanks again for all of your help.
You’re welcome any time. We’re always here to help.
According to your description I see that the hard drive has been affected by bad sectors. Bad sectors cause that noise to happen and also result in slowness of the system.
What you have to do is to FULL format the PS4 internal hard drive in order to restore the original performance and eliminate any bad sectors in it.
If you need any further help, please don’t hesitate to ask.
I have the problem, the ps4 does a check at sytem startup, goes to 27% and stops saying, it can’t start the system.
Are you sure, chkdsk will work? If i put it in my windows pc, i can see it with many partitions in the partition manager, but i have no options, then deleting the volumes. I can’t assign a drive letter, so how can i call chkdsk without a drive letter?
Because i don’t have a backup of the savegames of all user accounts, i really would prefer a way to get the ps4 to start without deleting all data.
WinDFT says, the hard drive is ok, so i think it has to be a logical error.
Hi Thomas,
It seems that the CHKDSK utility doesn’t work with the newer PS4 system software, so there’s no other option but to format the hard drive.
Thanks for your answer. A Second Check with windft Showed Bad sectors.
I cloned the Drive with ddrescue to a new Drive, and with this Drive, the PS4 was able to start, so i could create a Backup,. I then did a Clean Reinstall and a restore of the backup. Now, all is running fine again.
Very nice method to save your data. Thanks for your feedback. I have to later update this article with your method so others will benefit as well. Thanks again.
I used the following command:
ddrescue -f /dev/sdx /dev/sdx ddrescue.log
the first sdx is the source device, the second one is the destination drive.
Please check very careful the device names, or you will end up deleting the data of your pc!
Thanks Thomas for coming back and helping one of our readers. I much appreciate that of you.
Hi,
can I ask you which parameters you used for ddrescue?
My friend has a similar problem and we want to try to clone his old internal PS4 HDD onto a new one. Was your new HDD bigger or the same size? How long did it take you to clone the HDD?
Most of my games keep crashing… i keep getting the error code 34878-0…. i just got call of duty and it keeps freezing then crash same as fortnite… i need serious help
Most probably the PS4 internal hard drive suffers from bad sectors and you need to format it. Otherwise, please read this article on fixing Error CE-34878-0
this is silliest thing. nascar game fine. i had my daughter load minecraft game fine. put the NHL game in, the main screen appears. you can hit GM mode fine. hit continue…crash. restart, this time load a previous save such as before the draft. i sim the draft, hit continue…crash. it’s the date in the game? what is that?
There’s either a conflict in the system files which requires full initialization, or bad sectors on the hard drive which requires format. No other solution. Otherwise, you can verify that by taking your PS4 to a technician to check it for you.
HI, my os4 slim has been malfunction for a while. When I turn it in it take forever to to boot showing black screen, it freezes both when playing games and in menu. After freezing for a while it will either shut itself down or just stay frozen, I hear some cracks when playing games. It also take forever to copy a 1 gigabyte updates, it also so some error code that says that it cannot install a software updates. I have tried everything I can to fix it: Initializing, rebuilding, and reinstalling software, but nothing works. I am thinking of getting a new hard drive.
Since you’re hearing a clicking sound, it means the internal hard drive of PS4 is badly declining and malfunctioning and needs a quick replacement. It can’t be repaired, so go buy a new PS4 hard drive before the system fully falls down.
I have a question ; my PS4 Slim lags while starting up usually to get to the home screen; the movement of my controller and the sound on the PS4 are off as well . So I can move two apps down and the sound will delay by 5 secs . It tends to lag on me when I start up Apex Legends only gets stuck on load up screen then crashes on that game in particular. Lately I’ve been getting the code CE-36329-3 system software error when starting up my ps4. I’ve done everything on safe mode and nothing has cured the problem so far . Any advice on how to approach my next step
Have you tried also to full format the PS4 hard drive? Additionally, we have already published an article that addresses Error CE-36329-3, please check it.
so this code only happens when loading my nhl game. so it’s the game right? i’m not a tech guy, but would buying the same game but a new disc solve the and keep the game data? i apologize for a silly question probably
Well, not necessarily. The game might cause conflicts either with the PS4 system or with another game/app. You have to try first on another PS4 to ensure that it’s what causing the problem. If it works fine there, it will be your PS4.
But generally, in your case, the hard drive is not to suspect at all. It is all a software issue. Whether your game files are corrupted, or not compatible with PS4 system or some games installed.
i have done everything initialise ps4 rebuild database but when i put my ps4 on rest mode it turns off byitself so when i turn back on it says ce 36329-3
whenever i put in rest mode this happens and i am on ps4 sometime it freezes aswell do i need to replace a new hdd ?
This error occurs due to the existence of bad sectors on the PS4 hard drive. You have to full format the PS4 internal hard drive in order to eliminate these bad sectors and restore the original performance of the drive.
my ps4 would freeze mostly when I would try to close out of a game or when I try to turn the ps4 off or put it in rest mode and a couple of days ago it wouldn´t turn off so I left it on for the entire night and it still wouldn´t turn off, Also when I played warzone the entire map was messed up like I was playing the first cod and it would overheat in like ten mins
Have you tried to format your PS4 hard drive on a PC? There are various reasons for the issues you’re facing, we cannot be sure of any until we try different solutions.
Hi there
So i bought my ps4 back in december 2014 and had no major issues till last year and now it gets ever worse : for example i’d play a certain game and everyday i’d play it, after a while the application would crash at least once. Some games are fine but others give me this issue everyday i log on to them.
Also, , there is that one problem thta really annoyes me. I’d go to update a game but the ps4 tells me “cannot download the update cause there isn’t enough space” although i have about 200Gb of free space. I already rebuilt the data base and reset factory settings but it didn’t help. Should i buy a new (and more capable) hard drive or should i try to reinitialise the playstation ?
Thanks in advance !
If you can afford buying a new hard drive (especially an SSD), I strongly recommend it. You can visit this page for more details.
As for now, you can first try to repair your PS4 hard drive, and I think it’s possible.
You need to full format the PS4 hard drive on a PC. Then install the PS4 system software from scratch. That shall fix that error you’re suffering from.
Also, can i save the data of my applications from one user on a USB storage device, reinitialise (or full format) my ps4 then download all my saved data on a different user to transfer progress ? Would it work ?
As for game saves, yes, you can do that. As for other data, I am not sure, never tried it.
Hey there, just to start with a compliment on all the great work you are doing here, keep it up, much respect.
My initial question is:
Could you rule out a faulty HDD by using an external one and seeing if a game that crashes your internal HDD works fine on the external one?
Sounds logical to me but wanted to sense check it.
My scenario is:
I have a launch-ish piano black PS4, everything worked well up until I noticed some green graphical glitches in Monster Hunter World, then I noticed glitches in No Mans Sky and Fallout 4.
They look similair to this style of glitch:
https://tech4gamers.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Uncharted-4-Glitch-Bugs-2-768×574.jpg
I thought nothing of it then decided to do a full initialisation, rebuild database, updates etc all the usual. These games never crashed and only had visual texture bugs, however now upon playing Death Stranding the game audio buzzes and freezes then the game crashes with the CE-34878-0 error.
I’m hoping if I can use an external HDD to determine if the internal HDD has bad sectors.
Would you concur this is a good approach?
Thanks.
Hi Shannon,
I would also like to thank you for your politeness and mannerly words. I bear a huge respect for people like you.
As for your question:
According to your description of the issue, I can say that it’s 95% the PS4 GPU (graphics card) is malfunctioning, not the hard drive, as the graphical glitches are usually caused by a faulty GPU.
Yes, it is possible that bad sectors cause glitches on the screen, but it’s rare (I give it 5% only).
The simplest way to make sure what causes this problem is to play a DVD movie on PS4 and see if you get any weird visuals on the screen. If you get nothing after 5-10 minutes, that means the hard drive is the reason.
But, on the other hand, you said: “however now upon playing Death Stranding the game audio buzzes and freezes then the game crashes with the CE-34878-0 error.”
Ok, this is a CLEAR sign of PS4 hard drive failure and it appears there’s a big portion of bad sectors on the drive.
What do I suggest here?
Well, I strongly advise that you run a FULL format on the PS4 HDD, this will fix almost all issues on it and restore its original performance.
And back to your original question: “Could you rule out a faulty HDD by using an external one and seeing if a game that crashes your internal HDD works fine on the external one?”
The answer is: Not entirely. Although it might seem logical at the first glance, it might not go as you wish. That’s because the external hard drive doesn’t work separately from the internal hard drive, they both work together and use each other’s resources.
To make it clearer, the internal hard drive hosts the PS4 operating system that contains the essential files to compute the data coming from the external HDD before sending it to the processor (CPU). Additionally, each game will occupy around 200mb storage space on the internal HDD for caching, and if the internal HDD is malfunctioning, the caching process won’t go seamless, and this will negatively impact the game performance.
So, it is inevitable to focus on repairing the PS4 internal hard drive first before trying any alternate solution.
If you feel this answer is not sufficient or doesn’t fully meet your expectation, please don’t hesitate to ask for details.
Im having the same issue! What was the problem? Gpu? Hdd? Please help
My ps4 slim keeps telling me eroor ce 36244-9 i tried everything how can i fix ut
Here we’ve written a special article for this error. Have a look please.
Hello, Im looking for help/extra instructions on how to do this, which was mentioned in a previous comment .
“Try first to pull out the PS4 hard drive and connect it to a PC and perform a FULL format (not quick). This will eliminate bad sectors that are probably the main reason for these issues you have.”
I have a situation where 1 game will crash 100% and the error is showing something is corrupted in my hard drive, ive tried ps4 options (initialize) but im wondering if taking out the hard drive and reformatting on pc could really clean it out
Yes, in most cases the freezing issue is caused by a faulty hard drive due to the existence of bad sectors. Format the internal HDD of PS4 in order to restore the original performance.
My ps4 never starts j have tried all safe mode has to offer I wiped my data and my ps4 gives a black screen and never will fully start up I know it’s not the display could this be the hard drive and When it did turn on it gave me a system software update I downloaded it and it still gave me the error
Do you get any specific error message? And does it boot up partially before you get the black screen, or it doesn’t boot up at all?
I can’t really judge here until I get a concise description of the situation, so bear with me please.
Just wondering if you were able to find a solution to this? My son is having pretty much the exact same issue. Any help or direction you could give would be greatly appreciated!
Have you tried first to full format the PS4 hard drive?
Ps4 crashes ALOT when i play exile, skyrim, and a few graphic intense games that are disc based (i.e. Dragon Quest 11, Call of Duty, Diablo 3, etc)
However, games like Apex and megaman x collection series seem to give me zero issues other than excessive hangs.
Should I replace my drive to a ssd to reduce system load? Ive done all trouble shooting steps, cleaned out all vents, cleaned the “cooling components”, and even air cleaned the circuitry. (Didnt use those cans of air 🙄 only novices use those).
Hi Shawn,
You don’t really need to replace the internal HDD of PS4 just because the game console hangs or crashes. You have to perform some tests before reaching that point.
Try first to pull out the PS4 hard drive and connect it to a PC and perform a FULL format (not quick). This will eliminate bad sectors that are probably the main reason for these issues you have.
Once done, reinstall PS4 system software from scratch and try your games again.
In 99% of cases this would fully resolve the issues.
Hi, some advice please as I have been looking around everywhere to find the best solution. Since MW released its caused my ps to act abit slow. During an online game the system completely froze and the only was to get my ps out of the freeze was to turn it off. This caused the safe mode loop and system load would crash at 27% requesting to manually update software. After doing this and factory resetting the ps4 in safe mode it failed with an error code (after taking software) for some reason worked the 2nd time I tried it. The day it got back up and running the system was very slow and get lagging/freezing. Next time it got turned on, I have a black screen and flashing blue. Any help would be appreciated!
According to your description, this is a strong indication of a serious hard drive failure. What you can do is to pull the PS4 hard drive out, connect it to a PC, and perform a FULL format (not quick) on it. This will eliminate the bad sectors on the hard drive and restore its lost performance.
Note that by doing this you’ll enjoy the hard drive for a few months until it fails again. So, within that period try to upgrade the PS4 internal HDD with a better drive.
Hello, i recently got this problem in my ps4, where my apps wont even open because it says data is corrupt, i tried rebuildong database and reinstalling the games but still i cant find a solution
Your PS4 hard drive is suffering from bad sectors. I strongly recommend to FULL format the internal HDD of PS4 in order to eliminate these bad sectors and restore the original performance of the drive.
On the other hand, if you have data on the PS4 hard drive that you don’t want to lose, the second option here is to perform a CHKDSK on PS4 HDD. In some cases it might not work and you will only need then to full format the drive. But try it anyway.
My PS4 started showing STORAGE ERROR message when I try to boot it up. SO I took it to a repair shop in Rome. I specifically told them if they cannot recover the data from the hard drive, don’t do anything just return it to me. Anyway they went ahead and installed a new HR in it.
I still have the hard drive that was not working. I will be in Miami in the middle of November so I’m looking for a tech shop where I can send my PS4 and hard drive to recover the old files and everything.
Sorry, we can’t help you in that, as it’s not in our specialization.
I keep greeting a message saying ps4 cannot start, I had to reinitialise many times. It would work away fine for days sometimes nearly 2 weeks but it happens every single time I turn it on, should I get a new hard drive?
Probably you have bad sectors on the hard drive. Before deciding to buy a new one, you better full format it by connecting it to a PC. This will eliminate all bad sectors and restore its lost performance.
Thanks friend 👍
You’re most welcome.
Hi my ps4 shuts off then turns back on then says cannot access system storage (CE-34355-8)
Please read this article.
I have all my games on my hdd.i suffer from freezez ,saves getting corrupt and sometimes through slow texture loading even thou there is a lot of space left in the hdd. How can i fix this? Is the the fault of hdd? Help plz..
According to your description, most probably the hard drive is the culprit and it suffers from bad sectors. The first step to make is to full format it as illustrated in this guide.
Will it erase data?
Yes
My ps4 is freezing and after that screen goes black then I restart my ps by using power button it takes me to the safe mode, after that i initialize my ps then after 3-4 days same problem occurre. Can replacing hdd will help?
Yes it can. But before doing that you better perform a FULL format (not quick) on the hard drive by connecting it to a PC as illustrated in this article. If the problem disappears, it means the hard drive for sure is the culprit and there were bad sectors that got eliminated. The hard drive then can last with you a few more months without an issue until it starts malfunctioning again. At this point, seriously consider a replacement.
I keep getting error codes when I load up fortnight
And need for speed is my hard drive broke
Well, it depends. What type of error codes you’re getting? Please provide us with the codes and the text if possible.
My ps4 pro has just recently started crashing. I did the usual rebuild database and reinitializing. And it didn’t help. Now my ps4 pro goes extremely slow. Sometimes it will work fine for maybe an hour before the game I’m on or app (youtube) just crashes and the entire system shuts off. I’m not worried about data as I have an external hard drive where my games are and my saves are all backed up. But is my hdd just going bad? Even the menu takes so long to process anything. The images for apps and games dont load for quite awhile and when I try to open a game or app it will be stuck on the game or app booting screen for some time before loading in to them and then eventually crashing.
Hi, and sorry for the late response. We have been in a vacation in the last few days.
99% of my assessment of your case is that the hard drive is suffering from many bad sectors. You have to connect it to a PC and perform FULL format (not quick). This will overwrite the bad sectors and restore the performance of the PS4 HDD.
Error code ce-34697-9 ps4 slim says it needs to be updated connect controller i tried to initialize it said it couldn’t initialize the system now I’m stuck done tried everything In safe mode nothing worked another code playstation su-41337-8
This error often appears when the hard drive is dying. You have to replace the PS4 hard drive with another drive.
But this is only a short term solution, because drives having bad sectors are starting to die. You should consider getting a new one soon
Yes, you’re right. It can last few months though without a problem until it absolutely fails. This period of time might be sufficient for a user to save money for the new hard drive replacement.
I’m having an issue caused by pending sector errors from a bad hard drive. Cloning carries the problem over, but at least I’m not risking the data I want to save trying to make it load. Rebuilding databases does not help (Or could it if I do it enough?), and all I want to do is getting it running just enough to make a backup, so that I can transfer everything to a new SSD. Is it possible to recover everything by treating the clone as an external drive?
Does that clone belong to the PS4 internal hard drive? If yes, you can’t work on it externally (by restoring it on an external HDD).
But what I suggest for you to do is as follows:
That way you won’t need to fully clone the hard drive with the errors it has.
What causes the screen of TV saying no signal when ps4 is connected
I’
The graphics card needs maintenance.
I did a chkdsk c: on my hard drive and it said found no errors. It is a seagate 2t fire cuda and im not sure what to think. Any ideas?
What kind of problem do you exactly have?
i few days ago i noticed that my ps4 was moving slow specially in the main menu. them while i was playing warzone the game starts to froze. next day i turn the ps4 and took me to CHECKING SYSTEM STORAGE.. i try every single safe mode from 1 to 7 got a few message, su-42477-4, ce-34788-0. i was able to initialize ps4 after a few try and it looks normal for maybe 30 minutes while i was setting up everything again and download games but the send me back to CHECKING SYSTEM STORAGE. at this point i bought a brand new HDD. i was wonder the cause might be bad HDD?
thank you
Yes, apparently it is a bad hard drive. Good you’ve got a new one eventually.
What kind of HDD?
I’m having an issue with my games crashing specifically anything dealing with online gaming. For Example I can play GTA story mode just fine but when I switch to online it crashes with the code CE-34878-0. I just got a replacement PS4 4 days ago and this error was occurring the day I got it. so I did everything in the book from rebuilding data base to factory resetting it, I bought a SSD but the error is still persisting and I’ve initialized with steps 6 and 7 and it’s still occurring. I made sure my wifi connection was at 100%, I even hooked it up via lan cable and nothing is working. what could be the cause?
Please read this article, there are several solutions to fix this issue. Hope something will work for you.
Hey my ps4 works but will not run large applications and begins freezing and crashing when I try to run any game over 15 gigabytes. Everything boots up and it did fall off my nightstand so I think I have a bad internal hard drive but I’m not sure
Yes, it’s apparently a faulty hard drive, you need to try to full format it first, as in most cases this will resolve the problem. Otherwise, consider upgrading the PS4 HDD to another drive.
My ps4 freezes and crashes leaving me with a message saying “cannot continue using application, the data is currupted”. I did everything in the book to fix this but the problem keeps coming back to me. What I mean as in everything is : initilizing, initialize (reinstall system software), rebuild data base, delete game and game files. One thing that I notice as this problems occurs is that none of the saved data files are corrupted, it does say corrupted file when I press on the gta game files. If anyone knows how to fix this please tell me I just want to enjoy my last few weeks of gta online before my ps plus runs out please anyone. (Additional question) does buying a new ps4 slim hard drive get rid of corrupted data on the ps4?
Usually you don’t need a new hard drive in this situation. All what you need to do is to connect the PS4 hard drive to a PC and perform a FULL format function. What happened in your case is most probably due to some bad sector existing on the PS4 HDD and need to be eliminated.
Please read this article for further details.
I did exactly what you just said. It worked fine for like 2 hours, then started crashing again and again. My PS4 takes ages to shut off (preparing to turn off… message), games crash always, menu icons lag (wont even work sometimes), main menu crashes… Do I need to replace my HDD? I already FULL formated it.
Yes, if you have already formatted the hard drive and the problem persists, then you need a new PS4 hard drive replacement. I strongly advise of an SSD if it’s affordable to your budget.
I tripped on my power cable and that caused my PS4 slim to fall. It fell exactly on the top left corner where my internal HDD is and it landed downside up. I was playing MW Warzone when it fell and my PS4 didn’t turn off and for a few days it was fine until my external HDD basically died because it didn’t work anymore and all of it files got corrupted. I deleted all the games on the external HDD and downloaded some of the again on my internal HDD and some worked fine until I started to play MW and It said it was corrupted so I deleted it and downloaded it again. I bought the multiplayer because I liked it and downloaded it with warzone at the same time and i played with my friends until my HDD has been freezing COD MW multiplayer and it freezes a lot more on some other games. My PS4 was very slow and had a lot of freezing problems until I rebuilt the HDDs database and changed the resolution from 1080p to 720p and it’s been working somewhat fine but it still freezes and i can’t play with my friends because it takes to long to get into a match and it disconnects me from the match all the time. The HDD takes to long to process me going into the match and it either freezes sometimes or disconnects me from the game. I have been playing in 720p and every time I change it to 1080p it works very slow and freezes much more than when i play on 720p. I have been thinking of buying a new internal HDD but I don’t really know if I should because I think I can fix it. If you read all of this thank you for your patience and please get back to me if you think I can do something about it instead of buying a new internal HDD
Hi Rodrigo,
The hard drive seems to have bad sectors. You don’t really need a new hard drive until it completely stops working. To fix this issue, simply try to format the PS4 hard drive on a PC. This should recover the hard drive and restore its original performance.