[$mitty]

I'm fairly new to these parts so if this has already been addressed elsewhere, just point me to that thread. I browsed around for a while and didn't come across what I was looking for.


That being said, I recently got the Limited Edition MGS4 40gb PS3 and I've got a 320gb HDD to put in it. I'm great when it comes to hooking up home theater equipment and electronics, and I'm knowledgeable on the computer in most aspects, but I'm clueless when it comes to changing out a hard drive. I'd appreciate any help from those of you who have upgraded your PS3's HDD. I've used up about half of the space on the 40 gig, so I'll need to transfer those files over to the new one and then do whatever it is I'm supposed to do to make it work like it does. What do I do???

 

[imdjenk]



Quote:
Originally Posted by $mitty /forum/post/15545406


I'm fairly new to these parts so if this has already been addressed elsewhere, just point me to that thread. I browsed around for a while and didn't come across what I was looking for.


That being said, I recently got the Limited Edition MGS4 40gb PS3 and I've got a 320gb HDD to put in it. I'm great when it comes to hooking up home theater equipment and electronics, and I'm knowledgeable on the computer in most aspects, but I'm clueless when it comes to changing out a hard drive. I'd appreciate any help from those of you who have upgraded your PS3's HDD. I've used up about half of the space on the 40 gig, so I'll need to transfer those files over to the new one and then do whatever it is I'm supposed to do to make it work like it does. What do I do???

I haven't done it personally, but I do know that the Hard drive casing screws are prone to stripping. Make sure you have the right size phillips screwdriver and apply firm pressure at a perfect 90 degree angle and you will reduce or eliminate the probability of stripping the screws. There was a great thread somewhere...

 

[Martez]

Should be instructions in the manual. Otherwise...

http://letmegooglethatforyou.com/?q=PS3+HDD+changing


Don't forget your needlenose piers for those tough nails.

 

[kekborg]



Quote:
Originally Posted by imdjenk /forum/post/15545445


I haven't done it personally, but I do know that the Hard drive casing screws are prone to stripping. Make sure you have the right size phillips screwdriver and apply firm pressure at a perfect 90 degree angle and you will reduce or eliminate the probability of stripping the screws. There was a great thread somewhere...

+1. Emphasis on the screws...they are in there pretty tight and strip easily. There are a ton of youtube videos on how to do this as well...

 

[$mitty]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Martez /forum/post/15545462


Should be instructions in the manual. Otherwise...

http://letmegooglethatforyou.com/?q=PS3+HDD+changing


Don't forget your needlenose piers for those tough nails.

Yes, Martez. Thank you. haha


I know I can google it but I come to a place like this so I know I'm getting advice from all you experts!

 

[Krzykrl]



Quote:
Originally Posted by imdjenk /forum/post/15545445


I haven't done it personally, but I do know that the Hard drive casing screws are prone to stripping. Make sure you have the right size phillips screwdriver and apply firm pressure at a perfect 90 degree angle and you will reduce or eliminate the probability of stripping the screws. There was a great thread somewhere...

just make sure you have the right size screwdrive and that should make life alot easier.


anyways, all you do is go to settings --> backup on your ps3. and back up your data.. in order to do this you will need a hard drive or flash drive with 1. enough space to hold a backup (probably about ~20 gigs) 2. have the hard drive formatted FAT32 so the ps3 will see it.


in order to set up the drive you want to put the backup on, i recommend fat32format program, that can be found here : http://www.softpedia.com/progDownloa...oad-79375.html


after you back it up, swap out the drive, and follow the instructions on the ps3. after everything is back up and running you can use the restore function to bring all your files back on to your new hard drive.


F.Y.I im not positive but the last few hard drive changes i have done, it asked me for the 2.53 ps3 software update. all i did was format my 1 gig flash drive fat32 and put the software in a folder called update, under a folder called PS3.


you can find the 2.53 software on the playstation website.


good luck

 

[Martez]



Quote:
Originally Posted by $mitty /forum/post/15545519


Yes, Martez. Thank you. haha


I know I can google it but I come to a place like this so I know I'm getting advice from all you experts!

The removal process is pretty straightforward. The hardest part is taking care not to strip the screws. Make sure you do a backup of your original drive, first, of course.

 

[KingShorty]

The worst thing you can do is try and remove the HDD right after having the PS3 on for a while.


To not strip the screw threads, let the system cool down for a bit. Remember, heat makes metal softer, thus leading to stripping the screw heads easier. I learned this from experience.

 

[SKACMAN]

 http://www.videogamingblog.net/2008/...playstation-3/


For anyone else looking for help.

 

[mave198]

The screws on the HDD metal bay strip easy and are the hardest part about upgrading the HDD.


I had to bring the whole enclosure to the hardware store to have those guys remove the stripped screws.


Oh and after you format you'll only be left with about 270GB outta 320GB.

 

[Lorum]

Here are a couple tips:

1. When you try to remove the screws turn the screwdriver slowly as you'll have a better chance of feeling if the screwdriver is going to slip, causing the stripping.

2. If you don't have a large drive to use for backup remember you can re-download all your PSN stuff pretty easily and set your PS3 to turn off when it's done. Also, check your game data for stuff you can remove since some games have large install/data files that are easily re-loaded.

 

[$mitty]

I got a HDD enclosure with USB hookup...can I not just transfer/back up the files from the PS3 onto my new hard drive using that? Is this a dumb question?

 

[Krzykrl]



Quote:
Originally Posted by $mitty /forum/post/15551996


I got a HDD enclosure with USB hookup...can I not just transfer/back up the files from the PS3 onto my new hard drive using that? Is this a dumb question?

yes but you need to use the ps3 to back up the data onto the drive. make sure the hdd is formated fat32


any other questions feel free to post on here i know how these supposedly easy swaps can go so very flustrating

 

[jasnmb]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Martez /forum/post/15545462


Should be instructions in the manual. Otherwise...

http://letmegooglethatforyou.com/?q=PS3+HDD+changing


Don't forget your needlenose piers for those tough nails.

haha, that's a great site.

 

[legbone]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Krzykrl /forum/post/15545568


F.Y.I im not positive but the last few hard drive changes i have done, it asked me for the 2.53 ps3 software update. all i did was format my 1 gig flash drive fat32 and put the software in a folder called update, under a folder called PS3.


you can find the 2.53 software on the playstation website.


good luck

I was wondering if it still did this? Can anyone confirm. I have seen conflicting reports and most of the vids that show you can do it without this little firmware trick are really old.


I need to swap out the drive and I am just trying to decide between a 250gb or 320gb. The thing is the 250 is 1.5gb/s SATA I and the 320 is 3.0gb/s SATA II. I have heard if you use the 1.5gb/s it eliminates the "cannot find correct hard drive" error that some people get when booting up the system. Anyone know if this is true. Also some SATA II drives let you put a jumper block on them to make them run in SATA I mode. I am wondering if i should just do that so I can get the 320?


Any advice would be appreciated. Also, sorry to hijack the thread but i thought both of these items may help the original poster.

 

[KingShorty]

When I did it on my 60gb, I didn't have to download the software. When I did it on my wife's 40gb, I had to download the software.

 

[$mitty]



Quote:
Originally Posted by legbone /forum/post/15553082


I was wondering if it still did this? Can anyone confirm. I have seen conflicting reports and most of the vids that show you can do it without this little firmware trick are really old.


I need to swap out the drive and I am just trying to decide between a 250gb or 320gb. The thing is the 250 is 1.5gb/s SATA I and the 320 is 3.0gb/s SATA II. I have heard if you use the 1.5gb/s it eliminates the "cannot find correct hard drive" error that some people get when booting up the system. Anyone know if this is true. Also some SATA II drives let you put a jumper block on them to make them run in SATA I mode. I am wondering if i should just do that so I can get the 320?


Any advice would be appreciated. Also, sorry to hijack the thread but i thought both of these items may help the original poster.

All information regarding this topic is helpful to me. I'll be attempting the upgrade sometime next week and will let you know if I'm successful or F it up!

 

[Cygnus311]

You might try a good hammer to get the nails out.

 

[Krzykrl]



Quote:
Originally Posted by legbone /forum/post/15553082


I was wondering if it still did this? Can anyone confirm. I have seen conflicting reports and most of the vids that show you can do it without this little firmware trick are really old.


I need to swap out the drive and I am just trying to decide between a 250gb or 320gb. The thing is the 250 is 1.5gb/s SATA I and the 320 is 3.0gb/s SATA II. I have heard if you use the 1.5gb/s it eliminates the "cannot find correct hard drive" error that some people get when booting up the system. Anyone know if this is true. Also some SATA II drives let you put a jumper block on them to make them run in SATA I mode. I am wondering if i should just do that so I can get the 320?


Any advice would be appreciated. Also, sorry to hijack the thread but i thought both of these items may help the original poster.

i am not positive but i believe you would want to run SATA-II right? come to think of it i am not even sure if the ps3 supports SATA-II.


its really not that big of a deal to use the system software.. if you have a flash drive handy

 

[matzamiller]

I put a 320 Gb Toshiba drive in my 40Gb PS3 (newish) and had to do the 2.53 update thingy. Also, the original drive in the PS3 pulled straight out, none of that sideways slide before pulling.

Oh, and the screws were very easy to remove too!! (not joking)

Backup/Change Drive/Restore took 45 minutes total (it was only an 8Gb backup file though)

Regards

Matt