PS3: hard disk's system file corrupted

[Cactus Jack]

... And will be restored. I get this message and I go with it and it restores to 100%. the system then shuts off, turns back on and I'm back to square 1. I didn't do anything differently last time I used it and the system won't let me do anything else. Help! Thanks

[3 Justin 3]

Google the problem. Coming from someone who has no knowledge, I think your hooped and you need a new HDD.

[Cactus Jack]

I did google it. I called Sony and they tried some quick troubleshooting that amounted to nothing and then told me that the 80G was discontinued and my warranty voided prematuraly. Nice.

I'm calling EB now where I bought in 2008 about the extended warranty, otherwise Sony wants to charge me $187 to fix it. At that point I may as well buy a new and smaller one. The only other option I found online was formatting it myself, but i'm not sure how to do that - remove the hard drive, plug it into my computer and format from there? I am not sure.

Has anyone gone this far with this problem or have any other suggestions? Thanks

[Hack&Lube]

From Google

1. Took out the PS3 HDD (clicked open the cover, unscrewed the blue screw, slid drive towards the front)

2. Opened up my WD External USB drive case (runs on a 2.5" HDD)

3. Plugged the PS3 HDD into the USB case, and plugged it into my PC.

4. Ran the diskmgmt.msc from the Windows RUN in the START Menu

5. Once the drive came up, I had to right-click on it and initialize it, this gave it a drive letter.

6. Then I downloaded this little app : (http://www.ridgecrop.demon.co.uk/dow...at32format.zip).

7. Extracted it, and ran the following command in a DOS prompt: fat32 format e: ***obviously replacing the e: with the drive letter you saw in the disk management window.

8. Plugged the HDD back into the Ps3, and it formatted it to it's filesystem, and all was well.

[LockedOut]

You can replace the hard drive itself with any 2.5" hard drive from any manufacturer with some small exception (some newer drives may be a little too thick). Cost will be anywhere from $50-$100 depending on how large a drive you want. Really easy to do and the PS3 manual even tells you how to do it.

[DownhillGoat]

Is there an easy way to backup everything to bring onto a new drive when it's installed?

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by kunkstyle

Is there an easy way to backup everything to bring onto a new drive when it's installed?

Unfortunately, if the data is corrupted and you can't load it anymore, you may be screwed because I hear that you cannot copy old data to a new harddrive because it is encrypted.

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

Unfortunately, if the data is corrupted and you can't load it anymore, you may be screwed because I hear that you cannot copy old data to a new harddrive because it is encrypted.

I was thinking as a preventative measure.

- - - edit - - -

Did a google search, and it appears that it can be backed up, but it's in the PS3 dashboard, so I guess if your PS3 isn't loading the dashboard it won't be able to be backed up.

[Cactus Jack]

I fixed it quite easily and here is what happened:

- I called Sony and they walked me through the troubleshooting. Turn off system, then when the light is red hold the button on the front for 3 beeps. It will then shut off and turn on again, at which point you hold it for 4 beeps. They a menu appears and I waas told to click Recover Files. After I chose that option it went back to the corrupted message. They said to mail it in for $187.

While searching for my warranty, I tried their process again but instead of clicking restore files, I clicked on restore system. This wiped out all my info and I had to reregister my PS3 but it's working fine now and only took 5 minutes.

Thanks for the info though guys, if it happens again and I can't fix it, it seems like buying another hard drive and installing that is pretty easy.