The next system software update for the PlayStation 3 (PS3) system will be released on April 1, 2010 (JST), and will disable the “Install Other OS” feature that was available on the PS3 systems prior to the current slimmer models, launched in September 2009. This feature enabled users to install an operating system, but due to security concerns, Sony Computer Entertainment will remove the functionality through the 3.21 system software update.
In addition, disabling the “Other OS” feature will help ensure that PS3 owners will continue to have access to the broad range of gaming and entertainment content from SCE and its content partners on a more secure system.
Consumers and organizations that currently use the “Other OS” feature can choose not to upgrade their PS3 systems, although the following features will no longer be available;
- Ability to sign in to PlayStation Network and use network features that require signing in to PlayStation Network, such as online features of PS3 games and chat
- Playback of PS3 software titles or Blu-ray Disc videos that require PS3 system software version 3.21 or later
- Playback of copyright-protected videos that are stored on a media server (when DTCP-IP is enabled under Settings)
- Use of new features and improvements that are available on PS3 system software 3.21 or later
For those PS3 users who are currently using the “Other OS” feature but choose to install the system software update, to avoid data loss they first need to back-up any data stored within the hard drive partition used by the “Other OS,” as they will not be able to access that data following the update.
Additional information about PS3 firmware updates, including v3.21 (once it becomes available), can be found here:
http://us.playstation.com/support/systemupdates/ps3/index.htm
PS3 owners who have further questions should contact Consumer Services:
http://us.playstation.com/support/ask/
800-345-7669 (800-345-SONY)
I’m pissed that a QuickFormat won’t remove Yellow Dog off my system. I still don’t understand why it predicts a full format takes 18 hours to complete. How bout sending ALL orginal system owners some PSN Store credit or something. Most of us were convinced that this feature made your product a bit better than the competition.
How about doing something no one saw coming and Make update 3.3 allow everyone to install Windows 7 or a MAC OS?
Make sure to REMOVE “Install OtherOS” of you “It Can Only Do…” list!
I guess I should be humble because Sony is really just looking out for my security and protection. Let’s cross our fingers and hope for some better updates that enable Sony to add features! I’m still not impressed by Dynamic Themes!
It’s legal in that it requires your opt-in consent in order to update your firmware, otherwise you can decline and keep your OtherOS Linux install. I don’t think Sony ever guaranteed you would always have a dual boot OS system. Now you just have to choose one or the other.
elr77, for some reason it won’t post my comments but both of those quotes were from the same person. He’s hilarious. check back 20 pages
if this happens.iam going back to xbox 360
d’oh. there it is finally. awaiting moderation
I really don’t think a blog post is the best venue for addressing a concern that has reached critical mass. I mean, you’ve got a little fewer than 10,000 posts on Sony sites worldwide–and still no proof that they are listening
Hundreds of posts on indie blogs–still quiet.
Mass tech media puts the story on page 1 two days ago. Yep, nada from Sony.
What Sony should do–in good faith, of course–is post a FAQ or site article explaining what the supposed “security concern” is and why this feature was yanked. If it was indeed Mr. Hotz’ discovery, then say as much. Vague statements from someone not clearly familiar with software/hardware will do little to calm what has evolved into a riot against the PS3 and Sony as a whole.
(cont’d in future post)
Here’s how it’s going to go…
Sony releases the 3.21.
Geo releases CFW 3.21 that allows Other OS and PSN access.
Sony releases 3.22 that checks to see if firmware is at 3.22 and Other OS is disabled… sets a time bomb to send codes to PSN to hardware ban CFW ps3s if they haven’t sent the code.
GeoHot overlooks the timebomb and releases CFW 3.22
2 weeks later, all CFWd ps3s are off the network…
Otherwise, slipping firmware updates on the sly would work too.
In short, I will not be taking the side of Geohot…
(I wouldn’t anyway, but I’m just saying that CFW will not be the key, Sony jumped too soon for it to work.)
(cont. 3600)
Sony, to its credit, had already set precedent for stripping a console (the PS2) of its computer capabilities (those with 30000 or 50000-series PS2’s may remember a Linux bundle circa ’04), but this was for a different reason (just never caught on). NOBODY whined about it. Should we have done so? I don’t think so. Sony never promoted it much.
But this is very different. Sony actively promoted Linux on first- and second-run PS3s. Even Fixstars (the Yellow Dog guys) were selling these models as Linux hardware.
I don’t know what more to add. Sony started a cascade effect, and only Sony can stop it, plain and simple.
Why people still talking “if you want to keep the other OS feature just don’t update”? TOMORROW I WILL HAVE A PROBLEM, A WORRYING, A CONCERNING, THAT I DON’T HAVE TODAY – AND I DIDN’T CAUSE IT!
I will have to decide to keep my YDL installation or to keep the Sony’s PS3 system. There is no choice because if I keep the Linux thing how safe will be to me – and money wise talking as well – buy a game or a blu-ray movie with some kind of bug that can only be fixed with a patch available in the PSN? Do I have to mention the game Heavy Rain? If I don’t update tomorrow and the next day I buy a buggy game I will have to say goodbye to my gaming system – it will be no more reliable at all to play games, any doubt or I am saying something stupid here?
In other hand, there wasn’t an option to get a discount buying the PS3 – in 2008, my case – without the other OS feature. Imagining how silly someone at Best buy asking “Hey is there any discount if a buy the PS3 without this other OS feature?”
Noo…..because Mass Effect 3 would say, on the box, that it requires Vista or 7. It’s happened before.
^^^ Can’t wait for this thing to go live I have been reading these comments since the update news hit the blog. –> And i’m laughing thru it all, I hope it does make all these whiners buy a 360 so we don’t have so many cryin whining snivelers I won’t even see u on my 360 I hardly boot it up… All these people that say they’re gonna sue don’t have a leg to stand on (legally) please sue sony so I can see your lawsuit go down in flames… please waste your money for my entertainment. I’m sure i’ll see it when it happens i read tons of diffrent game sites…. This is pure comedy
bigredog500
XBox Live most likely gets hacked because its a Microsoft product and its not free. Network gaming and demo downloads through PSN is and has always been free, there is no need to hack it, unless you are looking to steal people’s credit card details.
As far as I am aware this was not what the expoilt did. And from what I’ve read I’m not even sure it could be used to play pirated games.
I still fail to see how this move is for my protection!
@elr77 They never said the move is for your protection. :)
Using My PS3 with PPC to type this… So Sony your telling me to go out and buy a Intel/AMD Processor if i want a computer?
@LEMMY_TWO PUTT. RE 3510
I’m waiting until Aplil 11th to purchace the 55″ Panasonic plasma 3DTV…I would like to see the Sonys,but since they’re lagging behind the other major manufacturers,i have no other choice.I love their products,and will be replacing a Sony 34″WEGA HD tube TV i bought only 4 years ago.
The only wiggle room i’m giving them with this purchase is the off chance we’ll be getting the FirmWare update for 3D on April 10th.If not, then i will purchase a panasonic 3d BluRay player that also upscales 2D BluRays to 3D, with some loss of depth.
It’s not so much that i really want to, it’s a matter not being willing to wait for Sony just because they want to drag their rear ends on bringing these TVs to market in the US.I can find no firm date for their sale in the US, only a firm maybe for a June date in Japan.
@N_8_
You are naive if you think somebody who can find an exploit and a way to program custom firmware wouldn’t be able to find a time bomb in FW code.
That being said. I don’t need custom firmware nor want CFW for a PS3. I do what I want within the rules setup by Sony. It would not benefit me at all. What really torxs my screw is that most these updates are mandatory. I can’t get to PSN if I don’t update. Does it bother me, nope. Sony doesn’t get my money, doesn’t bother me.
I’m going to sit back and relax and play my games. If the situation develops that I’m not happy, then I will no longer buy PS games. I don’t lose out I have other consoles to play.
tl;dr Doesn’t effect me, but I totally understand everybody’s position both for and against the update.
@ 3599 EpicNotion
Your example is incorrect – it would be a similar situation if you had already purchased Mass Effect 3, and ME3 had been advertised to run on winXP and win7. In which case, every customer would be within their rights to return their copy of ME3 due to false advertisement.
@INFIDEL_JIHAD suck on a lemon
EVERYONE LET ME MAKE THIS EXTREMELY CLEAR>
Sony removing any feature with a firmwware update is not illegal. They clearly claim this right in the eula and tos. HOWEVER, them not allowing u access to features because you choose not to update is highly illegal. They advertise psn access clearly in commercials and directly on the box and games. Nowhere does it say u must have the latest fw. THIS IS WHAT IS ILLEGAL. They can’t restrict u from playing online should u not upgrade ur system. Please everyone file a complaint with the ftc or bbb or both. Make sure u state they are limiting a feature you have already paid for because you are choosing not to update. THIS IS THE KEY PHRASE.
Epic is just here to cause problems, just ignore.
Everything he has said has holes in it because he blinded by the fact that the only thing he is here to do is get excited at making people mad.
sony you have sunk your own boat every hacker with a ps3 is going to develop workarounds and cfw for the ps3 you epic FALL.
Hey improperly…..we have been over this a THOUSAND times.
No EULA was signed or agreed to when purchasing the product, which had the feature listed on the box as a selling point.
Therefore it does not apply…
advertising a function or feature which u have no access to use it, is illegal
And for anyone saying this is a stupid argument think of it like this. A hacker could easily store hacked programs or games on a usb drive or dvd or blu-ray. If sony wanted to they could essentially disable any feature of the ps3 for security concerns. Hello they might choose to disable wi-fi next to prevent u from signing on thru an unsecure network. Again a feature u already paid for but a possible so security risk so it has to go. DO NOT ALLOW THIS. I do not lie i am a sony fanboy and they even disgust me with this. I own a ps3, psp sony handycam and a sony vaio. Should sony limit choose to go through with this i promise they will lose my consumer support. or in other words I AIN’T BUYING THEIR [DELETED] NO MORE.
whats the OS feature
what are we loosing
@paid assasin
i know but u dont understand. when u agree to the firmware update it specifically tells u they are removing the feature. by accepting the update u are giving them permission to do so which makes it perfectly legal. so anyone arguing about having to update is making a bad argument. the problem is what happens should u not update. this is when they are not allowed to restrict any functionality.
Again let me be clear if you choose to update u r giving sony legal permission to remove the feature.
I do agree with your other statement as well ImproperlyRaged.
Sorry.
Exactly. TOS or EULA stuff is absolutely illegal. It doesn’t cover or justify already illegal actions. You paid for it.
Say, and this is probably not true, that a parent bought the PS3 for their daughter going to college. She plays maybe 1 game, but at $400, it was a terrific choice to buy her the PS3 as a going away gift. It plays Blu-Rays and will when she gets her own place, and it serves as a computer. Instead of spending $500 on a computer that she only really needs for the most basic of things (e-mail, word processing, youtube, chat, her MP3 player)…they thought that the PS3 was a great, practical, and fun gift.
So she has no computer now, and that’s exactly what they bought.
I’m not updating here.
Anyone else with me?
@TechieXXDivaX:
Can you please give me a URL to where Geoffrey Levand wrote that?
Would really need it. Thanks!
i am not updating
i didnt pay 600$ just 2 loose features they need 2 fix the PSN NETWORK now thats an update we all could use
And for anyone saying this is a stupid argument think of it like this. A hacker could easily store hacked programs or games on a usb drive or dvd or blu-ray. If sony wanted to they could essentially disable any feature of the ps3 for security concerns. Hello they might choose to disable wi-fi next to prevent u from signing on thru an unsecure network. Again a feature u already paid for but a possible so security risk so it has to go. DO NOT ALLOW THIS. I do not lie i am a sony fanboy and they even disgust me with this. I own a ps3, psp sony handycam and a sony vaio. Should sony limit choose to go through with this i promise they will lose my consumer support. or in other words I AIN’T BUYING THEIR SH!+ NO MORE
my ps3 (add-on to comment 3628)
It’s April 1 in terms of JST, where is the update? Why did they even bother saying “JST”? They’ve got about 20 hours to release it or it’ll be April 2 (JST)
Sony provided the Other OS feature in order to support IBM’s Cell Project, which produced the PS3’s CPU and made it practical to use PS3 consoles as compute nodes for a scientific supercomputer. The U.S. Army did just that, buying more than 2,000 PS3s to build a supercomputer. Lots of hobbyists also made use of the Other OS feature, using it to write their own games and creatively repurpose their PS3s.
no longer.
NOT UPDATING.
TIME TO PLAY MASS EFFECT 2..
So, has this update gone live yet? It is April 1st in Japan (JST) now.
IF WE UPDATE WERE SCREWED AND IF WE DONT WE SCREWED JUST DONT GET SONY SOMETIMES
epic, fine…but you’re the type of person that allows things like Ubisoft to happen.
MASKEDKILLER1999, odds are if you don’t know what the Other OS is or what your are losing, you are not losing anything and will not affect you.
i am bigging to think that this is an April fools joke
OH OK COOL
It’a almost 4am, April 1st, in Japan. Visiting their site there is nothing regarding 3.21 update, only the old 3.15 version. Any toughts?
I bought a PS3 instead of a dedicated Blu-ray player because it could also stream media, view pictures (DLNA) and run Linux. With Linux I can get all the other HTPC functions like running a proper browser and other apps on my HDTV.
While the Linux support turned out to be a little disappointing because of the restricted video driver (and other restrictions), it is one of the primary reasons I bought the PS3. Because Sony boasted about the PS3 having this feature, I don’t see how they could be allowed to pull this feature from my working setup and I’m very upset about this. I’ll be exploring whatever means possible to get compensated for this, including launching a complaint with the consumer organisations in the Netherlands.
@ 3613
Yeah, a piss filled lemon at that.
someone please post the Class action Lawsuit info when it becomes available..
where on the net dose it say geohot is a child molester?
@improperlyaged If you look at it at a more reasonable way. If a hacker were able to find exploits in the Blu-ray, USB ports, etc. Sony could easily patch those up because it’s a part of their main system. Your examples are a slippery slope — one action doesn’t necessarily lead to another. But if hackers bombard all the various Linux distros with exploits into the PS3, Sony wouldn’t be able to fight that war with YDL, Ubunto, etc. Those are fires they would never be able to put out. Once one they try patching one exploit through OtherOS, it’ll be circumvented within minutes/hours because it’s all open source.
so the Slim PS3’s don’t even have this option..and every Ps3 they make form now on will of course never have the function..
So why screw with your loyal early adopters and remove the function? I mean the Ps3’s with the OtherOS option are now the minority…
even if an exploit is found that can actually do anything, only a small % of Ps3’s will be able to take advantage of it..
so leave us alone Sony!