PS4 Linux Tutorial

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PS4 Linux TutorialA simple guide on how to install Linux on PS4 systems

by DionKill

🏁 Let's get it on!
📹 YT Guide (Modded Warfare)
📖 Source on GitHub
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Give a new purpose to your dusty PS4!

I bet you have a PS4 laying around that you don't know what to do with. Even after modding it, there's very little that makes the PS4 a special console. But you can give it a new life with Linux, and run PC games on it!

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Easy setup

This guide will walk you through every step of the way and will explain to you not just how to install, but also to setup Linux in general, how to maintain it very easily and make it a usable everyday OS- because why not.

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A comprehensive guide

The other online guides keep on missing the point. A lot of them either lack information, or are simply bad documented. This guide is made from the ground up by pure rage because nobody has one that details everything.

Before we start ​

Here are some questions you probably want to know the answer to if you are a novice on this stuff.

What is Linux?

Linux is a kernel, though nowadays many refer to it as the whole fleet of operating systems using it. In layman's terms, think of it as the core of the OS. Installing Linux refers to installing a Linux distribution to use on your PS4 so that you can turn it into something like a desktop computer.

What are the PS4's specifications?
  • "Liverpool" AMD APU
    • 8 core, x86-64 CPU @1.6GHz (Phat and Slim) or @2.1GHz (Pro) based on the Jaguar architecture
      • In theory, it's two Athlon 5150s duct taped together
      • Performance similar to an i3-2120 in multicore, or a Pentium 4 in single core
    • AMD "Gladius" GPU
      • Performance is comparable to an AMD HD 7850 or a Nvdia GTX 750 Ti
  • 8GB of GDDR5 memory
    • Note the G, stands for Graphics. This isn't DDR5 as it wasn't invented in 2013.
What do these specs mean in practice?

Back in 2013 AMD was nearly about to collapse, because their processors were terrible. It was saved by the PS4's success.

This means that not only was the PS4 lacking a lot of CPU performance at launch, but it is also using GDDR5 memory, of which there's only 8GBs of. GDDR5 is not meant to do anything other than graphic workloads, so while it has a lot of bandwidth (it can move a lot of data at once) it has very high latency (getting to the location in memory takes a long time).

In practice, the PS4 is totally capable of handling not only modern web browsing, but light PC gaming as well (with limitations of course, especially on the GPU drivers side).

Another thing. We have two methods of installation:

  1. Internal HDD of the PS4
  2. External Drive via USB

But some consoles don't support internal drives. This will addressed further into the guide.

Little bonus ​

How it all started.