My first PS4 came in mid-2016, it was the Uncharted 4 Limited Edition 500GB HDD console and coinciding with the final release of Nathan Drake’s adventurous saga. I was excited and proud to lay my hands on it not only because it was my first PlayStation 4 console but it represented the ethos of the Uncharted series, a gaming experience which I had always loved and still love to this day! It’s nostalgic in some sense since I picked up this game for the first time on my PS3 in the last decade.
The Background
Despite the odds, in which I wrote a Reddit post on my ordeal a long time ago, to my utter shock, I recently ran out of disk space! I received a notification that the system was unable to download a crucial update of ‘Shadow of Tomb Raider’ to lack of HD space and I hate deleting my games lest I want to return to it in the future. However, it was shocking also because I never realised in the 2 years since owning this console that I might have played a lot many games! Then considering my older PS3 lasted out its life on a mere 120 GB without having to delete a single game, I think I might have grossly misjudged the size of PS4 games which I learned are normally somewhere between 30-40 gigs.
Since I have loved building Legos I have zero hesitation in tinkering with electronics, so I decided to upgrade the PS4 HDD and get myself some room for gaming. It did some reading to understand the technicalities and it turned out to be a simple 30-40 minute job, while the best part is that Sony does not consider an HDD upgrade as a violation of their product warranty terms. So I thought it best to leave some learning from my experience here for the sake of the future.
Seagate Firecuda 2TB
I came across several posts extolling the virtues of the Seagate Firecuda 2TB 2.5-Inch SATA 6Gb/s Internal Hard Drive. There were external HDDs too but in the interest of speed and reliability, being on a Black Friday deal, and the SSHD that’s faster than the original PS4 HD, made my buying decision much easier. 2TB should be enough space to keep me entertained
Learning Path
- Before everything, I used the ‘Backup and Restore’ function at [Settings] > [System]>[Back Up and Restore] on my PS4 to create a full backup of the HDD including the ‘Applications’ and ‘Saved Data’ for the games. It took around an hour to create the backup but it depends on the data you have.
- I verified my data, once after the backup and before removing the original hard drive. Because once you remove the original hard drive the content cannot be accessed from a different PS4, the data is locked to the hardware so you may have to put it back again. Also, don’t dispose of the HD because it contains vital information about your PSN account. Keep it as a memento.
- I prepared another USB for a full system installation on the upgraded Firecuda. I scrolled down on the ‘PS4 System Software Upgrade’ page then realized at the very last minute that I had downloaded the system update and not the full system! So I scrolled down further and got it right under ‘Perform a New Installation of the System Software’. I created a [PS4] folder The size touched 980 megs!
- After turning off the PS4 I removed the original HDD which was simple but then I forgot which side of the Firecuda has to be inserted. I had missed noting how I removed the original disk in the first place so I had to watch a YouTube video to get the correct position of the HDD. Phew! That was the only time I was truly anxious.
- Once the disk was installed it was a cakewalk from here on. The full system installation was done and somehow, magically, without the wifi details on the fresh installation, the PS4 also downloaded the software update (v6.02). Then came the turn of reverting the PS4 to the previous content and this is where the ‘Back Up and Restore’ function came handy once again. It took the same time as earlier when I backed-up the system. And voila! Except for the increased disk room, everything seemed exactly like before.
- Lastly, there is tons of information on the Internet on the PS4 HDD upgrade so I will spare you the confusion. A simple Google search would bring up articles, videos, and so much right at your fingertips. I will only say this, that upgrading the HDD a simple process and thanks to Sony who have kept it minimally technical for the gaming enthusiasts!
Further Reading
