How to format your PS3 hard drive on a PC?

Willie - why not just plug a USB device into your Playstaion directly and copy your saves that way?

 

well, my ps3 died (YLOD), I went and bought a new one and now I'm trying to figure out how to get my gamesaves back, if possible.. we're talking PLENTY hours playingtime "lost".....

 

Ahhhh, sorry mate I do not think it is possible.

 

OK. But I have my 40gb HD that I just took from my PS3 and I want to turn it to a usb Fat32 external for my Ps3. Just like a thumb stick.
The problem here is that windowsXP will not pick it up. Not even disk management will see it. I hear that Soney uses another type of formatting so we can't use the hd's after they are taken out.
True?
Well, what I need is to get it going. Anyone have the solution? Can't label it cause I can't see it, even in disk Management.

 

I just replaced my 40GB drive with a 320GB drive and formatted the old one to fat32. I used Paragon Hard Disk Manager. It's an older version I had and decided to try it out when Windows disk manager did not work. Paragon worked instantly. Formatted the 40GB drive in a couple of minutes. I put the 40GB drive in a Rosewill 2.5" enclosure. It's nice to have a 40GB thumb drive now

 

Dude. I need that. You say it's an older version? What version? Do you think the older version is the reason it worked?

 

No, I just mentioned that it was an older version because it's the only one I have. I never upgraded. There's a newer version out. I may upgrade eventually. I'll have to get back to you on the version I have later on tonight if you really want to know. Although if you just get the newer version, it would probably work. I honestly don't see why any of those formatting utilities (outside of Windows Disk Management) would not work. I just happened to have Paragon. I didn't get Paragon just to format the PS3 HDD.

 

Just a heads up all.

If you want to format your external hard drives in FAT32, use a mac with the current operating system on it.

You can format as big as 1tb (biggest I have done) and it will read on a PS3, pc, mac, etc.

Hope it helps.

 

Gordner,

Were you able to get the PS3 to work again. I did the same thing and it won't even let me do a system reset with the power switch (2 beeps). So if anyone can tell me what I can do to fix it let me know. It kept staying in an upgrade loop and I couldn't get it to stop.

 

I was hoping to use swissknife to format an external hard drive 250gb
to back up my ps3 data but every file i found for swissknife is infected. i use a site called http://virusscan.jotti.org/ it is picking up a trojan dropper in every file for swissknife i have downloaded i even used the link someone provided above and still the same result. Here is the scan result

Scan taken on 16 Mar 2009 18:47:57 (GMT)
A-Squared Found nothing
AntiVir Found nothing
ArcaVir Found nothing
Avast Found nothing
AVG Antivirus Found nothing
BitDefender Found nothing
ClamAV Found nothing
CPsecure Found Troj.Dropper.W32.Binder.aa
Dr.Web Found nothing
F-Prot Antivirus Found nothing
F-Secure Anti-Virus Found nothing
Ikarus Found nothing
Kaspersky Anti-Virus Found nothing
NOD32 Found nothing
Norman Virus Control Found nothing
Panda Antivirus Found nothing
Quick Heal Found nothing
Sophos Antivirus Found nothing
VirusBuster Found nothing
VBA32 Found nothing

is there any other program that can format a 250gb hd in fat 32

 

I can PM you tonight when I get home. I'll upload a small windows program I use to rapidshare and send you the link. It's freeware, but I don't remember the name right now. It's a command promt program. All you do is open up the command prompt and type a simple instruction to format. Very quick. I've done a 500GB HDD with it.

 

Thank u very much for that and it can do a 250 gb hard drive to fat 32 great stuff. Can you explain exactly how to use it thanks i am not very good with kind of stuff.Do i just plug the external hd into usb port then use command prompt to do it. Does it work with windows vista

 

I tried my 40gb hard drive and when I plug it in with usb it just beeps. Swissknife won't detect it, nothing does. What do I do?

 

Nevermind, I figured it out. Thanks for the help! Very informative.

 

Hey there

Can you please enlighten us, how you completed the ps3 oem harddrive format on a PC!!!! am stuck as well are a number of members.

Cheers,

Alam

 

Anyone that wants to know how to format an external hd for use with ps3 use this fat32format program and this tutorial

http://www.ridgecrop.demon.co.uk/index.htm?fat32format.htm

hope this helps
I would not use swiss knife all files i downloaded where infected

 

Hi all, joined JUST for this discussion, my query is particular and different, along same lines. I bought a refurbed PS3, it doesn't like GTA4 game anymore so I am opting to sell but without my long in use HDD, I hope to swap that to another older 60GB PS3, now is that problem if the hardware is identical except for firmware flashing? I notice my name is still in the firmware with a new drive I am formatting on PS3.

The other end of it is I am new to SATA drives of any type. I normally use PATA systems. I am taking a laptop SATA (only just got that system!) and put the drive on my PS3 to try it and format it, now I am back on PC with it hoping to put Windows XP clean install, I can't get it to work, but right now cleared things out with a floppy boot to the FDISK Windows utility, it's all that will read it on my end.

Let me know what my options are ASAP, as I am hoping to sell and make some money for my rent, lost my job in the recession!

 

I'm not sure what you want here. Your message is a little confusing.
You want to know how to format an sata hdd?

 

By the way. I figured this all out.
All I did was go into my computer's case and hook the HDdd from the PS3 up directly...not usb. Then I formatted it FAT32 style..Walla!

And. I just found software that can get past the 32G wall and make a AT32 as big as you want (up to 4T).
That software is
It works great. I now have a 120G thumbstick.
Thanks guys. case closed.

 

hey guys im looking to buy an enclosure for my old ps3 80 gig hard drive

can someone recommend an enclosure that is both compatible and inexpensive? im also interested in learning more about formatting it