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| Sticky a Hard Drive Swap Thread? |
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RXWAG
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 Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:34 pm Post subject: Hard Drive Swap. FAQ Thread |
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Well here we go people but i know nothing about it... 
i think the sony forum needs a sticky thread about how to do the Hard Drive swap in their ps3's, as everyone seems to be a bit upset about not getting the 160gb and thinks 80gb wont be enough and oh no my 40gb is filling up....
Now for the people who have done it we could use this as the one and only thread for all the how to's and do nots about doing it..
So people who have done it, give all the nice PALGN people an insight on how to do it themselves....
so then i can do it aswell 
poll is going for 5 days...
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nadslaing
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:47 pm Post subject: |
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I remember reading an article on Gamespot. They said it was fairly straightforward if my memory serves me well.
Guess it wouldn't hurt, also could discuss the best HDD drive prices/models etc.
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BumJab
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:51 pm Post subject: |
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The one question I haven't seen answered around is if you buy say a 320gb drive and a usb/e-sata adaptor, can you backup your existing content to the 320gb, plug that into your pc and back that data up there, then swap the 320gb into your ps3, do the format it wants, use your old ps3 drive with the adaptor to bring back your data from the pc and import it into the ps3.
That would seem to me the simplest way around things and involves probably buying the least things...but I'm not sure you can do it. I believe Mr. Burnz recently tried connecting a PS3 formatted drive up to the PC and couldn't access it. I do wonder though if more might be possible if it was accessed from Linux.
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RXWAG
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:52 pm Post subject: |
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^^^see i have now idea what your talking about and to get some experienced members to clarify would be good..
| nadslaing wrote: | I remember reading an article on Gamespot. They said it was fairly straightforward if my memory serves me well.
Guess it wouldn't hurt, also could discuss the best HDD drive prices/models etc. |
yep there is a few you tube vids and stuff about it, but to get it straight from a member will promote confidence for people to do it themself and what drives they used is a good point also where they got it and how much they paid for what capacity 
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Chopbusted
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 4:14 pm Post subject: |
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Well as far as HDDs go, I believe you can use any laptop (2.5") SATA HDD but the following features are recommended:
Speed: 5400rpm (7200 will work but is not recommended)
Cache: 8Mb
These features are the same as the standard drives currently in the PS3's (not sure about the latest models i.e. 80GB and 160GB).
I personally have a Western Digital Scorpio Blue (WD3200BEVT), 2.5" SATA 320GB HDD, and it works great.
First, I backed up the data on the standard 40GB HDD by using the Backup Utility in the System menu of the PS3. I used an iPod as a portable HDD and the PS3 copied all the data onto that. It took approx. 45mins to copy 20 something gigs.
Then I physically changed the HDDs over - this process is very easy and is covered in the PS3 manual, or as listed here:
- Replacing Hard Disk Drive (HDD) on PLAYSTATION®3 - 40GB Model
- Replacing Hard Disk Drive (HDD) on PLAYSTATION®3 - 60GB Model
The PS3 will then format the new drive. For my 320GB drive, it actually formatted to 298GB (this is because computers calculate GB's differently to how humans do it using the decimal system). It also reserved 35GB for itself, leaving me with 263 Gigs of space (I think it reserves a % of the drive, so the bigger the drive, the bigger the reserved space will be).
I then plugged my iPod back into the PS3 and used the Restore utility in the System menu to restore all my data to the new drive.
And that's it! Very easy to do.
| UPDATE FROM döppelgangbang wrote: | I just completed a Hard Drive swap last night and was snagged by something I hadn't been alerted to by this thread. It seems that the latest firmware (2.7) is TOO large to be held in the PS3's internal memory and spills over onto the hard drive. When you put the new HD in, it refuses to format it.
The solution is to ensure that on your external drive (possibly the same one used to back up all your data) you have the latest firmware update which can be downloaded from the playstation website. It must be contained in the following folder: PS3/UPDATE/PS3UPDAT.PUP |
320GB drives are available for about $100. A website called StaticIce is a great place to compare computer hardware prices, here is a search I prepared earlier:
- http://www.staticice.com.au/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=2.5+320GB+Sata
I know a few other members here at PALGN have upgraded their drives, hopefully they will jump in and mention anything I may have forgotten.
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Last edited by Chopbusted on Tue May 12, 2009 10:32 am, edited 3 times in total
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RXWAG
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 4:17 pm Post subject: |
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^^you know i was pointing at you when i made this thread Chop!!
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Gregsy
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:29 pm Post subject: |
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You have to re-download your PSN purchases and game updates again though don't you? So if you had all or a heap of trophies for any game, you'd have to go about them again?
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Capoeira
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:31 pm Post subject: |
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| Chopbusted wrote: | | READ THIS AND ALL WILL BE WELL |
That's pretty much exactly how I went about upgrading my HDD (which happens to be the exact same model you chose). The process of swapping the drives out took less than 10 minutes and the backup/restore process was simply a buttons click worth of work.
The process could not be any simpler. It's something every PS3 owner should consider.
| Gregsy wrote: | | You have to re-download your PSN purchases and game updates again though don't you? So if you had all or a heap of trophies for any game, you'd have to go about them again? |
Nope. So long as you use the backup feature, you PS3 will be restored with everything in place. Profiles, videos, music, PSN games, saves, game data, even the video icons; the only difference will be the size of you drive.
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Last edited by Capoeira on Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:33 pm, edited 1 time in total
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Benc82
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:31 pm Post subject: |
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Tells you how to do it in the manual that comes with your PS3.
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Buttmouth
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:35 pm Post subject: |
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I'm gonna be ordering 2 new 320GB drives (one for my PS3, one for my laptop) next week-ish.
Thanks for that post Chop, that's awesome.
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Chopbusted
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:39 pm Post subject: |
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| Gregsy wrote: | | You have to re-download your PSN purchases and game updates again though don't you? So if you had all or a heap of trophies for any game, you'd have to go about them again? |
Not sure about PSN purchases, but you may have to download game updates again.
As for Trophies, if you have any trouble just sign into PSN and go to trophies, it will re-sync them to your system for you.
EDIT: Capoeira has edited his post above which now answers all your questions. 
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RXWAG
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:44 pm Post subject: |
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| Benc82 wrote: | | Tells you how to do it in the manual that comes with your PS3. |
yeah but most real men will tell you they dont read the manual for anything...funny thing is most of them actually dont read it
also for those who have never read the ps3 manual it may be something they didnt know was even in there 
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skyline_boy001
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:58 pm Post subject: |
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This is quite easy. I swapped my 40GB HDD for a 320GB one without any difficulties.
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Gregsy
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 6:14 pm Post subject: |
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Yeah, legends the both of you.
| Capoeira wrote: | | Nope. So long as you use the backup feature, you PS3 will be restored with everything in place. Profiles, videos, music, PSN games, saves, game data, even the video icons; the only difference will be the size of you drive. |
Hell yes. That is what I wanted to hear! I was tossing up whether to replace the HDD because of this. Now knowing that the backup feature copies everything over pretty much cements me upgrading.
| Chopbusted wrote: | | As for Trophies, if you have any trouble just sign into PSN and go to trophies, it will re-sync them to your system for you. |
Sweet. Yeah... obviously Uncharted's trophies are activated because of the game update.
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M@TT_K
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| Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 6:31 pm Post subject: |
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Great!
I tried to install Yellow Dog on my PS3, horribly failed the download, and I didn't have enough memory to backup everything, so I copied only the saves. Bad mistake.
I actually miss how my old stuff was set up.
Oh well.
I want to change my hard drive now that everyone says it's so easy.
Just gotta buy one.
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Ciel
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 3:47 am Post subject: |
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I found the whole procedure really easy to do, I replaced my 40gb with a 250gb and my 60gb with another 250gb.
The installation were both slightly different in the two models but just so as long as you follow the instructions on the screen it is pretty straight forward.
I only backed up my save games (onto a 2gig SD memory stick - my 60gb had all the card readers installed being a launch model and my 40 gb I just used an usb card reader) and just re-downloaded all my games/demos/updates from the PSN store (which has a history of what you downloaded anyway).
Now I happily have 2x 250gb in both my PS3's and the 40 and 60 that I removed from them are sitting in USB portable drive cases.
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Gtpod
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 3:57 am Post subject: |
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Stickied due to popular demand; that poll's only going one way.
Here's my own HDD swap enquiry from not long ago, regarding swapping PS3 HDD for PS3 HDD - it can be done, but you'll have to format the drive.
I can also confirm trophy data's linked to your PSN ID.
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THEMAN
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 7:23 am Post subject: |
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great thread. Any reason why 7200rpms are not recommended?
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RXWAG
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 9:31 am Post subject: |
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| Gtpod wrote: | Stickied due to popular demand; that poll's only going one way.
Here's my own HDD swap enquiry from not long ago, regarding swapping PS3 HDD for PS3 HDD - it can be done, but you'll have to format the drive.
I can also confirm trophy data's linked to your PSN ID. |
sweet thats awesome....thanks heaps, hope this helps everyone out and we dont get constant 'how to' questions about it...
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Gtpod
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 9:33 am Post subject: |
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| THEMAN wrote: | | great thread. Any reason why 7200rpms are not recommended? |
Technically it could overheat after extensive use. The cooling system's based around 5400rpm HDDs, so anything higher may cause burning. There are a lot of PS3 users who swear against the problems though, but... not recommended.
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Chopbusted
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 10:10 am Post subject: |
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| Gtpod wrote: | | THEMAN wrote: | | great thread. Any reason why 7200rpms are not recommended? |
Technically it could overheat after extensive use. The cooling system's based around 5400rpm HDDs, so anything higher may cause burning. There are a lot of PS3 users who swear against the problems though, but... not recommended. |
Also, I read that there is no noticeable difference in performance between 5400rpm and 7200rpm drives in the PS3, so it is not worth the risk.
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nadslaing
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 1:16 pm Post subject: |
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I vaguely remember Gamespot swapping their HDD to a 7,200 RPM one, and the results were slightly better.
I'm no expert, but I'm sure SONY would have accounted for people using a 7,200 RPM HDD when they made swapping the drives so easily in the first place.
It would probably discuss/warn against using a higher speed drive in the manual I guess.
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Capoeira
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 1:28 pm Post subject: |
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I still don't think the added risk is worth the slight increase in performance. You've got to factor in the added cost too. It's just not worth it in the end. Take the safe route and stick with the 5200rpm.
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THEMAN
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THEMAN
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| Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 2:22 pm Post subject: regarding drive speed: |
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from the playstation info page
| Quote: |
First, This is the drive I went with. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145181 to replace the 60gig 5400rpm drive that came with the PS3. The drive I got showed the best bang for the buck @ only $1 per gig. Lowest of all the 7200rpm drive I have seen. And capacity is not a concern to me since I have a machine with 2TB of storage space already. First the Tempature Test. This one has been WAY overhyped. I attached a temperature probe to both drives while they were inside the PS3. Now I did the test in Faherenheit. These temps were the highest temps noted w/ room temp of 78.
5400rpm - 111 degrees / 43.9c
7200rpm - 116 degrees / 46.6c
Yep, only a 5 degree difference between the two. I can safely say there is no risk of using a 7200rpm from the heat. Maybe some of the older 7200's got hotter. But the newer ones don't seem to produce enough heat for this to be a concern.
Update: I changed over and ran some more tests to check exhaust temps. I played different games and even ran F@H just to check on some things and here's what I got.
5400rpm - 129 degrees or 53.9c
7200rpm - 131 degrees or 55.0c
Now these temps are the highest I could hit before the fan kicked in to high. Once that happened, the temps dropped back down. So I don't think the 7200 drive really made much of an impact on temps. There might be some games out there that do a better job at stressing out the PS3, but I don't have any of those. note: Others may get different results depending on location, air flow, and room temps. For my temps, I tried to maintain a room temp of 78, my PS3 is vertical, and it sits about 3 feet from a cold air duct.
Moving along to actual performance. I did this the most acurate way I could. I recorded the PS3 using a tuner card so that I can compare timestamps in the video to get a clear timeframe. I will post all the videos I used at the end of this thread. First. Install times. I used 4 games for this. And it tested how fast to install the game after downloading it from PSN. I went min:sec.ms.
Note: they were not donloaded in order so their arrangement on the drive was unknown.
Yes, this can play a factor in the final numbers. Also dealing with such large files. The cache of the HDD doesn't play as big a part as one would think.
GT-HD
5400rpm - 1:42.636
7200rpm - 1:32.993
Almost 10 seconds off the install time. About 10% increase in speed.
Jericho demo
5400rpm - 2:08.629
7200rpm - 1:58.685
Again, about 10 seconds off install time. And about 8% increase in speed.
Tony Hawk demo
5400rpm - 4:11.184
7200rpm - 3:32.045
Almost 40 seconds off it's install time. Coming in at a nice 16% increase in speed.
DiRT demo
5400rpm - 1:29.289
7200rpm - 1:25.385
This one had 4 seconds shaved off. Not as good, but still about 5% increase in speed.
All said. The installs averaged about a 9 - 10% increase in speed. Not bad really.
Now let's look at a file transfer. Although it still has the USB bottleneck of 480Mb/s and I am aware of this bottleneck. The results were different.
I tested this with an external 7200rpm HDD.
188MB file transfer
5400rpm - 16.316
7200rpm - 14.882
That was 1.5 seconds off the transfer rate. Coming in at about 9% increase in speed. Again. This is not a bad increase in speed. Moving along to game loading times. I used 2 Demos and 1 full game for this part.
Jericho level load
5400rpm - 17.417
7200rpm - 16.650
Shaved off almost a second. With almost 5% increase in speed.
Tony Hawk startup load
5400rpm - 18.285
7200rpm - 17.351
Same, almost one second off load time and about 5% increase in speed.
Now this last test I used Oblivion since it keeps a large amount of data on the HDD. This is a good way of seeing how games might act if future games incorporate the same abilities. I did 3 loading tests on this one.
Oblivion
Initial load
5400rpm - 21.355
7200rpm - 19.253 J
ust over 2 seconds off loading time. Close to 10% increase.
2nd load (map change)
5400rpm - 10.244
7200rpm - 09.543
Almost a second off load time. But a 7% increase in speed.
3rd load (another map change)
5400rpm - 12.479
7200rpm - 10.110
That one was nice at almost 2.5 seconds off. And a wopping 19% increase in speed.
Note: A key thing to look at is the percentage times rather then the actual time. 1 second out of 100 is nothing, but 1 second out of 10 becomes more profound. When dealing with operations that take very little time to complete, it becomes increasingly difficult to gain performance. Even small gains in performance. That is the reason I do not blow off even a 1 second increase in performance.
Conclusion: Honestly, from my findings, a 7200rpm does show an increase in performance. Some only a little, some a lot. But every single test the 7200rpm drive beat out the 5400rpm in speed. From this, I would say that a 7200rpm drive is safe and effective inside a PS3. Though being more expensive, the cost difference isn't really a whole hell of a lot. And if you are like me and you want speed more then capacity. By all means. Get a 7200rpm drive. If you want capacity at a lower cost, then stick with a 5400rpm. And here are the Videos I used to gather the data I used. All are in Divx format btw. Quality was a low priority. All the videos done on the 5400rpm drive. DiRT Install GT-HD Install Jericho Install Tony Hawk Install File Transfer Jericho Loading Tony Hawk Loading Oblivion Loading All the videos using the 7200rpm drive DiRT Install GT-HD Install Jericho Install Tony Hawk Install File Transfer Jericho Loading Tony Hawk Loading Oblivion Loading
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worth a read. I might get the 7200rpm drive. The temperature difference in load is like 1-2 degrees but you can up improvements in loadtime of up to 18%! The above quote looks better on the link I supplied because the OP made the effort of colour coding his results for easy viewing. With the increase in PSN titles, loading access of the harddrive is a factor I need to consider. That plus the increased developer use of the harddrive to install game data (MGS4, DMC4).
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