The PlayStation 5 has never been a conventional computer, but it has never been as far from looking like one as we usually imagine. Under its shell there is an x86 architecture, an AMD Zen 2 CPU and an RDNA 2 GPU, very familiar ingredients for anyone who follows the PC world closely. The difference, of course, has always been in control: Sony decides what is executed, how it is executed and how far the hardware can go. That is why what we have seen now is so striking: a PS5 Phat (launch model) booting Linux and behaving, with important nuances, like a desktop machine.
The change. It all comes with the publication of ps5-linux, a project by Andy Nguyen, better known as TheFlow. We are not talking about a simple demonstration, but about a tool that really works with an Ubuntu 24.04 image. According to the description of the project itself on GitHub, ps5-linux uses an already patched vulnerability in the hypervisor. The promise is powerful, but as we will see below, it does not work on all consoles and also has several limitations.
Not just any PS5 is worth it. So far, everything sounds great, but this doesn’t mean we can take the console in the living room and happily turn it into a Linux PC. First, because we are talking about a process designed for profiles with experience. And second, because compatibility is very limited. The method currently only works on PS5 Phat with firmwares 3.xx and 4.xx, specifically 3.00, 3.10, 3.20, 3.21, 4.00, 4.02, 4.03, 4.50 and 4.51. Additionally, versions 3.xx do not have M.2 support, while 4.xx does.
The process is also not similar to inserting an installation pendrive and following the usual steps on a PC. According to Tom’s Hardware, ps5-linux needs a separate tool, the umtx2 exploit, to achieve initial code execution, and then send the loader payload to the console. In the flow in question there is a fake DNS server and an HTTPS host on a local computer, which redirect the query for the PS5 manual to activate the exploit. When everything goes well, the console goes into sleep mode, the LED turns solid orange, and when you press the power button, Linux starts.
Once inside Linux. The console now behaves like an x86 desktop with plenty of muscle to experiment with. The system can take advantage of the eight CPU cores, 16 threads in total, at 3.5 GHz, and a GPU at 2.23 GHz. It also maintains video and audio output via HDMI, with support for 4K at 60 Hz, and allows the use of all its USB ports. To install and run Linux you need a USB drive of at least 64 GB.
What changes the perception of the project the most is not just seeing Ubuntu starting up, but imagining what it can be used for. TheFlow talks about Steam games and emulators running very smoothly, relying on the power left available when running Linux on these PSs. In X we can see the improved version of ‘GTA V’ working, which helps show the potential of the loader before its publication.
It’s not all plug and play: The project has very specific limits that should be made clear before imagining a PS5 converted into a perfect substitute for a PC. One disappointing fact is that ps5-linux works as a soft mod, not as a permanent installation, so you have to repeat the process every time you want to enter Linux. Nguyen advises activating the ventilation profile when using boost modes, since the console was not designed for this type of use.
The result is one of those modifications that explains very well how far a console can go when someone manages to take part of its hardware out of the intended lane. A PS5 Phat with old firmware can become a surprisingly capable Linux PC, but always within a very specific context.
A console that is also a computer. The PS5, like any console, has always had computer ingredients. Now, the inevitable comparison is in Valve’s future Steam Machine, although there we talk about another philosophy: a console-PC designed from the beginning around SteamOS, but with the possibility of installing any compatible operating system to our liking.
Images | Branden Skeli
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