TOG - The Older Gamers

maggot_bag · 8th March 2010, 11:10 PM

got a 320G samsung hdd for the PS3. was about to install when someone told me i would need to back-up some stuff from the system. then reinstall to the new hdd. he said do it with an external hdd.

for me that advice breeds more questions than answers

.

thought all i needed to back-up were game-saves? apparently, some other things must be transfered aswell

so i look into it a bit & discover, that an external hdd can even back-up my psn messages; some of which, i really want to keep. so now i plan to get one anyway.

as for what needs backing-up, & what doesn't; i'm still completely clueless.

any advice you guys can give on all this would be most welcome

Ancient_One · 9th March 2010, 12:03 AM

The backup will do all of your hard drive mate. You can't pick and choose.

Before you start, download the latest firmware on your computer and place it on a USB flash drive. You will need this to setup your new formatted HD. Firmware Download

Correct setup of the USB flash drive. Details here. Flash Drive create a folder called PS3 inside that create a folder called UPDATE. Place the downloaded firmware inside UPDATE.

The second thing is to sync your trophies with PSN. Trophies are not backed up on the PS3.
Once that is done I would log out of PSN.

Connect the external HD to the PS3 and create the backup.

Depending on size this could take some time. Allow for a 200GB HD a period no less then 4 - 6hrs. If you can bare it I would delete anything you don't want backed up.
Demo games, game and movie trailers, etc.
The smaller the size the quicker the backup and restore later.

This video is pretty good at showing you how to remove the HD.

Video: Another look at PS3 Slim and its removable HDD

Just remember the screws can be a little tight but they will budge with enough applied pressure. Just don't slip otherwise you might strip the inside of the screws which would stop you from being able to remove them unless you drill the screws out.

Some written details on the subject of removing the HD on ehow.

Remember take your time plan it out and nothing will go wrong.

maggot_bag · 9th March 2010, 11:44 AM

thanks A_1 for your help.
is there any special setup required for the external hdd aswell?

if possible, i will back-up both the PS3 & the a PC on the same hdd.

dick smiths had a 1TB WD external hdd for $140. that should be ample disc space for both.

Cadder · 9th March 2010, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maggot_bag

thanks A_1 for your help.
is there any special setup required for the external hdd aswell?

if possible, i will back-up both the PS3 & the a PC on the same hdd.

dick smiths had a 1TB WD external hdd for $140. that should be ample disc space for both.

JB Hifi Have an external (USB) Seagate 1tb drive for $129. I just bought one on the weekend. They also have a 1.5Tb model.

Before you use any external HDD on a Playstation3, you will have to format it to FAT32. Usually, they come formatted as NTFS out of the box. If you can't format it, goto download.com and download swissknife.

Once that is done, you can use it on your PS3 and it will still work as it did on your PC.

Ancient_One · 13th March 2010, 05:40 PM

What Cadder said. You need a Fat32 formatted external HD.

George · 13th March 2010, 05:56 PM

Well, i'm going to have to upgrade my HDD. My PS3 keeps telling me i've got less than 500Mb which is really getting on my nerves. Also yesterday it also told me it wouldn't update the what's new bit as there wasn't enough room to store the info.