How to Upgrade Your Sony PS4 Hard Drive Without Reinstalling Everything

Updated by Tracy King on Mar 25, 2021, categorized in Disk/Partition Clone | How-to Guide

How to Upgrade the Hard Drive in Your Sony PS4 Without Reinstalling

"Hey, do you know how to upgrade or replace the hard drive of a Sony PS4 with a larger one? My HDD is almost full, and I'd like to upgrade to a bigger one to store more games. However, I don't want to reinstall any files or redownload game packages. Do you have any idea how to deal with this issue?"

Is your PS4 running out of hard drive space? Don't worry. In this article, we will offer you an easy way to replace and upgrade the Sony PS4 hard drive to a larger one without re-installing anything. Of course, your game files or data will not be lost.

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Preparing to Upgrade Your PS4 Hard Drive

Before you go about upgrading your PS4's hard drive, figure out what you need.

• A full-size PlayStation 4 system • A Phillips-head screwdriver • A computer with Internet access • An external storage device with at least 1 GB of available space • A supported replacement hard drive. The PS4 system only supports 2.5-inch internal hard drives (9.5mm or thinner) * and Serial ATA (not Parallel ATA) internal hard drives.

If you want to manually replace the PS4 hard drive without using any cloning or backup software, you can do a direct PS4 hard drive swap by following these steps:

Program 1: Backing up Game Files on a PS4 Hard Drive

If you have a PlayStation Plus subscription, you can choose to back up your saved data to the online storage space of your PlayStation Network account. You can save up to 100 GB of game save data and up to 1000 save data items. To back up your entire PS4 to an external device, do the following:

Since Trophy data is not included in the backup, it's important to synchronize your Trophies.

Go to the “Trophies” section, press the “Options” button, and select “Sync with PSN.” Before you switch to a larger hard drive, back up your PS4 data as outlined in that method.

Step 1: On the PS4 home screen, insert your external storage device into one of the PS4's USB ports.

Step 2: Go to Settings > System > Backup & reset > Backup. Confirm what you want to back up.

The progress bar shows the current status of the backup. You can cancel at any time.

Step 3: Name your backup. When you're done, select "Backup" and press the "X" button.

< strong > Step 4. Eject the external storage device from the PS4 system.

- To view any recordings, go to Settings > System Storage Management > Capture Gallery to see everything that's been recorded. - Press Options and select Copy to USB Storage Device, or tap the Share button to upload the image to Facebook to save it. - Videos can be saved to a USB, Facebook, or YouTube in the same way.

Step 2: Remove the Old PS4 Hard Drive

Step 1: Turn off the PS4, unplug the AC power cord, and remove any other cables from the system.

Step 2: Place your hands on the hard drive cover and slide it to the left. When removing the cover, lift it up from the right side first.

Step three: Unscrew that, and pull the hard drive forward toward the front of the system.

Step 4: Unscrew the four screws around the edge of the hard drive's case with a crosshead screwdriver.

Guide: How to Install & Upgrade Your PS4's Hard Drive

Step 1: Place the new hard drive in the hard drive bay of your PlayStation 4 system.

Step 2: Secure it in place with the screws (at all four locations). Do not overtighten.

Step 3: Install your new hard drive into the system using the screws. Be sure to seat the hard drive fully in the sled.

Step 4: Install the PlayStation 4 system software on the new hard drive

The hard drive installed in the PS4 must be recognized and formatted by the PS4 itself. You will also need to install the latest PS4 system software update.

Step 1. Go to the PS4 System Software Update page. Download and install the update on a USB or external device (it needs 1 GB of free space).

Step 2: With the software installed, hold down the power button until you hear a second beep, which will boot your PS4 into Safe Mode.

Step 3. Select Initialize PS4 (Reinstall System Software), then press the X button.

Step 4: Insert the USB drive into an available USB port on your PS4. Press OK, then press the X button.

Step 5. Select “Next,” and press the “X” button. The update file will be copied to your PS4.

Step 6: Once the copy is complete, read the System Software License Agreement, select Accept, and then press the X button. The system software will now install on your PS4.

When the update is done, your PS4 will automatically restart. Press the PlayStation button on your controller to log in with your user profile.

Step 8. Sign in with your existing PlayStation Network (PSN) account, or create a new one.

Step 9. Go to Settings > System > About, and confirm that you're running the new version of the system. Your system is now up to date.

Program 5: Restore PS4 Backup from External Device

You can perform the following steps to restore saved data from an external device or USB storage device to your PlayStation 4 system.

Step 1: Connect your USB storage device or external drive to the system.

Step 2. Go to Settings > System > Backup and Restore.

Step 3. Select “Restore PS4” and the backup file you want to restore.

You will see a prompt that the system will restart and initialize, regardless of whether the backup is complete. Tap Yes.

If you saved your data to Online Storage, sign in to the PlayStation Network, and then go to Settings > Application Saved Data Management > Saved Data in Online Storage > Download to System Storage to restore your data.

Questions related to the PS4 (PlayStation 4)

If you encounter any PS4 error codes or other PS4 issues, try the troubleshooting steps below.

Can you upgrade the PS4 hard drive?

Replacing or upgrading the internal HDD in a PS4 or PS4 Pro is a straightforward process. When replacing the drive, you can use a standard SATA II hard drive, or an SSD no thicker than 9.5mm.

How do I transfer games from one PS4 hard drive to another?

1. Backup game files from your PS4's hard drive 2. Remove the old PS4 internal hard drive 3. Install and upgrade to a larger PS4 HDD 4. Install the PS4 system software on the new hard drive 5. Restore your PS4 backup from an external device

How do I fix database errors on my PS4?

While using your PS4, you may frequently encounter the issue of corrupted data or database on the system. You can tackle this error with two solutions:

• 1. Repair corrupted databases on PS4
• 2. Repair corrupted data on PS4

Refer to the full guide on how to fix corrupted databases or data on your PS4: <a href="/resource/fix-corrupt-data-error-on-ps4.html">PS4 Corrupted Data Error</a>.

How do I fix the PS4 not turning on issue?

To turn on your PS4, follow these steps:

• Replace the power supply
• Replace the power cord
• Plug the console directly into a wall outlet
• Fix the power button
• Clean the dust out of your PS4
• Insert a disc into the PS4
• Rebuild the PS4 database
• Get professional assistance

Extra Tip: Easily Upgrade to a Larger Hard Drive

If you're looking for a powerful and efficient tool to change or upgrade your system disk or secondary hard drive to a new HDD/SSD, then the Disk Clone Tool can meet your needs with its robust features.

Recommended: Upgrade HDD/SSD with Disk Cloning Tools

"Drive Clone" enables you to clone and upgrade your hard drive to a new one without any complicated maneuvers, and it's fully compatible with all Windows systems. This disk cloning software can even help update and clone your hard drive to a larger HDD/SSD. Now, follow the guide below to try upgrading your disk:

Step 1: Select "Disk Mode," then choose the smaller disk as the source disk.

Step 2: Choose the larger hard drive to save your data, then click "Next."

Step 3: A warning message appears, informing you that data on the target disk will be overwritten. If there is no important data on the target disk, click “OK” to proceed.

Step 4: After you have configured the disk layout, click Proceed.

• "Fit to disk" resizes the layout according to the target disk size for optimal performance. • "Copy as is" keeps the target disk unchanged and makes it identical to the source disk. • "Edit partition layout" allows you to manually adjust/move partitions on the target disk.

Step 5: Wait for the process to complete.

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