What the PS3 homebrew community hoped was an April Fool's joke by Sony turned out not to be, as the latest system update for the console (3.21) axed the ability to install another operating system, i.e. Linux, on it. The feature has been absent from the PS3 "Slim" since its release, but owners of the original form factor probably never expected to lose the functionality. Enter Geohot, the person who in January claimed to have "hacked the PS3." He now claims to have created a custom firmware update that not only reintroduces the Other OS feature to original PS3 units, but potentially the Slim systems as well.

Geohot writes on his blog that "this can be installed without having to open up your PS3, just by restoring a custom generated PUP file, but only from 3.15 or previous. It's possible this CFW will also work on the slim to actually *enable* OtherOS." He also takes Sony to task for removing the feature in the first place, saying it is "potentially turning 100000+ legit users into 'hackers.'"

The YouTube video we've embedded after the break purports to show Geohot's PS3 booting Linux thanks to his custom v3.21 firmware. He hasn't put a firm date on the release of the hack, but simply divulging its existence was probably more than enough to get Sony's lawyers drawing up the paperwork for a cease and desist.



Posted: Apr 07, 2010 9:26 pm