One of the nifty built-in features on the PS3 is its unabashed support for installing an operating system on it, namely Linux. We recommend that you to at least upgrade the hard drive just so you have enough room for the OS and your game and media data. The PS3 is pretty much nearly a computer and having Linux installed on top of it really reaffirms this. Because it’s so powerful yet so cheap with Linux installed, it’s actually become somewhat of a favored research tool in academia. Hopefully you’re excited now as you’re going to need that enthusiasm to carry yourself through these very involved steps. Above all else, have patience.

Requirements

• PS3
• USB Keyboard
• USB Mouse
• Ethernet Cable
• Computer with Internet (semi fast because you need to download a 700mb ISO file)
• CD or DVD Burner
• Blank CD or DVD

Preparing Your PS3: Part 1

1. Plug your PS3 into your TV, plug in the power cable, plug in your keyboard, mouse, and plug in your ethernet cable
2. Turn on your PS3 Scroll Left, Go to Settings> System Settings> Format Utility> Format HDD. (NOTE: This deletes all savedata on your PS3 backup your data before hand with the backup utility if you don’t want to lose your saves).
3. Now select Either Option it doesn’t bother I recommend only giving 10GB to Linux and keeping the rest for the PS3’s side.

Obtain your Linux Distro

1. Download your favorite version of Ubuntu (I recommend Xubuntu 7.04 Feisty) or try Yellow Dog Linux.
2. Burn the ISO to a disk either a CD or DVD, using a program such as ImgBurn, Nero, Clone CD, etc

Preparing Your PS3: Part 2

1. Put in your Newly burned Linux CD/DVD in the PS3
2. Scroll Left go to Settings> System Settings> Install Other OS, it will search and install otheros.bld off the disk
3. Scroll Left go to Settings > System Settings > Default System, Select Other OS, select otheros, and press x to reboot
4. Your console now won’t boot to that XMB you’re aware of, it will load kboot instead, if you want to load the XMB again just hold down the power button when you turn it on and it will change the default system to the XMB.

Installing Xubuntu

1. Assuming you’re installing Xubuntu, press enter at kboot. Otherwise the steps will be similar with a different Linux distro.
2. Wait for it to load the live distribution of Xubuntu (About 5 min)
3. Click the install shortcut on the Desktop
4. Follow all the prompts, when the window exceeds your TV screen, hold alt and left click to slide the window around.
5. Remember your username and password, it’s real simple just follow all the prompts, it should take about 30-40 mins
6. Here are the install prompts:
   1. Select English, Forward
   2. Select the city with the time zone you want, forward
   3. Select your Language (English), and Keyboard (US English)
   4. I recommend to Select Guided Use Entire Disk, forward
   5. It’ll complain hit continue (don’t worry it’ll work)
   6. Hit forward, you shouldn’t have any accounts to import
   7. Enter your Name, Login Name, Password, and what Network Name you want your PS3 to be. DO NOT FORGET YOUR LOGIN OR PASSWORD, or you will have to reinstall Linux, click Forward
   8. Click forward to accept all your settings you provided, it will now start self installing
   9. Go find something to do for at least 30 min I think mine took 45 min to do this step.
   10. When finished it will pop up a window, just click restart now
7. When it reboots take out the cd, press enter at kboot, wait, then login at the login screen with your username and password. (If it didn’t reboot right and it just displays a flashing underscore, just take the CD out, and flip the power switch in the back off then on, and it should load kboot).

Freeing Up Some RAM

1. Click Application> System> Services, type your password in
2. Uncheck everything but Cpu Frequency Manager, Graphical Login Manager, Hotkeys Management, and System Communications Bus
3. Consider Installing Fluxbox (Only if you feel ok with the risk of having to reinstall linux.)

Changing Screen Size
This step is not needed if you have just a regular non-HDTV as there won’t be other screen options available.

1. Open Terminal (Applications> System> Accessories> Terminal)
2. Type “sudo apt-get install ps3pf-utils”, this will install the ps3videomode command
3. Now type “ps3videomode -v”, this will provide all options for the command
4. Now you want to discover which video modes work, just start guessing. Personally I use “ps3videomode -v 3″, if you try an option and it garbles your text press the up arrow delete the number and type 1 and press enter. This should bring it back to the way it was if not press enter, and type ps3videomode -v 1.
5. Keep trying your options, if an option garbles your text it probably works but you just need to change it in the kboot.conf file before Linux boots. If it displays just a black screen it’s probably a bad mode, try another.
6. Now to assign your video mode at startup type “sudo su”, you should now be root be careful in this mode as you can screw some stuff up and have to reinstall.
7. Type “nano /etc/kboot.conf”. This opens the kboot in a text editor. Add “ps3fb:mode:xx” at the end of each quote, it should look like the following.
   Linux=’/boot/vmlinux blah blah blah quiet splash video=ps3fb:mode:xx’
Old=’/boot/vmlinux blah blah blah quiet splash video=ps3fb:mode:xx’
   Remember to change the xx to whatever video mode you decided upon.
8. Now Press Control-X, y, save as kboot.conf by pressing enter
9. Now type “sudo reboot”

Image/Flickr/evilnick

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