PS4 Multiboot v1.4.0

PS4 Multiboot v1.4.0

New

• Choose the disk size: when installing a distro to the PS4, a new screen asks how big its disk will be. Left / Right change it by 2 GB, L1 / R1 by 16 GB, X confirms; with no input it continues with 16 GB after 60 seconds. The smallest size depends on the distro (about 6 GB for EmuFive), and 10 GB always stays free for the PS4. A smaller disk is created much faster, which helps on consoles where "Creating the disk" is slow. A disk cannot be resized later.
• ps4_disk_size= boot option: sets the disk size without asking, for example ps4_disk_size=24G in bootargs.txt.
• Errors no longer force text mode: if an install or start fails (for example not enough free space), the screen offers Back to the menu (or Restart the PS4) and Text mode, instead of opening a console by itself.

Update

Replace initramfs.cpio.gz in /data/linux/boot/ over FTP. bzImage is the same as in v1.3.0. For the quiet start, also replace bootargs.txt, or add quiet loglevel=1 to your own. Installed distros don't need to be reinstalled.

PS4 Multiboot v1.3.0

PS4 Multiboot v1.3.0

New

• Baikal consoles (experimental): later PS4 Slims and Pros with the Baikal southbridge (many CUH-21xx/22xx and CUH-71xx/72xx) showed only a black screen ("No signal"). Linux now starts on them and the display works. Writing to USB drives may still fail on these consoles, so installing to USB may not work there yet. Feedback from Baikal owners is welcome.

Fixed

• USB installs show in the menu again: a distro installed on a USB drive was not found, so the payload always opened the install screen. It now appears in the menu and starts by itself. The ps4_root=LABEL=… workaround in bootargs.txt is no longer needed.

Update

Replace bzImage and initramfs.cpio.gz in /data/linux/boot/ over FTP. Keep your bootargs.txt. Installed distros don't need to be reinstalled.

PS4 Multiboot v1.2.0: 3D graphics

PS4 Multiboot v1.2.0: 3D graphics

New

• 3D graphics on the PS4 GPU. ps4-mesa.tar.xz is Mesa 26.2.5 built with patches for the PS4 GPU (Liverpool on the PS4 and Slim, Gladius on the Pro). Distros get OpenGL 4.5, Vulkan 1.3 and a GPU-accelerated desktop instead of software rendering.
• The installer adds it by itself. Copy ps4-mesa.tar.xz to /user/home/ once, and every distro installed after that, on the PS4 or on a USB drive, gets 3D graphics with no extra steps.
• Works on any current distro. The bundle carries its own libraries and installs into /opt/ps4-mesa, leaving the distro's own Mesa untouched. It needs glibc 2.38 or newer (Debian 13, Ubuntu 24.04, Kali, Parrot 7, Fedora 39, Arch and newer). Older distros keep software rendering.
• Vulkan fix for the PS4 GPU. HiZ in the Vulkan driver froze the GPU on every frame. It is now turned off on PS4 GPUs, and Vulkan runs without GPU timeouts.

Already installed distros

Copy ps4-mesa.tar.xz into the distro (with scp, wget or a USB stick), then run this and restart:

sudo tar -xJf ps4-mesa.tar.xz -C / && sudo /opt/ps4-mesa/bin/ps4-mesa-enable

• Check it: /opt/ps4-mesa/bin/ps4-mesa-check (needs mesa-utils and vulkan-tools)
• Turn it off: sudo /opt/ps4-mesa/bin/ps4-mesa-enable --undo, then restart

Upgrading from v1.1.0

Replace initramfs.cpio.gz in /data/linux/boot/ and copy ps4-mesa.tar.xz to /user/home/. bzImage, bootargs.txt and linux-2048mb.bin are unchanged. Installed distros and archives stay as they are.

Files

File	Copy to (GoldHEN FTP, port 2121)
bzImage	/data/linux/boot/
initramfs.cpio.gz	/data/linux/boot/
bootargs.txt	/data/linux/boot/
linux-2048mb.bin	/data/payloads/
ps4-mesa.tar.xz (3D graphics, optional)	/user/home/
your distro, renamed <name>-ps4-rootfs.tar.xz (or .tar.gz, .tar.bz2)	/user/home/

SHA256SUMS has the checksums. kernel.info records the kernel, project and Mesa versions these files were built from.

Tested

On a PS4 Pro (CUH-7016B, firmware 14.00) with Kali: desktop on the GPU, OpenGL 4.5 with direct rendering, Vulkan 1.3, vkcube with no GPU timeouts. The PS4 and PS4 Slim use the same patches but were not tested for this release.

Credits

The PS4 GPU patch for Mesa comes from striker91n/ps4-flatpak-mesa, based on DionKill/ps4-video-archlinux and the original PS4 patches by fail0verflow.

Full instructions: see the README.

PS4 Multiboot v1.1.0

PS4 Multiboot v1.1.0

New

• .tar.gz and .tar.bz2 rootfs archives are now supported, next to .tar.xz. Many PS4 Linux distros that include a desktop ship as .tar.gz; copy them to /user/home/ as <name>-ps4-rootfs.tar.gz and they appear in the menu, with their logo, ready to install.

Upgrading from v1.0.0

Replace only initramfs.cpio.gz in /data/linux/boot/ on the PS4. Installed distros and archives stay as they are. bzImage, bootargs.txt and linux-2048mb.bin are unchanged.

Files

File	Copy to (GoldHEN FTP, port 2121)
bzImage	/data/linux/boot/
initramfs.cpio.gz	/data/linux/boot/
bootargs.txt	/data/linux/boot/
linux-2048mb.bin	/data/payloads/
your distro, renamed <name>-ps4-rootfs.tar.xz (or .tar.gz, .tar.bz2)	/user/home/

SHA256SUMS has the checksums. kernel.info records the kernel and project commits these files were built from.

Notes

• A large .tar.gz archive is read on one CPU core, so its logo can take a minute or two to appear on its menu card. Installing works the same.
• The TV can show "No signal" or a black screen for 1 to 2 minutes after the payload starts. This is normal.

Full instructions: see the README.

PS4 Multiboot v1.0.0

PS4 Multiboot v1.0.0

One menu to install and boot Linux on a jailbroken PS4, all from the controller. Use any distro you like: copy its rootfs archive to the PS4 and it appears in the menu, ready to install.

Features

• Boot menu on the TV with one card per distro, each with its own name and logo
• Install any x86_64 Linux rootfs archive (.tar.xz). The installer adds the PS4 kernel modules and firmware, the HDMI fix, the display settings and a login by itself
• Several distros side by side, each in its own file on the PS4's internal drive, or on a USB drive
• Controller support: DualShock 4 on USB (left/right, X, Circle) or a USB keyboard
• Existing Kali Linux for PS4 installs show up in the menu as they are

Files

File	Copy to (GoldHEN FTP, port 2121)
bzImage	/data/linux/boot/
initramfs.cpio.gz	/data/linux/boot/
bootargs.txt	/data/linux/boot/
linux-2048mb.bin	/data/payloads/
your distro, renamed <name>-ps4-rootfs.tar.xz	/user/home/

SHA256SUMS has the checksums. kernel.info records the kernel and project commits these files were built from.

Install

1. Copy the files above to the PS4 with GoldHEN's FTP server.
2. Run linux-2048mb.bin from GoldHEN's payload menu.
3. Wait: the TV can show "No signal" or a black screen for 1 to 2 minutes while Linux starts.
4. In the menu, pick a distro, then Install to PS4 or Install to USB drive.

Full instructions, where to find distros, and how to add a desktop: see the README.

Notes

• Each distro installed on the PS4 needs about 28 GB free (a 16 GB disk, and 10 GB always left free for the PS4).
• Minimal rootfs archives start to a text login. Install a desktop with one command (see the README); PS4 Linux distros that include a desktop boot straight to it.
• Archives without their own user get one: user <name>, password <name>. Change it with passwd.
• Tested on a PS4 Pro CUH-7016B, firmware 14.00, GoldHEN.

Credits

By Chokri Hammedi (blue0x1). Built on the ps4-linux kernel and the PS4 Linux Loader.