How to Boot Up a PS4 in Safe Mode

The PS4 is one of the best consoles out there, and as well a great device for playing games it’s also a streaming powerhouse. Unlike the old Xbox 360 or the original PlayStation, the current-gen of consoles are pretty bulletproof – but occasionally things can go wrong. It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes your PS4 can crash or become stuck, and when it does, you’ll need to boot you PS4 in Safe Mode.

Starting your PS4 via Safe Mode should be seen as a last resort, – but if there’s no way of turning on your console normally, it’s the only solution: For those with a Mac or iPhone, it’s the equivalent of holding down the power button and hoping for the best. Tried every other troubleshooting option? Here’s how to boot your PS4 up in Safe Mode.

How to start a PS4 in Safe Mode

1. The first step to booting your PS4 in Safe Mode is pretty simple – first, make sure it’s off. To do that, just press the power button as usual, and it should blink a few times before your console powers down.

2. This is the more complicated bit. Instead of pressing the Power button like you usually would, to boot your PS4 in Safe Mode you’ll need to hold it down for a while – around ten seconds.

3. If you do this properly, you should hear one beep when you first press the Power button, and another around seven seconds later. Once you hear both, let go.

4. Your PS4 should have booted up in Safe Mode. To control your PS4 from here, you’ll need to make sure that you’ve got a DualShock controller connected to your console via USB.

My PS4 restarted to Safe Mode. Now what?

Once your PS4 has booted in Safe Mode you’ll be presented with a few options. Selecting, ‘Restart’ will make your PS4 boot normally (if possible) while ‘Change Resolution’ will force your PS4 to boot up in 480p next time round. If you’d like to update your firmware via a USB drive, the internet, or a disc, select ‘Update System Software’.

‘Restore Default’ settings will put your PS4 back to its factory settings, but keep your data, while ‘Rebuild Database’ will scan the drive and essentially re-index its contents. ‘Initialize PS4’ is by far the most drastic action, as this will wipe ALL of your data from the console, and essentially roll it back to the day you took it out the box.

Safe Mode is especially useful if your device has an issue during an update. Rebooting your PS4 in Safe Mode should allow you to proceed with the update.

Stuck in a Safe Mode Loop

Several users have reported that their PlayStation is looping in Safe Mode. This means it will not boot up as in the normal mode. If this happens there are some troubleshooting options.

1. Connect the controller using the USB cable
2. Select the option to exit Safe Mode

Or

Try using a different USB cable, power the PlayStation down for 20 minutes, or try updating the software.