Maybe you were on a list for months waiting for your PS5, and if it freezes, it can be frustrating. PS5 frozen console: how to power off and restart PS5 in seconds. The launch of the Playstation 5 was not very smooth. Sony grossly underestimated demand and therefore there were not enough consoles available for consumers. This led to many Playstation fans being put on wait lists or paying exuberant prices to scalpers who hoarded consoles and took advantage of consumers who wanted to get their hands on a brand new Playstation 5. Couple this pent-up demand with the fact that you may spend close to $1,000 between the console, accessories, and games just to get started, if your PS5 starts to suddenly freeze for no apparent reason, it can be worrisome and most of all, frustrating.
Table of Contents
- How do you fix a frozen PS5 console?
- How to reset your Playstation 5 when it freezes
- How to run a diagnostic test on your PS5
- How to re-create your dataset
- What are some other potential reasons my PS5 freezes?
- Power saving mode
- Damaged power adapter
- Outdated firmware
- Overheating
How do you fix a frozen PS5 console?
If your PS5 is freezing, then use the Sony diagnostic tool to help identify whether your Playstation is freezing because of a game or because of general issues with the console. But before running a diagnostic, you will need to rest your PS5 by holding down the power button for several seconds.
When your PlayStation 5 freezes, doesn’t respond, and will not shut down, the very first thing you will need to do is reset the PS5 console and controller.
However, this is only a temporary fix that will get you up and running again. It does not address the underlying issues that could be causing your Playstation 5 to freeze in the first place. For this reason, Sony has developed a diagnostic test that can help you diagnose the cause of the freezing. Knowing why your Playstation 5 continues to freeze randomly while in use can help you to determine the proper course of action to correct the problem.
Let us take a closer look at what you should do when your PS5 freezes, how to run a Sony diagnostic test on your PlayStation 5 console, and what some of the most common issues are and how to fix them.
How to reset your Playstation 5 when it freezes
The very first thing you are going to need to do if your Playstation 5 freezes and it will not let you power it down is you will need to reset the console.
At the same time, take a special note of when exactly your console froze to help identify whether it is a problem with a particular game or the console itself. Try playing other games to see if the problem still occurs no matter which game you are playing
If you notice that the freezing only occurs when you are playing a specific game, then you may want to uninstall, re-download, and reinstall the game with the latest version. Also, after reinstalling the game, you may want to do some research to see if this is a known problem with certain titles and if there are any specific patches your need to download to correct the issue.
However, once your PS5 freezes, go ahead and reset the console so you can start to diagnose the problem. To reset your PS5, follow these steps.
- To turn off the PS5 system software, press and hold the power button on the top of your console. Hold the button down until you hear it beep.
- After the beep, the console should power down on its own. If it does not, you may have to unplug the Playstation 5 and remove it from its power source. Keep in mind, that when you reset your Playstation this way, you lose any and all unsaved information.
- Leave the console powered down for at least five minutes.
- After five minutes, go ahead and press the power button to power on the console.
- The PS5 should be unfrozen and ready for you to begin to explore the potential causes of the issue.
How to run a diagnostic test on your PS5
Running a diagnostic test on your Playstion 5 requires you to start up your console in Safe Mode. Once you are in Safe Mode you will be able to fix some error codes and address other issues without harming your system.
To get to Safe Mode on your PS5, first, you will need to power down the console by pressing and holding down the power button until you hear a beep. Once you have the Playstation completely powered down, follow these steps.
- With the console powered down, press and hold down the power button on the Playstation until you hear continual beeps.
- Keep holding the button until you hear at least two beeps.
- After the second beep, go ahead and let the power button go and you should be powering the console up in Safe Mode.
The first thing you may want to try is to update the system software. Go ahead and update the system software and see if that fixes your freezing problems. If it does not, then you may have to consider doing a hard reset of the PS5 which will reinstall the system software and restore the console to default factory settings. Before doing a hard reset, you should use a USB stick, external hard drive, or the cloud to back up any important data that you have stored on the PS5.
How to re-create your dataset
Another option that Sony has identified as a potential solution to the freezing issues of the PS5 is re-creating the data set. You may want to consider re-creating your data set before doing a hard reset of the console and restoring it to factory settings while reinstalling the system software. To re-create your dataset on a Playstation 5, follow these easy steps.
- To re-create the dataset, you will need to reset the console in Safe Mode.
- If your Playstation 5 is frozen, go ahead and press and hold down the power button until you hear two beeps.
- Let the console sit for at least five minutes.
- Next, press and hold the power button for at least seven seconds or until you hear two continuous beeps.
- Release the power and your PS5 should reboot in Safe Mode.
- From the list of options that you have on the Safe Mode home screen, select Rebuild Database.
Re-creating your data set on a PS5 can take quite a bit of time. Before you begin the process, make sure you do not need to go anywhere anytime soon so you can complete the process in one sitting.
What are some other potential reasons my PS5 freezes?
Although the sure fixes of re-creating your data set, doing a hard reset of the console, and uninstalling and reinstalling any fault games are most likely going to resolve the issue, there are a few miscellaneous things you may want to check first.
Power saving mode
Sometimes having your Playstation 5 set to power-saving mode can cause random crashes. You can either change your power settings or simply accept that your console may sometimes freeze, although it should not happen frequently.
Damaged power adapter
Sometimes a damaged power cord or power adapter will provide insufficient power to the console causing it to freeze and crash. If this is the case, you will need to purchase a new power cord for your PS5.
Outdated firmware
If the console has not had its firmware and system software updating in a long time, then it may need to be updated to help prevent the console from freezing and crashing.
Overheating
If a Playstation console is continuously overheating, it may freeze and crash to help protect itself from damaging its internal components when it overheats. If this is the case, you may notice your PS5 exuding an incredible amount of heat when you go up to it to reset it. You may want to reconsider where your console sits and maybe purchase a cooling fan to help keep the PS5 cool when in use.
