PlayStation 5 can now run Linux after major modding breakthrough

Someone has managed to do something many console enthusiasts have been curious about for years: running Linux on a PlayStation 5. Even more surprising, the system is powerful enough to run Grand Theft Auto V with ray tracing, effectively turning the console into something that behaves a lot like a compact gaming PC. The breakthrough comes from security researcher and well-known console hacker Andy Nguyen, also known online as theflow0. Nguyen has previously worked on several PlayStation exploits, and this time he showed off a working Linux setup on the PS5. To demonstrate what the system could do, he shared footage of GTA V running on the console under Linux, complete with ray tracing enabled. In the video, the game appears to run at around 60 frames per second, which is impressive considering it’s running outside of Sony’s official PlayStation operating system. Instead of the standard console environment, the PS5 is essentially acting like a Linux computer, allowing software to run through Linux gaming tools and compatibility layers similar to those used on PC.

Nguyen also shared a few technical details about how the system is running. In his setup, the PS5’s CPU was clocked at around 3.2 GHz while the GPU ran at roughly 2.0 GHz. Basic functionality is already working as well — the console can output 4K video over HDMI, audio works properly, and the USB ports function normally within the Linux environment. Interestingly, the hardware could theoretically run even faster. According to Nguyen, the PS5’s CPU can reach about 3.5 GHz and the GPU around 2.23 GHz. However, when he tried pushing the console to those speeds on his PS5 Slim, the system started overheating fairly quickly. To keep things stable, he chose slightly lower clock speeds while testing and demonstrating the Linux setup. Of course, this isn’t something most PS5 owners can try themselves. The process requires exploiting specific vulnerabilities in older PS5 firmware versions in order to gain deeper access to the system. Newer firmware versions have already patched these exploits, meaning most consoles can’t run Linux in this way.

Even so, the project shows just how powerful modern consoles really are. The PS5 uses AMD hardware that is very similar to what you would find inside a gaming PC, and running Linux on it reveals how capable that hardware can be when it isn’t limited to Sony’s software ecosystem. Experiments like this also highlight the long tradition of console hacking and hardware exploration. The PlayStation 3 once supported Linux officially before Sony removed the feature, and ever since then, the modding community has continued to experiment with ways to unlock the potential of console hardware. Nguyen’s demonstration is a reminder that under the hood, the PS5 is essentially a powerful computer. While turning it into a Linux gaming machine isn’t practical for most players right now, it’s still an exciting look at what the hardware is capable of when creative developers start pushing its limits.

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