How To Alter The PS3 Hard Drive Format

People who want to use their PS3 hard drive for something other than being a PS3 hard drive need to know how to alter the PS3 hard drive format.  What nefarious plans you might have for the hard drive are up to you. Sometimes, you also need to reformat the hard drive to correct software errors. 

Things You Need to Alter the PS3 Hard Drive Format:

• Phillip’s Head Screwdrivers
• USB Cables or an open SATA drive bay
• Windows XP or Later or Linux

How to Alter the PS3 Hard Drive Format:

1. Open The PS3 System Case.  You will need to use your Phillip’s head screwdriver to do this.  Make sure you make backup copies of any data before doing this.
2. Unplug The Cables From The Hard Drive. Use the screwdriver to remove the hard drive cover. Carefully remove the disk from the system.  Look for the attachment. If there is no place for a USB cable, turn off your computer and connect the drive to the open SATA bay.  Restart the PC afterwards.  If the drive attaches with the USB cable, plug the drive  into your computer's USB port.
3. Right Click When The OS Recognizes The New Disk Drive.  Select the format option from the menu.  You will get a dialog box in Windows and Linux that asks you how you would like to format the new drive. Using the hard drive on the PS3 again requires that you format the drive in FAT32 format.  You can select another format if you want to use the hard drive for different purposes.
4. Let The Format Complete.  The finished process erases all the data on your hard drive.