How to fix PS4 not reading disc

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The PS5 may be Sony’s shiny new console, but many of us are still having fun playing the PS4. That is, unless the system cannot read the disc. It’s not just a little frustrating when the PS4 refuses to play the $ 60 game that just popped into its disc drive. If you are experiencing this issue, these tricks will help.

First of all, however, I haven’t run into this problem on my PS4 because I buy almost every game digitally.Instead, the problem drew my attention from This Reddit threadThe poster is their PS4 Elden Ring No discs, etc .: Dark Souls 3no Sekiro, Or any of those old PS4 discs.The comments are full of jokes that this is FromSoftware’s design, but the OP’s PS4 Elden Ring Machines Now — There has been a lot of discussion about the various steps you can take to get your PS4 reading disc back.

Shut down PS4

Can this step fail? of course. However, it is important to try the simplest steps before running the more complex options. Moreover, in PS4 “rest” mode, it is not easy to turn off the system completely. All technicians need to power cycle from time to time, and the PlayStation is no exception.

If you haven’t shut down your PS4 since 2013, you can hold down the power button on your controller and move to the following location to shut it down. Power> Power off PS4.. You can also turn it off completely by pressing and holding the power button on your PS4 for 3 seconds.

Tap PS4

No, seriously. Tapping the PS4 is, anecdotally, a legitimate workaround for this issue. For it to work, insert the disc into your PS4 and tap the console above the disc drive while the disc is first read. Many of these Reddit threads claim that this trick works, but they’re not sure where to put the PS4 during the tap. Some say it only works when the PS4 is flat, while others say the device needs to be upright.

Try both orientations yourself. Don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t work right away. If nothing happens, remove the disc and try again. Some users have stated that it may take 10 or more attempts before the PS4 finally reads the disc.

Rebuild the PS4 database

Unless your PS4 has an SSD, you’ll use a spinning hard drive to store all your files. When the system saves new files to the hard drive, it tends to fill up the available space without worrying about which files are saved where. Over time, this random storage can cause memory access issues, as the system spends extra time looking for related files across the hard drive. This hard drive issue can also affect disk reads.

Therefore, rebuilding the database is important. Rebuilding the PS4 database will logically sort all existing files. That way, the system doesn’t have to search around for various related files. This is because they are stored in the same space. In a sense, this would kill two birds with one stone, as rebuilding the database can be useful even if the PS4 has no problem reading the disk.

To rebuild the database, you need to boot PS4 in safe mode. Start by shutting down your PS4 and be sure to connect your controller to the console instead of using it wirelessly. Then press and hold the PS4’s power button until you hear two beeps. The first beep is the normal tone you hear when the system boots, while the second beep sounds after about 7 seconds.

When prompted, press the power button on your controller. From here you can find a list of options. Select Rebuild Database, sit down and wait for the process to finish. This can take 3 to 20 hours, so you have to wait patiently.

Restore PS4 to factory settings

The last software fix to try is a factory reset. This is a core option for all software-related issues. If the reason you’re having trouble reading the disc on your PS4 is related to your OS, erasing everything and installing a newer version of the software may fix the problem.

To get started Settings> Initialize> Initialize PS4..You can also boot again in safe mode and select “Reinstall System Software” Wipe the PS4 clean.

Repair the PS4 disc drive

If you rule out a software problem, the cause may be the disk drive itself. The good news is that these drives are easy to fix, whether you do it yourself or take it somewhere for repair.

Tronics Fix has great videos Here’s exactly how to remove the disk drive and check for problems. The problem could be the same as the example shown in the video. In this example, one of the rollers is disconnected from the drive. TroncsFix does a great job of explaining exactly when to remove which screws, what to look for, how to fix them, and how to get everything back.