Problem with PS3 HDD initialized by Windows

wln1337

wln1337

Forum Noob
Hello,
I've got that problem - my HDD from PS3 got auto-initialized by Windows 10 (it didn't even ask me for that).
I made a raw HDD copy with HDD Raw Copy Tool, formatted the drive, put 4.60 soft on it (that version was on ps3 before the incident).
Extraction of the first sector from working system to system restored from backup results in ps3 wants itself to format without any easy way to avoid it.
It's worth mentioning that system after formatting that drive remembers all previous users etc.
Rebuilding filesystem / database seems to be stuck on "Preparing, please wait"

The PS3 is a 3xxx slim, so it doesn't support CFW, and dumping eid root key isn't available if i'm not mistaken.

Is there any way to recover data from that backup?
 
It is not backup made with PS3 XMB, it's a raw hdd backup with broken first sector. I don't think I can do anything with that tool
 
@tungatung It is tool to extract data from system backup archives, not HDD. And to do that, he needs IDPS or else only not protected archives can be read.

@Izofeu High probably he can. ;P

@wln1337 Procedure for fixing disk initialization is described here (doesn't matter if You have CFW or OFW, looks the same for all fw kind): https://www.psx-place.com/threads/tutorial-fixing-windows-disk-initalization.27599/ So what You have did should works until:
  • Windows 10 writing more than first sector
  • Above CECH-2xxx, partition table looks different and taking more sectors
  • You wrongly calculated size for sector or offset to insert
  • You wrongly assumed that Windows overwritten 1 sector (MBR) instead 34 (GPT)
BTW: Which version (specific build) of Windows 10 You are using? Normally Windows asking for initialization but if Yours not, it is good to know from which is not safe to use it.
 
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Windows never automatically initializes uninitialized drives. I plugged a ps3 drive before and all I had to do was click cancel. Guy probably clicked OK instead of Cancel in disk management without realizing it's the initialization prompt. Maybe he can recover data, maybe not, but there's two types of people: those who make backups and those who will start making backups :D

However I do agree that it's way too easy to accidentally initialize a drive.
 
I prepared working ps3 system drives more than 2 times now, it auto-initalizes on windows every single time. I will give you an update when i arrive home
 
If this is true and current Windows 10 builds start to auto initializing drives, use Linux and his dd (it is build in every distro, yet I recommending Mint). Below few commands examples.

Reading whole HDD to raw image:
Code: 
sudo dd if=/dev/sdx of=/home/mint/ps3hdd.img bs=64M status=progress

Reading first sectors from disk, depend how what partition table (MBR/GPT) overwrite PS3PT:
Code: 
sudo dd if=/dev/sdx of=/home/mint/fix_mbr.img bs=512B count=1 status=progress
sudo dd if=/dev/sdx of=/home/mint/fix_gpt.img bs=17408B count=1 status=progress

Writing from disk image:
Code: 
sudo dd if=/home/mint/ps3hdd.img of=/dev/sdx bs=64M status=progress

Writing from micro disk image:
Code: 
sudo dd if=/home/mint/fix_mbr.img of=/dev/sdx status=progress
sudo dd if=/home/mint/fix_gpt.img of=/dev/sdx status=progress

  • You don't need install Linux, use live session and boot it from pendrive (i.e create by Rufus app bootable pendrive from *.iso with Linux distribution).
  • To determine which PS3 HDD device name is (sda, sdb, sdc etc.), use "lsblk" or "fdisk -l".
  • "if=" is the input device/path, "of=" is target device/path.
  • Be extremely careful with syntax, it will not ask You or warn You about anything, just execute what You tell him. ;)
  • If You want to put or read disk image from Windows partitions, then look for it in "/media" (for ancient Linuxes in "/mnt"). In live session, "/home" is as large as free RAM. ;)
  • If You are using hibernation or fast boot on Windows, disable it or else You will have problems to access Windows partitions since Windows 8 came out, because this cancer keeps filesystem tables in memory and overwriting real ones.
  • Do not work on disk image from "broken device", instead always on target device. It is already to late for that as You have modified disk image, but at least only one sector (in assumption that You did it properly).
 
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Well now after that incident im only using Linux and dd if i work with it. I tried only with first sector several times, now i'm gonna try with 34 sectors, though i'm sure that windows10 made it mbr.

I didn't modify disk image, i do all the modifications on target drive, after restore.

My windows 10 build is 10.0.19043 Home
 
For HDD below 1TiB size, at least Windows 7 asking for creating MBR, for above the GPT.

I'm very curious about Your tests as I don't have access to CECH-3xxx or newer.

And normally, last sectors are empty and unencrypted, which means not used. You could use them to store PS3PT backup (i.e I'm using it for something else). But anyway, it is also proofed to work on up to and including CECH-25xx.
 
So i copied 34 sectors from hdd with working system, restored image and copied them.
Same result, the PS3 turns on, it outputs alert that file system is corrupted and after clicking OK there is another alert that drive needs to be formatted.

Guess I'm out of luck
 
Moreover 33 sectors (without the first one) matches sha256sum with the 33 sectors of original backup. It looks like only the first sector really matters there. Have you got any clue what to do next?

I remind you that I've got 4.60 OFW. Maybe system drive after restoring the first sector is okay but some checks of ps3 doesn't let it run and updating the soft would repair it?

What if i try to update the system to 4.88 on that broken drive? Will it brick the console?
Let me know what you think.
 
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That's strange. Maybe Sony has changed something on newer models. :( If Windows 10 would write GPT there (Your test proved that only MBR if only first sector is different), then it would overwrite also last sectors as GPT have copy at the end of disk and this would be explanation why fs is broken as last partition is UFS2 (user's & system partition); yet Windows 7 on which I testing didn't do that. But in case of MBR, nothing comes to my mind really. Or maybe...

Does Your model came with eMMC? You know, the one which have internal 16GiB (12 available) memory. SCPH-3xxx was distributed in those two variants, with and without eMMC. Normally PS3 HDD have 2 or 3 partitions (depend of model): first 256MiB for VFLASH (raw), second 2GiB for cache (dev_hdd1, FAT32) and last for user and system data (dev_hdd0, UFS2). But in case of "eMMC models", this could looks like different, and instead of VFLASH, there is "VHDD", which means could have different structure including some validating stuff for fs inside. Just blind shoot, as no one ever hacked them in a way to have access to internal storage on low level (because this shit is encrypted and we don't know how to get ERK and how to calculate from it ATA Key, and VFLASH Key).

? @bguerville @sandungas

- - -
You can try update it, but probably it will results in boot loop (besides that, better not use 4.88 but the same fw which partially was on it). It will not brick the console, just make this HDD needs formatting (which need it anyway in current state).
 
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