All my PSN game licenses are gone? WTF??

[AG-wolf]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAs2HigIwc4#t=00m45s
(the first 45 seconds are just me going through the list of my save files)

After a weekend of wallowing around with a nasty cold and just generally feeling like garbage, I decide to play a little Wipeout HD and Gravity Crash to relax before I go to bed.

But the marvel that is Playstation 3 won't have any of that. everything I bought from the PSN has now reverted to trial/demo mode...

The only thing I did between the last time I played (for this week's Speed Lap Challenge) was change the video output from HDMI to composite to record something, then I just switched back to HDMI. Lord knows what, but something must have happened during that process that the PS3 apparently couldn't comprehend, and now I'm stuck with demos of all my games with no way to re-activate them until I manage to get access to an internet connection that doesn't block PSN. If I were home, I wouldn't think twice about it, consider it just a fluke or something... but considering it happened when I wasn't even connected to the internet, and I'm in a situation where I don't have access to an unrestricted internet connection, it is fully uncalled for. What logical explanation exists to justify this situation? Please, someone tell me.

I just want to play a god damned game. Is that too much to ask? Why, WHY is it ALWAYS a hassle every f***ing time I have to use the PS3? Every time I even begin to consider the money I spent on this machine wasn't a complete and utter waste, I am perpetually reminded of how god awful of a piece of machinery it is.

Anyone have any ideas? I am Really Pissed Off right now, and that is a phenomenal understatement...

EDIT/Update:
So apparently this is a double-whammy issue right now... not only is Sony having issues with the PSN service, and as a result nobody can connect due to that 8001050F error... but there's something screwy with the internal clock on non-Slim consoles, allegedly revolving around how it handles Leap Year.

A number of people have said they've lost their save files and stuff, so I would seriously consider backing everything up... too bad there's no way to batch process saves, my Wipeout HD folder has 67 individual entries...

EDIT:
Affected console model numbers:
CECHAxx - affected
CECHExx - affected
CECHCxx - affected
CECHGxx - affected
CECHHxx - affected
CECHKxx - affected
CECHLxx - not affected
CECHPxx - not affected

[TarotCardKiller]

The same thing happened to me tonight. All my games were duds and it also occured while I was offline. =\ Every time I try to connect to PSN, I get the error code 8001050f.

Others and I did notice PSN was a bit unforgiving this weekend with disconnections. Good luck with yours

[stinkleroy]

OMG, wolfy this has just happened to me too. I signed out of psn earlier this evening, then attempted to sign in again, but got error code 8001050F saying it would not connect me. I then tried a few reboots, still with no luck. Then I noticed the time on my system was stuck...every time I rebooted it reverted back to 23.45....

So I tried resetting all of my ps3 settings, that didn't work either. Then I tried a game, wipeout to be precise. I instantly noticed that the old SL logo was back and then it told me that my version of this game was a trial version. WTF???

All my save data and game data is still there, so I'm making a full back up now. I just hope it isn't too late. I still can't get online and my connection is my own, where I access psn regularly. I'm going to try and reformat the hard drive after the back up as it's the only thing left to do :/

I have no clue what happened here :(

[drell]

It is a serious bug affecting all non-slim PS3, except a few. Date returns to 1/1/1999 or similar, theme corruption, trophy corruption, license corruption, possibly even save data corruption. It is not only you, my PS3 also was without internet (as it always has been) and it happened to me to. Firmware, or worse hardware, bug with all PS3 systems.

Few links:
Joystiq (http://www.joystiq.com/2010/02/28/psn-is-down-some-titles-experiencing-game-crashing-errors/)
NeoGAF (http://neogaf.net/forum/showthread.php?t=388872)

[blackwiggle]

After reading through those Joystig posts it appears to only effect old BC original PS3's,and ones that were switched on on the 28th,I haven't had mine running yesterday and I'm going to read up on this around the traps to see what the situation is before I start mine up.

[Aeroracer]

like to see how psn are gonna fix this one..this is gonna hurt sony bigtime...:pirate

bill gates and his xbox must be very happy now:guitar:guitar

read on the net...some american guy thinks this is a sign of end of days and judgement day

he says haiti earthquake 1000s die
chilli earthquake 1000's die
and now worst of all psn is down

its good to know that there are some really smart people out there who can prioritise these things so well :turd

[RedScar]

You mean you guys still attempt to use the worlds largest black paper weight?

[Aeroracer]

@redscar

dont talk crap..ps3 isnt the worlds largest paper wieght..

it actually a very good door stop.

[AG-wolf]

Hey, I'm "some american guy" too but I'm not preaching fire and brimstone lol

if anything, this isn't much of a surprise, considering Sony's track record since the PS3's launch :rolleyes:

I don't even care about the console war fuel at this point, either. Sony is stupid, they have repeatedly shot themselves in the foot for the last 3 years, they'll hopefully fix this very soon so they don't take any MORE flak. Like I said before, I just want to play a damn game.

[blackwiggle]

It's world wide,the PS forums are inaccessible so no info from there.
SONY has just Twittered this.
http://twitter.com/sonyplaystation

Apparently this has happened before ,but not to the same extent,on 28th of Feb & Nov 2008.

Seems kind of strange to me.
Somebody says they are trying to crack the PS3 by using a BC PS3 with a second OS on it.

The weekend of the Avalon meet PSN down for 16 hours,then suddenly and unexpectedly down for a further 6 hours on the following Wends,Thurs & Fri.

Sony said it was in the process of updating it's websites,but it knocks out the PSN and effectively bricks up original BC PS3's.
You don't need to be a conspiracy theorist to think the two are related.

[AG-wolf]

Oh yeah, that's right- I remembered reading an article recently about someone making headway with CPU requests or something via Other OS.

If this is somehow related, it's a REALLY cheap shot to all the other legitimate PS3 owners out there... for all their idiocy, I can't imagine they would do something like this intentionally... maybe the PSN issue, but like I said, mine hasn't even been online for months.

[KIGO1987]

I had the same problem then. I was just about to throw the PS3 out of my 10th floor apartment window :bomb

So its a world wide problem then/:

[blackwiggle]

The fact that the only real problems, apart from the inability to connect to the PSN ,only effects the old BC fat PS3's can only mean SONY are worried about this hacking threat and have taken action,but have managed to completely stuff that action up into what is occurring now.
If it was any other situation it would be effecting ALL PS3's,not just the original ones.

[KIGO1987]

But I want to keep my old phat PS3 :(. It does a good job heating up the apartment in winter time.

Could always by a slim i guess. There pretty cheap now. Pack up the Phat. Might be worth a small fortune in years to come :)

[ProblemSolver]

The fact that the only real problems ... effects the old BC fat PS3's can only mean SONY are worried about this hacking threat and have taken action....
Which is pure speculation. ;)

[KIGO1987]

I was reading about the hacking story on a forum. Damn that is some serious stuff going!

[AG-wolf]

it's not that someone hacked the PSN or anything, but people are wondering if this is Sony's attempt to halt hacking of their console through external means.

I doubt Sony would willingly compromise EVERYONE's hardware in the process, so this is probably relatively unrelated.

[KIGO1987]

By the ways Sony have treated there customers this year, i reckon they are willing to compromise everything! Like that story i heard about charging fees on the PSN! Like what the hell is that.

But i hope this global problem gets resolved in a timely and orderly fashion.

[drell]

Funny, or not?
I had set date again after bug, back to normal, only manually, and passed 28/2 (Now yesterday)
I turn on again, to have it back to 28/2... I go to set, but scroll days instead of month accidentally... It goes 28, 29, 30, 31... But as soon as I scroll month to 3 and back to 2, it doesn't go passed 28. It looks like whatever has caused the bug from 28/2 to 1/3 also affects this date and time setting which you can adjust.

[KIGO1987]

My date on my PS3 says im in January 1st 2000! The PS2 was even in this country back then! haha. crazy stuff :dizzy

[drell]

Well, setting date does nothing anyways. Clock is frozen and does not work!
Twitter named this #APOCALYPS3
I think it is appropriate.

[KIGO1987]

Apocalypse. haha. This is reminding me of Skynet now. lol

[mic-dk]

If it wasn't this tragic I would laugh and point at Sony for not handling leap years. Fscking noobs...

Are there any reports of the 40gb models are affected?

It is a quite scary reminder of the negative consequences of buying games in the PS Store. Up until now, I have happily bought games from there, but not anymore. I had never imagined something like this would happen, and I had certainly not imagined that Sony would behave this childishly stupid.

I need more coffee before I can work up a more elaborate rant - I'll brew it along with my sense of outrage... :coffee

[KIGO1987]

sht! my F3 expansion packs are stuffed. grrrr.

[drell]

Are there any reports of the 40gb models are affected?If you have a non-slim PS3, there is a high chance that it is affected. Most non-slim PS3 that are not affected are recent 80GB no BC systems.
All slim PS3 are fine it looks like.

[AG-wolf]

Well I can't imagine anything you've bought is completely gone... Unless your PSN account itself is compromised on Sony's side, I'm sure it still retains purchase history and stuff like that. Once they figure out what the problem is and fix it, people should be able to re-download everything if it comes down to it. Not exactly the most favorable result, but there's not much anyone can do really.

[blackwiggle]

I've been talking with some Sony people.
Looks pretty nasty atm and they are getting slammed big time.
The problem is that to reset it you will need a system update fix,you can't get that unless you log on,you can't log on because the bug won't let you...catch 22.

A possible solution that is being banged about atm looks like making a system update available via the PS site via link,download that to a USB stick,then update system software via that.

I'll post when I know more.

[RedScar]

I really don't wanna go through all my games and start from the beginning. I still haven't beaten Valkyria Chronicles and if I lose my save I will flip out since that game takes ages to play and accomplish anything.

[KIGO1987]

Cool. Ill wait then :)

[infoxicated]

I don't even care about the console war fuel at this point, either.
But then you are the guy who added these tags to the thread, as if anybody is ever going to search for these tags:

can i have my money back, modern engineering marvel, ps3 sucks yet again

So in this case you're just (ab)using the tag system to take pot shots at the system you love to hate.

And, since you're also the guy who started a thread asking if everybody would get an XBox because of the Studio Liverpool redundancies, your claims at "not caring" ring very hollow indeed.

[KGB]

Same thing happened to me, can't even play Heavy rain at the moment. Holy crap!

Edit: It seems I'm still the owner of the films I downloaded off the Video store, so I can watch them. Just the game side of it is shagged :|.

[LurifaxFlux]

I have a 3rd gen PS3 80GB PAL, everything works fine for me, I can connect to PSN, I can play Wipeout HD online etc, lucky me :P

[Dark_Phantom_89]

Mine's been affected too. Haven't tried a game yet but seeing the clock at 31/12 23.39 isn't a good sign...

[silverfoxy]

Picked this up from a good friend on another site, not sure if it will help people or not (sorry for wall of text but it is useful)

Massive bug cripples "fat" PS3s
March 1st, 2010

Yesterday, PS3 owners worldwide suddenly found themselves locked out of the PlayStation Network, with trophy and game functionality severely compromised. No-one knows why, but it appears that a calendar bug within older PlayStation3s has wreaked havoc with the PS3's DRM and authentication systems with a far-reaching impact on the system.

The phenomenon does not appear to have affected the new PS3 Slim, but owners of the larger console are at risk, with the PS3 logging an 8001050F error as soon as the system attempts to connect to the PlayStation Network. The bug causes the date on the system to be reset to 1st January 2000, and reseting the clock manually makes no difference.


Other gamers have reported that the same error kicks in even on offline systems, meaning that titles that synchronise trophies when first booted fail to start. Even test PS3 units used by press and developers are said to be affected. The impact of the bug is so far-reaching that all the paid-for PSN content residing on your PS3 hard drive suddenly loses its activation privileges, meaning that in addition to some retail Blu-ray games that sync trophies on launch, bought-and-paid-for PSN titles are no longer playable in anything other than their trial versions - if they have one.

Quite why the bug kicks in remains unknown at this time. Checking in with SCEE this morning, the official line is, "We have found out that some users are experiencing a network connection failure when signing on to PlayStation Network. We are currently looking into the issue to identify the cause of this network connection failure and will update further information as necessary (on the Blog or official website). We appreciate for your understanding and continued support."

Sony initially acknowledged the issue early this morning, but thus far has offered no advice so far on what the problem is, how it can be avoided, and crucially when it will be fixed. The company has confirmed that Slim units are unaffected.

In the meantime, if you have a non-Slim PS3, and you've not used it since Saturday or beforehand, our advice is to keep it powered down until Sony issues some sort of guidance, or provides a fix. Confirmed on our 60GB launch unit this morning, the bug still impacts PS3s powered up today, even if they were not active on 28th February.

AND

As for which machines are affected, apparently it's model numbers CECH-A through to K that are affected, so basically if you've got a 60 or 40GB, you'll get this, as will the early 80GB models (like mine).

Some of the later 80s and 160GBs (CECH-L onwards) apparently seem to work and all Slims are okay, so it must be something in the older hardware.

I'm not going to risk it and much as I really want to play Heavy Rain, I think I'll stick to gaming on the PC or Wii instead.

[mic-dk]

Thanks foxy - that means my 40gb has tanked as well.

I find it quite incredible that Sony isn't out with fireextinguisher and the silver suits to try and contain some of the bad publicity. Or am I just being naive?

[boxman22]

It has been 10 hours now since last information. I am going to be really pissed off if trophies and access to games have been lost permanently.

This is exactly why i am against DRM.

[Woopzilla]

Well, I guess I'll hold off buying a PS4 until several leap years, decades and solar eclipses have completed. :P

But honestly, I don't think we should worry too much about 'breaking' our PS3s by powering it up unless the problem resolves itself by the simply waiting a few days.

What's more likely is that we'll have to power it up anyway and download a firmware update. Even though we can't connect to the PSNetwork we can still download updates, and if need be, we can download an update via the playstation website and stick it on a USB stick.

Also, apparently you can fix the issue yourself by removing the clock battery inside the PS3 and fitting it back in. The idea is that it's pretty much like clearing the CMOS on your PC motherboard... but I wouldn't get that impatient to try something risky like opening up your PS3.

[Dark_Phantom_89]

There's rumours going around that the bug could simply fix itself when the date reaches tomorrow (i.e. midnight GMT time tonight.)

Personally I don't feel as hopeful.

[boxman22]

There's rumours going around that the bug could simply fix itself when the date reaches tomorrow (i.e. midnight GMT time tonight.)

Personally I don't feel as hopeful.
I have a really bad feeling about that as well. The time has already changed into tuesday in some areas of the world. I am sure there would be reports about it working again if that was the case. I also tried changing the timezone and time/date on my own ps3 which of course did absolutely nothing.


Well, I guess I'll hold off buying a PS4 until several leap years, decades and solar eclipses have completed. :P

But honestly, I don't think we should worry too much about 'breaking' our PS3s by powering it up unless the problem resolves itself by the simply waiting a few days.

What's more likely is that we'll have to power it up anyway and download a firmware update. Even though we can't connect to the PSNetwork we can still download updates, and if need be, we can download an update via the playstation website and stick it on a USB stick.

Also, apparently you can fix the issue yourself by removing the clock battery inside the PS3 and fitting it back in. The idea is that it's pretty much like clearing the CMOS on your PC motherboard... but I wouldn't get that impatient to try something risky like opening up your PS3.
I would think a firmware patch woudl be out already if it was that simple?? I dont see why sony keeps being quiet if a time reset is all they need. Surely they would know how to reset the system clock using firmware?

[Asayyeah]

1 hour spare time after launch and thought ok let's get a cool session of Wipeout HD, switching on my 80Gb (cechk04), loading HD till ... trial version ...
:turd

Let's see what gonna happend...

[Dark_Phantom_89]

It's been around 8 hours since Sony's last entry on Twitter.

I'm thinking that a tweet that says "we're finding this harder to fix than we first thought" wouldn't go down too well.

[Woopzilla]

@boxman22 Well, I'm not a progammer but is it really just that simple? It seemed like a 'timebomb' bug that crippled millions of users (how many fat PS3s are there in the world anyway?). I'm sure they'll be figuring out the underlying causes and will have to rewrite some code and properly bug test it before releasing something that could potentially mess things up more. They'll probably have to make sure that this fix also doesn't mess with the slims if the update becomes available to everyone.

I'm sure the wait is simply because Sony is being cautios as to not ruin their reputation or public relations any further. :/

[Dark_Phantom_89]

This could be a lot worse than it looks. Remember what the Millenium Bug did to loads of computing systems? Completely rendered them unusable.

[silverfoxy]

Well I just turned my PS3 on and I have it set so I have to sign in manually. The clock at the top of the screen had the date 31/12 and the time 23-40. Turned it straight off again afterwards without logging in. Worrying times.

And this is one of the models that is supposed to be ok (CECH M)

[stinkleroy]

My system is still down and I can confirm it is a non BC 40GB, so yes I'm gathering all older models are affected by this.

I reset all my settings last night and changed the date to 1/3/2010, it's remained at that but unfortunately the clock still thinks it's 2am, so rumours of date changes fixing this are null and void.

I suggest a full system back up of all your data just to be sure you don't lose anything when the fix arrives....you never know!

[shapealot]

i rang the helpline earlier about this problem and the guy on the phone assured me i havnt lost the game or my records and once the network is back up we should have the full game again, no need to re-download it or anything... so he said anyways :|

[Woopzilla]

As long as the console still boots up and the XMB/OS is still operational, we will be able to install firmware updates and surely have the issue resolved. So, they're not completely unusable. ;)

I'm being optimistic about this though. If not, then we can all sue Sony into oblivion and have them replace our consoles. I mean, can you really use an expired warranty as an excuse if the problem was clearly time related? :P

About the time fixing: Supposedly, doing it manually via the OS doesn't do anything... you have to physically remove the clock battery. I'm not going to try this though. There's a few threads about it on the official forums.

[yeldar2097]

I'm trying to have a nice relaxing time with some mates, some gear (just for you cat ;) ) and some booze but NOOOOOOOO, sOmeone had to go and ruin it for me -_-

I looked up the error on google and first link I get "PS3 users warned not to use consoles as '8001050f error' crashes ...‎.."
Not at any point was I warned about this. Fact.

--> Tried to boot worms, now everything on my PS3 has gone walkies.

60GB Launch model with new 500GB inside. Just for reference.

[AG-wolf]

I'm almost willing to try reseating the battery myself... the machine is long past warranty, and on the snowball's chance that I break anything, $150 bucks to get it repaired by Sony is still cheaper than laying $300 down on a new machine... providing Sony actually repairs it and doesn't stick me with a different model all-together; I specifically sought out the CECHA model due to its PS2 compatibility...

[Aeroracer]

what happens if sony cannot fix ps3's there must be more fat ones than slims ones..i think my ps3 was bought in 2008 but i would have to ask the owner about that..

[AG-wolf]

You know, I'm not sure... I think they would be required to actually repair the machine or replace it with the exact same functioning model; If I had to send mine in to be repaired and I got one of the newer revisions back, I'd be pretty angry... that's like bringing your car to the garage to get your tranny fixed and getting it back without headlights and a stereo lol :P I haven't heard any accounts of people sending in the old PS2-compatible models and what they get back...

[boxman22]

I guess it aint possible to set hardware clock under linux?
I booted up ubuntu on my ps3 and tried changing date from 1999 to current date but seems like there is restricted access to the hardware clock?

[Amorbis]

Happy Birthday to me then, they couldn't have chosen a better day really. I come home from College hoping to play my recently purchased copy of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing to find 'Can't let you use that PS3, Amorbis'. If it isn't fixed by the days end then I'll be quite sour, I dare not to try and play WipEout or anything to pass the time, I'd rather not play the trial version.

Silly Y2K style bugs and my leap year birth date. :/

[Xavier]

I am perpetually reminded of how god awful of a piece of machinery it is.

Fortunately there's at least one game that makes it worth having!

I have the new Final Fantasy XIII model slim PS3, and I only got that one because I couldn't find a backward-compatible phat model for any kind of reasonable price. What a blow to the people who paid big money to get BC models, or who were early adopters and have had the PS3s for four years.

This is the kind of thing that makes you sympathetic to, if not pirates, then to hackers in general who are trying to get at the inner workings of the PS3. Imagine if this happened in 2020 or 2030 when the PS3 is a dead platform but there's still a loyal user base who love the old hardware. Would Sony have put (will they, hypothetically, have put?) much of an effort into fixing something like that? It would be up to hackers to open up the firmware.

[shapealot]

@ag-wolf ive had 2 60G original PS3s swapped you get the same model back

[DeepMix]

its a worldwide problem, appearently somethings happening with the old hardware, mines is a 40gb model i cant connect, neither play downloaded games, i tried to play wipeout but instead it gave me the trial version :/

at least all my trophies are still there and my savefiles aswell..

hope sony can fix this soon, this is not a mayor update this is an epic fail -_-

oh well i guess ill try to finish tokyo xtreme racer 3 lol meanwhile

[AG-wolf]

@xavier: Yeah, I actually respect a lot of the hackers/modders out there... Granted a fair portion of them delve into piracy, but the larger underlying theme of the entire underground console mod/dev scene is focused on eking out the most they can from the hardware. THe Dreamcast and the original Xbox are prime examples; emulation platforms, competent media centers, etc (I used my classic Xbox for a long time to listen to streaming internet radio, catalog all the videos I had on my computer, and tons of other stuff). The 360 is coming along well, too... I'm sure if people had made more headway on the PS3 earlier, whatever this date bug is would long since have been addressed, and Sony themselves probably would have been like "lol oops, let's get that patched before it causes any problems" :P These companies aren't stupid, they're on top of all the people out there, and half the time I wonder if they're not both working together in a kind of give-and-take scenario

@shapealot: That's a little reassuring... at least I'll get the same machine back, but I don't like the possibility that the older models are that susceptible to problems :/

[gordo1974]

So guys. Reading all the above and noting that I've a CECH-M03, I take it the advice is
"keep the damn thing turned off" until Sony gets it's act together.

That is a real downer, as I'd got to zone 64 and was looking to push through the nightmare Mach 1 colours and on to Zone Zeus tonight.

I can feel my skills draining from me minute by minute!!

[AmigoJack]

Well I just turned my PS3 on and I have it set so I have to sign in manually. The clock at the top of the screen had the date 31/12 and the time 23-40. Turned it straight off again afterwards without logging in. Worrying times.

And this is one of the models that is supposed to be ok (CECH M)Thanks very much for this first precise info at all, fox :)

All those "mine boots up well" and "my one is crashing too" -talks are useless if nobody tells the model number. I should look up if a term exists for fear of details - like detailophobia :|

My model is CECHM04 (with 80 GiB hdd), so I will let it untouched so far.

And the longer it takes for Sony the more I fear a hardware problem that can't be helped with nowadays fashionly methods like "let's download a patch for that" :(

[silverfoxy]

No problems Amigo. That is the full model number of my machine as well.

From what I've heard the only models that are absolutely fine are the new Slim consoles. its looking like pretty much every other model has this problem.

Just hoping its fixed soon.

[ACE-FLO]

I hope this thing with the fat ones gets sorted out real quick. :( I wont get to see you guys online for a while, otherwise - and that gonna suck.

I went online earlier on, to see if my slim was affected, it wasnt - but hey, only one venom hosted room out there - wtf? NOOOoooooOOOOoooOOOOooo

[AG-wolf]

Wait, so you got online with your Slim with no problem? Does that mean they fixed the network error that people were getting?

[DeepMix]

I hope this thing with the fat ones gets sorted out real quick. :( I wont get to see you guys online for a while, otherwise - and that gonna suck.

I went online earlier on, to see if my slim was affected, it wasnt - but hey, only one venom hosted room out there - wtf? NOOOoooooOOOOoooOOOOooo

LOL that must be really sad being able to play but at the same time you cant properly D:

well it seems all the fat model users are affected, at least ur lucky ACE u can at least play other games

[ACE-FLO]

True... but as some of us already know here - I just don't really play offline. The time I do spend playing is mostly online only - offline i'm either watching a bluray or dvd, that's it mate... it's like SONY crippled my PS3 too,kinda. Ok I'm being dramatic, but I know that at times I will feel like that. :?

EDIT: oh, and the only game which takes my time is W'O" - :rock

I got a few others, but don't really play them... ;)

[Aeroracer]

has anyone heard any news. i looked at ps twitter page and its not been updated for 14 hours..must be serious :mr-t

[KGB]

I didn't think the slims were affected? I got on line no bother with the slim before. It's just the fat ones that have time traveled back to when the PSN didn't exist so can't connect (too much Lost :D).

[kanar]

Not all the fat guys, my CECHL04 is safe. It's an early/mid 2009 version. Of course my old school backward compatible ps3 will remain in its box 'til they'll fix this bug. You can check around some forums over the internet to know if your fat is affected. It seems all the 2009 fat models, and of course the slims as it has been said, are bug free.

[stinkleroy]

Update

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2010/03/latest-info-on-playstation-network-status/

not really telling us much but hey...

Edit - Glad your system is ok Oli :)

[Woopzilla]

Well, earlier I read about this and here's a list I found:

CECHA01 - affected
CECHE01 - affected
CECHG01 - affected
CECHH01 - affected
CECHK01 - affected
CECHL01 - not affected
CECHP01 - not affected

And from what I've seen, they suppose that turning the PS3 on or leaving it off doesn't seem to matter as the internal clock is always ticking 24/7. So, even if your PS3 has been off, it's bugged itself to the 29th Feb.

But might as well leave it off and wait it out to be on the safe side... I tried checking it yesterday shortly after midnight after reading a forum goers post here (before knowing it was a widespread 'doomsday' issue) and got the error message. Turned it off without trying to load any games, so here's hoping that my game data wasn't accessed or altered.

[Aeroracer]

If only wipeout was on the 360 then my ps3 could 100% fullfill its destiny as a door stop..

[yeldar2097]

CECHC04 can be added to that list :nod

Why are there so many different types....keep it simple s(ony)tupid

[drell]

Well, earlier I read about this and here's a list I foundYes, this is what I read too. For those who have different number, just look at the letters. Number is only region code for model number, hardware is indicated by letters only.

Also Joystiq has a post (http://www.joystiq.com/2010/03/01/sony-dont-use-your-ps3-until-internal-clock-bug-fixed/) about the latest update as well, if you want to read anymore comments.
NeoGAF thread (http://neogaf.net/forum/showthread.php?t=388872) still going too, though now it has mostly turned to conversation.

Finally, reports from users who opened the PS3 and removed CMOS battery are that everything is fine once internal clock is reset to a valid date, even if they had bug and corrupted data before. Hope it is same for all of us.
Sony is essentially playing the waiting game here like the rest of us, and hide it very bad. :-

[Aeroracer]

are you saying we have to remove battery from ps3
ae you saying by playing a waiting game this may resolve at end of day 24.00 hr

or am i having a dizzy moment and read into it the wrong way:dizzy

[drell]

No, that is correct.
Some have removed CMOS battery (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backup_battery) for ten minutes and PS3 is working fine again. Even if it had the bug before. This means it is related to internal RTC (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real-time_clock).
However it is a theory that everything will resolve once internal clock stops counting today as February 29 2010 (Invalid date) and switches to March 1 2010 tomorrow at GMT standard time. It appears this is also what Sony does, as they update and say "Hope to have resolved in 24 hours."

Also: Hitler gets 8001050F on his Playstation 3 on 01 March 2010 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoENVnD3J8w)

[boxman22]

I doubt it will even sovle itself when the date changes. The hardware clock is not working at all. It is stuck at some 1999 date at 23:37 and clock only runs while the ps3 is on. If you turn it off it will reset back to 23:37. I have verified this by checking in linux. Removing the battery seems to be the only fix if they dont manage to release a new firmware patch that fixes the problem.

[Hellfire_WZ]

Oh for f*ck's sake! I finally get back online and now this happens. Yep, I've fallen victim to this as well, clock reads 31/12/1999. Turned it off straight away to avoid doing any further damage to anything.

[boxman22]

No, that is correct.
Some have removed CMOS battery (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backup_battery) for ten minutes and PS3 is working fine again. Even if it had the bug before. This means it is related to internal RTC (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real-time_clock).
However it is a theory that everything will resolve once internal clock stops counting today as February 29 2010 (Invalid date) and switches to March 1 2010 tomorrow at GMT standard time. It appears this is also what Sony does, as they update and say "Hope to have resolved in 24 hours."

Also: Hitler gets 8001050F on his Playstation 3 on 01 March 2010 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoENVnD3J8w)
The internal clock was reset back to 1999 or 2000 for most users it seems. What the clock in ps3 OS shows is not the hardware clock. The hardware clock does not even tick now when you turn the ps3 off, so i dont see how it can magically resolve itself.

[AG-wolf]

something funny from /v/ on 4chan
http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/2115/ps3date.jpg

@drell: that Hitler video is hilarious :D

[drell]

The internal clock was reset back to 1999 or 2000 for most users it seems. What the clock in ps3 OS shows is not the hardware clock. The hardware clock does not even tick now when you turn the ps3 off, so i dont see how it can magically resolve itself.This is all correct. You can add that OS clock also does not work any more, because since dependence on RTC, and RTC does not work, OS clock no longer works.
Remember, what I said is only theory. Theory might not be what happens. If it doesn't happen, Sony has got big problems.
It's possible that RTC returns nothing because it is stuck internally to February 29, but is still functioning internally. However you only see it has stopped because result is void. Who knows.

[Aeroracer]

llllooolll at poor hitler and his ps3 dilema...

video is really funny probally much better than the original film the clip came from:nod:nod

[AG-wolf]

I had actually wanted to see the original movie.. "Downfall," I think it was called. It actually looked good.


I'm currently in the process of trying to remove the CMOS battery... The PS3 is not, by any stretch of the imagination, an example of efficient Japanese engineering lol :P it's like getting into the original Xbox all over again hahaha

On the plus side, this is an ample opportunity for me to take the vacuum to all the dust and hopefully ward off potential for YLOD from overheating.

edit: OMG SO MUCH DUST D:

[drell]

Downfall is good. The movie, not this.

I wonder what will happen if RTC doesn't correct itself on March 2 2010 GMT...
And then what, PS3 has been out for four years. If you reset RTC now, in 2010, will the same bug happen in 2014? Messy...

[AG-wolf]

gimme another half hour to put this beast back together and we'll see if it works lol

[Woopzilla]

Hah, hope it goes well.

I'll probably follow suit if it doesn't fix itself at midnight. It would be a good opportunity to clean out the dust too as you did... I've had my PS3 since the release basically, so it would probably be pretty bad.

[Aeroracer]

good luck wolf..hope all goes well for you :nod

[AG-wolf]

re-seating the CMOS battery did nothing for me
my ps3: CECHA01

Aside from being a bit cleaner on the inside, and somehow a bit sturdier (maybe Sony never tightened all the screws during production?), my games are still in Trial/Demo mode.

oh well, maybe it only works for certain models?

EDIT: If someone else wants to give it a shot, here's the tutorial I followed for disassembly:
http://www.llamma.com/PS3/repair/PS3_disassembly_tutorial.htm
depending on whether you have the card readers or not and stuff like that, you might have a couple extra steps. Take caution when separating the ribbon cables... all of the cable receptacles have a latch to release the cable; they're delicate, but they do serve a purpose.

[boxman22]

Did you leave the battery out for long enough? I believe it needs to be removed for at least 10-15 minutes for the clock to reset itself.

[AG-wolf]

it was out for about 10 minutes, and the machine asked me to reset the time and date upon reboot.

Edit:
Video of reboot process:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD5PahP7jC4

[gordo1974]

Good Effort, Wolf. Thanks for Guinea Pigging this for us. Bad luck it didn't work out.

[Woopzilla]

No way, you mean they were having a laugh suggestion that as a fix?

My hope for a 'self fix' coming at midnight have been dashed. :/

[KGB]

Has no one from Australia or somewhere in a different time zone got rid of the problem. If all they are waiting for is the date to change then it will of already happened in some countries. No word yet from anywhere. :|

[Aeroracer]

wolf...

you say your games are still in trial mode but can you connect online or is everything the same...

[brummpahh]

Hi all,

epic fail here, too. Model CECHG04.

WO down to trial mode, f*** you S*N* !!!

I've got a week old backup of the complete system,
but i won't use it until it's clear what happened.

So much for downloadable content. 1st the ad "update", now this.

With the wonderful customer communication of our
japanese friends, it will only be a matter of weeks to hear
something official about it, or maybe never because of mass "Seppuku" at a major company's headquarter.

[Woopzilla]

Has no one from Australia or somewhere in a different time zone got rid of the problem. If all they are waiting for is the date to change then it will of already happened in some countries. No word yet from anywhere. :|

The internal clock runs on GMT no matter where in the world you are, so we will all know if it fixed itself in about 3 hours from now. I assume the OS alters the time retrieved from the internal clock to suit the timezone the user is in.

It'll be a long 3 hours. :?

[boxman22]

@brummpahh
That is really bad news.. I guess that means there is a big risk of save games and trophies being permanently lost. :(

[AG-wolf]

@jasmin: My college internet blocks PSN/Xbox Live/Steam/Wii/etc, so I can't connect to PSN period. I was online a month and a half ago at a friend's apartment, but I can't drop by atm because i'm sick, and it would kinda be a d*ck move to go over and get him sick lol :P

[KGB]

Ahh! Didn't know that. I thought they all started going down at different times. So thought they were set for which ever country they were in. Silly me.

[blackwiggle]

No it still isn't fixed here in Australia despite the time /date difference.
I have just been informed[ email about 10 min ago] that Sony expects at least another 24 hours before any sort of fix can be expected ,most likely a system update via the Playstation forums that you will have to install via a USB stick or burn to disc and install that way.

[stin]

My PS3 code is CECH MO3, I had a good read and looks like mine might be ok but I`m not touching it till that bloody bug fixed.

What about without internet, will that work? Maybe a stupid question.:|

Seriously, I`m not pleased for that.

It`s a worrying time.

stevie:(

[drell]

No, bug is unrelated to being on the internet or not. As I already said, my PS3 never connected to internet except for update and download games, it has this problem. Potentially it affects millions of PS3 regardless of data on it and connection to PSN or internet.

One more hour and ten minutes until GMT March 2 2010.
Countdown (http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fullscreen.html?n=769)

[brummpahh]

Hi Stin,

if your date doesn't read 1/1/2000 everything is ok then.
If it does, don't start a game - it will be it's sudden death. (until a patch or 4ever)

I took an old 40gb harddisk, and restored a week old
system backup. Turned ps3 on (no ethernet plugged in).
Everything was there inkl. savegames etc.
So far so good. As soon as you start something, it's down
to demo-mode, savegame lost. Grrrrrrr.

It's up to big brother now for a patch/compensation.

[boxman22]

@brummpahh
That hopefully means there is hope for my games then. I have turned on my ps3, but luckily did not try to load any of the games.

[drell]

It works again for some. As expected, the problem resolves nearing 12:00AM GMT. Mine works again, nothing to redownload, no data corruption. I did not play any games or do anything with it while it was out, but change theme and date.

[AG-wolf]

oh god so yours is working without any intervention at all? Let's hope it's that simple across the board

[brummpahh]

Hi drell,
this is good news, thx. Hope this works for boxman, me
and the rest of the zoners.:+

[boxman22]

@drell
Mine just signed in as well now. The date however suddenly changed to 30/04/2020?? Is it safe to change the date manually or fetch it from sony server?

edit: Took the chance and set the date manually and then took the chance on launching wipeout. I am now online and it so far seems to be working fine.
Time to test with a few races :P

I am happy i was wrong with RTC clock being stuck at 1999.

[drell]

Yes, only interventions when it was bugged:
Set internet parameters (wired/wireless, IP, etc.)
Enable/Disable internet connection
Set time and date manually after unsucessful internet set
Launch WipEout HD on alternate user account and play two races Vineta-K Flash

My date was set in 2021 when I turned it on, you can reset through internet no problem.
Played a few races with WOHD Fury now on real user account, it works.

[Dark_Phantom_89]

So it's safe to play games now? No being sent back to the XMB/Trial Versions?

[Aeroracer]

ps3 has fixed itself..Im going online now...Wow sony are hot they managed to fix my ps3 when it was turned off and not connected to the net..must have used the jedi force to do it....:nod:nod:+ :hyper

[drell]

So it's safe to play games now? No being sent back to the XMB/Trial Versions?Yes it is.

[AG-wolf]

No magic fix for mine yet, just tried it.

[lovedr]

all fixed here automatically with no probs just had to set time from internet afterwards

[drell]

AGWolf - Perhaps you will have to wait the amount of minutes it took for you to remove and reinstall CMOS battery, maybe it "paused" during that whole time while still being stuck in the past. It should resolve soon, I hope for you.
Also from NeoGAF, disabling and enabling internet connection seems to solve anyone that does not fix automatically.

[Woopzilla]

I guess we can safely say this is over. We just have to hope that Sony has a good look at further possibilities of such screw ups.

And I think drell is right there... some systems may have had slightly incorrect times, hence how people reported fixes even before midnight.

Hope it goes well.

[Kyonshi]

My PS3 is finally back to normal too... well, kind of.

I announce that we're April 29th, and its 12:15am :D:+ **** yeah, Spring is already here in Canada :P

[brummpahh]

Big relief here. 1 am german time, the clock
could be synched via internet. Back2normal now.
No need to restore anything. Uff.
cya

[AG-wolf]

By some stroke of luck, I can apparently log into PSN while at school o_O I figured I'd try to set my date via internet, thinking maybe the PS3 doesn't connect to PSN for its time server, but lo and behold it connected without a second thought.

Everything seems fine again, thankfully... I just couldn't log into the Wipeout HD servers to play online :/ Maybe there's another port that Wipeout uses that is still being blocked

[blackwiggle]

Check to see if wipeout is still coming up as trial only copy.

[ProblemSolver]

IT
ONLY
DOES
SELF RESURRECTION.

:D:+

Apollo 13, anyone?

Here are some funny pictures and animated gifs that were generated
with respect to the issue;
http://i50.tinypic.com/14av908.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/2cf48qf.jpg
http://www.spacecavearcade.com/feb292010.gif
http://www.castle-vidcons.com/comics/2010/03/cv0089.jpg
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l195/silent_killer_vincent/73ad4423.jpg
http://www.imagebanana.com/img/maz06qft/firstaa.gif
http://i47.tinypic.com/xl9pqq.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/28wexbc.jpg
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff169/captscience/apocalyps3.jpg

[KGB]

Mines OK now, though I've lost 6 Heavy Rain trophies. For a while it was showing 0% but fixed itself.

[ProblemSolver]

@KGB1971: Start the game, play at bit, and do a trophy sync afterwards.
You can also try re-syncing the trophies straight away.

[Dan Locke]

Up and running again; works like a charm!

[KIGO1987]

IT
ONLY
DOES
SELF RESURRECTION.

:D:+

Apollo 13, anyone?

Here are some funny pictures and animated gifs that were generated
with respect to the issue;
http://i50.tinypic.com/14av908.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/2cf48qf.jpg
http://www.spacecavearcade.com/feb292010.gif
http://www.castle-vidcons.com/comics/2010/03/cv0089.jpg
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l195/silent_killer_vincent/73ad4423.jpg
http://www.imagebanana.com/img/maz06qft/firstaa.gif
http://i47.tinypic.com/xl9pqq.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/28wexbc.jpg
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff169/captscience/apocalyps3.jpg

:lol XD those pics are epic. A date to remember. PS3 2006-1999 haha XD.

[drell]

Due to an internal clock issue, the PS3 was sent back in time to 1999 for exactly one day. During that day it successfully killed the Dreamcast, guaranteeing the success of the Playstation 2 and ensuring it's own existence.
View source (http://neogaf.net/forum/showpost.php?p=20057736&postcount=8552)

Great thread on NeoGAF anyways :+

[KIGO1987]

That neogaf post is golden. But if SCEE where smart, they would go back to 2002 to sort things out for the better of them Haha maybe they did, you never know.

Just insuranced myself from a future occurrence from the events of March 1st 2010. Got a copy of WOHD FURY in disc form at the shops, nicely hidden away so i couldnt see it, but i did find it, and now it is mine. Now im going to put it in a time capsule so when the digital file download stuffs up itself in the future not all is lost.

[KGB]

@KGB1971: Start the game, play at bit, and do a trophy sync afterwards.
You can also try re-syncing the trophies straight away.

I tried all that but it didn't work. I had two save files, one which I finished the game on and another that I had started to play the game again on. I can't of synced this second game as it lost all of the trophies I had received the second time. I had to delete the save file and start again, which was a pain as while the game is very good, some of the early levels are boring on the 4th playthrough. It could of been a lot worse.

[ProblemSolver]

Hmmm ... I haven't lost any trophies on HR. I have two files; a save game and
an ending of the game. It could be possible that you lost some trophies while
having tried playing HR under a broken clock, have you?

[KGB]

No, well I say no as it wouldn't let me. It was the first game I tried to play before I knew there were problems. It wouldn't load the trophy information so wouldn't let me play the game. I'm thinking that I just didn't sync them so it hasn't updated on Sony's side.

[OBH]

Help please, i dont have the internet, and cannot find a download to fix it manually :(

[wich]

afaik you don't need to download or install anything, can you set the date manually?

[OBH]

To my surprise i reset the date this afternoon and everthing works fine. Bizarre, but im not complaining :)

[AG-wolf]

lol yeah it's like- over and done with, we shall not speak of this again lol

I anticipate a system update relatively soon that will more than likely prevent it from happening again.. unless it's something hardware related- that would be interesting... :|

[drell]

It is hardware related. RTC is hardware separate from OS firmware by principle.
They have four years until it happens again (2014, next non-leap even-numbered year.)
Bah, if it happens again, we all know what it is.

[gordo1974]

Thanks to all of you out there digging up the info. I know it kept me up to date and relatively calm.

[MrSmadSmartAlex]

:mad: ... now you'll all play Wipeout HD again! It looked for a while like you'd all have to come back to Pulse because of this, but no! :lol

Hehe, well, glad it's sorted out now. :)

[AG-wolf]

oh god, no Pulse. noooo nonono lol

[AmigoJack]

Now the experience from someone whose PS3 was switched off during critical times:

Last day online was Feb 28 at around 20:00 CET. PS3 was offline AND switched off. Switched on today (March 02). Time settings were accurate, but 24hrs behind (makes March 01) - this really shows the PS3 is assuming 2010-02-29 to exist and counts that also. Just manually set date to March 02. No problems at all. After that, went online. No problems either.I'm glad the others of you who encountered the bug have no data loss... or even worse. Assuming all those "fat" devices (like mine CECHM) still operate on 2014 (which would be great) I wonder who will remember this issue :rolleyes:

[Asayyeah]

You Micky ;)

Everything is fine & safe on my side : back to normal
:beer

[stin]

I did checked my PS3 and everything are good to go which I`m pleased for that and lastly, I did manually set my time and dates.

Seriously, I was worried at first but I`m glad, everything are fixed.

stevie:)

[OneAVGNFan]

These problems appear to happen to the older ps3 models, not the silm models. Or so I checked online.

Those who have an older model should not play for a while unitl this crisis is over.

[ProblemSolver]

It is hardware related. RTC is hardware separate from OS firmware by principle....
Yes, it is. But it can easily be intercepted by software next time around.

[Dan Locke]

Those who have an older model should not play for a while unitl this crisis is over.
The crisis was over yesterday.

[AG-wolf]

picture related :D

[RedScar]

saved
epic picture

[AG-wolf]

oh.
my.
god.

This is funny as hell:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aimPRKfqKGw

fair warning, it is BLATANTLY obnoxious and loaded with profanity, but it's just so over the top it's awesome... I couldn't stop laughing- his voice is the kicker XD

"No, save the fat things! Hug them, they're squishy!"
"I'm gonna kill puppies for every minute I can't play Call of Duty"

lol

[Rapier Racer]

Oooohh, that guy pushes all the wrong buttons... not a good representative for the USA.

[OBH]

Umm, no doubt its unrelated, but now 2 of my pads will no longer sync with my ps3, despite being plugged in and on charge. :eek

[AG-wolf]

Try pressing that little reset button on the back of the controller... you'll need a pin or something to get at it. It's on the backside of the pad, just to the right of the screw closest to the USB jack.

[drell]

Yes, it is. But it can easily be intercepted by software next time around.Have not said anything against that.

[BulletWraith]

thanks AG-Wolf for the youtube link, that was pure awesome, great way to start the day

-zer:donutshen

[infoxicated]

Umm, no doubt its unrelated, but now 2 of my pads will no longer sync with my ps3, despite being plugged in and on charge. :eek
I had that problem last night - I think my Blu-Ray remote still won't sync with the PS3, but I managed to get a plain SIXAXIS and a DS3 to sync after a bit of dicking around.

The weird thing was they were unaffected on Tuesday and Wednesday. My thumpad and Nokia headset were fine, though, so it might just be one of those gremlins that's hard to pinpoint.

[OBH]

ahh, im glad im not the only one its happened to.
All fixed now bar one pad that seems to just randomly unsync itself. Never happened before

more annoyingly i spilt water on my only deulshock 3 pad, so now its my 2 best controllers buggered

[zeeZ]

Leap year bug... Oh god I love those things. (http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2008/12/30gb-zunes-prepare-for-new-year-by-locking-up.ars)