The console wars of the seventh-generation were something you needed to behold. A former underdog quickly swept the competition under the rug, and the more “powerful” console of the generation struggled to find its footing. As a lifelong PlayStation fan, the PlayStation 3 was somewhat of a hard sell, especially when all of my friends went to Team Xbox for this generation.
But, outside the games that it could play, the PS3 had a special little surprise for eager and interested players. With the introduction of OtherOS, you could fundamentally turn your PlayStation 3 into a functioning Linux computer. It’s wild to think that this was an advertised feature, and it’s sad that they got rid of the capability to make it happen.
The little Linux machine that could
OtherOS was an incredibly interesting piece of history, especially when it came to the incredibly powerful (at the time) PlayStation 3. This may have very likely been the introduction to a lifelong love of Linux for many users, as the console was capable of installing a variety of different distributions onto its internal hard drive. Users could keep their standard PS3 games running on the game side of things, and a partitioned hard drive would allow users to run Linux or a variety of other OSes on their TV.
Funny enough, it was also used by the United States Air Force Research Laboratory in 2010. They strung together roughly 1,716 PlayStation 3 consoles to form an incredibly powerful “supercomputer” that was known as the Condor Cluster. At the time, it was one of the fastest computers on the market, and it was brought to life for much cheaper than most would have expected. Unfortunately, the Condor Cluster was decommissioned around 2016 due to consoles not supporting OtherOS.
What was the point of Linux on PS3?
It’s hard to imagine doing something with 256mb of RAM nowadays
The idea of running a full-blown OS on your home console sounds inconceivable nowadays. Game consoles like the Xbox Series X|S have a web browser built into their systems, but imagine being able to run a Windows installation on it. It sounds impossible, doesn’t it? Well, that’s what was so neat about this back in the day. The Cell processor that lived within the plastic walls of the PlayStation 3 was incredibly impressive when clustered together with other consoles, and could provide “supercomputer” levels of performance. But how was actually using it?
Well, it wasn’t really all that impressive, to be completely honest. Even back in the day, the Linux installations on PlayStation 3 were fairly bare bones. It was more of a “do it because you can” type of thing, rather than a full replacement for your standard desktop. The OS of Choice, Yellow Dog Linux, could only recognize 256MB of RAM, which was enough to do some word processing, light internet browsing, and to just kind of exist on your console. You couldn’t run PC games or anything like that on here, like how dedicated handheld PCs can use Linux to their advantage. It was almost more of a proof-of-concept thing, but it was still incredibly cool to be able to do.
The state of Linux gaming in 2026: how close are we to 100% compatibility?
Take notes, Epic Games.
Why did Sony stop supporting OtherOS?
Privacy concerns and a class action lawsuit later, it was gone
In 2010, Sony removed the ability to use OtherOS with software version 3.21. Hackers had found ways to gain root access to the console, and the company was worried that this could lead to piracy, hacks, and other major issues with security. So, rather than finding a way to work around it, they removed the ability to install Linux on newer software versions and faced a major class-action settlement because of it. This settlement was finally completed in 2018, eight years after the removal of the feature. Does anyone else remember the GeoHot exploit that was circulating on message boards back then?
The 2009 Slim PS3 launched without OtherOS support — a cost-saving design decision Sony confirmed publicly. With the introduction of the 3.21 firmware update, it removed OtherOS support from all versions of the PlayStation 3. Sony said it was for console parity, but it is highly believed that it was to avoid running into issues with potential hacks and security issues in the future.
There are still some folks using custom Linux on PS3
Much like those who love older PCs, folks are keeping the dream alive
If a company removes a product, there are bound to be plenty of people who want to revitalize it. As of the time of this writing, there are plenty of projects that show custom firmware running Linux on non-supported PlayStation 3 consoles, ways to install different OSes on the console, and more. Some people are even installing Linux on newer consoles like the PlayStation 5 just for the fun of it.
It’s interesting and intriguing to see how nostalgia can drive dedicated fans to revitalize something that will hardly work in today’s market, mainly just for the fun of it. Seeing fanatics rally around something like this is inspiring, even if you can’t really even access a proper webpage on Linux via the PS3 at this point. Part of me wants to figure out how I can write an article on my PS3 just for the fun of it.
Reflecting on this is a blast from the past
Does anyone else remember Folding@Home on the PS3?
Reflecting on this particular generation of consoles, it feels like the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 were part of something magical. Even if the primary intention of installing Linux would have been for clustering, it was highly efficient and an interesting way for folks to get interested in the idea of running a different operating system outside of Windows or macOS. I wish console manufacturers would still let us have some fun with things like this today. Linux, back in the day, was incredibly daunting, but now? You hardly even have to use the terminal anymore, making it more accessible than ever to prospective new users.
Gaming on Linux is getting better than ever, especially when used on hardware that takes full advantage of what the OS is capable of. While it may be a dream to think that console manufacturers would ever consider letting users install a different OS on them ever again, maybe we’ll see the return of Linux on next-generation hardware. Hey, a guy can dream, can’t he?
