PS5 players rebuild their console’s database without wiping out their console fix issues when games or updates fail to download. But how does it work?
Here’s how to do it.
- Power ‘Off’ the Console
- Press & Hold the Power Button Until Two Beep Sound.
- Connect PS5 Controller via USB Cable
- Press PS Button
- Select ‘Rebuild Database’
- Press ‘OK’ When the Prompts Shows Up
Rebuilding the database might up a few hours — The status bar will keep you updated with the rebuilding process and duration.
PS5’s ‘Rebuilding database’ option is quite helpful for the ‘Queued for Download’ problem when the games or updates get stuck, failing to download in the storage — But it’s not a viable choice all the time.
I will explain what happens after rebuilding the PS5 database and how often you should rebuild the PS5 database. Read on the find out.
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What Happens If I Rebuild PS5 Database?
Rebuilding a PS5 database causes the PS5 to scan it’s drive and create a new database for all the contents in the system this cleans the disc drive and helps the console free space and fix issues. It doesn’t delete any information in the PS5 or changes any customized settings
If your games are at a ‘stuck point’ — failing to download, this is the option you should go for troubleshooting.
PS5 safe mode will bring you to the screen where the ‘rebuilding database’ option is accessible.
When you’re facing issues downloading a game or its update, ‘rebuilding database’ is commonly the very first option to consider. It’s easy, straightforward, and doesn’t hurt in terms of data or system loss.
It doesn’t delete any of your information stored in the system and never messes up with your console’s customized settings. Hence, it’s the top troubleshooting method to execute before any other harder options.
I honestly don’t see any disadvantage of using this option, and it works fine for me every time. But you need to keep reading if it’s the best option for you to consider or not.
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When Should You Rebuild a PS5 Database?
Rebuilding the PS5 database isn’t necessary or an obligation. It’s a maintenance option that can be used on choice. Here are a few situations in which the option will help you immensely:
- When the games and updates fail to download
- When the games take ‘forever’ to load
- When the menu navigation seems ‘laggy’ or ‘slow’
- When you experience frame dropping during the cutscenes or gameplay
- When the DLC contents fail to load
- When the console fails to read game discs
- When the game discs frequently crash without any reason
- When the data gets corrupted
Does Rebuilding Your PS5 Database Delete Everything?
Rebuilding a PS5 console’s database won’t delete anything from the system’s memory. Your customized settings and data will remain stored in the console’s storage even after your console creates a new database for troubleshooting.
I know how important data is to the gamers and PS5 players — I myself have experienced data loss many times, and it’s annoying not to know any recovery methods.
If you’re still worried about losing your favorite games and their data, I would highly recommend uploading all of them on PlayStation Plus cloud storage and become stress-free.
Although PS5 Plus will cost some bucks out of your pocket, this service is irreplaceable when it comes to reliable data storage. Moreover, you can access that data to any other PlayStation 5 console after uploading it to the cloud.
Now that you know rebuilding PS5’s database won’t hurt your console’s memory, you no longer have to have ‘cold feet’ about taking a step towards it.
But how often should you rebuild the PS5 database? Would it damage the system if you do it frequently? Let’s talk about it.
Curious if 825GB is enough memory for your PS5? Learn the facts in my article.
How Often Should You Rebuild Your PS5 Database?
You should rebuilt your PS5 database every one to two months, to improve the PS5 systems performance. But unless your facing frequent problems such as lagging or failed downloads you should not rebuild the database too often.
It’s never a bad idea to rebuild your PS5 database every month or two, especially when you install and uninstall games too often — But you need to be cautious when doing it. The option itself will not do any bad to your system, but the method of doing so might will.
If your system’s hard disk is full all the time, it’s hard for your console to relocate files and execute them every time, which causes a burden to the system and slows down the performance. To optimize the PS5 console speed, rebuilding the database will help for sure.
Keep in mind that ‘rebuilding database’ is a maintenance feature; you should only be using it in the time of need or when things start to get worse. Don’t overkill by using this feature too often; otherwise, it may hit back hard.
Until and unless you’re a hardcore gamer — playing hours every day and facing frequent problems such as games taking ages to load and download, cutscenes frame dropping, or games compatibility issues, you’re good to go without rebuilding the PS5 database ever.
You might be wondering how much time does it take to rebuild a PS5 database — to be precise?
Want to know if you can leaving your PS5 on overnight? Learn the truth in my article.
How Long Does It Take to Rebuild PS5 Database?
Rebuilding your PS5’s database will take-up around 3-4 hours. The time varies depending on the size of your hard drive, and it’s occupied storage. Sometimes, it may take up to 20 hours to thoroughly scan your drive and create a new database for the contents of the console.
Rebuilding the PS5 database isn’t a quick process — It takes time to scan the whole drive may vary according to the following factors:
- Size of the Hard Drive
- Size of the Occupied Hard Drive
- Age of the Console
The prompt usually shows up the estimated remaining time for the process. It’s probably a good idea to start rebuilding the database when going to bed.
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