Live service games or the Esports arena is the biggest thing right now. So having the multiplayer services up running is key for a gaming console. In PlayStation, we have a PlayStation network in Xbox; it is known as Xbox Live.
If you do not have a PSN account, you cannot play any games online with your friends. On the other hand, if the network is down, you cannot connect to online multiplayer.
Why is PlayStation Network currently busy?
PlayStation network being down can be a big issue if you own all the games digitally. And there are things you can do if you cannot connect to your PlayStation network.
In this guideline, I will answer all your queries and possible fixes that you can apply in this situation.
So keep reading till the end to get your desired fix.
How Long can PlayStation Network be Down?
Because outages are unexpected in nature, there is no way to predict how long a specific outage would remain. In most cases, an outage lasts no more than a few minutes to a few hours.
When a serious event occurs, such as a distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack or during the Festive period, it may take several days until PSN is fully operational again.
But the 2011 PlayStation network outage lasted for more than 24 days! Yes, you saw that right 24 days!
In 2011 there was this massive PlayStation Network Outage which began on April 20, 2011 and lasted until May 15, 2011. The date of April 20 will forever be tied with PlayStation enthusiasts. Gamers of the PlayStation Network were stranded for more than a month as a result of hacker vulnerabilities.
After learning that the PlayStation Network had been compromised, Sony acted swiftly, but the damage had already been done at that point. A large number of PlayStation Network and Sony Online Entertainment systems were infiltrated by hackers on April 16 and 17, allowing hackers to capture personal user data and put credit card information at risk on a wide scale. However, Sony did not take down the PlayStation Network until April 19, two days after discovering the issue.
The PlayStation Network (PSN) was relaunched on May 15 with a significant new firmware update, which was released simultaneously. Sony’s PSN outage is said to have cost the firm $171 million; however, everything was back to normal within a short period of time after the outage. However, as a consequence of this occurrence, Sony’s famed online service was permanently changed. It is unusual when Sony opens its E3 conference to apologize to a huge section of its loyal customers. They shared their apology to their loyal fans and expressed excitement about its upcoming announcements and products.
Here’s a complete guide on how to fix PS5 not downloading games.
Now you may ask, will you be able to play games when the PlayStation Network is down?
Yes, you will be able to play single-player or offline games that don’t require an active internet connection. But if you do not have a physical copy of the games or own a digital version of the console, you might not be able to play games offline.
A PSN account linked to the PlayStation Network is a necessity if you have a digital PS5. Because digitally playing PlayStation games requires the restoring of the original game’s license.
You can’t play games on PlayStation 5 digital by inserting a disk; therefore, you’ll have to depend on the titles you’ve purchased in your PSN account. To play the games, you must download them from the PlayStation Store.
The PlayStation will do a licensing check before the game can be opened; this is when you need a steady internet connection to be connected to the PSN network in order to play the game. You won’t be able to play the game if your PS5 isn’t connected to the internet or PSN network.
Check out our experts tested and reviewed the best keyboard and mouse adapter for PS5.
How to check if PlayStation Network is down?
I know this is why you are here. We often stress ourselves thinking there is something wrong with the internet when the servers are not connecting. But in reality, servers are going through maintenance, or they are down momentarily. If the servers are down, there is nothing much you can do about it apart from waiting for them to be back up online. It is very easy to check whether the PlayStation network is up or not. You can always check it from your PlayStation 5 console. And if you do not have the console right now, you can also check it from your browser.
Here are the steps to check PlayStation network server status:
1. Check Server Status from PS5
You can check the server status from your PlayStation 5 if you are connected with your Internet, then it is not going to take much time to find out whether the servers are up or not.
Here are the steps to check server status from PS5:
- Navigate to settings.
- Select network.
- Press x on view PlayStation network status.
- Wait for the results.
If you see all the services are marked red or yellow, that means servers are down and are going through maintenance or global outage. Go to Sony’s official news portal, and you will know when the servers will be up and running.
Check our exclusive tutorial on the fastest DNS servers for PlayStation5.
2. Check PSN status from the website
If your Playstation console is not with you or you cannot use it for a while, don’t worry. You can still see the server status from the official website of sony.
Here are the steps to check the PSN status from the Sony website:
- Open your browser.
- Search for PSN Service Status.
- Log in with your PSN ID.
- Enter your region.
You will see green ticks if the servers are working. But if you see a yellow or red mark, then you should assume that servers are down.
If you do not have a PlayStation Network connection, you will be unable to play with your friends and will not even be able to play games if you have a PlayStation 5 digital console if you are not connected to the internet.
As a result, in order to get the most out of gameplay, you must be connected to the PlayStation Network. If your ISP is not experiencing any serious network issues, it is also extremely simple to resolve the problem.
Quickly check out our epic guide on how long do PS5 Controllers last.
Why is my PlayStation Network not Working?
If you see all the servers are up and running, but you still cannot connect to your PSN, that is a problem. However, there are some solutions to that. You can easily fix it by following some steps.
Here are the steps to fix the PlayStation network, not connection:
1. Change DNS
If you have a slower DNS address, then PSN might take more time to connect, or you will see that the PSN connection is busy. So changing DNS might fix it.
Here are the steps to change DNS on PS5:
- Navigate to Network Settings.
- Select between Wifi and LAN.
- Use your username and password to connect to your internet network.
- Configure DNS settings manually.
- Insert the following DNS servers for Google’s: 8.8.8.8 & 8.8.4.4
- Press x to save the settings.
Now test your connection, and you should be connected with the PSN server now.
2. Port Forward on your Router
If you open the PSN ports on your router, you might be able to connect your PS5 to PSN.
Here are steps to port forward on your PS5:
- Log in to your router.
- Go to the Advanced settings section and find the port forwarding section.
- Enter your computer’s IP address.
- Set up TCP ports 80, 443, and 3480.
- Type 3478, 3479, 49152 to 65535 on UDP.
- Save changes.
- Reboot router.
You should be able to connect your Playstation 5 with the PSN network. If you still see that you cannot connect to PSN or you are getting error text, then contact your ISP.
Final Thoughts
PlayStation 5 had numerous problems since its launch. Most of it is related to the internet issue.
This guideline will help you answer all your queries regarding PlayStation Network servers. And if you still have any queries, you can always reach out to us.
