PlayStation 4 hacked to run Linux

PlayStation 4 hacked to run Linux

Linux is everywhere these days, even in the most unexpected places. failOverflow has demonstrated that it’s even possible to run Linux on Sony’s popular PlayStation 4 gaming console.

David Murphy reports for PC Magazine:

The PlayStation 4 has been fairly resilient to various forms of modding, as it was only really “jailbroken” earlier this month. This process allows those with modified consoles to run, well, just about whatever they want on them, from pirated games to custom software.

Going one step further, the console hacking group fail0verflow has managed to get a PlayStation 4 to run Linux. While we’re still pretty far away from normal gamers getting some kind of easy jailbreak for their devices that would allow them to run the operating system on their up-to-date PlayStation consoles, fail0verflow’s work is still a big first step.

…the group exploited a WebKit bug to gain access to various parts of the console — whose operating system, Sony Orbis, is based on a modified version of FreeBSD, which is itself similar to Linux. The attack works on the 1.76 version of the PlayStation 4, which is quite a ways back from the console’s latest version, 3.11. Sony has since patched said WebKit bug, but it’s thought that fail0verflow might be able to modify its technique to get it to work on more recent versions of the console.

More at PC Magazine

You can see the PlayStation 4 running Linux in this video:

The PlayStation 4 hack caught the attention of Linux redditors and they shared their thoughts:

Jonesupa: ”It’s still problematic. They got in, but Sony will likely patch the hole in a coming system update, and the 3D acceleration needs more hacking to make it work under Linux.”

Mozzilliac: ”Can we not appreciate the first step of actually getting this to work though? Major props to the team.”

Jonessupa: ”Sure, sure. I just hope that this first step is not the last one. I have seen many random devices that have been made to run Linux but you can’t do much anything interesting on them due to missing drivers and integration. All you get to is some 1970s generic UNIX experience. 😀

Now, imagine instead if they enabled 3D acceleration on the Radeon chip and made SteamOS work! That would be the ultimate prank, now would it not?”

Delinquenz: ”You need a PlayStation 4 which does not has the newest firmware, so it is already fixed. You could reuse their patched Linux kernel if you find another exploit.”

Dhdfdh: ”I find it interesting that it took them two years to break into this system, and it’s based on FreeBSD. Kudos to FreeBSD.”

Bushwhacker: ”Is this just an intellectual exercise or does this hardware do something a similarly priced PC can’t?”

Whitesleeve: ”Proof of concept.”

Skyfoot: ”Also, generally, consoles are (or at least used to be) sold as a loss leader, with the profit being made on games and peripherals. So, if you can get it running as a general computer, you get a lot for your money.

I think the main point is, however, the install-linux-on-ALL-THE-THINGS game.”

More at Reddit

Microsoft’s Cortana available for Cyanogen OS

Cyanogen OS is an Android variant and now it will be able to offer Microsoft’s Cortana personal assistant. Cortana integration into Cyanogen OS offers an alternative to Google Now.

John Devon reports for Neowin:

Since debuting on Windows Phone 8.1, Cortana has steadily spread to other operating systems and services, including Windows 10, iOS, Android and Xbox Live. Microsoft’s personal assistant has now made its way into the Android variant Cyanogen OS with its 12.1 release, available now for some OnePlus devices.

Back in September, Cyanogen was reported to be working with Microsoft on Cortana integration. At the time, Cyanogen CEO Kirt McMaster highlighted the desire to replace Google Now. In particular, he noted the potential of Cortana’s speech recognition hooks into Android, saying, “When Apple launched Apple Music at WWDC, they showed the Siri integration with Apple Music. Siri doesn’t power Spotify like that so we can do these kind of things with for example, integration of Microsoft’s Cortana into the OS enabling natural language to power Spotify and other services.”

In addition to avoiding technical challenges like microphone access conflicts experienced by the Cortana app on many Android devices, direct integration into the operating system should provide reliable voice access to functions not provided by the stand-alone app, such as networking, sensors and quiet time.

With Microsoft reported to be a contributor to a $70 million investment round earlier last year, Cyanogen has outlined ambitious plans. CEO McMaster told the Wall Street Journal last year, “We’re going to take Android away from Google.”

More at Neowin

Valve adds more improvements to Steam Controller in latest beta

Valve’s Steam Machines have caught the attention of many Linux gamers, but the company is not taking anything for granted. It’s working hard to offer improvements, including some to its Steam Controller in a new beta.

Marius Nestor reports for Softpedia:

Valve has announced the they’ve updated the Steam Beta Client for all supported operating systems, including Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and GNU/Linux, with even more improvements to their Steam Controller device.

Among the enhancements, we can mention support for renaming the non-Steam game shortcuts via the Manage Shortcuts options in the Big Picture mode, along with support for fine tuning binding selections for non-Steam game community configurations, thanks to the ability to share them by name.

It is now possible to save legacy configurations for games that have native controller support, the Steam Controller configurator has been updated to better display the title and author of a certain set of bindings, along with their templates, and the configuration selector is now more responsive.

More at Softpedia

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