Literally at my wits end with PSN!

[zarmena]

Guys, I've searched your forums for a solution to my problem and I can't seem to find one so I'm posting a new thread. Apologies if I'm doing this wrong but I'm desperate for help.

I have a 160gb PS3 slim that I purchased back in August from UK before returning to Pakistan permanently. It's sparingly used (I'm a casual gamer). It's also well looked after. Everything was fine until about a month ago when I started having trouble logging in to PSN network. I kept getting the message that there is an error and that I have been logged out of PSN network. Mind you, I'm connected wirelessly through PTCL DSL.

I tried everything suggested on the internet - DNS settings, router settings, DMZ, port opening/forwarding, static IP - you name it, I've done it. Everytime I "test" my internet connection, it succeeds in getting the IP address and internet connection, but fails at attempting to connection to Playstation network. Someone once suggested that I change the wireless channel from AUTO to channel 11, which I did. This worked for about a week and now I'm back to the same problem so clearly, that was just a coincidence.

I know the problem isn't the my internet connection because this happened just one fine day and the ISP confirmed that they have not messed with anything. My router is functioning perfectly but even still, I have reset it. I have even tried disconnecting every single device connected to the router and trying again, but to no avail. I tried messing with the admin settings as suggested online - (DMZ and other stuff), but again, to no avail. Sony is no help, as usual.

Has my PS3 hardware failed? It's really shocking if it has because I've literally had it for a few months only and I'm the only user. And the worst part is that I bought it in UK but I'm now living here so I can't even send it in for warranty repair.

Is there ANYTHING else I could try before I give up?

 

[Major Aly]

If the WiFi is working and it is passing the first two connectivity tests then "NO" it is not a hardware fault. PSN service has nothing to do with hardware but with PSN servers. It COULD be a software/FW problem.

Are you updated to the latest firmware? Some FWs (Mandatory.optional) don't allow connection to PSN until the FW is upgraded.

Please state if your PS3 is updated to the latest FW i.e. FW 4.31 (released on 29th Oct 2012)

 

[zarmena]

Hello, thanks for your response. Yes, I always upgrade my Firmware when prompted. It's 4.31. Also, this issue started happening a while after I updated to the latest firmware. So I didn't assume a relation between the two either.

- - - Updated - - -

I should also mention that it DOES spontaneously connect sometimes. But it also boots me randomly. So the connection is a hit or miss, really.

 

[Major Aly]

Hello, thanks for your response. Yes, I always upgrade my Firmware when prompted. It's 4.31. Also, this issue started happening a while after I updated to the latest firmware. So I didn't assume a relation between the two either.

Well what you can do is to restore the PS3 system from the Settings, but I think it formats all the data on the HDD. Better to backup saves and everything on a USB/external HDD and then try the option. Seems like FW didn't download correctly and caused a problem.

 

[zarmena]

Ok thanks, I will try that tomorrow and let you know if it worked.

 

[zarmena]

So I've just searched the internet and it appears that restoring PS3 to factory default or reformatting it won't resolve the issue because update 4.31 has caused many PS3 systems to crash. I got lucky in that I'm not one of those whose system stopped reading discs. The internet is littered with angry people who just bought a PS3, upgraded to 4.31 and their systems can no longer read discs. Mine just causes connectivity issues and throws me off the internet. And occasionally, it won't load games properly so I have to restart the system. Sony seriously mucked this up and has not given any official response!

 

[FerventKnight]

I've had this exact problem recently while playing Uncharted 3 after upgrading the firmware. My PS3 froze and when I turned it back on, it wouldn't login anymore. However, my PSN logged in after I shut off my router and my PS3 for about 30 minutes and then did the "Test Connection" option. I also changed the router port for the PS3's ethernet cable. If you haven't tried this already, my advice would be to return your router to it's default settings and then make a new connection in the PS3. Ask PTCL customer service to refresh your port too since it could be hanged.

 

[Xerolt9]

I had a somewhat similar problem when I got my PS3 two years back. I simply changed the DNS to 8.8.8.8 and haven't had issues since. *shrug*

 

[Major Aly]

So I've just searched the internet and it appears that restoring PS3 to factory default or reformatting it won't resolve the issue because update 4.31 has caused many PS3 systems to crash. I got lucky in that I'm not one of those whose system stopped reading discs. The internet is littered with angry people who just bought a PS3, upgraded to 4.31 and their systems can no longer read discs. Mine just causes connectivity issues and throws me off the internet. And occasionally, it won't load games properly so I have to restart the system. Sony seriously mucked this up and has not given any official response!

I don't think that formatting/restoring it will cause the problem, instead I believe that it may resolve the issues faced by you.

I have a PAL 250GB PS3, I bought it a few months before the new series rolled out, since then my PS3 has travelled in suitcases a lot of times, suffered the wrath of loadshedding, have ran it on UPS and generator, direct FW update through PS3. Alhumdulillah never faced any issues.

Did you update the PS3 directly or via the USB?

 

[manigamer]

what is the error number u get ? copy that and search it on google. u might find ur answer there.

 

[Shary Bhallu TC]

Your router might be about to die. How old is it? In my PC, there are some problems related to the router. The router sometimes just stops responding to signals. Its around a year old. It happens in most cheap routers. This could be the problem.

 

[zarmena]

Hello again, guys. Thank you very much for your fast and helpful responses.
[MENTION=32988]Xerolt9[/MENTION] - I tried putting that as the DNS and it worked for a couple of hours and then I was back to square one so I think it was just a coincidence that I managed to log in. I am now using open DNS but to no avail.
[MENTION=23390]Major Aly[/MENTION] - I have always gone for the easier route and downloaded firmware updates directly on my PS3 from PSN when prompted. Up until the last update, I was able to log in to PSN just fine. Problem occurred after that. But it's surprising if it has anything to do with the latest update because I downloaded the update with virtually no problems. But when I searched around on the internet, it seems that a lot of people lost their consoles to Firmare 4.31 and they're quite ticked off!
[MENTION=507]manigamer[/MENTION] - I get a bunch of different codes each time I try to log in, but they all have to do with connectivity or DNS issues. However, I've tried all possible solutions provided on the internet for each and every one of them and they didn't work. It's almost as if the PS3 just needs a reason to not let me in.
[MENTION=53044]shary[/MENTION] Bhallu - I got a brand new modem from PTCL about a month or so ago and it seems to be functioning perfectly fine with everything else. It's the FiberHome ADSL Wireless modem. The internet connection and speed is awesome and I'm literally the only person in the house that uses the internet this much. No heavy net users in my house.
[MENTION=16204]FerventKnight[/MENTION] - sometimes turning off the modem and turning it back on helps but it's not consistent.

The things I haven't tried thus far are: wired connection via ethernet cable, changing password etc for my PSN (even though I'm entering the correct one), moving the modem closer to my PS3, trying a brand new modem, and restoring my PS3 to factory defaults. My LAST option will be to contact PTCL again because they all start acting like dummies at the first mention of the word "playstation". According to them, if the computer and cellphones are connected just fine, the problem isn't on their end. At the same time, Sony is convinced that the problem is on the ISP's end! What irks me is the fact that anyone would need to go through DNS, Port Forwarding and all of those other methods to get this to work. It should be a straight forward thing. I'm not a fan girl but in the one year that I've owned Xbox 360, I've never once had similar problems!

I'll try to narrow down the problem and then post my feedback here in a couple of days. Thank you all!

 

[Major Aly]

[MENTION=38821]zarmena[/MENTION]
If switching the modem on and off lets you in then I'm pretty sure the issue could be with the wireless router.

I don't trust PTCL or their devices, I've seen how and which devices they hand out (I have a friend who works there). There could be signals issue but I find it highly unlikely as I've gone online and played online having 15-25% of the signals at one time.

From what I've read on the internet so far, the issue of not logging onto PSN and occasional system reboot in the middle, all is caused by 4.31.

I still suggest you to restore PS3 to default settings BUT first check with another wireless router. Since you haven't checked a wired connection, try the wired connection on the PTCL router and see if it changes anything. If it doesn't then try with another router (borrow from someone if possible just for testing purposes), if that doesn't work either then proceed to restoring the PS3 to factory default.

 

[zarmena]

@zarmena
If switching the modem on and off lets you in then I'm pretty sure the issue could be with the wireless router.

I don't trust PTCL or their devices, I've seen how and which devices they hand out (I have a friend who works there). There could be signals issue but I find it highly unlikely as I've gone online and played online having 15-25% of the signals at one time.

From what I've read on the internet so far, the issue of not logging onto PSN and occasional system reboot in the middle, all is caused by 4.31.

I still suggest you to restore PS3 to default settings BUT first check with another wireless router. Since you haven't checked a wired connection, try the wired connection on the PTCL router and see if it changes anything. If it doesn't then try with another router (borrow from someone if possible just for testing purposes), if that doesn't work either then proceed to restoring the PS3 to factory default.

Thank you. I'll follow these steps. I sincerely hope 4.31 didn't screw my system up because unfortunately, it is not possible to downgrade from this update or at least it is not an easy task by any means. Which essentially means that I might be stuck until the next update. But let's see. I'll follow the advices thus far.