Andy Nguyen, developer of the PS5 Linux project, shared an angry rant on X, saying he's completely halting the project. Without getting into too many technical details, the project turned the PS5 into a capable Linux PC, and it relied on a Hypervisor (used to run virtual machines) bug to work properly. The developer was allegedly gatekeeping this bug so Sony would not ruin his project, but some folks found the exploit themselves and reported it.
It's only a matter of time before Sony releases a patch that resolves this bug, which will make running Linux on your PS5 nearly impossible. Before this, the Linux project was only available for original PS5 and PS5 Slim owners. Nguyen says that he was working on finishing support for PS5 Pro. Unfortunately, that particular fork of the project might never see the light of day.
After months of work, Nguyen said the console hacking scene now has a "bunch of noobs using LLMs and writing hacks they don't even understand." He also amusingly used the term "slop kiddies" for the people who reported the Hypervisor bug. The frustration is understandable in a scene that has traditionally relied on careful, low-profile research to keep exploits alive for as long as possible.
Why would you want to run Linux on your PS5 in the first place? Well, according to the GitHub page, the Linux project was capable enough to run certain Steam games and emulators with good results. This ultimately made the PS5 more versatile for those who were willing to jump through the hoops.
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Back in March, the developer even ran GTA V Enhanced with ray tracing on a Linux virtual machine. People who tried the project experimented further, and we saw the PS5 turn into a Steam Machine that plays PC games and Quake II RTX. But future firmware updates from Sony will almost certainly lock the Linux door for good.
