---
title: "RPCS3: \\"No firmware installed\\" — download PS3UPDAT.PUP from Sony and install it"
canonical_url: https://emudesk.com/issues/rpcs3-firmware-not-installed-ps3updat-pup-fix
content_locale: en
source_locale: en
entity_type: issue
index_status: index
published_at: 2026-08-31T18:22:23.000Z
updated_at: 2026-09-01T00:45:02.727Z
freshness_status: fresh
---

# RPCS3: \"No firmware installed\" — download PS3UPDAT.PUP from Sony and install it

RPCS3 cannot boot any PS3 game — and shows "No firmware installed" or "PS3 system software not found" — until you install the official PlayStation 3 system firmware. This is a one-time setup step that takes about two minutes.

You installed RPCS3, added a game, pressed play, and nothing happens — or you see one of these errors:


  "PS3 firmware is not installed. Please install the firmware before using RPCS3."
  "No firmware installed" in the emulator's status bar or when you try to add games
  The game starts loading then immediately quits back to RPCS3 with no error message
  RPCS3 opens fine but the game list shows no titles or every game appears as "Unknown"


Why this happens: RPCS3 is a PS3 hardware emulator — it recreates the PlayStation 3's CPU and GPU in software. But the PlayStation 3 operating system (the firmware) is Sony's property, so RPCS3 cannot ship it bundled. Without the firmware, there is no operating system layer for games to run on top of, so no game can boot at all. This is not a bug or a wrong setting — firmware installation is a required first-time step for every RPCS3 install.

The good news: Sony distributes the PS3 system firmware (a single file called PS3UPDAT.PUP) for free via their own servers to support PS3 console repairs and factory resets. Downloading it for use with RPCS3 is legal — the file is an official, unmodified Sony release. RPCS3's own official setup guide points users to Sony's page for this file.