Guide: How to Download PS4 Patches without Booting a Blu-ray

There’s no doubt that the PlayStation 4 makes keeping on top of patches and game updates easier than ever before. Simply stick your system in Rest Mode – when it works – and the operating system will handle any downloads and installs behind the scenes. There is an oversight in the hardware, however, that prevents patches for newly inserted Blu-ray games from being pulled until you boot them – but with day one updates becoming increasingly common, there is a workaround for this if you want to save a little time.

1. Put Your Blu-ray in the Console

First, you’re going to need to start the install process of the game that you want to play. Simply pop it in the Blu-ray drive, and wait for its icon to appear on the main menu screen.

2. Bring Up the Game Options

When the game’s icon appears on the home screen, hover over it using your DualShock 4’s d-pad, and push the options button on your controller. This will bring up a submenu down the right-hand side of the screen.

3. Check for Update

In the submenu, the top option will be ‘Check for Update’. Select it and any patches will be instantly added to your Download list if you are connected to the Internet. If there are no patches to download, you’ll be informed that your game is up to date. Remember, once the update has started to download, you’ll be able to put your console in Rest Mode, and it will finish the installation process while you go about your business.