What is CBOMB in PS5? Find out everything about the CBOMB here

CBOMB is a portmanteau of the words CMOS and bomb. Although the aforementioned devices are an important part of the company's history, fans are more interested in them than the company itself. This is due to the fact that CBOMB jeopardises the long-term viability of PlayStation games. Continue reading to know more about this CMOS battery in PS4 and PS5

What is Cbomb in PS5?

The PS3, PS4, PS Vita, and PS5 consoles depend on the precision of an internal clock to determine if they can play games. This requirement was most likely implemented to discourage players from abusing trophies, Sony's version of in-game achievements. The internal clock on the PlayStation 4 is operated by a CMOS battery. The motherboard has a small CR2032 battery to keep track of the time when the console is disconnected from the power supply. This is referred to as a CMOS.

They won't be able to keep track of time when the power supply is disconnected if the CMOS stops working due to being drained, faulty, or simply removed from these consoles. Games and DLC will not run and will be unable to boot if the server cannot be accessed or has been taken down. The PS4 would also be unable to play games that are stored on a physical disc. Although some physical games will run on the PS5, others will not. 

Because of the online dependencies in Sony's PS3, PS4, PS Vita, and PS5 designs, gamers can lose access to a large library of video games unless they turn to grey areas like homebrew. If you own or intend to purchase a PS5 Digital Edition, you'll be out of luck if Sony's servers go down, and you won't be able to replace your PS5 clock battery if it dies.

According to tests performed by video game preservationist group DoesItPlay, if the PS5 clock battery aka CMOS dies, the PS5 can still play PS5 games on disc. “We are still working to ascertain the extent of the issue but we can say with certainty that the PS5 is vulnerable to a CBOMB scenario (ie. dead battery, no access to Sony servers),” mentioned in the documentation of this group DoesItPlay. The PS5 was first tested by removing the battery and making sure it was fully disconnected from the Internet. Following that, select digital and physical games were put to the test.

“With the battery removed and the console disconnected from the internet, the console went into safe mode upon first boot and began rebuilding the database. Restarting the machine resolved this initial problem, but once the machine was booted correctly, all digital games stopped working,” as mentioned by this group.

Image Source: Sony