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How to Unfreeze Your PS Vita

Often when Sony's PlayStation Vita seems to freeze, waiting a few seconds allows the system to recover automatically. Unfortunately, if the system does not unfreeze on its own, there is no way to preserve any unsaved data in your game. Unfreezing your Vita requires either quitting out of your game, shutting down or forcing the system to turn off. To prevent recurring freezes, update your system and your games and try repairing the system in safe mode.

Quitting a Program
- If only one game or app on your Vita has frozen, you can try quitting it without turning the entire system off. Press the "PS" button and wait a few moments. If the system menu appears, swipe the upper right corner of the app's page downward to close it. If the program closes and your system unfreezes, you can try running the program again.
Shutting Down
- Quickly pressing the power button on the Vita only puts the device in sleep mode. If your system freezes and you can't quit the frozen app, putting the device to sleep will not help. Instead, hold the power button in for two seconds. A "Power Off" button will appear on the screen. Tap the button and wait while the system powers down. After the screen goes black and the PS light turns off, hold the power button again until the system boots.
Forced Shutdown
- If no "Power Off" button appears when you hold the power button for two seconds, press and hold the power button for over 30 seconds and the Vita powers down completely. Release the power button, then press and hold it again to restart the system. The system launches in safe mode after a forced shutdown. Select the first option to start the system normally.
System Updates
- Sony recommends updating your PlayStation Vita if your system freezes. Updates may resolve programming errors that cause the Vita to lock up. Update the system by connecting to the Internet, opening the "Settings" app, then tapping "System Update" and "Update Using Wi-Fi/Mobile Network." Individual games may also have updates to resolve bugs. To check for game updates, tap the icon of two looping arrows on a game's LiveArea screen. If a yellow icon with a down arrow appears, press it to update the game.
Warning
- Quitting a frozen game or shutting your system down during gameplay will cause you to lose unsaved progress. Never shut your Vita off during a system update, as this can break the system. Some system updates may take a long time and appear frozen, but you should let them complete rather than rebooting.
Safe Mode Options
- If you repeatedly encounter freezing, you can repair the system from safe mode, which starts automatically after a forced shutdown. Select "Rebuild Database" to attempt to repair the system. If this does not help, try "Restore the PS Vita System." This option will erase all data on the system, restoring it to its original condition.

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