Glossary

Glossary

PSP modding has its own vocabulary. Here are the terms you will encounter most often throughout these guides.

Core concepts

• CFW (Custom Firmware) — A modified version of the system software that unlocks homebrew, ISO loading, and plugins. On modern PSPs this is built on top of official 6.61.
• LCFW (Live CFW) — Custom firmware that loads temporarily after each boot rather than being permanently flashed. It vanishes when the system fully powers off until you relaunch it. ARK-4 in its standard form runs this way.
• Infinity — A patch (6.61 Infinity) that makes CFW permanent by reapplying it automatically on every boot, so you never run a launcher manually.
• ARK — ARK-4, the modern, maintained lightweight CFW that succeeds 6.61 PRO. It supports all models including the Go and Street (E1000).
• Pandora — Pandora's Battery, a special battery-and-Memory-Stick combination used to revive bricked or old units (PSP-1000 and some early 2000s) that cannot boot normally.

File and content terms

• EBOOT — The executable file (EBOOT.PBP) that the PSP runs to launch a homebrew app or game. It lives in a folder under PSP/GAME.
• ISO — A full disc image of a UMD game, stored on the Memory Stick so you can play without the physical disc. CSO is a compressed variant.

Keep this page handy; the rest of the wiki assumes you recognize these words.