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On your PS5, open Settings > Users and Accounts > Other > Restore Licenses, choose the license, and let the console finish. You can also highlight the locked game on the home screen or in Game Library, press the options button, and select Restore License. Sony says this process does not affect saved data or installed game data. If the padlock remains, verify the purchasing account, PlayStation Plus access, Console Sharing and Offline Play, service status, system software, and finally Safe Mode database maintenance.
What a padlock on a PS5 game means
A padlock means the console cannot currently confirm that the signed-in user has permission to start that game. The missing confirmation can be temporary, or it can reflect the way access was obtained. A digital purchase, a PlayStation Plus entitlement, and a game shared by another account each depend on different checks.
License restoration asks PlayStation Network to refresh the entitlements associated with the account on your console. It is not a purchase, an account transfer, or a way to bypass a subscription requirement. A successful refresh can remove a stale lock, but it cannot create ownership that the account never had.
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Restore the license from PS5 Settings
- From the PS5 home screen, select Settings in the upper-right corner.
- Open Users and Accounts.
- Choose Other.
- Select Restore Licenses, choose the affected license, and confirm.
Keep the console connected to the internet and signed in while the check runs. When it completes, return to the game and try starting it again. Sony’s support documentation states: “Please note, restoring licenses won’t affect your data.” That means the operation is intended to refresh access records, not delete saves, installed games, screenshots, or settings.
Use the per-game shortcut
- Highlight the locked game on the home screen or in Game Library.
- Press the controller’s Options button.
- Select Restore License.
- Wait for the confirmation, then launch the game.
This shortcut is useful when one title is locked but other digital games open normally. The Settings route is better when several titles show padlocks because it lets you review the console’s license list in one place.
Identify how you are entitled to the game
Before changing more settings, determine which account or service supplies access. The correct next step depends on that source.
| Access source | What to verify | What the result means |
|---|---|---|
| Individual digital purchase | The signed-in account is the purchaser, and the transaction appears as completed in its transaction history. | If the purchase is missing, you may be using the wrong account or the transaction may not have completed. |
| PlayStation Plus | The subscription is active and the game is still available through the service. | A valid subscription does not guarantee access to a title that has left the service catalogue. |
| Another account on the same PS5 | The owning account has enabled Console Sharing and Offline Play on this console. | Without that setting, other users may see a padlock even though the owner bought the game. |
Check the purchasing account and transaction
Sign out mentally before signing out technically: look at the account name currently shown on the PS5 and compare it with the account that bought the game. Families often have multiple adult or child accounts, and a game purchased by one account is not automatically owned by every account on every console.
Open the account’s transaction history and confirm that the purchase succeeded. A failed payment, reversed transaction, pending authorization, or purchase made under a different regional account will not provide a usable license to the account you are checking. The title, edition, and platform should match the game that is locked.
If the transaction is present but the game still shows a padlock, run Restore Licenses once after confirming the account. Repeatedly selecting the command without checking entitlement will not fix an ownership mismatch.
Check PlayStation Plus access
If you obtained the game through PlayStation Plus, confirm that the subscription tied to the entitlement is active on the account you are using. Then check whether the specific game remains available through the service. Catalogue availability can change independently of your console’s local license records.
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A padlock by itself does not establish that a subscription expired. Check the subscription status and the title’s current availability separately. If both are valid, restore the license and continue with the service and console checks below. If the title is no longer included, restoration cannot reinstate it; you would need another valid entitlement.
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Fix access shared from another account
When a different account owns the game, that owner must enable Console Sharing and Offline Play on the PS5. Sony explains that this setting lets users of that console play the owner’s purchased and downloaded games, including while offline.
- Sign in to the account that purchased the game.
- Open Settings > Users and Accounts > Other.
- Select Console Sharing and Offline Play.
- Enable the setting if it is disabled.
- Switch back to the account that normally plays the game and test it.
An account can have Console Sharing and Offline Play enabled on one PS5 at a time. If the owner enabled it on another PS5, the setting must be moved to this console. Changing it affects which PS5 can share that account’s purchases; it does not transfer ownership of the game to the other user.
If the owner cannot sign in, has changed the account password, or has removed this PS5 from the sharing arrangement, the non-owner account may continue to show a padlock until sharing is configured again.
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Once entitlement is confirmed, work through the following checks in order. Stop when the game opens; each later step changes more of the console’s state than the previous one.
1. Check PlayStation service status
A service interruption can prevent the console from validating a license even when the purchase and account are correct. Check the official PlayStation service-status page and look for alerts affecting account management, gaming, or PlayStation Network sign-in. Retry after an outage is resolved rather than repeatedly restoring licenses during the interruption.
2. Confirm the PS5 is online and signed in
Make sure the console reports an active internet connection and that the intended account is signed in to PlayStation Network. A temporary connection drop can leave a previously valid entitlement looking unavailable. If the console recently changed networks, reconnect it and then try the game again.
3. Install the latest system software
Open Settings > System > System Software > System Software Update and Settings and check for an available update. Sony’s locked-game guidance includes installing the latest system software as a later-stage fix. Restart the PS5 after an update completes, sign in again if prompted, and test the title.
4. Recheck Console Sharing and Offline Play
Even if the game is owned by the current user, review the Console Sharing and Offline Play setting when several people use the console or the account was recently used on another PS5. If the game is shared, perform this check while signed in as the owner. The one-PS5 limit means a valid setting elsewhere can explain a lock here.
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5. Restore the license again after the checks
After service, sign-in, software, and sharing checks are complete, run Restore Licenses again. This order matters: refreshing a license before fixing an unavailable account or disabled sharing setting simply refreshes the same lack of access.
6. Use Safe Mode to clear cache and rebuild the database
If entitlement is valid and the normal menu still shows a padlock, Sony lists the PS5 Safe Mode option Clear Cache and Rebuild Database. This maintenance operation addresses local database or cache problems that can prevent the console from displaying content correctly.
- Turn the PS5 off completely rather than leaving it in Rest Mode.
- Press and hold the console’s power button. Release it after the second beep, which starts Safe Mode.
- Connect the controller with a USB cable and press the PS button when prompted.
- Select Clear Cache and Rebuild Database, then follow the on-screen instructions.
Do not unplug the console while Safe Mode is working. The operation is maintenance, not a new license purchase, so entitlement and account checks still matter afterward.
7. Contact PlayStation Support
If the purchase is visible, the subscription or sharing arrangement is valid, services are operating, the system is updated, and Safe Mode has not removed the padlock, contact PlayStation Support. Provide the account identifier, the game title and edition, the date and status of the transaction, the exact error or padlock behavior, and the troubleshooting steps already completed. Those details help support distinguish an entitlement record problem from a local console problem.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Use the symptom to choose the next check
- Only one game is locked: start with the account’s transaction history and the game’s entitlement source, then use the per-game restore shortcut.
- Several purchased games are locked: confirm the signed-in account, service status, network connection, and system software before restoring licenses from Settings.
- Other users can no longer play an owner’s games: check Console Sharing and Offline Play on the purchasing account and remember its one-PS5 limit.
- A PlayStation Plus title is locked: verify both subscription status and whether the title remains available; do not infer either fact from the padlock alone.
- The lock appeared during a network or service outage: wait for service to recover, then sign in and restore the license once.
- The game remains locked after every entitlement check: update system software, use Safe Mode’s cache and database option, and escalate with the transaction details.
What restoring a license can and cannot do
Restoration can make the console re-read an entitlement that is already valid but not being recognized locally. It is appropriate after account changes, a temporary sign-in problem, a service interruption, or a database inconsistency.
Restoration cannot convert a shared game into an individually owned game, renew an expired subscription, return a title removed from a subscription catalogue, complete a failed purchase, or override an account restriction. It also cannot make a game purchased on one account appear as owned by an unrelated account unless Console Sharing and Offline Play is correctly enabled by the owner.
The operation is designed to leave user data alone. If a prompt offers to delete the game or saved data, you are in a different workflow; cancel and return to the Restore Licenses command.
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Prevent future padlocks
- Use the account that actually purchased each digital game when checking transactions or restoring licenses.
- For shared purchases, keep Console Sharing and Offline Play enabled on the intended PS5 and remember that one-console limit before moving it elsewhere.
- Keep the PS5 connected long enough to sign in and validate entitlements after major account, network, or system changes.
- Track PlayStation Plus subscription status and catalogue availability for service-based games instead of relying on the icon to explain access.
- Install system software updates and restart the console after major updates or a prolonged service outage.
A padlock is therefore a starting symptom, not a diagnosis. Restore the license first, establish which account or service supplies access, and then follow Sony’s account, sharing, service, software, and Safe Mode checks in that order.
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