ther than the occasional WinterBoard tutorial, I will no longer be posting any more free tutorials, regardless of iPhone model. From now on all new content is members only. You may have noticed, if you read my Site updates page, that I've converted some free tutorials to member's only access. This is because the tutorials have required a rewrite, and many new screen shots, as the program I was documenting, or the process had changed in some major way. I'm not doing this just to deplete the free content one tutorial at a time.

Members only tutorials are distinguished by their blue text in the navigation bars. To become a member simply click my various donate buttons and send $5. You'll receive log in information within 24 hours.

Do not update to iOS 4.0.2 firmware if you value your jailbreak and unlock.




-- August 10, 2010 20:54 MST

saw an interesting article (with a linked article inside it) over at ModMyi this morning on how the jailbreakme.com website gets root access on iDevices to jailbreak them. More importantly, if you are now jailbroken you can install a patch to fix the PDF vulnerability used by jailbreakme.com so that your iDevice is more secure than all the non-jailbroken iDevices Apple is selling right now! Of course you have to refuse the request to open the PDF, the program won't do that for you. Still pretty cool. Although there are many more 0 day exploits out there, at least you'll have one less to worry about. How ironic Apple used security as one of its arguments against jailbreaking before the Library of Congress, now those very same jailbreakers are more secure. The jailbreakers are also helping Apple by pointing out there mistakes to them. Seems to be a pretty mutually beneficial relationship we have, huh? The ModMyi.com article is here. Don't forget to install the PDF Loading Warner program from Cydia, and check out the technical analysis of the flat decode exploit here.

-- August 3, 2010 08:49 MST

he iPhone Dev Team has released the jailbreak tool for the iPhone 4 (and for the 3G and 3G S on firmwares from 3.1.2 to 4.0.1). They have revived their old website jailbreakme.com. All you do is take your activated iPhone, surf to the site and follow the instructions. I have posted a members only tutorial for this program. You'll see it in the Start here menu. PlanetBeing has stated the ultrasn0w unlock for the iPhone 4 will be released in the next couple of days. I can not stress how important it is that you use the program TinyUmbrella to back up your SHSH file for your iPhone 3G, 3G S or iPhone 4 immediately for 4.0.1 firmware. Read this page to learn more. This jailbreak will require Apple to fix the exploit they are using as it could be used for more than just a simple jailbreak for someone with malicious intentions. I would expect a new firmware release from Apple soon. When they do that they will stop signing 4.0.1 firmware. If you get your SHSH now, you will be able to restore forever to 4.0.1 firmware and be able to jailbreak to that firmware as well. Then it would be just a matter of using another hack to upgrade to 4.1 firmware from a jailbroken 4.0.1 iPhone. -- August 1, 2010 23:04 MST

yle Matthews (the owner of the most popular iPhone hacking forum in my opinion) wrote an article about what jailbreaking is and why it’s important. I just wanted to parrot his idea here in case you missed it. I feel the more websites that carry this message and spread it are a good thing. You can read his original article here.

What is jailbreaking? - Without getting technical, jailbreaking is a term coined for gaining write access to the file system of an iPhone. The iPhone contains a flash memory chip which is comparable to the hard drive in a computer. It contains files and programs.


Why do people jailbreak? - The iPhone is essentially a handheld computer. When you can write to the file system you can add, remove or modify files or programs on that computer to improve or expand its abilities. Most people do this every single day with their laptop and desktop computers. They create documents for school or work and save them. Some even choose to share these files with other people who own their own computers.

Many go to the store and purchase whatever software they like, and from whatever software manufacturer they like and then install it on their computers. This software could be a video game or a productivity program. Jailbreaking provides iPhone owners with this same choice.

Many people like to personalize their computers as well by changing the desktop wallpaper or customizing the icons that represent programs, et cetera. iPhone owners should have these exact same choices. With jailbreaking they do.

Many choose to write their own software and run it on their own computers. Some of these programs are then sold to other computer owners. These have always been legal activities. With jailbreaking this is now possible on the iPhone as well.

The jailbreaking scene has proved beneficial to current iPhone owners. Many of the things jailbreakers created, Apple then decided to add to the iPhone to expand its capabilities. This included copy and paste, wallpapers, tethering, placing applications into folders with other applications, and the biggest invention of all: a program on the iPhone that allows you to browse an online store to purchase and install other programs.


What if I don’t care about jailbreaking anyway? - This all sounds well and good, but maybe you purchased an iPhone (or even a home computer) and don’t intend to ever buy any software for it, or want to install or change anything on that computer. That is certainly your choice. That choice should not be taken away from other people however. If jailbreaking were ruled illegal, then choice would have been taken away.

When you own an iPhone or a computer, you should be able to do anything you want with it. If all you seek is to be able to expand the abilities of the device and, in the case of the iPhone, make your smart phone even smarter, or more useful, then this should not be an issue for anyone else, it’s your phone. You paid for it. This is no different than purchasing a new car and then installing better tires, rims, or a stereo in it. You don’t need the automobile manufacturer’s approval to do this do you?

Kyle made a similar analogy about this. He equated this choice to going to your local computer store, purchasing a computer running the Windows operating system, and then being told by the salesperson that you could only purchase programs for that computer that were approved of by Microsoft, or by the device manufacturer (Dell, Sony, Toshiba, et cetera). Any other programs you purchased would be illegal to install on that computer. This analogy could be extended to apply to hardware you want to install on that computer. Upgrading the RAM or the video card or the hard drive would have to be approved by the manufacturer of the laptop as well. Sound ridiculous? It should. Apple doesn’t have restrictions like this with their computers. Why should these restrictions be placed on their phone?


Aren’t jailbreakers software pirates? - Jailbreaking has always been legal, piracy is illegal. While jailbreaking an iPhone certainly would allow you to steal a program for the iPhone without paying for it and then run that program, this was not the driving force behind this process. I’ve certainly never understood how someone can afford to purchase a phone that costs hundreds of dollars, yet steal a program for it that costs five dollars. Those people are in the minority.

These are the same people who pirate software for home computers. The Windows operating system is more often found to be illegally installed on your (or your neighbor’s) home computer, or even your work computer than any program on the iPhone. Just because some people choose to steal doesn’t mean all choose to.


Doesn’t jailbreaking impact the security of the cell phone networks? - If a malicious programmer wanted to create a program to disrupt cell phone service, it would be an illegal act. It would be no different than using a home computer to illegally gain access to someone else's bank account, or credit cards, or to do damage to a computer network and steal or delete data.

I haven’t heard of any reports of a jailbroken iPhone causing damage to the cell phone network, or of any virus being spread through the cell phone network. This doesn’t mean it can’t happen, but in over three years of iPhones being jailbroken and being used on cell phone networks around the world, it certainly seems improbable. But I bet you’ve heard of at least one news story where someone used a computer to cause harm to others by stealing their identity. I think a lot of fear, anxiety and doubt is being spread around by the industry with regards to the iPhone and wanting to limit choice.


-- July 28, 2010 08:54 MST



ailbreaking has been ruled as an exemption to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) by the Librarian of Congress. This means jailbreaking is now a legally protected act for the next three years. This case for a DMCA exemption would have to be presented again in three years to the Librarian of Congress to continue to be upheld.

Keep in mind, jailbreaking was NEVER an illegal act despite what many media sources claim. They are wrong. They just like to make wild statements and create a frenzy to feed their ratings so they can charge more for air time to marketers from time to time. I haven't heard of anything jailbreak related going to trial ever, certainly not anything being ruled on by a judge as legal or illegal.

You can read the full statement from the Library of Congress here. The sections that relate to us are:

• (2) Computer programs that enable wireless telephone handsets to execute software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset.
• (3) Computer programs, in the form of firmware or software, that enable used wireless telephone handsets to connect to a wireless telecommunications network, when circumvention is initiated by the owner of the copy of the computer program solely in order to connect to a wireless telecommunications network and access to the network is authorized by the operator of the network.

The library's determination and text of the ruling can be found here.

Here's an article from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, who represented jailbreakers from a legal standpoint. They brought our case before the librarian.

Here's an article from CNN on what the Library of Congress ruling means. I find some of the information incorrect with regards to jailbreaking being illegal up until this recent exemption came to be.

It's nice to see main stream media picking up this story. I've appeared in the New York Times, and CNN as a destination website. Hopefully this will bring many new people into the fold. You can click the images below to be taken to those particular articles.




-- July 26, 2010 08:43 MST



have sent out all login information to people who have previously donated to this site. If at this point you have not been furnished with a login and believe you should have been (there were some of you whose e-mail addresses are no longer good) you are REQUIRED to provide me with a Paypal transaction ID so I can look it up. The e-mail I sent came from a Yahoo.com address. I have no control over your mail program allowing that e-mail through. For those of you just donating, it may take up to 24 hours to receive login information as I perfer to group the e-mails.

I will also be including the iPhone 3G in the hacker's flowchart.


-- July 22, 2010 16:19 MST



ell it seems like Apple is up to their old tricks again. The iPhone Dev Team just posted two hours ago about ECID SHSH blobs being used on 4.0 firmware for all iPhones, now including the 3G. You owe it to yourself to launch Cydia and press the make my life easier button right away. I'm guessing since we are just hearing about this that 3G owners can no longer restore to 4.0 firmware? The dev team's posting on this isn't clear. They do state you can always downgrade to 3.x firmware however since no ECID SHSH blob check is being done. This really isn't that big of a deal as 4.0.1 firmware can be jailbroken and unlocked on the 3G using redsn0w and ultrasn0w. I have a tutorial for it here.

Update: I can not restore to stock 4.0 firmware on my already jailbroken 3G. I CAN restore to a custom 4.0 .ipsw made with PwnageTool however :P You'll receive the same error message as the 3G S owners where Apple states the requested build isn't available for this device, if they don't approve of the firmware you are trying to restore to.




Once you've done this, much like with the 3G S, you'll see the message that your device has a pending TSS request. It only took about twelve hours and I received confirmation of being on file for 4.0.




-- July 19, 2010 19:52 MST



es you can use another SIM (an O2 SIM) in the locked iPhone 4 in the United States. You can purchased this pre-paid SIM at your local Best Buy. Read more about this here.




-- July 17, 2010 19:52 MST



Apple has released iOS firmware 4.0.1 today. If you value having a jailbroken and unlocked phone, then DO NOT UPDATE! It's as simple as that. iTunes does NOT force updates on the iPhone, so there is NO excuse for mistakenly updating. If you have an iPhone 3G S or an iPhone 4, then you had better get your ECID SHSH on file right now for 4.0 firmware before Apple stops signing it. They usually provide a 24 hour window of signing for the outgoing firmware when new firmware is released.

When the iPhone Dev Team figures out the jailbreak, I'll update the tutorials as usual. As always, my firmware download links, with detailed info on the update are here.




-- July 15, 2010 11:51 MST



hate writing long posts. I don't want to beat this dead horse any longer so here is the deal with the future of this website and YOUR access (or lack of access) to it. Starting with 5.0 firmware (and possibly starting with iPhone 4, 4.x tutorials - which I've yet to create) this site will only be accessible to those who donate a minimum of $5. You can always donate more... iPhone's aren't cheap, and the monthly service plans are pricey too. If you own an iPhone you can afford a donation.

This all came about when I lost my Google AdSense account. I earned about $300 a month from them. This didn't really compensate me for all the time I put into this site, but it paid a couple bills, and I still received the occasional donation so I was okay with that. Life was good. Then, for whatever reason, my account was closed. I posted about this, and 190 readers (out of my daily 5,000-9,000) stepped up to help out. Some very generously. If you donated I thank you again for that. It will keep this site running for some time, and you will always have free access to the content.

I then switched over to AdBrite for advertising banners. For those of you who don't want to donate, and also fail to realize that free sites like mine rely heavily on people clicking ad banners to survive, allow me to provide my current earnings data from AdBrite. This data covers the entire time I've been with them (30 days now). I'm probably violating my user's agreement with them by posting this information, but considering the trivial amount of money I've earned from them so far, I'm not the least bit concerned. It's more important to me that I shine a light on this website's earnings. Those pay for click programs aren't all they are cracked up to be.

Each page on the site generally has three ad banners. Since I started using AdBrite I've had 601,116 ad views. So more than half a million. How many times was a banner clicked out of those 601,116 views? 384 times! That number in percent form is 0.063. Six hundredths of one percent. Wow. Depressing. My Google ad banner clicks were about the same. Total earnings: $109.91 for a full 30 days of work (Google paid much better). Would you work at a job for one month for this much money? Even if you loved the work? That's time taken away from a job that pays more (or finding a better job) and family, et cetera. Oh, and by the way, those earnings from Google and AdBrite are taxed. Since it is considered self-employment, they are taxed at the rate of around 50%! Things are gonna change. My time is valuable. It's great that people like the iPhone Dev Team exist. They don't need any financial support for whatever reason and that is a wonderful thing. I'm a part-time worker, with real world bills, and I don't live at home with mom and dad anymore.

When I go to sites like mine, I click ad banners. That click translates into a few pennies for the webmaster. It goes to pay for wildly luxurious things like paying the monthly webhosting bill, paying for Internet access to update the site, electricity and maintaining a working computer, and in my case also purchasing a new iPhone every year (and service contract), so I can make tutorials about it. Whatever is left over is gravy. As soon as I can figure out the whole username and password access thing, I'll email this information to donaters only. I've run this site for over three years now. It started out with a bang. It started out so well I could have made a full time job from it in the Summer of 2007. I hate making posts like this, so this will be the last one. I don't like asking for money, I'm certainly not allowed to ask for ad banner clicks (whoops). That leaves me with one option. Unfortunately this post probably won't even be read by any of the people that I'm trying to reach.


-- July 14, 2009 10:24 MST

PlanetBeing, from the iPhone Dev Team (and Android porting fame), tweeted just a few minutes ago: "Looks like I now have an unlocked iPhone 4. :)" Now it's just a matter of waiting for Apple to release its signal bar algorithm update and then the team will release their tools. Congrats to PlanetBeing, MuscleNerd and the team!

Below is a video of PlanetBeing discussing the unlock.




-- July 13, 2009 07:24 MST



pple issued a press release today regarding reception problems (referred to by users as the iPhone Death Grip), their findings, and how they will fix this issue. It also states a software update will be released in a few weeks. You can read this release here: apple.com/pr/library/2010/07/02appleletter.html   Check out the video below to see how fast my iPhone 4 goes from full bars to no service. None of my other iPhones (first, second, and third generation) suffer from this problem.

I can't stress how important this heads up notice is to iPhone 3G S and iPhone 4 users that they get their ECID SHSH on file immediately with either Cydia, by pressing the make my life easier button (this option is obviously only for those who can jailbreak their iPhones) or by using TinyUmbrella to retrieve this file. You can read my TinyUmbrella tutorial here. We are at a rare time right now: 4.0 firmware and its accompanying modem firmware can be jailbroken and unlocked simultaneously.




-- July 2, 2010 08:00 MST



  

Attention all readers of this site. You need to help me now if you want to see this site continue to exist. I'm not kidding. This came about because Google decided, for whatever reason, to cancel my AdSense account. That was the only thing that brought me any money at all for running this site. I don't know what happened. I used AdSense for over 5 years without any issues. I've since signed up with a new advertiser that displays a couple ads on my pages.

What does this site need to continue? Donations are the only direct method I am allowed to encourage. To those of you who have already donated, thank you again. I hate having to ask for this, but now it has become a necessity. I'm a small time site here. I'm not a business man or marketing guru, I'm just a guy that makes tutorials. No amount is too small to donate. Keep in mind however, Paypal will keep any donation that is less than a quarter. I hope this message reaches ALL (9,000 daily) readers of this site and not just a core group of people. This site will survive forever if ALL daily readers do their part. I promise you I'm not trying to put together a secret trip to Tahiti over here.

If this site has helped you out, help me out. I've said this before and I'll say it again, if everyone who visited this site donated 1 penny, and that whole penny made it to me, this site would be even more amazing.

Folks, I can't continue to work on this site based on trivial earnings from advertisers alone. I'm not some bored rich guy that sits at home all day with nothing to do. I have a family and only a part time job to survive on. I can not afford to put time into this site and pay to host it just for my own entertainment purposes. I'd be better off looking for a second job instead.

I love the iPhone and I love modifying it and making the best damn tutorials on the 'net. Without support from YOU, there's no incentive to me continuing to do this. You own an iPhone (and probably a pricey monthly service plan) or you wouldn't be at this site. Enough said...

This is what the donate button at the bottom of all my pages looks like. The one pictured here is also clickable. There is a smaller one just below my top banner. It is in rotation with other clickable images. I have also added a donate button in my navigation bar menu. It's at the far right.

Guess I'll just pray on this problem.


-- June 27, 2010 21:34 MST



phone 4 (and iOS4) have been jailbroken by comex, creator of the Spirit program. We do not know when Spirit will be released, but stay tuned. Below is a screen shot of Cydia running on iPhone 4, along with a picture of a full root shell. The screen shots are especially large from the iPhone 4 due to its enhanced resolution. Yeah, I'm shrinking these down for the tutorials.




-- June 26, 2010 22:03 MST



his worked out to be a good birthday so far. The iPhone 4 arrived a day early and looks and feels great. It's got a nice weight to it. Can't wait to start making tutorials for this one...




So here are some pros and cons on this phone from my limited testing:

• I love the integrated mailboxes! I have many accounts and it saves me a lot of time not having to drill up and down various menus to read all my mail.
• I like the video camera with the light. It takes pretty darn good looking videos in low light situations. I just wish it was a wider angle lens.
• While folders are nice, they limit you to twelve programs per folder. Categories (jailbreak program) is still the way to go.
• I hate how critical hand placement is on this phone. I've NEVER had an issue or concern with covering an antenna with my hand before. I guess I have to be a right-handed talker from now on.
• I hate the new Settings program. When you use it and dive down three of four levels in some menu and then close the program and relaunch it, it stays where you left it last. The old Settings program didn't do this. What a stupid change this was.
• For all the hype Steve made about retina display at the WWDC, I'm not seeing any difference between my 3G S and the 4 viewing the same photos. The application icons do look a touch darker however.
• I sometimes have lots of information for people in my contacts application. I place this information in the notes section. Starting with 4.0 the entire contacts page doesn't scroll with that information any more. Now you must scroll the much smaller notes window within the contacts page. Grr...

-- June 23, 2010 19:10 MST



few things are going on right now. The iPhone Dev Team has updated ultrasn0w to unlock all modem firmware versions, including the one that comes with 4.0. So get your unlocks now! Do not update to any firmware newer than 4.0 if you value keeping your unlock. This is a great time to buy an iPhone 4, while it can be unlocked right out of the box. The team has not updated PwnageTool or Redsn0w out of beta status, so I won't be making any step 1 guides just yet.

I am currently running 4.0 unlocked on my 3G, so I'll be working on other guides in the mean time. I have added a Donate button to the menu bar (some have said they couldn't find it). I do have donate buttons in the ads that rotate at the top of the page, and at the bottom of every page. It is critical that all readers of the site help it continue to provide FREE content. I hate to ask for donations, but I have no other option. This site takes A LOT of my time, and since the advertising dollars aren't there, I need to be compensated so I can afford to buy the new iPhone every year, pay for hosting, et cetera. Enough said.

ModMyi.com has a page here that is attempting to list all jailbreak applications and list their current compatability with 4.0 firmware. Check it out, help submit applications that they aren't listing. You can also check out a similar project here.

Update: The iPhone Dev Team has updated PwnageTool for 3G and 3G S owners, and redsn0w has been updated today but it is still a beta and for whatever reason only for the 3G iPhone. Tutorials will follow... It is CRITICAL that you read the iPhone Dev Team's post today which talks about the various scenarios one could be using to update their iPhone. You can read that post here. Keep in mind that my iPhones are all on the jailbreak train. Meaning I don't foolishly update them ever, without a jailbreak and unlock being available first. Your mileage may vary.

Update 2: I have added my first 4.0 firmware tutorial. The 3G and 3G S jailbreaking and unlocking guide is here. They are combined into one tutorial. From now on check my site updates page to see the 4.x firmware tutorials I have added.


-- June 22, 2010 11:10 MST







pple unveiled the iPhone 4 and iOS4 today at the WWDC. The iPhone comes out June 24th, iOS4 comes out June 21st.

I will slowly be moving all 3.x content into the Miscellaneous menu (where the 1.x and 2.x tutorials have been living for some time now). This means you won't see much of anything in the Start here, or Hacking menus until 4.0 has been jailbroken and Cydia released. The newer tutorials will slowly make their way to the site (keep in mind this site is a hobby, I already have a job that has nothing to do with iPhones).


-- June 7, 2010 11:57 MST



new jailbreak called Spirit created by comex will be released soon. BigBoss has already done a nice write up on it and your options with this program. Read his posted here.

I will NOT be creating a tutorial for this program. Why? Because I don't have an army of iPhones just laying around. I have three: a 2G, a 3G and a 3G S. My 3G and 3G S are unlocked. I'm not losing my unlocks just so I can restore those two phones to stock 3.1.3 firmware (and modem firmware) to say look here this program will jailbreak stock 3.1.3. I don't care. I like my unlocks. You are on your own to figure out how to use this program. I'll keep you updated should things change.

Update: The Spirit jailbreak has just been released. You can download it here. It's a one button program. Not too difficult to use.




-- April 30, 2010 17:34 MST



o I have Android running on my 2G iPhone now. I found a great guide (with only a couple minor errors) here: http://androidalot.com/tag/iphone/   I'll make my own version of this tutorial most likely. In the video below I demonstrate it booting up.

Update: I have posted my tutorial for installing Android here.




-- April 23, 2010 17:27 MST



ndroid is now running on the iPhone. iPhone Dev Team member PlanetBeing has released prebuilt images and source code. You can read more about this project at PlanetBeing's site here. I'm sure I'll make a tutorial on this... Ok maybe I won't. The read me is pretty intense for a tutorial at this stage. I am rehosting the file here hackthatphone.net/iDroid/idroid-release-0.1a.tar.bz

In the mean time enjoy this video demonstrating it running.




-- April 21, 2010 20:17 MST



he iPhone Dev Team has released redsn0w 0.9.5 beta. This is specifically designed to jailbreak iPhone OS 4.0 beta 1. Running 4.0 will do nothing for you unless you have an official SIM card to activate with, and you do not require an unlock as your modem firmware will be updated if installing 4.0. This is only for the 3G iPhone, and you must have its UDID on file with an Apple developer or your iPhone will become unresponsive. Click here to read more. I do not cover beta software and will not create any tutorials for 4.0 firmware until 4.0 firmware is officially released to the general public.


-- April 15, 2010 21:07 MST



uscleNerd, from the iPhone Dev Team, has posted a video showing his jailbroken 4.0 iPhone running the Veency server program from Cydia. He also stated to not bother installing the beta 4.0 OS as it is very buggy. Don't forget if you do you'll need a way to activate your iPhone, and your baseband will be updated so you'll lose your unlock.




-- April 9, 2010 11:06 MST



ngadget has some great coverage on Apple's iPhone OS 4.0 event today. Check out what's coming in the new OS here.

Here's some of the highlights:

• Create playlists
• 5x digital zoom
• Tap to focus on video
• Gift apps
• Geotagging
• Places in the photo app
• Change the homescreen wallpaper
• Bluetooth keyboards
• Spell checker
• Multitasking
• Location Services will get its own control panel, showing applications that ask or have asked for your location and you can choose to turn that request off if you'd like to better control your privacy.
• Folders for icons, like the Categories program. Group all your games together for example.
• Wallpaper for the homescreen
• Unified e-mail inbox, the ability to open e-mail attachments with an app.
• Social gaming network complete with leaderboards and achievements.

Steve said Apple has sold over 50 million iPhones to date. This does not include iPods.

Update: From Apple's own website:

Seems to me if you have a 1st generation (2G) iPhone, there will NOT be any more new operating systems for it. 3.1.3 is the last.


-- April 8, 2010 11:03 MST