iOS Guide

iOS Guide

A complete iOS jailbreaking guide, from stock to jailbroken.

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For complete guides to homebrew and custom firmware for other devices, check out CFW.GuideOpen in new window.

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Thoroughly read all of the introductory pages (including this one!) before proceeding.

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What is jailbreaking?

Jailbreaking is a term used to describe the process that allows you to truly unlock the potential of your iOS device. Apple's mobile operating system is known for its security and that's partly because of how locked-down it is. Jailbreaking your device will allow you to break those restrictions and customize your device to how you like it.

Jailbreaking gives you the ability to install custom applications and "tweaks" (modifications) from a package manager to customize and enhance the user experience. Jailbreaking is free and easy on most devices.

Jailbreaking in the US is perfectly legal. In 2010, the US Copyright Office declared jailbreaking to be an exception to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

You may want to check in your country whether it is legal there or not before proceeding, however in most countries it should be fine.

What is a package manager?

Package managers are used to install, uninstall and modify official and community-made software to customize your device. Sileo is an example of a package manager.

They can be considered similar to the iOS App Store, where you can install both free and paid software.

What are tweaks?

Tweaks are typically software packages that can be installed to your device which transform the look and feel of your iOS device. With some exceptions, tweaks usually don't come with an app icon, but rather instead an area in the Settings app to change how the tweak acts. Simpler tweaks might not have these.

What can I do once jailbroken?

  • Gain full access to your device's OS
  • Get access to a package manager, such as Sileo
  • Install themes to change the look and feel of your device
  • Install tweaks to change how iOS behaves

What should I know before starting?

DANGER

Before following the steps of this guide, you must know the risks of jailbreaking: Every time you modify your system in any way, there is always a chance that you could lose user data and ability to jailbreak. It is, however, very rare for a system to be rendered completely unrecoverable.

  • It is strongly recommended to backup your device to iCloud, iTunes, or Finder (on macOS Catalina or newer) in case of data loss
  • If no issues occur during installation, you will be jailbroken without any data loss
  • Keep the device plugged into to a power source or keep the battery fairly charged, so that any unexpected power off can be prevented
  • Jailbreaking allows you to unlock your system but can lead to data loss if you damage the OS
  • You may be vulnerable to more malware and other security issues after jailbreaking compared to if you were in a non-jailbroken state
  • Your device warranty will become void after jailbreaking until it is restored to an un-jailbroken state, which is easy to do