How-To: Jailbreak the iPhone with blackra1n
Blackra1n is one of the simplest jailbreaks we ‘ve ever seen for the iPhone “ and certainly the easiest method currently available (as at this writing) for the latest iPhone 3.1.2 firmware.
Even so, if you ‘ve never done a jailbreak on your iPhone before, you may want a step-by-step to help you through this genuinely easy process. If so, read on for just such a guide
How To Jailbreak the iPhone with blackra1n
*** Please note: these steps should work for all iPhone models running iPhone OS 3.0 or above (I ‘ve tested on a 2G and 3GS) and for the latest 3.1.2 iPhone OS software. It should also work for all iPod Touch models, though the latest 3rd gen Touch models require a ‘tethered ‘ jailbreak (which means you need to re-run the jailbreak on each reboot of the Touch). For more details on versions supported and especially for those who also need to unlock their iPhones (use on an unauthorized cellular carrier), I suggest checking out this post at iClarified. Also, as with any jailbreak instructions, please understand that there are risks involved in doing this “ not least the possibility of voiding your iPhone warranty “ and we do not accept any responsibility for any issues of any kind that you may encounter after following these instructions.
With all that out of the way, here are the steps needed to jailbreak with blackra1n:
- Go to the blackra1n site, at:
- Download blackra1n for Mac or Windows by clicking on the appropriate icon.
- You ‘ll end up with a file called blackra1n.zip. Unzip this file and you should end up with a new file called blackra1n.exe (on Windows) or blackra1n.app (on a Mac).
- Connect your iPhone to your computer (via USB cable)
- Open the blackra1n.exe or blackra1n.app file you just unzipped.
- When the blackra1n app launches you ‘ll see just this small dialog box on your screen:
- Click on ‘make it ra1n ‘
- Watch as your iPhone goes into recovery mode. You will see the ‘connect to iTunes ‘ graphic “ you do not need to do anything, just keep watching as the jailbreak process works its magic.
- As the process continues, you should also see GeoHot ‘s image on the iPhone screen (the image shown at the top of this post, of blackra1n ‘s creator). Again, no need to do anything.
- The iPhone will restart itself twice during this process.
- Once the two restarts are complete, you should see your normal iPhone home screen, with a new icon for the blackra1n app added to the first available slot on a home screen. You should also get a success message from the blackra1n app on you computer:
- Note “ the success message dialog will look slightly different to the above on a Windows machine.
That ‘s it “ your iPhone is jailbroken.
Next you will likely want / need to add the Cydia jailbreak apps store (or the Rock store if you prefer). To get this, open the blackra1n app on your iPhone and choose one or both stores (tap them) and hit Install.
This will cause a respring (a restart of the iPhone ‘s springboard) at the end of the install.
Cydia will then also require some upgrades and loading of data when you first launch it – it’s best to let it do all the upgrades it suggests.
I hope this post is helpful for first-time or new jailbreakers. Please let me know in the comments if you have further questions or suggestions for how this guide could be improved.
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Thanks for this tutorial. I find it very handy, especially since the blackra1n site didn't seem to have any docs.
I think the only other hint that might be useful is how to add additional source as I had to do in order to get ProSwitcher. For the first timer, knowing how to add source is a total mystery.
Very glad to hear you think it's handy. On the adding a source hint, I have that down as a task – to do a separate (shorter of course) how-to guide for that. had done one way back one for Summerboard (which no longer exists) in very old school jailbreak days – but need a new one.
Useful post to demystify the process. Now how about a list of must have jailbreak apps? I'd put SB settings, pda net,mx tube and backgrounder but I'd love to have a list of other tried, tested and very useful apps (ie not ringtones etc).
Also I think many people unsure about the do's and don'ts after a JB so maybe a list of these ie
Make sure you change your passwords
Make sure you i tunes is not looking for automatic updates for your i phone
Yes it's fine to update i tunes
Whilst I'm on the subject I'm still a little wary of syncing my apps since this is would let apple know without a doubt that I have JBed apps on board. I'm sure they can tell anyway but a confirmation in the above list "Yes It's ok to sync your apps" is the kind of thing I'm talking about for a dos and don'ts list.
Thanks. List of must-have jailbreak apps – this was our team's fairly recently:
http://tinyurl.com/yftr6qg
Do's and Dont's after JB = good idea – we may try to put one of those together.
As for the 'safety' of syncing of apps question, I really don't believe that should be a concern. I'm not certain whether Apple can 'see' jailbreak apps on an iTunes sync – and even if it that is possible I have never heard of anyone being pursued or penalized in any way for that. The big worry in terms of Apple 'catching' you when jailbroken is if you walk into an Apple store without having done a clean restore on your phone.
For those with the iPhone with the new iboot-359.3.2 (bootrom), BlackRa1n only supports a tethered jailbreak. This means that once jailbroken you do not let your battery die and try not to reboot your device. If do do have to reboot your device, you will need to reconnect it to the computer and use BlackRa1n to boot it.
I jailbroke my iphone and deleted the blackra1n app. How do I re-install the blackra1n app? I have tried to reinstall the jailbreak but this did not brink up the app.
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