Category: Learning Center

How to Save SHSH Blobs for iPhone/iPad/iPod

Backing up SHSH blobs will allow users to easily downgrade their iOS devices in the future by restoring the devices using iTunes. Since Apple stops signing the old firmware, it is hard for users to get the SHSH blobs. With TinyUmbrella, you will find the way to simply save your SHSH blobs.

Notice:

  • SHSH blobs for a version of the OS would have been automatically saved whenever you successfully jailbreak your device on that version.
  • Downgrade is Only available to the particular firmware whose SHSH Blobs have been saved otherwise you are unable to do that.

Preparations:

Firstly make sure to back up the device in case you may loss any important information during the downgrading. If you don’t need the backup, please just skip step 1&2 and start from step 3.

Step 1: Download the latest iTunes

If you have already installed iTunes, make sure you have updated it to the latest version.

Step 2: Back up your device

  • Plug into your device on your Mac and enter iTunes
  • Right click the device name in the sidebar list shown below
  • Click Back Up and wait for the sync to finish

Back Up

Step 3: Download TinyUmbrella

Ready to Go!

Step 1:
After downloading TinyUmbrella to your computer, launch it, you will see the interface as below:

TinyUmbrella

Step 2:
Now plug your Device into your computer, TinyUmbrella will automatically detect your device. Just click on your iDevice from the CONNECTED DEVICES of TinyUmbrella.

Connected Devices

Step 3:
Click on Save SHSH button at the top right corner, TinyUmbrella will begin to save the available SHSH blobs on your device and you will see a list of saved SHSH blobs after it finished.

Save SHSH

Trouble Shooting:

When you failed to save SHSH, you need to make sure that Apple is still signing your firmware. Please try these:

  1. Click on Advanced tab
  2. Uncheck Request SHSH From Cydia (See the Red-Lined)
  3. Check General and then click on Save SHSH

Trouble Shooting

Now you should have successfully saved your available SHSH blobs with TinyUmbrella. If you are going to downgrade your device from iOS 6, you can check this guide.

How to Hide the Cydia Icon

When it referred to Cydia, we will think of jailbreak, have you ever tried to hide the Cydia icon to make jailbreak information hard to be detected? Here are some tips for you.
Two effective and simple ways which help a lot in hiding Cydia icon if you are using an iPhone or iPad and you don’t want others to know that your device is a jailbroken one. Please pay attention here:
To validate the first way, a free app from Cydida called "SBSettings" is required to be installed on your device. For SBSetting installing, the following steps will lead you to achieve it:

  1. Open Cydia, touch "Search" tab and search for "SBSettings"
  2. Tap "Install" and "Confim"to get SBSettings on your iDevice.
  3. Wait for Cydia to install and add SBSettings.

After installation, you may configure SBSetting to hide the Cydia icon as below:

  1. Tap "SBSettings" icon or use the customized activation method to open SBSettings.
  2. Slide and tap the "Hide Icons" option, you will be presented with a menu.
  3. Locate "Cydia" in the menu and tap it to hide the icon.

To unhide the Cydia icon, just repeat the above steps!

Another app which can be used to hide the Cydia icon is highly recommended since it enables you to both hide jailbreak information but also monitor the activity on your device. Like the first way mentioned above, you need to install an app named "iKeyMonitor".

  1. Download iKeyMonitor from Cydia:
  2. Launch Cydia and tap on “Search” button
  3. Enter iKeyMonitor and you will get an app list
  4. Select the one from BigBoss source and Install it
  5. After install please be sure to "Restart SpringBoard"

Now you get iKeyMonitor running on your device. You can open Safari and enter http://localhost:8888 to access iKeyMonitor. Please follow steps below to hide the Cydia icon.

  1. Enter "Settings" – "Advance Settings" page of iKeyMonitor
  2. Click the option "Hide Jailbreak Info (Cydia)" and click "Save Settings"

To unhide the Cydia icon, please uncheck "Hide Jailbreak Info (Cydia)" and then "Save Settings".

Now go back to the main screen of your iPhone/iPad, you will find the Cydia icon is disappeared. Done and Congratulations!

To open Cydia without showing it on the screen, please open Safari, visit "Cydia://" and you will be navigated to the Cydia interface.

Untethered or Tethered Jailbreak

After we have a generally understanding of what is jailbreak. It is still necessary for us to further look into tethered jailbreak and untethered jailbreak. Here are the differences between tethered jailbreak and untethered jailbreak.

Tethered Jailbreak

Tethered jailbreaks are not stable and may be frustrating. A tethered-jailbroken device may cannot boot without computer connection but stop at the Apple logo interface. To power on your device after your it reboots or the battery runs out, you need to connect your device to your computer so that the hardware can make your device "awake" with the help of the jailbreaking tool.

Untethered Jailbreak

On the contrary, untethered jailbreak refers to that your device stays normal and you can reboot or power on it as it is not jailbroken. Apart from that, you can install a lot of great apps and themes freely and easily with the help of Cydia, the core app every jailbroken iDevice user loves.

Generally, the tethered jailbreak releases before the untethered jailbreak. In most cases, the latest system version can be tethered jailbroken first in contrast with untethered one.

The Disadvantages of Jailbreak

Why there are so many people who still use the original system since jailbreak brings us notable advantages?

No Trusty Jailbreak Available
The primary reason may be that there is no jailbreak available for certain versions. Another reason is that there is only tethered jailbreak for the iOS version or device. Sometimes it is troublesome that a tethered-jailbroken device need to be attached to a a computer or any other third party tool for it to be boot again.

Security and other Issues

Other people do not choose to jailbreak their iPhone or iPad even though untethered jailbreak is available because of the following reasons.

  1. Jailbreak will potentially reduce stability of the iDevice. Especially when some system privileges are changed, many services will be affected.
  2. The battery of the iDevice is more likely to run out since some apps or themes need to keep running as well as many plug-ins which run in the background.
  3. The security is another important issue for the system may become unsafe after jailbreak. If the user forgets to change the default authority password after jailbreak, your system is likely to be invaded in and your private information will be given away.

Everything is a double-edged sword, so is jailbreak. Whether jailbreak or not is left to users to decide.

What is Jailbreaking?

iPhone or iPad are usually associated with such words as "jailbreak", which is familiar but technical to us. What’s the real meaning of it? Here we will explain what it is.

What is Jailbreaking?

Literally, jailbreaking means to escape from the limitations of a jail. When it comes to iOS devices such as iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch, it serves as a technical term which represents the process of removing the limitations imposed by Apple on devices running the iOS operating system by the use of custom kernels.

After jailbreaking, you are able to install additional applications, themes, extensions of the third party, which is unavailable through App Store, to your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch by an application called Cydia.

All of the personized settings or applications are impossible without jailbreaking. However, there are certain requirements on the system or the model of iOS devices for them to be jailbroken.

Jailbreak is divided into untethered jailbreak and tethered jailbreak which is introduced specificly in corresponding page.

How to Check the Model & iOS Version of My Device

Check the Model of Your iOS Device

If you don’t know what you hold is iPad, iPhone or iPod or would like to know its model, please follow the guide below:

  1. Look at the back of your device. There is a word "iPhone"(or iPad) down towards the center bottom.
  2. Then you will see the print about iOS device. At the end of the first line you will see "Model" and 5-word string following.
  3. Check the list below to identify the model number of your device.



    If you use an iPod touch and want to figure out its model, please check here.

Check the iOS Version of Your Device

In order to find the operating system version of your iOS Device, please follow the guide below:

  1. Tap "Settings" on your iOS device’s main screen
    Settings Icon
  2. Tap "General" from the lis
    General
  3. Tap "About" from the list
    About
  4. Scroll down until you find "Version" on the list
    iOS Version

Notice:

  • In this demo the iOS (or iPhone OS) version is 7.0.4. Please note that your version might be different so we suggest you note your iOS device’s version.
  • On the iPad the menu is the same, but it looks bigger. Please select the same items from the menu, even if the screenshots don’t look the same.

How to Update to the Latest iOS Version

Here is guide about how to upgrade the iOS version in iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Please notice that some old device models do not support the new iOS version so there is no way to upgrade. For example, only the devices listed below support iOS 6:

  • iPhone 5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS
  • iPad with Retina Play, iPad mini, The new iPad, iPad 2
  • iPod touch 5th generation, iPod touch 4th generation

Preparations:

Notice: If you already made a backup for your device or don’t want to back up it, please skip the first 2 steps below and download jailbreaking tool directly. However, the backup is always suggested in case you lose important information during jailbreaking.

Step 1: Download latest iTunes HERE

Step 2: Back up your device:

  1. Plug into your device and launch iTunes
  2. Right click the device name in the sidebar list
  3. Select Back Up and wait for the sync to finish

    4. iPhone Backup

Ready to Go!

There are two ways to upgrade the iOS on your device:

Upgrade on your device directly via Wi-Fi

  1. Open the Settings – General – Software Update.
  2. Wait for your device to check for updates. When it finds an available update, tap Install Update
  3. Wait for the update to download and install. Don’t do anything with your phone while it does.

We suggest you connect your device to power since it may run out the battery during update. When you see the message "Your software is up to date", the upgrade should be done.

Upgrade iOS through computer via iTunes

  1. Connect your iOS device to your Mac or Windows PC and open iTunes.
  2. Go to "Summary" tab and click "Check for Update" button
  3. Wait for the update to download and, when finished, confirm you want to install it. Wait for the update to install.

Your device may reboot several times during the update. After update, you need to do a primary configuration for your iOS 6 device. If you encounter any errors when update, please directly start over the upgrade process.