To everyone’s surprise, and as we reported first, the Pangu jailbreak for iOS 8 and iOS 8.1 was released earlier today courtesy of a mysterious team of Chinese jailbreak developers.

Some important points before you proceed:

• This tutorial is for Windows users. Pangu team hasn’t released a Mac version yet.
• Please note Pangu is an untethered jailbreak for iOS 8 and iOS 8.1
• You won’t be able to install Cydia, as it is incompatible with iOS 8 and iOS 8.1 (Update: Cydia for iOS 8 is released, installation link at the bottom)
• Pangu supports following iOS 8 and iOS 8.1 devices:
  • iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5, iPhone 4S
  • iPad Air, iPad 4, iPad 3, iPad 2
  • iPad mini, Retina iPad mini
  • iPod touch 5G
• Please disable the passcode as the jailbreak may fail, if the passcode is enabled (Settings -> General -> Passcode Lock On -> Turn Passcode Off).
• Take a backup of your device using iTunes before proceeding.
• Please ensure you’ve updated iTunes to the latest version.
• Please note that jailbreaking your iOS device may void your warranty and hence proceed with caution and at your own risk.

Step 1: Download the latest version of Pangu jailbreak from this link

Step 2: Connect your device to your computer, and use iCloud or iTunes to back up any and all personal information that you need to keep safe. The jailbreak has been reported to be working in most cases, but on the off chance something goes wrong, it’s a good idea to have an escape plan.

Step 3: The Pangu team says that if you’ve done an OTA update, the jailbreak might not work. So please do a fresh install of iOS 8.1. Download links and instructions can be found here.

Step 4: Disable Passcode from Settings > Touch ID & Passcode and turn off Find my iPhone from Settings > iCloud > Find my iPhone.

Step 5: Please launch the application as an Administrator. Right Click on the Pangu exe and select the “Run as Administrator” option.

Step 6: You should be presented with a screen like the one seen below. The application is in Chinese, and if you don’t have the required Chinese fonts on your laptop, you might see question marks instead of Chinese text.

Step 7: Uncheck the checkbox on the left that says “PP” and then click on the blue Jailbreak button.

Step 8: You’ll see the progress of the jailbreak, and the current stage in the 6 step jailbreak process. Follow the on-screen instructions.

Step 9:  You’ll see that your device tells you there’s a restore in progress. Wait for your device to reboot several times. The entire process should take around 5 to 10 minutes.

Step 10: After the jailbreak process completes, you’ll see a Pangu app on your device. This confirms that your device is jailbroken. While there’s no Cydia (Update: Cydia for iOS 8 is available, check link at bottom for details), you can install OpenSSH, and a few other tools to play around with the jailbroken iOS device’s file system. Hopefully, Cydia will be available through this app as well.

Here’s a video tutorial:

After the jailbreaking process is complete, do not forget to checkout our article on tips to keep your jailbroken device secure. You won’t be able to install Cydia or any tweaks yet as saurik has yet to update the package manager for iOS 8.

Update: Cydia should be available from Pangu soon, but if you can’t wait until then, here’s our guide on how to install Cydia:

➤ How to install Cydia on iOS 8 – iOS 8.1 after using Pangu Jailbreak

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