Few days back, iPhone Dev team had released a new version of Redsn0w for iOS 5 that also included the PwnageTool functionality, which allows users to create a custom iOS firmware file that can be used to update the iPhone to jailbroken iOS 5, while preserving the baseband so that they can use Ultrasn0w to unlock it.

In this guide, we will take you through the step by step procedure to jailbreak iPhone running iOS 5 without updating the baseband using Redsn0w.

Here are some important points to note before you proceed.

• This guide is meant for iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS users who are interested in unlocking their iPhone using Ultrasn0w – a software method. iPod touch 4G and iPod touch 3G users can checkout this guide, while iPad users can checkout this guide.
• If you don’t care about unlocking your iPhone and/or preserving the baseband then checkout this step-by-step guide.
• This guide is meant only Mac users as Redsn0w with the PwnageTool functionality is only available for Mac users.
• This guide is meant only for GSM iPhone users.
• This guide is only applicable if you haven’t upgraded to iOS 5.
• Please go through our latest status update on jailbreaking iOS 5 to figure out if you should jailbreak iOS 5.
• Redsn0w 0.9.9b6 only supports a tethered jailbreak, which means that you need to connect your iPhone to the computer on every reboot.
• Please note that jailbreaking your iPhone may void your warranty and hence proceed with caution and at your own risk.
• Please do not forget to backup your iPhone before you proceed. You can refer to this post for instructions on how to backup your iPhone.
• If you’ve jailbroken your iPhone then you can use jailbreak apps such as AptBackup, PkgBackup or xBackup from Cydia to take a backup of all the jailbreak apps and tweaks so you can reinstall them easily after successfully jailbreaking your iPhone rather then installing them individually. However, since you’re moving from iOS 4.x to iOS 5, it may be a good idea to reinstall the jailbreak apps to avoid compatibility issues.
• After the jailbreaking process is complete, do not forget to checkout our article on tips to keep your iPhone secure.
• Please ensure you are running latest version of iTunes i.e. iTunes 10.5 or later.
• Known issue: iBooks keeps crashing after jailbreaking iPhone using this method. Dev team is currently working to fix the issue.

You can follow these step-by-step instructions to jailbreak your iPod touch 4G or iPod touch 3G:

Step 1: Download Redsn0w 0.9.9b7 for Mac from this link and save the application in a folder named “Redsn0w” on your desktop.

Step 2: You need to download both the iOS 5 firmware file (use Firefox or Chrome to download the firmware file instead of using Internet Explorer or Safari):

iOS 5 firmware file for iPhone 4 from this link (iPhone3,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw)

iOS 5 firmware file for iPhone 3GS from this link (iPhone2,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw)

Step 3: Double click the Redsn0w zip file and extract the application to the Redsn0w folder.

Step 4: Connect your iPhone to the computer, which should automatically launch iTunes.

Step 5: Navigate back to the Redsn0w folder and launch the Redsn0w application.

Step 6: Click on the “Extras” button.

Step 7: Here click on the “Custom IPSW” button from the options.

Step 8: Navigate to the Redsn0w folder on the desktop and select the downloaded iOS 5 firmware file (iPhone 4 users – please select iPhone3,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw and iPhone 3GS users – please select iPhone2,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw).

Step 9: Redsn0w should now creating the custom iOS 5 firmware file.

Step 10: Once the custom iOS 5 firmware file is successfully created, you will be notified with a dialogue box. Click on the Ok button to continue. You will notice that Redsn0w has created the custom iOS 5 firmware file with a prefix “NO_BB_”. So custom iOS 5 firmware file for iPhone 4 will be NO_BB_iPhone3,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw and for iPhone 3GS it will be NO_BB_iPhone2,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw.

Step 11: You will now need to put your iPod touch into the DFU mode. Redsn0w will take you through the necessary steps:

(a) Hold the Power button on iPod touch down for 3 seconds:

(b) Now simultaneously hold the iPod touch and keep the two buttons pressed for 10 seconds:

(c) Now release the Power button while keeping the Home button pressed until Redsn0w detects the device:

Step 12: Redsn0w will run the Limera1n exploit.

Step 13: You will be notified when your iPhone is in Pwned DFU mode. The Pwned DFU will allow you to restore your iPhone using the custom iOS 5 firmware file.

Step 14: Now launch iTunes.

Step 15: From the ‘Devices‘ section on the left pane of iTunes, select your iPhone. Now, hold down the Option button and click the ‘Restore‘ button.

Important Note: It is very important that you hold down the Option button else you will end up accidentally upgrading your iPhone to iOS 5, so please follow the instructions carefully.

Step 16: Navigate to the Redsn0w folder on the desktop and select the downloaded iOS 5 firmware file (iPhone 4 users – please select NO_BB_iPhone3,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw and iPhone 3GS users – please select NO_BB_iPhone2,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw). Click on the ‘Choose‘ button to let iTunes update your iPhone with the jailbroken custom iOS 5 firmware. You will be asked to setup your iPhone either from a previous backup or setup as a new iPhone, select the backup you want for your device (ideally should be the most recent one). Wait for iTunes to finish.

After this, you need to follow the instructions in our step-by-step guide to jailbreak your iPhone on iOS 5.

If you’re new to the jailbreaking world and wondering what to do after jailbreaking your iPhone, checkout our jailbreak apps category page to find out the apps you can install on your iPhone using the Cydia app. Please note that some of the jailbreak apps and tweaks are still not compatible with iOS 5 so please be cautious while installing them.

Note: Once Redsn0w has finished jailbreaking your iPhone, you will need to boot it tethered, which means that if you need to reboot your iPhone it will be stuck on the Apple logo. All you need to do is rerun Redsn0w and this time click on Extras and then click on Just boot from the list of options and follow the on screen instructions to reboot your iPhone.

Troubleshooting:

How to fix the White/Blank Cydia icon issue:

If you notice the white Cydia icon (which fails to launch) after successfully jailbreaking your iPod touch. Then follow these steps to fix the issue.

• Launch Redsn0w again.
• Click on Extras and then click on Just Boot from the list of options.
• You will now be prompted to plug your iPhone to the computer and switch it off. Follow the instructions in the correct sequence and click on ‘Next‘ to move to the next screen:
• You will now need to put your iPhone into the DFU mode. Redsn0w will take you through the necessary steps:
• Hold the Power button on iPhone down for 3 seconds.
• Now simultaneously hold the iPhone and keep the two buttons pressed for 10 seconds.
• Now release the Power button while keeping the Home button pressed until Redsn0w detects the device.
• Your device will reboot and you will see the Pwnage icon on your iPod touch’s screen for few minutes.
• After your iPhone is successfully rebooted, you will see the regular Cydia icon (brown). You should now be able to launch Cydia without any issue.

Hope this helped. Please don’t forget to let us know how it goes in the comments and drop us a line if you hit any issues.

Update:

Download link for Redns0w has been updated with the latest version – Redsn0w 0.9.9 beta 7