How to jailbreak iPhone 3GS running iOS 5.1.1 with Redsn0w on Windows

If you are one of the many people that own an iPhone 3GS that is running the iOS 5.1 firmware and if your iPhone 3GS is Jailbroken you may have doubts whether or not to update to the iOS 5.1.1 firmware (that was released on May 7, 2012) especially if you want to keep your iPhone 3GS Jailbroken. You may also have these doubts even if you are already running the iOS 5.1.1 firmware. Speaking of which, we must say the iOS 5.1.1 firmware is a nice improvement over the 5.1 firmware version; it adds increased stability for when you’re using HDR for photos took using the lock-screen shortcut, it fixes a variety of bugs (among which we find an AirPlay playback bug and a bug that occurred when switching from 3G to 2G and vice versa) and it also offers a better and more reliable sync between Reading List and Safari bookmarks. So if you want to take advantage of the improved stability of bug fixes brought by the iOS 5.1.1 firmware but at the same time have a Jailbroken iPhone 3Gs, keep reading.

You’ve seen what the 5.1.1 version of iOS firmware improves over the old version, but you still don’t know if, upon updating to the iOS 5.1.1 firmware, or if you are already running it on your iPhone 3GS, you will still be able to Jailbreak your iPhone 3GS. Well, the answer is yes, you will be able to Jailbreak your iPhone 3GS tethered with the Windows 0.9.10b8b version of RedSnow. If you happen to be new to the world of Jailbreaks, you may not know what all these terms mean and Jailbreak, tethered, RedSn0w might sound like information overload. Well, if that is the case, before guiding you through the actual iPhone 3GS tethered Jailbreak process we will try to explain what each of these terms means, so make sure you read the next paragraphs before looking at the Jailbreak steps.

The first term that we will explain is Jailbreak. To Jailbreak an iPhone (though the process is not actually exclusive to the iPhone; you can also jailbreak your iPad and iPod touch) means to get full execute and write access on all of your iPhone (or iPad / iPod touch) partitions and that can be achieved after installing a software application, or to be more precise, you have to patch /private/etc/fstab in order to mount the System partition as read-write. You may be wondering what advantages a Jailbrake nets you and we can answer that: it is very simple, Jailbreak means you can customize your iPhone’s themes and ring tones or use 3rd party tweaks and Apps but your iPhone will also retain all its functions that it had before the Jailbreak process. Namely, you will still be able to access iTunes and the App Store. We must make a note as some people mistake Jailbreaking with unlocking an iPhone; these are different processes and to unlock your iPhone (if it was bought from another country/region) you will first need to Jailbreak it.

The next term that we will explain is RedSn0w. RedSn0w is the software that you will use to Jailbreak your iPhone 3GS and it works under the Windows and OS X Operating Systems. It was first named QuickPwn, but with version 0.7 the name was changed to RedSn0w and it also added the ability to unlock supported devices. The 0.9.10b8b version of RedSn0w can Jailbreak your iPhone 3GS tethered running iOS 5.1.1. To Jailbreak your iPhone / iPad / iPod touch with RedSn0w, you must first connect the iDevice to a personal computer (you can use a regular USB cable) and then you must follow a few steps that we will go over in detail in a bit. Another thing to note here is that the RedSn0w tool is free and you can find it on our site.

We started with the terms Jailbreak and RedSn0w because once you understand these terms (and what they are used for) it will be easier for us to explain and for you to understand what tethered Jailbreak means. The notion suggests, as you might expect, that your iPhone needs to be connected to your personal computer and in a way that is exactly what tethered Jailbreaking means. To explain in plain language, once the jailbreak process is completed for your iPhone 3GS, if your device loses power, when you will boot it again you will have to boot it using the RedSnow tool (RedSn0w will write some code on it so that it can take advantage of the exploit). That said, tethered means that every time you boot a tethered jailbroken iPhone, you will have to connect it (which is why the term tethered was used) to your personal computer (using the dock connector) and use the RedSn0w tool to write code on it. Otherwise it won’t boot, because of the jailbreak process: there are parts where your iPhone 3GS will fail one (or several) signature check. That is exactly why a tethered jailbreak means that you need to connect the iPhone to your computer and use the same tool that you used in the initial jailbreak (and select the ‘boot tethered’ option), every time you need reboot the iDevice.

After all the explaining, and hoping that you now understand what these terms mean and their role in the process, it is time for the actual ‘how to’ guide. We will structure the guide in nine very easy steps, each of them being explained in detail so that you will have no difficulties in  Jailbreaking your iPhone 3GS tethered on iOS 5.1.1. Oh and in case it’s not obvious from the article’s title, for the purpose of this guide we will use RedSn0w 0.9.10b8b for the Windows Operating System.

 Step 1.

The first and most obvious thing you need to do first is get the 0.9.10b8b version of RedSn0w for the Windows Operating System. As you already know, you can’t do anything without RedSn0w because it is the free tool that is needed foe the Jailbroke process. We already provided you with a link to download RedSn0w from our Jailbreak Downloads Section, so go there and download RedSn0w 0.9.10b8b for Windows. Another thing to do in step 1 of the jailbreaking process, is to download the iOS 5.1.1 firmware for your iPhone 3GS. The iOS 5.1.1 firmware can also be found in our Downloads Section, so while you are there for the RedSn0w tool don’t forget to also grab the iOS 5.1.1 firmware. If you are already running the iOS 5.1.1 firmware on your iPhone 3GS, there is no need to download it.

Step 2.

In the second step, you will have to extract the RedSn0w 0.9.10b8b archive. Once you have downloaded the tool from our Downloads Section here at iOS doc, you will have to go to the download’s location and right click on the RedSn0w file. A menu should appear and from it you will need to select  the ‘extract to folder‘ option and the tool will be unpacked. After it is done extracting, you have to find the redsn0w.exe file and double click to open it. In some cases you might need to run the file with administrator rights; this can be done by right clicking the redsn0w.exe file and choosing the ‘Run as administrator‘ option.

Step 3.

Once you have the RedSn0w tool opened, you are ready to begin the Jailbreak process. The RedSn0w tool will offer you two options and they are: the first option is Jailbreak and the second option is Extras. To begin the Jailbreak process, you will have to press Jailbreak, of course, so when you are ready, click on it.

Step 4.

After choosing the Jailbreak option, you will see a screen that will ask you to enter your iPhone 3GS into DFU mode. This needs some explaining: DFU is an acronym and it stands for Device Firmware Update. On the screen you will see some instructions on how to enter your iPhone 3GS into DFU mode and we suggest you read them before doing anything else. To make you a summary, firstly you will need to make sure that your iPhone 3GS is plugged to your personal computer and once that is done, you will have to turn your iPhone off. After both these conditions are fulfilled (so your iPhone 3GS is plugged in and it is also turned off) you can go ahead and click the next button, to enter DFU mode.

Step 5.

Your iPhone 3GS is ready to enter DFU mode now. You will see some instruction on the screen and they will be presented to you in real time; these instructions will guide you through the process. So please follow them.

• First, you have to hold down the Power button for five seconds; you will find the power button in the corner.
• Once the five seconds pass, while you keep holding the Power button you will need to hold the Home button. Both the Home button and the Power button should be held for ten seconds.

• The last part of the process: without releasing the Home button but you can however release the Power button; but you should keep holding the Home button for another 15 seconds.

You are now ready for step six.

Step 6.
If you followed the on screen instruction that we presented in the previous step, your iPhone 3GS should now be in DFU mode and RedSn0w will start precessing the iOS firmware. Assuming there were no problems with the whole Jailbreak process until, you should now see an on screen message that tells you RedSn0w is “Preparing jailbreak data“.

Step 7.

After the RedSn0w tool completes processing the iOS firmware, the Jailbreak process is almost ready to begin. Almost ready because before it begins, you will have to select a few options for the Jailbreak process. There is a list of options to choose from and they are:  “Install Cydia”, “Install custom bundle” and “Deactivate“. The most important option and the one you must make sure to check is the “Install Cydia” option. The other two options should be left unchecked. Once you ticked the “Install Cydia” box you can press next to start the Jailbreak process.

Step 8.

During this step, the Jailbreak process is ongoing and it doesn’t need much input from you. You need however, to make sure that you do not stop the Jailbreak process and you shouldn’t use your personal computer for anything else for the duration of the process. After the process is complete, your iPhone 3GS will be automatically rebooted and you will also notice that it won’t get past the Apple logo. There is no reason to panic as it is to be expected; we already explained how, because this is a tethered Jailbreak, you will need to put your iPhone 3GS into DFU mode again and use  the RedSn0w 0.9.10b8b tool to boot it.

Step 9.

For the ninth and final step, you will need to open the RedSn0w 0.9.10b8b tool again in case you already closed it. Once the tool is opened, the first thing you need to do in order to boot your tethered Jailbroken iPhone 3GS is to click on the ‘Extras’ button and then, from the list of available options you will have to click on the ‘Just Boot’ button. Keep in mind that you will have to repeat this step every time you reboot your iPhone 3GS, as it is a tethered Jailbroke.

Assuming you followed all these steps and there were no problems, you should now be the owner of a Jailbroken iPhone 3GS, running the iOS 5.1.1 firmware. That means your iPhone is ready for every tweak available on a Jailbroken iPhone and also for Cydia. If you have any questions or suggestions, please use the comments section below.