Though there are tools that make it easy to jailbreak iPhone, things have got a lot more complicated and confusing with the release of iOS4 and updated boot ROM in iPhone 3GS models.
We had published a step-by-step guide on how to find out iPhone 3GS bootrom version. But as some of our readers have pointed out there is an easier way to find out without putting your iPhone 3GS in DFU mode.
iH8sn0w, developers of popular jailbreaking tool, Sn0wbreeze had released a tool called F0recast for iPhone OS 3.1.3 to find out if your iPhone 3GS can be jailbroken with or without tethering and whether your iPhone can be unlocked.
F0recast also gives the information such as the serial number, baseband version, bootloader version and model number of your iPhone.
However, iH8sn0w hasn’t updated F0recast for iOS 4 so information about jailbreaking, unlocking is not very accurate.
But you can easily find out if iPhone 3GS has older or newer bootrom using F0recast.
All you need to do is connect your iPhone 3GS to the computer and launch F0recast.
Mac Users:
F0recast for Mac will let you know if iPhone 3GS can be ‘Untethered’ (as seen in the screenshot below). If it is ‘Yes’ then your iPhone 3GS has the older bootrom. iPhone 3GS has the new bootroom if it is ‘No’.
Note: F0recast should be used only to find out iPhone 3GS bootrom version for now as it hasn't been updated for iOS 4 and the related progress on jailbreaking and unlocking it so the information such as 'Jailbreakable', 'Unlockable' is not completely accurate.
Windows Users:
F0recast for Windows will let you know if iPhone 3GS can be ‘Tethered’ (as seen in the screenshot below). If it is ‘No’ then your iPhone 3GS has the older bootrom. iPhone 3GS has the new bootroom if it is ‘Yes’.
Note: F0recast should be used only to find out iPhone 3GS bootrom version for now as it hasn't been updated for iOS 4 and the related progress on jailbreaking and unlocking it so the information such as 'Jailbreakable', 'Unlockable' is not completely accurate.
The requirements for the application to run properly include .Net Frameworks 2.0 or higher, and iTunes 9.0 or higher for Windows users and iTunes 9.0 or higher for Mac users.
You can download the latest version of F0recast for free from iH8sn0w’s website.
Please drop us a line if you've any further questions.
Thanks everyone for reminding us about F0recast.
Hi What if it says that it depends if it has been refurbished? which mine has
first for all of the dicks out there
I have iPhone 3GS with 3.1.3 firmware with Spirit jail and ultrasn0w unlock (prev. locked with AT&T) and f0recast shows that my iPhone is not unlockable and maybe tethered if refurbished (bootloader 6.4, model MC135, bb 05.12.01)….
F0recast should be used only to find out iPhone 3GS bootrom version for now as it hasn't been updated for iOS 4 and the related progress on jailbreaking and unlocking it so the information such as 'Jailbreakable', 'Unlockable' is not completely accurate.
mine says that too
IS THIS A WAY TO SAY THAT NEW BOOTROM 3GS IS IMPOSSIBLE TO UNLOCK ? BECAUSE I HAVE AN IPHONE UPDATED TO 3.1.3 WITH NEW BOOTROM AND I'M VERY INTERESTED TO KNOW IF I WIIL THROW UP MY IPHONE. PLS RESPOND
f0recast isn't a good program. All it does is look at the serial number and then 'guesstimates' the bootrom version based on that. It doesn't check the actual version of it.
There is one thing i dont understand so i have an Iphone 3GS, old bootroom, with 3.1.3 JBed with Spirit. I then did a restore using stock 4.0 then tried to do a restore using 4.0 customed with Snowbreeze, but i got the error 1604, so i kept getting it again and again without any solution. Is this because i had 3.1.3 JBed with Spirit or some other cause? (before u recommend a solution to this i must say i do not have any SSH files to downgrade it to another version and then JB using another method and then upgrade to 4.0) Tyvm for any advice!
lol
( i think its not working! my iphone 3gs in unlock and jailbreak also ! but is showing unlock:- NO :-ww
teThered:- NO:)
in pc
tetherd?
maybe-depends if refurb
…whaddafuck?
"Depends if it's refurbished"
also, aren't all 3GS's untethered with spirit, or am I wrong?
I know mine is, I just wanted to see this tool work, and it doesnt.
Read the article again.
Hi there! I'm very new & green with all these jailbreaking & updating stuff, esp when it comes to SHSH files, teethering etc. I am in a spot with my 3GS at the moment & would very much appreciate it if anyone could offer any advice.
Problem:
My iPhone 3GS 32GB was updated to 3.1.3 sometime back, then jailbrroken with Spirit. Everything worked fine, till a few days ago when I felt rather confident (albiet now feeling very stupid) to update to the latest iOS4. I realised that there are a few issues with the new OS. The multitasking doesn't seem to be working as what Mr Jobs demonstrated it to be. Furthermore, my 3G now doesn't work (with Cellular Data switched on or off). I've read & watched some online tutorials regarding downgrading my OS back to 3.1.3 & have tried it, but to no avail. At some point, the error message read "incompatible firmware" or something similar. Please help as I feel rather "naked" without my JB. It's as if the phone is useless to me without jailbreaking. I hope someone with the right levels of experience & expertise can assist me with my issues. I thank you all very much for your time. Pls e-mail me any suggestions or advice at: farq76@hotmail.com.
Regards,
Adrian.
Don't worry Adrian, at some point we were all noobs. Your issue is due to the fact that there is a problem with ios4 taking backup data from your restore file after u upgraded to ios4. I had the same problem with my 3GS. I did the upgrade in iTunes, and at the end it asks you if you want to restore your settings from a backup, or setup your phone as a new iPhone. Unfortunatley you will have to setup iPhone as a new phone. When I restored my backup, safari would only work on wifi, and some of my jailbreak settings were still visible, like "custom carrier logo". Needless to say once I did the recovery a 2nd time, and did not restore my previous backup, but setup the iPhone as new, and then synced it to get my contacts, music, and apps back. The good thing about your phone is it's a 3G, so after you have recovered it, you can jailbreak it with redsnow, add the rep for ultrasnow, and unlock it. One thing I would recommend is not adding user wallpaper, or multitasking during the jailbreak process, as I have observed the 3G is very slow with those 2 options enabled
Good luck
Update: sorry Adrian I just noticed you have a 3GS, so for now you will only be able to recover your phone, and not jailbreak it. Sorry, Halfway through your post you switched from talking about a 3GS, to a 3G, I just noticed that.
i have a MC132X and when i use f0recast it comes up with tethered maybe im so confused..also its a 3gs, stupidly i went to iOS4 and cant get back…funny thing is though i used a program on 3.1.3 to change my carrier name wouldnt that go back to normal after installing iOS4? coz it hasnt so does that mean i can JB again?
my 3gs unswer was "maybe tethered if refurbished "
whart does it mean is new boot or old one?
hi,
i have get this when i run forecaster on my phone.
serial# 8*******
baseband 05.12.01
bootloader 5.9
model mb702
jailbreakable yes (always)
unlockable? NO
tetherd NO
i have tried the following jailbreaks
Blackrain-didnt work
redsnow 0.9.4-didnt work
i upgraded my phone by mistake and now it is stuck on the emergency screen.
my firmware version is 3.1.3
itunes reads my phone but its says sim not supported.
please help i need to know if i could actually unlock it or hackivate it……..and with what software
Hello,
Mine is a 3GS, 3.1.2. Does this mean that I can't use this tool?
Lmao
I'm pretty sure that using Spirit to jailbreak means that you've loaded the new bootrom, which means with out shsh baked up you can't jailbreak
use the spirit jailbreak for iphone os 3.1.3
Hi there Ryan, many thanks for your advice & suggestions! I will try to restore my phone as new. I'm not so bunged-up about loosing data as I suspected shld things go "south", i'd be hard pressed to restore my phone to "new" & have already physically backed up my data.
Having said that, I was wondering is there a slightest chance that i'd be able to downgrade back to 3.1.3? I've read that a couple of users downgraded their firmware & even watched tutorials on how to do it. However when I tried it myself, I failed. Has it got anything to do with my boot-rom being the newer version?
If all else fails, I will have to be patient & await the boffins' jailbreak for the iOS4. I have every faith that they will be successful (as always).
By the way, do you have any input on the new iOS4? Do you think it's better than a JB'ed 3.1.3? I personally feel that speed is slightly enhanced with the OS4, but the folders only allow 10 apps per folder, plus the multitask is quite a pain, with even the "settings" app also being "tasked" each time I use it. Not sure where the significance is but as long as u open any app the OS seems to background it. Now will this cause losses in performance or battery life? I'm wondering.
PS. thanks Ryan for your advice – really appreciate it.
Adrian Lee.
First create Custom IPSW with snowbreeze on 0s4,For 3GS with old bootrom 6.4, MC135ll, 4.0 os, If you did the cydia save with shsh. Downgrade to 3.12- jailbreak with blackra1n, go through the activation with itunes 9.2. then hit shift And restore and look for custom 4.0 os snowbreeze IPSW. Forget about if you used spirit. Your phone will jailbreak with no 1600 Error.
I did mine like that and then added Ultrasn0w. Keebs357
Spirit does not work for phones that are stuck on emergency screen or recovery……is there another alternative
Plz let me know if u find a way 2 activate it!! I have the same problem like u
:(
I had the same issue, what I did was just restore a back up that was made before u Jb with spirit and it works fine. Hope it helps
I agree that the multi-tasking is quite a pain with the update. It in fact DOES decrease battery life. Having to manually close EVERY application I open is super frustrating.
I seriously regret updating my 3gs to the OS4 firmware. My jailbroken 3gs with the backgrounder and pro-switcher was a beautiful thing. If anyone is considering updating their 3gs, DON'T DO IT!! If you want a better phone, than buy the iPhone 4, as it is faster and has the front camera (only 2 things better in my opinion). Plus it can be jailbroken for your free apps and winterboard stuff. But DO NOT update your jailbroken 3gs! There is honestly no point. No point at all!
ya….wot u can do is to jailbreak with spirit….and unlock in cydia through repo666.ultrasn0w.
what does the Maybe-Depends if Refurb mean the tethered? field?
So as long as Forecast says untethered: yes the phone can be unlocked?
does that go for the 05.12.01 baseband as well?
the bad news that my iphone 3gs is new bootroom it means 4.0 and it will not jealbreakkkkkkkkk :'( is there anyways to solve that ?????? please respond
Has anyone figured out what the "Maybe-Depends if Refurb " mean? This is what i see when i run f0recast in the
Tethered field.
My 3GS is stuck in recovery mode. Jailbroken with Blackra1n. Running Blackra1n doesn't help, the reboot isn't happening. Should I restore it to iOS4? Is there any way to tell, if it's old or new boot rom in recovery mode?
i have a 3gs on ios4 and when i run forecast on windows vista it says
Tethered – NO
does this mean i have the old bootrom.
Its the same refurbished my has the new boot and its jailbroken now WOOT
I have checked bootrom its old using above steps…now I can not turn my iphone ON???? its still in black screeen…please help
I tried to download f0recast on my Mac and when I tried to open it, it says it's not compatible with my operating system? I know I downloaded the Mac version! Help!
so wat the answer for maybe tethered if refurbished 05.12.01?
So I am a newbie too and cannot say that I have understood everything, although … the fog is lifting.
I have a 3GS, IOS 4.0, Model MBxxxx, 05.13.04. It has been used with At&T and never been jailbroken.
I have looked at numerous sides and according to the table in Wiki it should be possible to jailbreak the phone with sn0wbreeze 1.7. I manged to make a custom IPSW, however, loading it in DFU mode resulted in an Error 1600.
Now I am stuck. Can anyone help me how to jailbreak the 3GS, IOS 4, not previous jailbroken with old bootram???
Thanks!!!
So now you can't jailbreak iphone 3GS on windows is that right??
Thanks for your help
Vincent
mine's on 3.1.3 and it says that it can't be unlocked or tethered but yet mine is unlocked so i know what ur talking about and i have the baseband 05.13.04 with bootloader 5.9 but i put a t-mobile chip in and its works and reads t-mobile so f0recast is a crock of shit
hi there, im new hear and also new in iphone jailbrake. can someone help me explain about the forecast. dis wat they say:
Model: mc134
jailbreakable? only with shsh blobs. wat dis mean?
unlockable? no.
Tehthered? depends on jailbreak. Wat does dis mean?
thank u guys. PLease help me out.