Tutorial: Unlock iPhone 3.1.2 with BlackSn0w

Sebastien, Nov 3, 2009

It’s official, BlackSn0w is out and available for download. BlackSn0w is not a standalone app. BlackSn0w is part of  Blackra1n RC3.

People who accidentally locked their iPhone on baseband 05.11.07 will now be able to unlock their iPhone using BlackSn0w.

This step by step guide and tutorial will show you how to unlock your iPhone OS 3.1.2 baseband 05.11.07 with BlackSn0w.

If you just want to jailbreak your iPhone and are not interested in unlocking, refer to my BlackRa1n RC3 tutorial.

This BlackSn0w iPhone unlock tutorial will work on both Mac and PC.

In this tutorial, I will assume that your iPhone is currently not jailbroken or unlocked.

If you are a loyal blackra1n user who kept the blackra1n.app on your iPhone, run it. You will see Icy replaced by an option “ra1n”. Install this to upgrade your app. After upgrading, run blackra1n.app again. You will see “sn0w”. Install this, and enjoy your unlocked iPhone.

If you jailbroke using pwnage or deleted your blackra1n.app, you are in luck too. Sometime later in the sn0wday, blacksn0w will be added to Cydia.

UPDATE: This post is outdated. There is now an easier way to unlock the iPhone. Click here for more info.

How to unlock iPhone firmware 3.1.2 with BlackSn0w:

Step 1: Update iTunes to the latest version available and reboot your computer. Make sure your iPhone runs the latest firmware 3.1.2. If not, update your iPhone to OS 3.1.2 and set it as a new phone (do not restore and set up from backup).

Step 2: Download BlackRa1n RC3 from our iPhone Downloads page. As mentionned above, you first have to run Blackra1n in order to run BlackSn0w.

Step 3: Plug your iPhone to your computer and make sure iTunes is closed. Run BlackRa1n RC3 and click on “make it ra1n”.

Step 4: Your iPhone will enter recovery mode and you will see the usual recovery image replaced by a picture of GeoHot.

Step 5: BlackRa1n will run on your iPhone and it will reboot when done.

Step 6: A message will show up asking to donate. If your jailbreak is successful, I think it’s the right thing to do to donate $5 or more. It’s a good way to keep GeoHot motivated.

Step 7: After your iPhone has rebooted, you will notice a new BlackRa1n icon on your springboard. Make sure you have an internet connection and launch BlackRa1n.app on your iPhone.

Step 8: You will now have the option to install Cydia, Rock, or both if you choose to. More importantly, you can also select “sn0w” which is the iPhone unlock for iPhone 3G and 3GS. Select at least Cydia and sn0w, then tap “install”. If you want to unlock an iPhone 2G, DO NOT install BlackSn0w. Simply install Cydia and skip to step 12.

Step 9: Once the packages are installed, your iPhone will respring and you should see Cydia (and Rock if you chose it) on your springboard.

Step 10: Once Cydia and/or Rock, and BlackSn0w are installed on your springboard, you can now uninstall BlackRa1n from your iPhone. Uninstalling BlackRa1n will obviously not remove the jailbreak and unlock. It will simply remove the BlackRa1n.app that was used to install the packages. To do so, simply launch the BlackRa1n.app and select “uninstall BlackRa1n”.

Step 11: After uninstalling BlackRa1n, I suggest you reboot your iPhone.

Step 12: This step is ONLY for iPhone 2G users who want to unlock. I repeat, if you have an iPhone 3G or 3GS, DO NOT process with this step. Launch Cydia and search for the BootNeuter app. Download and install it. Launch the BootNeuter app and tweak the settings as the image below.

When all the settings are set correctly, tap the “Flash” button. Now wait. It could take a while so be patient. Under no circumstance should you abort the process.

Done!

The whole process shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes (more for iPhone 2G that needs to be flashed). It definitely is an easy jailbreak and unlock.

If you have questions, please feel free to leave a comment below.

UPDATE: Having problems after running BlackSn0w (ie. no wifi, no 3G, no push)? Please see this article for a fix.

 
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  • Steve Hereford

    I have restarted it several times. I even restored it again and repeated the entire process but I still get the same thing. It just continues to say “searching” or “no service.” When I go back to the network under carriers it still reads “unable to load network list.” Is this due to the modem firmware now being 05.12.01?

  • Ankur

    I have 32GB FW 3.1.2 iPhone which i unlocked by blackra1n. But by accidentally turn off and when I turn on, it saws connect to itunes, so i tried to jailbreak again with blackra1n. I tried like 20 times to jailbreak but everytime i do, my screen not moving away from geo face and it says, “Your jailbreak is done once the device reboots. For tethered, run again to boot. … … ”

    it just rebooting and rejailbreaking with same message as above

    What do i need to do to turn my phone on without updating to 3.1.3

  • lee teng huii

    i had tried this the band width sucesfully changed but after that i got PLESE WAIT ..DETERMINING CURRENT SETTING for more than 30 min what to do? can i swith off my i phone help me……….

  • andrew

    I used to have my iphone unlocked until i updated it to 3.1.2 firmware on itunes with my t-mobile sim in it and it reset my iphone and i had to borrow someones at&t sim card to restore it. Then i tried to dl blackra1n again on my computer I get Blackra1n to complete the process and I get the pop up saying it is complete and asks for a donations and just wait for my iphone to reboot, but i my iphone never reboots it just stays as a lit up black screen and doesn’t reboot and eventually turns off and when i turn it back on blackra1n isnt on my iPhone. does anyone know whats going wrong?

  • Steve Hereford

    For those who updated to the latest 3.1.3. You need to downgrade to 3.1.2 run blackra1n and install Cydia. Search for Fuzzy Band to downgrade baseband. Install ultrasn0w from Cydia. Reboot and you’re back in business. Just did all this and it worked. For more go to http://ih8sn0w.com/index.php/products/view/f0recast.snow

  • mattchu7

    I have an iPhone 2G and I want to unlock it for T-Mobile. The only problem is that the phone saying please connect to itunes. Can I still unlock/jailbreak it by following the steps above.

    Thanks

  • Jimmy

    Thank’s a million ! Upgraded from 2.1 since I was using a Rebelsim-card to use my iphone 3G “unlocked”.
    With this I unlock I’m running in 3.1.2 without my rebelsimcard !!!
    Wonderful !
    I love you for making this happen.

    Thank’s again.

    / Jimmy

  • http://N/A PKW

    Ok. basically even after getting Geohot to make it rain, getting the blackra1n icon on my iPhone, nothing doing about network … practically is it that the 3.1.2 or 3.1.3 with bootloader 5.9 and modem firmware 05.12.01 impossible to penetrate ? :(

  • Richard

    Like many others on this thread, I am having issues unlocking an iPhone 3G with baseband 05.21.01. I am running iPhone OS 3.1.2, and jailbroke with Blackra1n.

    The phone says that it’s either searching for service, or has no service. Sometimes it’ll have one tiny bar of cellular service, but it never says T-Mobile on the side.

    Please help.Thanks.

  • AG

    So… I did the jailbraking and when I tryed to unlock with blacksn0w the screen of my iphone started only to show the apple image.
    Help please!!What should I do???
    Thanks

  • http://N/A PKW

    GEOhot .. plse come thru for your fans worldwide … make it ra1n on those of us with 3.1.2 bootloader 5.9 and modem firmware / baseband 05.12.01.

  • Albert

    I did it and reboot my iphone but i cant switch it on again. The screen just show an itunes logo and a cable logo. What should i do? I do not want to restore it
    I

  • Mack

    Hey – just a heads up for those if you that installed this app but are not seeing the options as shown in the screenshots.

    Your phone has to be unlocked in addition to being jailbroken.

    I did this today and the tether option is now visible and working!

  • Gemma

    Hi (3GS)

    I am having trouble with this- i have updated iphones and then rebooted my computer and run Blackra1n, and it says its succesful but the phone does not reboot or it just black screen after the picture of cable and itunes? Please help?

  • mike

    will this wipe my phone?

  • alvarys

    i dont have internet on my fone so how do i unlock it?

  • janis

    hi guys
    i have successfully installed blackra1n and unlocked my phone too. The thing is if i insert my at&t card i dont get any service. any ideas why?

  • OOgie Boogie

    Hey for all those 2G User’s Still Stuck In the mud as far as getting the Sim card Problem..

    Are you guys absolutely sure you upgraded to 3.12 and NOT 3.13?

    Make sure guys, you probably just upgraded blindly.

  • xiquinha

    eu queria saber como baxa o iphone no meu computador.?

  • Robbie

    At first I ran through it all but then my iPhone 3G got stuck turning on after I unlocked it using the blackra1n program. My iPhone then turned on and showed the picture of a USB cable pointing towards the iTunes icon, so I plugged it into my computer. iTunes recognized my iPhone and started to automatically restore it. I accidently clicked on ‘Stop’ but then pressed the restore button in the iPhone device area in iTunes. After resetting my iPhone (sleep/wake button + home button) it successfully turned on, with no signs of being unlocked. I then type in the word ‘black’ into the search, but nothing came up, other than a song by the Black Eyed Peas. After looking through all my apps nothing like blackra1n came up, so I assumed that the iPhone treated it as if nothing had happened. If I go through this process again, will the same thing happen? Also, I am running the firmware 3.1.3, not 3.1.2 as mentioned in the title, is this a problem?

  • Robbie

    Also is unlocking it the same as jailbreaking it?

  • Oogie Boogie

    @Robbie, Yes running 3.13 is definitely the problem, as 3.13 isn’t compatible with Blacksnow (And there’s no unlocking/jailbreaking application ready for 3.13.)

    You have to downgrade to 3.12 and then use Blacksnow to unlock/jailbreak.

  • Robbie

    Is it possible for me to downgrade to 3.1.2? And if I do will I lose all my content on my iPhone?

    Thanks for the quick respnse!

  • Wordasaur

    Yea, download the firmware 3.1.2. the bootneuter gave me a lot of problems with the flash, said the settings are updated and cannot be changed but when i put the tmobile sim card in the phone it doesn’t recognize the sim. going to start over by restoring the settings 3.1.2 and cross my fingers. been at it for 3wks and counting.

  • GeoNot

    Hi guys,

    I have an iphone 3g 8gb on 3.1.2. 5.11.07 i downloaded black rain, installed Cydia and Unlocked it but when i put my Tmobile sim card im getting no service. the phone is not recognizing the tmobile sim card. i never had this problem before, any ideas? i would really appreciate it. thx

  • mario09

    ok so i did everything n the tmobile sign or my network is not connectng wat can i do i need my phon e

  • http://www.ipadrepairs.org.uk arcus

    If you are getting

    ‘different sim inserted- connect to itunes’ after flashing with bootneuter and changing to a different, unofficial SIM then you need to patch the lockdown folder

    download lockdown.zip and delete the contents of /private/var/root/Library/Lockdown
    replace with the patched lockdown files. now reboot with the unofficial SIM inserted and all should be sweet]

    These steps worked only on win7 using ifunbox for me, not with mac and diskaid
    ]if you have jailbroken with blackra1n you will need to first install af2cadd from cydia to enable browsing of root partition

  • usman

    Hi Dear,

    I’ve just tried to install blackra1n through win7. But when I hit the button ”make it ra1n” it says

    ”the program can’t start because ASL.dll is missing from your computer. Try reinstalling the program to fix this problem.”

    What should I do. I downloaded the file again disabled all firewalls and tried on Vista with no antivirus install either.

    Does anyone has solution for that.

    I will appreciate any response.

  • Rex

    After following all the directions on the website I am unable to install either Cydia or Rock. They just say Error Downloading with a domain “timed out”. I have tried rebooting my iphone and also tried to download them one at a time multiple times with no luck. I have a strong wi-fi connection.

  • Bill

    After adding some applications to my jailbroke 3G Iphone, I installed the Tenius theme. When I turned it on, I all of a sudden only have one icon per page. Can anyone help me get my icons back. Even when I turned off the theme, I still only have one icon per page. I had previously installed a 5 row springboard with 5 columns and 5 rows. Now all I have is the 5 icon springboard with one icon each page. Help. I need my icons back.

  • Rex

    I got it to work.

  • Biggins

    I didn’t know about the BootNeuter app. I guess that’s why I had to restore it twice, lol. Thanks for the free unlock Geohot,

  • gaurav

    i have iphone with Bootloader Version 06.04
    Baseband 05.12.01
    OS Version 3.1.2……………..Can it be Unlocked????

  • DUCK

    how can i eneable internet tethering for a 3GS with 3.1.3?

    this method work?

  • sweet

    plz help me i have iphone but it was restore and now i can not insert any sim card they said the sim card not suported, plz let me know the way out!

  • Pooh Bear

    how come no one answer our questions

  • gaurav

    please help me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    i have iphone with Bootloader Version 06.04
    Baseband 05.12.01
    OS Version 3.1.2……………..Can it be Unlocked????

  • Sergio

    I have a question i have an iphone 3g running firmware 22.2.1 {5h11}.
    can i upgrade to 3.1.2 without updating to 3.1.3?

  • Sergio

    firmware 2.2.1

  • Jake

    i just unlocked it and everything and put in my t-mobile SIM card and i see i hav service, but it tells me to connect it with itunes and wont let me do anything.

  • http://www.megausdeals.com Hot deals

    Thanks for a great post

  • LAFreak

    Please help,

    I was trying to unlock my iphone 3G S 3.1.2 and there is a message telling me to restore the phone through itune. I did that and rebost the iphone and there is a message saying ” No SIM card installed. Insert a valid SIM with no PIN lock to activate iPhone” . What’s going on and how to solve it. Thanks in advance your advice.

  • Pooh Bear

    @LAfreak jus restore ur fone to 3.1.3 jailbreak it with spirit go into cydia then unlock it ultrasn0w

  • Niallo

    Help… Two days of trying to unlock my phone… My carrier is not appearing in my options. So I restored an new iphone, ran cydia and blackrain from iphone 3gs and it keep freezing on Apple Icon with little time circle appearing and re-appearing. I have even left the phone like this for over 1 hour and still no luck… I am so tired! Please help Guys!

  • gian

    so everything installed fine and its all working but when i put my simcard in it still says different sim detected please connect to itunes… please explain how to fix this

  • knox0202

    On my iphone 2g i did this i get the carrier name on the upper left corner and i got text messages too but the iphone says invalid sim card connect to itunes what should i do ?

  • Xavior

    I just used blackrain on my 2g fone. when it reboots it asks me to plug into itunes or make emergency calls

  • Dave Polaski

    Can you help me out? I have a 3G 16 GB that I sold to a person that some how locked it up. I didn’t know when I sold it to him that it was jailbroken with Blackrain and I think he tried to up grade to 3.1.3 on Itunes. Is there a way to get it back to the original jailbroke condition or is it toast?

  • ben

    i never had the option to donate. H3ll, that was so easy to jailbreak and unlock. I would definitely had paid for the service…

  • http://Unlock-iPhone-Reviews.com Steven

    Is workingbut I don’t know fr wat reason very slowlly.I find some software on Unlock-iPhone-Reviews.com and in few minute is working very good.Enjoy!

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