Apple just this week stopped signing iOS & iPadOS 17.2 in a move that effectively prevents iPhone and iPad owners from downgrading from the newer iOS & iPadOS 17.2.1 release.
For users who still hope to get onto iOS or iPadOS 17.2, the only known way to go about it currently is by taking advantage of the DelayOTA method to upgrade from an older firmware. This method should work for 90-ish days from the time of this writing.
Apple’s move to prevent firmware downgrades on its mobile devices was a predictable one, as the Cupertino-based company regularly unsigns older firmware just a couple weeks after releasing something newer.
This prevents users from attaching their iPhone or iPad to their computer and using the Shift + Click method in iTunes on Windows or the Option + Click method in Finder on macOS to perform a firmware downgrade to a designated firmware file that the user has downloaded.
While downgrading to older firmware certainly isn’t as common as it used to be, it’s commonplace among the jailbreakcommunity where users want to get on older firmware to hack and jailbreak it with the latest exploits.
But this is particularly the reason why Apple doesn’t want to allow downgrading. The company shields its position, saying that jailbreaking lowers device security, but we think this argument is a stretch, as many previously released jailbreak tweaks have patched security holes to protect users.
Jailbreaking aside, some iPhone or iPad users will use downgrading as a means to return to stable firmware when a software upgrade brings about a bug that makes using their device unbearable. While uncommon, it has happened numerous times in the past, such as the examples listed below:
- iOS 16.0 over-prompting users on clipboard access when pasting copied content into another app
- iOS 14.7 breaking the Apple Watch’s ability to be unlocked with the host iPhone’s Touch ID sensor
- iOS & iPadOS 13.2 imposing incredibly aggressive background management on backgrounded apps
At iDownloadBlog, we think that users should be able to install whatever firmware version they want on their iPhone or iPad, regardless of how much Apple hates the jailbreak community. And given all the legislation against Apple around the globe as of late, we wouldn’t be surprised to see something fighting this controlling behavior in the future.
As always, you can check to see what firmware is being signed for your device by checking the IPSW.me website. You can also visit our Downloads page to acquire any firmware file that you may need for your device.
Has Apple’s unsigning of iOS & iPadOS 17.2 affected you in any way? Let us know in the comments section down below.