Method that was underway to install TrollStore on iOS 17.0 confirmed not working, back to the drawing board

While the TrollStore v2 perma-signing utility is compatible with iOS & iPadOS 17.0, there is currently no way for prospective users to install it on this particular firmware as of now.

Possible TrollStore installation method for iOS 17.0

A small subset of users may already have TrollStore on iOS or iPadOS 17.0 because they used the DelayOTA method to upgrade to iOS or iPadOS 17.0 on a device that already had TrollStore installed on it back when they had the chance, but this is no longer relevant today as the signing window long gone.

Fortunately, there could be a light at the end of that tunnel, as iOS developer BomberFish said in a post shared to X (formerly Twitter) on Friday that installing TrollStore might be possible on iOS & iPadOS 17.0 soon enough.

Before you get too excited though, this is all in theory. The developer is still in the midst of trying to figure out how to best leverage a specific bug that will make this installation method for iOS & iPadOS 17.0 possible, and there’s still a chance that it won’t work. That said, we don’t recommend poking and prodding the developer for ETAs, as it’s not only rude, but it may never come to light in the first place.

Update: After some attempts to get this working, trusted members of the community have come out and said that the method is unfortunately not viable and will not work. This means that hackers will need to find a new method to install TrollStore on iOS 17.0:

Developers confirm iOS 17.0 TrollStore install method isn’t working.

BomberFish wasn’t specific about the bug they’re trying to use to make this work, but they did say the bug was patched in iOS & iPadOS 17.1. That said, we aren’t sure if it’s a known bug with an assigned CVE or one that’s being privately kept for use.

Unlike with a jailbreak, installing TrollStore doesn’t require as many resources. The Dopamine v2 jailbreak came into existence because of a recently published Page Protection Layer (PPL) bypass in addition to the Kernel File Descriptor (KFD) kernel exploit, but as you may remember, installing TrollStore on firmware supported by Dopamine v2 was always possible with only the KFD exploit and no PPL bypass.

On iOS & iPadOS 17.0, a (Secure Page Table Monitor (SPTM) bypass would be required to make a jailbreak instead of a PPL bypass, but just like with iOS & iPadOS 16, a viable kernel exploit is all we need to install TrollStore. Given that we don’t have a SPTM bypass yet, but we do have a potentially viable bug for iOS & iPadOS 17.0, this is why we’re hearing of this news today.

Also important to clarify is that TrollStore doesn’t work on all versions of iOS & iPadOS 17 — only 17.0. That’s because iOS & iPadOS 17.0.1 and later patch the CoreTrust bug that TrollStore exploits to make perma-signing apps possible. So, if you’re on iOS or iPadOS 17.0.1 or later, then none of this actually applies to you.

In any case, news that installing TrollStore on iOS & iPadOS 17.0 could soon be possible is great news, especially for anyone who held out on the lowest possible firmware and avoided software updates. After all, should an iOS or iPadOS 17.0 jailbreak ever surface, it would pair exceptionally well with TrollStore, just like Dopamine currently does on iOS & iPadOS 15 and 16.

In addition to iOS & iPadOS 17.0, the full list of supported firmware for TrollStore is as follows: iOS & iPadOS 14.0 beta 2 – 16.6.1, 16.7 RC (20H18), and 17.0. You can learn more about TrollStore on the project’s GitHub page.

Are you hyped about the possibility of a TrollStore installation method for iOS & iPadOS 17.0? Let us know in the comments section down below.