Getting your native apps back: Downgrading legit (AT&T) iPhones from 1.1.1 to 1.0.2

While the iPhone hacking community scrambles to find a method for jailbreaking iPhones that have been upgraded to 1.1.1, there is now a procedure for downgrading iPhones that have been updated to version 1.1.1 to version 1.0.2, where the devices can still be jailbroken and third-party native applications installed per our guide.

The procedure, originally discovered by poster KMac at the Hackintosh forums, is very similar to our instructions for restoring the iPhone without using firmware 1.1.1 with one added step. It will allow phones that were never unlocked (still in the standard, AT&T operating mode) to regain their access to third-party applications via AppTapp/Installer.app, but will do away with the enhancements brought about by iPhone software/firmware update 1.1.1.

The steps are simple, but we found that the timing in the third step is a bit tricky. Here’s an adapted, slightly more detailed set of instructions designed for iPhones that haven’t been unlocked or unofficially activated:

On a Mac

1. Look in the directory ~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates. If you have the file iPhone1,1_1.0.2_1C28_Restore.ipsw, proceed to the next step. If not, download this file via this link.
2. Connect the iPhone to your Mac, and launch iTunes 7.4.x.
3. This is the tricky step: Press and hold the sleep/wake button (on the top of your iPhone) and the Home buttons simultaneously for about 10 seconds, then quickly let go of the sleep/wake button and continue holding the home button until your iPhone is recognized by iTunes again, with the message “an iPhone in recovery mode has been detected.” If you see a screen with a USB cable pointing toward an iTunes icon, you have held the sleep/wake and home buttons simultaneously for too long, and you will need to restore your iPhone with the version 1.1.1 firmware, then start again.
4. Next, in iTunes, hold down the option key and click the “Restore” button. This will allow you to pick which firmware version to push to the device. Select the file from step 1 (iPhone1,1_1.0.2_1C28_Restore.ipsww), either from ~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates or the location to which you downloaded it.
5. Proceed with restoring your iPhone. When the process is over, you’ll see the old recovery mode screen on the iPhone: a yellow triangle with an exclamation point in the center and the text “Please connect to iTunes.”
6. Leave iTunes running, but don’t do anything else in the application.
7. Download AppTapp and run it, selecting the 1.0.2 firmware. After a few seconds of operation, you’ll likely receive an error message indicating a bootstrap problem, and be forced to abort the process.
8. Your iPhone should now begin the normal activation process in iTunes, and properly activate.
9. Go back to AppTapp, and re-run the installer, still selecting firmware version 1.0.2. This time installation should take place properly, and you’ll have Installer.app on your iPhone. Follow our guide to get back up and running.

On a Windows PC

1. Look in the directory C:\Users\Your name\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\iPhone Software Updates\ or C:\Documents and Settings\username\application data\apple computer\itunes\iphone software updates\. If you have the file iPhone1,1_1.0.2_1C28_Restore.ipsw in one of these locations, proceed to the next step. If not, download this file via this link.
2. Connect the iPhone to your Windows PC, and launch iTunes 7.4.x.
3. This is the tricky step: Press and hold the sleep/wake button (on the top of your iPhone) and the Home buttons simultaneously for about 10 seconds, then quickly let go og the sleep/wake button and continue holding the home button until your iPhone is recognized by iTunes again, with the message “an iPhone in recovery mode has been detected.” If you see a screen with a USB cable pointing toward an iTunes icon, you have held the sleep/wake and home buttons simultaneously for too long, and you will need to restore your iPhone with the version 1.1.1 firmware, then start again.
4. Next, in iTunes, hold down the shift key and click the “Restore” button. This will allow you to pick which firmware version to push to the device. Select the file from step 1 (iPhone1,1_1.0.2_1C28_Restore.ipsw), either from ~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates or the location to which you downloaded it.
5. Proceed with restoring your iPhone. When the process is over, you’ll see the old recovery mode screen on the iPhone: a yellow triangle with an exclamation point in the center and the text “Please connect to iTunes.”
6. Leave iTunes running, but don’t do anything else in the application.
7. Download AppTapp and run it, selecting the 1.0.2 firmware. After a few seconds of operation, you’ll likely receive an error message indicating a bootstrap problem, and be forced to abort the process.
8. Your iPhone should now begin the normal activation process in iTunes, and properly activate.
9. Go back to AppTapp, and re-run the installer, still selecting firmware version 1.0.2. This time installation should take place properly, and you’ll have Installer.app on your iPhone. Follow our guide to get back up and running.

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