# libimobiledevice/idevicerestore

Restore/upgrade firmware of iOS devices

Repository: https://github.com/libimobiledevice/idevicerestore
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/idevicerestore
Homepage: https://libimobiledevice.org
Language: C
License: LGPL-3.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: restore, firmware, c, idevicerestore, ipsw, ios, shsh, signing
Last push: 2026-08-23T02:01:06+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 67/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4696, "days_push": 11, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1918, forks 505 (observed 2026-08-28T04:05:53.971357+00:00)

## What it is
A cross-platform command-line application that restores or upgrades firmware (IPSW files) on iOS devices, reimplementing all granular restore steps without Apple software. It supports SHSH blob handling, custom firmware, baseband skipping, and on-demand firmware downloads.

## Use cases
- restore iOS firmware from an IPSW file on Linux
- upgrade or downgrade an iPhone without iTunes
- save SHSH blobs for an iOS device
- put an iPhone into pwned DFU mode
- download the latest firmware for an iPad automatically
- restore custom firmware to a jailbroken device
- erase or update an iOS device from the command line

## When to choose
- you need to restore or update iOS device firmware on Linux, macOS, or Windows without iTunes
- you want to save SHSH blobs or work with custom AP tickets
- you need scripted/automated firmware restores or custom firmware flashing on limera1n devices

## When to avoid
- you want a graphical, beginner-friendly restore tool with safety guarantees
- you need to restore devices requiring signing servers without valid SHSH blobs
- you cannot risk data loss, since the tool can irreversibly destroy user data

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: active
- function: cli, developer-tools, security, file-system
- domain: developer-tools, hardware, cross-platform
- platform: windows, cli, cross-platform
- tags: ios, firmware-restore, ipsw, shsh-blobs, dfu, apple-devices, libimobiledevice, command-line, linux, macos, android

## Member repositories
- libimobiledevice/idevicerestore (main) score 67

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:53.971357+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T03:10:07.141682+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/libimobiledevice/idevicerestore (fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:53.971357+00:00, sha 749ec357b413)
  - homepage: https://libimobiledevice.org (fetched 2026-08-29T10:49:24.443218+00:00, sha 60fcaebea5c7)
  - site_page: https://libimobiledevice.org/docs (fetched 2026-08-29T10:49:24.452868+00:00, sha 1b452d9b50b7)
  - site_page: https://libimobiledevice.org/docs/libimobiledevice/latest (fetched 2026-08-29T10:49:24.454756+00:00, sha 8ba54f9669f4)
  - site_page: https://libimobiledevice.org/docs/libplist/latest (fetched 2026-08-29T10:49:24.456617+00:00, sha 3b4edf3de103)
  - site_page: https://libimobiledevice.org/news/2025/10/30/ideviceinstaller-1.2.0-release (fetched 2026-08-29T10:49:24.458631+00:00, sha d1228f7d98c9)
  - site_page: https://libimobiledevice.org/news/2025/10/24/docs-updated (fetched 2026-08-29T10:49:24.460273+00:00, sha 7bee0e8863bd)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.