iOS 11.3.1 Electra Jailbreak, Things Everyone Needs To Know!

If you are a jailbreak fan, then you are likely already aware that developer CoolStar has already confirmed that Electra is going to be updated to support iOS 11.3.1 thanks to excellent work from Ian Beer and Min Zheng. Coolstar has confirmed that the iOS 11.3.1 jailbreak will work on all iOS devices including iPhone X.

Alibaba engineer, Min(Spark) Zheng, has also shared a kppless (bypass kpp) method on Twitter that works on all 64-bit iOS devices, which should also help in developing the iOS 11.3.1 jailbreak.

If you are planning on jailbreaking, then you will definitely need to read through this guide to prepare yourself and your device. If you are excited by the prospect of an iOS 11.3.1 liberation and are in ownership of an iPhone or iPad that would seriously benefit from a little bit of freedom, then you need to read the steps below.

1. On iOS 11.1.2 And Below :

Stay where you are and save blobs for iOS 11.3.1.

Do not exchange a current jailbreak for a possible future one. Unless you want to of course, in which case, we accept no liability.

SHSH2 blobs for iOS 11.3.1 can only be saved for the said firmware till Apple is signing it, and will come in handy if you ever need to upgrade to iOS 11.3.1 later from a jailbroken firmware such as iOS 11.1.2 even if Apple stopped signing iOS 11.3.1 firmware. 

If you’re happy with your current level of app support and compatibility on iOS 11.1.2,10,9,8 &7. feel free to stay and enjoy your jailbreak, which may even be untethered. If however you’re beginning to feel excluded from your favourite app updates and the iOS feature-set, now might be the time to consider moving to iOS 11.3.1.

2. On iOS 11.2.x And Above :

Restore immediately to iOS 11.3.1 while it is still signed.

You can’t be jailbroken on iOS 11.3.1 if you aren’t physically in possession of a device which is running iOS 11.3.1. Makes sense, right? So, with that in mind, you will need to restore/downgrade your current device to iOS 11.3.1 in order to prepare it for the ultimate liberation. And, the important part, you will need to do this sooner rather than later as long as Apple is still signing the iOS 11.3.1 firmware. Apple usually closes signing window pretty soon so you better restore/downgrade sooner rather than later.

You will need to download the firmware manually, connect your device to iTunes, alt-click Update or Restore, and select the downloaded iOS 11.3.1 .ipsw. On Windows, a shift-click is needed instead. Do not simply click Restore/Update, as this will take you to iOS 11.4, which we do not want.

3.How to save your .shsh2 blobs ? :

Yes. Everyone should save blobs, regardless of device or current firmware. You never know when a new tool will let you use them, and they may save your bacon. People who should especially save them are those who are already jailbroken, or who are waiting on iOS 11.1.2 for Electra jailbreak. They may be able to move to iOS 11.3.1 later using them, and have the best of both worlds. This is not certain however. If in doubt, save them now. If doubtless, save them.

How To Save Blobs: Guide.

4. How To Restore/Downgrade To iOS 11.3.1 ? :

If, for one reason or another, you have upgraded to Apple’s recently released iOS 11.4 and find yourself struggling to get along with the platform, then it makes sense that you might want to go back a step to iOS 11.3.1. Thankfully, Apple is still digitally signing iOS 11.3.1, making that entirely possible. Follow the steps below, as well as taking into account the requirements, in order to downgrade.

Here’s how you can seamlessly restore/downgrade your iPhone or iPad to iOS 11.3.1 in just a few simple steps.

How To Restore/Downgrade: Guide.

 

Once the above actions are complete it’s a case of waiting patiently for the new Electra version to drop. We’ve already confirmed that CoolStar is going to put Electra through an update to support iOS 11.3.1 but we have no real timescale for that to happen. Ian Beers’ iOS 11.3.1 exploit is due to be made public during the WWDC week, which means that serious work on Electra can likely start next week.

5. Why iOS 11.3.1 ? :

#1. Battery Health

Battery Health feature is available only on iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone SE, iPhone 7, and iPhone 7 Plus. According to Apple, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X models include hardware updates that allow a more advanced performance management system that more precisely allows iOS to anticipate and avoid an unexpected shutdown, so the power management feature doesn’t affect iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and the iPhone X.

#2. New Animoji

It looks like Apple is treating Animoji like emoji and adding new Animoji in smaller over the air updates. iOS 11.3 will bring four new Animoji’s – lion, bear, dragon, and skull. Animoji works using iMessage app and is exclusive to iPhone X.

#3. ARKit 1.5

The new ARKit 1.5’s features are clearly inspired by user feedback. And that’s great. At least we know that Apple is listening to us when it comes to ARKit. ARKit will finally recognize vertical spaces so you can put virtual objects up on walls and doors. It will also now recognize surfaces which are not perfectly square (like your fancy handcrafted table).

#4. Health Records

Apple has collaborated with several hospitals, institutes, and clinic to create the new Health Records feature in the Health app. This feature will aggregate all of your health records in one convenient and easy to use place in the Health app. That is if your medical records are linked with one of the supported medical institutes. According to Apple, all records are encrypted on your device and are protected with a passcode.

#5. Business Chat

The Business Chat feature lets iPhone and iPad users directly interact with businesses using the Messages app. Apple has taken a privacy-first approach here and your personal information is never shared with the business. You can end the chat anytime you like (and the business themselves can’t approach you again).

#6. Videos in Apple News

The For You section in Apple News will now feature a list of trending videos that are customized for you.

#7. Videos in Apple Music

Apple Music is also going to have a dedicated section where you’ll be able to view videos, you’ll be able to watch music videos without ads.

#8. HomeKit Upgrades

iOS 11.3 brings official support for the new software authentication system. This new feature lets manufacturers add HomeKit compatibility to existing devices. Earlier, the devices needed hardware authentication. Now that this feature is live, we can expect to see a lot more smart home accessories with HomeKit compatibility (something that’s sorely needed).

#9. iBooks Becomes Books

In Apple’s continual efforts of distancing itself from the “i” prefix with new products, Apple has renamed the iBooks app to simply Books. Now we’ll have to use Apple Books to refer to the app (which I’m sure is what Apple wants).

#10. App Store Shows More Info

Apple took this feature away in iOS 11’s new App Store redesign and it didn’t make sense why. Now it’s back. You’ll see both the version number and the update size for each app in the Updates tab in the App Store.

#11. More Privacy Awareness

A new icon will appear whenever Apple requests your personal information, which shows Apple’s effort in being more open about the type of data they collect and when. The icon will link to detailed information about how your data will be used and protected. More importantly, it seems to be an attempt at preventing phishing attempts for your iCloud password. The “Privacy” icon in the Settings app has also changed from gray colored to blue to match this new icon.

#12. App Switcher Is Faster

Thanks to iOS 11.3, it’s a lot faster when you swipe up from the bottom of the iPhone X to access the app switcher. You might not notice the change at first, but once you realize it’s faster, you’ll never want to go back.

#13. Face ID Better

Users not used to a Side button that does almost everything can sometimes get confused when the “Double Click to Install” or “Double Click to Pay” animation came up on the screen when using Face ID to install an app or pay for something. A lot of users were tapping on the screen, not clicking the Side button. In iOS 11.3, Apple has made it more clear what you need to do with an additional animation that says “Confirm with Side Button” in the details popup at the bottom.

#14. Safari More Secure

There are a bunch of small updates to Safari in iOS 11.3, and most of them are security-related. Instead of auto-filling in your username in password automatically when you go to a certain login page, it won’t auto-fill them unless you select those spots in the web form. Also, there’s a new red warning in the “Smart Search Field” when there are passwords and credit card web forms on non-encrypted webpages. If you don’t see a red “Website Not Secure” message, the site is using HTTPS, and you’re secure from man-in-the-middle attacks.

#15. Emergency Calls Update

Now, when you call emergency services, Apple will automatically send your exact location (using GPS or Wi-Fi) to the authorities. This way, you won’t have to waste time telling them where you are. The feature won’t work in US but it’s enabled in United Kingdom, Estonia, Lithuania, Austria, Iceland, and New Zealand.

#16. Game Center Updates

You can finally manage your Game Center friends individually. You can add and remove a single friend easily from the Game Center section in Settings.

#17. Password Autofill

Password Autofill feature on the iPhone X with Face ID is pure magic. You end up on a login screen, iOS automatically kicks in Face ID, your face is scanned and your username and password pasted in a second or two. All while you didn’t have to do anything. Now, you’ll be able to use this feature even when apps are using their own in-app web views for authentication.

#18. Keyboard Improvements

When you’re dictating text in a note or elsewhere, you’d previously have to tap on the keyboard icon to return to the keyboard. This wasn’t great, since instinctually, you’d probably tap near the text if you needed to fix something dictation got wrong. Now, in iOS 11.3, you can tap anywhere to exit the dictation mode.

Apple has also fixed a bug that would automatically capitalize the first letter in some words using auto-correction. Aside from that, the rest of the keyboard updates are for non-English users.

#19. The Calculator Is Better

This is by far the smallest feature on this page, but it’s interesting nonetheless. Back in iOS 11.1, the Calculator app developed a degenerative disease that caused it to lag considerably, making fast calculations impossible. Apple cured the disease in iOS 11.2, but the animation on the operator symbols (e.g., the + sign) got kicked to the curb. However, the animation is back in all its glory in iOS 11.3.

#20. Fix for Third-Party Display

iOS 11.3.1 introduces performance improvements and bug fixes for issues that have been discovered since the launch of iOS 11.3. The update includes a fix for a bug that caused third-party repairs done on iPhone 8 models using aftermarket parts to disable the touch functionality of the screen.

#21. iOS 11.3.1 Might Make Older Phones Faster

While Apple hasn’t added the switch that disables CPU throttling, it seems like Apple has disabled the feature or changed how it works in iOS 11.3 beta 1. Or at least Apple has changed how those devices handle benchmarks. Users are reporting that their older iPhones which used to benchmark around 900 on Geekbench are now showing 1400 or so in single threaded performance. This is still the first beta so it’s too early to judge the performance.

#22. Increased Pairing Security with USB accessories

iOS 11.3 has improved the pairing security with USB accessories. Apple explains “If you use iAP USB accessories over the Lightning connector or connect to a Mac or Windows PC, you may, therefore, need to periodically enter your passcode if you have a passcode set on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.” Apple has essentially added an expiry date of one week for the pairing records. So it means that you will need to enter the passcode at least once a week when you connect your locked iPhone or iPad with a USB accessory via Lightning connector.

Have you been eagerly waiting for the iOS 11.3.1 jailbreak? Let us know in the comments below.

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