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User profile for user: Cntrlaltdel
Cntrlaltdel Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Iphone 4 Bricked (DFU doesn't work)

Okay so I decided to update my Iphone 4 and for some reason it failed and I got an error. Now my Iphone doesn't go on at all unless plugged into a PC. So I've done a number of things to try and fix the issues of my Iphone with extensive research, i've tried the TinyUmbrella thing and it comes up with an unidentified phone. When I try to restore the phone from Itunes I dont see any information besides "Iphone" everything else like Serial, Capacity and Serial number say "N/A". When I restore the phone, Itunes download OS 5 and it failed the first time, SO i downloaded version 4.5 which also failed. I played around with it for a while and got a bit further. Now when I try to restore the phone itunes actually gets pass the verifying process and into the restoring process, while in DFU mode (BLACK SCREEN) and then the moment it changes to "restoring Iphone" the phone restarts and goes into a boot loop. the phone by itself goes into a boot loop the moment I plug it in. So far I cant find a way to get around this. I've tried 4 different OS's with 2 different PC's both 32 and 64 bits non work.

Any suggestions to how I can sort this out?

iPhone 4

Posted on Apr 14, 2012 7:16 PM

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13 replies
User profile for user: KiltedTim
KiltedTim
User level: Level 10
195,435 points

Apr 14, 2012 7:32 PM in response to Cntrlaltdel

What is the EXACT error message you get when attempting to update? It could be something as simple as your antivirus software interfering with the update process. Very common.


Disable your antivirus and firewall software temporarily and try the update to 5.1 again. You may have to do so in DFU mode. Hopefully, the attempt to downgrade hasn't bricked it.

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User profile for user: KiltedTim
KiltedTim
User level: Level 10
195,435 points

Apr 14, 2012 7:45 PM in response to Cntrlaltdel

Were you attempting to upgrade to the current version of iOS or something else? You can NOT update to anything other than the current version. For an iPhone 3Gs, 4 or 4S, this means 5.1. You can not update to 5.0.1 or 5.0.


The fact that you had to modify your host file is an indication that it's very likely your phone was, in fact, jailbroken, or that you had attempted to downgrade it in the past or attempted to install unsigned firmware.


Error 3194 occurs when attempting to install unsigned firmware on the phone. Error 21 can be caused by problems with security (antivirus/firewall) software, hardware firewalls, or attempts to install unsigned firmware.


You said you were attempting to update to a newer OS. What version exactly were you attempting to update to? If it was not 5.1, you can't do that.

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User profile for user: Cntrlaltdel
Cntrlaltdel Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Apr 14, 2012 7:53 PM in response to KiltedTim

I modified the host file because it was one of the possible solutions I found on the interwebs, I was trying to upgrade to (iPhone3,1_5.1_9B176_Restore) which I am now downloading once more.

Unfortunately I learned about Jailbreaking and OS versions within 2 days, so I have no idea whats going on, I know for a fact I haven't tampered with my Iphone till when I tried to do the upgrade/restore.

I dont if its a 3gs, 4 or whatever else there is. I've tried taking the file "iPhone3,1_5.1_9B176_Restore" to my second PC with windows xp 32 bit as OS and when I shift+restored, it gave me a compatibility error message, it said that it wasnt compatible with my IPhone, although it was downloaded by default by Itunes which is happening now once again.

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User profile for user: KiltedTim
KiltedTim
User level: Level 10
195,435 points

Apr 14, 2012 7:56 PM in response to Cntrlaltdel

Why are you attempting to download the file directly instead of allowing iTunes to pull down the correct file for you? Your entire problem probably stems from attempting to install a corrupt firmware file or a direct download copy of iOS that is not the correct file for your phone in the first place.


Delete any .ipsw files on your machine, plug in the phone in DFU mode, and allow iTunes to download the correct version of the firmware.

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User profile for user: Cntrlaltdel
Cntrlaltdel Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Apr 14, 2012 8:00 PM in response to KiltedTim

Not really hey, I download the firmwares from itunes, I just goto the directory and copy it over to my USB stick and from there, transfer it to my second PC and attempt to do it there.


Itunes on my Main pc which uses windows 7 64 bit download iPhone3,1_5.1_9B176_Restore and is detected as an incompatible firmware version on windows xp 32 bit. So far i've tested it on, Windows 7 pro 64bit,7 Ultimate 64 bit, xp pro 64bit, xp pro 32 bit sp2

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Iphone 4 Bricked (DFU doesn't work)

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