Should You Update to iOS 9 and Lose Your Jailbreak?

iOS 9 is out today and while many users are excited to update to the latest version of iOS, there are some jailbreakers who are wondering if they should update to iOS 9 and have lost their jailbreak. Here’s what you need to know if you’re part of that group.

iOS 9 keeps the same overall design and look as iOS 8, but comes with a handful of new features. There is a new News app that is very similar to FLipboard and it gives you the latest news under one roof. There are also several improvements to the Notes app that allow users to do anything from using your finger to sketch a note and even add a photo.

The new version of iOS also includes public transit directions for the first time, catching up with Google Maps, which has been public transit directions for a while. But Apple aims to improve transit directions by providing real-time data on incoming trains.

If your iPhone or iPad is currently jailbroken, updating to iOS 9 will unfortunately break the jailbreak and you will revert to stock iOS with iOS 9 until a jailbreak for iOS 9 is released in the unknown future. If you’re currently jailbroken, here’s what you need to know about updating your device to iOS 9.

When the iPhone 6 was released last year (besides iOS 8), I upgraded to the new device that came with iOS 8. This meant I would lose my jailbreak whether I liked it or not, but on the plus side it was able to use iOS 8.

iOS 8’s features were pretty cool and I benefited a lot from most of them, but still mostly missed my jailbreak. It certainly wasn’t at withdrawal level, but I would often try to do things on my iPhone and realize I couldn’t just because I was no longer jailbroken.

Fortunately, an iOS 8 jailbreak was released a few months later, so my little pain didn’t last too long. Back then, was it worth updating to iOS 8 and losing my jailbreak? Yes and no.

Honestly, if you’re asking yourself the same question about iOS 9, it really depends on iOS 9’s new features and whether you use them and how many jailbreak settings you trust. Is it worth losing those jailbreak settings to gain new features of iOS 9?

Personally, I won’t be upgrading to iOS 9 at this point and will instead keep my iPhone on iOS 8 so I can continue to use my jailbreak tweaks. Most of the new features in iOS 9 are not incredibly important to me. The multitasking features of iOS 9 on the iPad look really great, but I don’t use my iPad enough to really take advantage of this type of multitasking. Plus, the improvements to Apple Maps and Notes are irrelevant, as I don’t use either app.

However, if you decide to update to iOS 9 and lose your jailbreak, it’s pretty easy to do. Plug your iPhone into your computer and open iTunes. From there, click on the iPhone icon towards the upper left corner of the window and click on it. Of course, you will need to disable Find My iPhone to do this, you can do this by opening the Settings app on your iPhone and tapping it to close it.

After clicking Restore iPhone, you will go through the process of updating your iPhone to iOS 9, but keep in mind that this will also factory reset your device, so be sure to back up your iPhone so you can get your apps. and settings back.

It will take some time to download and install the update, but once complete you will be asked whether you want to set up your iPhone as a new iPhone or restore from a backup. Restore from your backup and you’ll be ready to go.