The legendary Dev-Team has done it again. It just released the new version of the Pwnage Tool, a desktop application that's used to create custom firmware packages to jailbreak iPhones and iPod touches.

Jailbreaking is the act of modifying the official firmware in order to run applications not approved by Apple. Chief among those applications, at least for the iPhone crowd, is the SIM unlock that allows the phone to be used on unofficial cell phone service providers.

The Dev-Team has found holes in previous versions of the iPhone OS that allow this code modification and has developed tools to make exploitation easier for the average user to accomplish. Once implemented, the jailbreak process installs an app that acts an unofficial App Store of sorts. The iPhone or iPod touch user can browse and install games, utilities, themes, and general applications. Cydia, one of these installer apps, even has a store with applications for sale.

Traditionally, when Apple releases a new iPhone OS version, that software upgrade breaks any jailbreak and SIM unlock present on the device. And so, you end up with the cat-and-mouse game that Steve Jobs alluded to shortly after the first firmware loophole was exploited and the original iPhone was unlocked.

Well, the mouse has stolen the cheese once again, and the Pwnage Tool released today will jailbreak the latest firmware, version 3.1.*

The big asterisk at the end of that previous sentence is that the Tool will only work on about half of the devices that use the iPhone OS -- only the original iPhone, original iPod touch, and iPhone 3G. The iPod touch line just released, as well as the 2nd generation iPod touch and the iPhone 3GS, cannot be jailbroken at this time. That means if you've already upgraded to 3.1 on your 3GS, you still won't be able to SIM unlock it as of the time of this post.

So, if you want to SIM unlock your iPhone 3G or the original model, Pwnage Tool 3.1 should do the trick. On the 3G, you'll need to use Icy or Cydia to also install the ultrasn0w app that actually performs the software unlock; however the original iPhone should be unlocked without this additional step.

You will need a Mac to run Pwnage Tool 3.1, but a Windows version is expected in the near future. Also expected soon is redsn0w, for both Mac and Windows, that further simplifies the jailbreak process by avoiding the need to create a custom firmware package.

Keep in mind, if you've been waiting for a jailbreak solution before upgrading to the latest firmware, many users have had fairly substantial issues with iPhone 3.1. My fellow TUAW blogger, Josh Carr, has reported that lots of iPhones and iPod touches are working poorly after upgrading. You may wish to hold off and stick with 3.0 or 3.0.1 until a solution is found, either by Apple or some other group of smart people.

But, if you're so inclined, you may find links to download Pwnage Tool 3.1 on the Dev-Team's official blog. Make sure to read the instructions thoroughly, and take heed of all of the warnings. They are there for a reason.

Early this morning the iPhone Dev-Team announced the impending availability of the latest release of PwnageTool and QuickPwn. The feature most touted was compatibility with the recent update of the iPhone's OS to 2.2.1.

The announcement over at the Dev-Team's blog also provides some very useful information regarding unlocking and jailbreaking iPhones and iPod touches. It gives heads-up warnings for users in different situations, such as factory-unlocked iPhone owners, YellowSn0w users, and iPod touch owners. It covers what they should or should not do regarding upgrading to 2.2.1 and using PwnageTool or QuickPwn; the Dev-Team also details a fix for entering DFU mode when using OS X 10.5.6.

Currently the release is Mac-only, but a Windows-friendly version of QuickPwn is said to be "coming soon." You can grab the release from the official BitTorrent download. Alternatively, there are several unofficial HTTP mirrors available. The team recommends comparing the SHA1 checksums when downloading from an unofficial mirror. Given the recent string of security-related downloading incidents, TUAW cannot recommend highly enough that users download from an official source or follow the Dev-Team's security advice.

I tip my hat to the many fine folks that sent this in!

The dev team has released PwnageTool and QuickPwn for iPhones and first generation iPod touch devices, for those who want to upgrade to firmware 2.2.

Important: If you have a 3G iPhone and you want to unlock it in the near future, you cannot use QuickPwn and must use PwnageTool (currently available for Mac users only). As the dev team explained yesterday, the 2.2 update for the 3G iPhone also upgraded the baseband. In order to achieve a jailbreak and keep future soft-unlock options available, you must use PwnageTool to create a custom .ipsw file that preserves the 2.1 baseband but provides the software functionality of a 2.2 update. Read the entire dev team posting for complete instructions.

Users with first generation iPod touches, 2G (first gen) iPhones, factory unlocked iPhone 3Gs or users who have no desire to soft-unlock their iPhone 3G can use the QuickPwn tool. Neither PwnageTool nor QuickPwn work with the second generation iPod touch. The dev team has already said that its current focus is the 3G unlock and then they will look into working on the new iPod touch.

If you just want to use Installer.app on your 2G or 3G iPhone and don't want to go through the jailbreak process, check out Pusher from RiP Dev. It works with 2.2 and doesn't open the system partition when writing information, making it a potentially safer jailbreak alternative.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in! And thanks Josh for the RiP Dev tip!

For iPhone owners who want the benefit of the 2.1 firmware, but also want to run their jail-broken applications, the iPhone Dev Team has just released PwnageTool and QuickPwn for 2.1 devices. Please note: this does NOT work with the new iPod Touch 2g and is for iPhones or first generation Touch devices only.

The Dev Team managed to work around iTunes 8 without having to patch the program, so pwners can try the new tool without worrying about altering a core OS X program.

Let us know in the comments how well Pwnage and/or Quick/Pwn is working with your device. As always, pwning is unauthorized, do it at your own risk and make sure you back-up any important information before using the tool.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

If you are the iPhone jailbreaking type, then you might want to know that Pwnage Tool from the iPhone Dev Team has been updated to version 2.0.3.

This version includes the following new features:

• Support for iPhone/iPod touch firmware 2.0.2 5C1
• Updated version of Installer.app beta 6
• New .de localization for German speaking users

Pwnage Tool 2.0.3 can be downloaded from the iPhone Dev Team's blog, or via the Pwnage Tool updater.
Thanks for the tip, Doc!

The iPhone Dev Team has just released PwnageTool 2.0, thus bringing jailbreak and non-App Store third-party application support to iPhones/iPod Touches running firmware 2.0. First-generation iPhones can also be unlocked. At this time, the iPhone 3G cannot be unlocked or used with BootNeuter.

Erica will post more details later tonight or tomorrow, and the Dev Team promises a more detailed announcement soon.

As always, be cautious if you decide to install PwnageTool 2.0 and make proper backups of all of your data before proceeding, understand that installing software like PwnageTool is unsupported by Apple, blah blah blah.

Enjoy!

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!