libirecovery ☆

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Description:
Library and utility to talk to iBoot/iBSS via USB

Type: Formula | Tracked Since: Dec 28, 2025

Links: Homepage | @libimobiledev | formulae.brew.sh

Category: Developer tools

Tags: ios libimobiledevice bootloader usb recovery dfu

Install: brew install libirecovery

About:
Libirecovery is an open-source library and command-line utility designed to communicate with iBoot and iBSS, the low-level bootloaders found on Apple iOS devices. It enables users to interact with these bootloaders over USB to perform tasks such as device rebooting, entering recovery or DFU mode, and querying device information. This tool is essential for developers and researchers working on iOS device management and low-level firmware operations.

Key Features:

Communicates directly with iBoot/iBSS over USB
Provides both a C library and a command-line interface
Supports device rebooting and mode switching (Recovery, DFU)
Cross-platform compatibility (Linux, macOS, Windows)

Use Cases:

Entering recovery or DFU mode on iOS devices programmatically
Developing custom iOS bootchain tools or firmware utilities
Debugging low-level device issues during development

Alternatives:

iTunes – iTunes is Apple's official software for device management, but libirecovery offers a lightweight, scriptable, and open-source alternative for low-level bootloader access without the full GUI overhead.
irecovery (from dev team) – Often refers to older, less maintained tools; libirecovery is a modern, actively maintained library that provides a more robust and standardized API.

Version History

Detected	Version	Rev	Change	Commit
Sep 14, 2025 2:55am		0	VERSION_BUMP	5b523859
Oct 10, 2024 6:47pm		0	VERSION_BUMP	5af50f95