How To Mount iPhone Or iPad With iOS 7 In Ubuntu 13.10

I got an iPhone 5 with iOS 7 couple of months back. I tried to connect iPhone or iPad with Linux (Ubuntu and Linux Mint), it was recognized and it asked me whether I “trust this computer”?

iOS 7 trust this computer Linux

And I said “I do” and tapped on Trust. After a flash of seconds it asked me again if I “trust this computer”? And I tapped Trust again. And then it asked the same question, I felt like it got trapped in a while(true) loop. While at Ubuntu, it showed me that my iPhone was locked and I could not access any files on it:

iPhone mount issue with Ubuntu Linux

After some searching I came to know that this infinite loop of trust this computer with iOS 7 in Linux is a known bug.

This actually is a new security feature in iOS 7 which aims to tackle the issue of fake iPhone chargers. So, what is the solution here? Is there a way to fix “trust this computer” with iOS 7 in Linuxlibimobiledevice library is is expected to fix this issue in version 1.1.6 but there is no expected availability date for the stable version.

Don’t be disheartened, you can still use the unstable version of libimobiledevice and connect your iPhone to Ubuntu easily. Let me show you how can you mount iPhone in Ubuntu 13.10 or Linux Mint 16 without getting in the pitfall of “trust this computer”.

Fix trust this computer issue with iOS 7 in Ubuntu 12.04:

If you are using Ubuntu 12.04 LTS be it 32 bit or 64 bit or Linux Mint 13 Maya, you can add the following PPA by Ingo Haschler:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:ingo/ios7support
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade

This will upgrade the libimobiledevice (already installed on the system) to unstable version 1.6. Reboot your computer and try to connect iPhone with Ubuntu again. It should work now.

Note:

If you get “lock down error”, try using the following commands:

sudo mkdir /var/lib/lockdown
sudo chmod 777 /var/lib/lockdown

Fix trust this computer issue with iOS 7 in Ubuntu 13.10:

For seasoned Linux users, you can get the source code from the GitHub and compile it. For Ubuntu 13.10 64 bit and Linux Mint 16 64 bit users, there is a Debian package compiled for you by Iuri Diniz. You can download and install this .deb package to easily mount iPhone on Ubuntu 13.10 64 bit.

libimobiledevice 1.6 for Ubuntu 13.10 & Linux Mint 16 64 bit

Double click on the downloaded .deb file to install it. Note that Ubuntu and Linux Mint comes with libimobiledevice library pre-installed in it. This is why you would see an option of upgrading the libimobiledevice rather than installing it.

trust this computer with iOS 7 in Ubuntu Linux Mint

Once installed, your iPhone or iPad should be mounted without any troubles. Here is a screenshot of my iPhone mounted in Ubuntu 13.10.

iPhoone 5 successfully mounted in Ubuntu 13.10

I could access the files, transfer the files from Ubuntu to iPhone. It was recognized by Rythembox for synchronizing also. It is not the first time I had issues with connecting my mobile device with Ubuntu. Last, I had written on how to connect Kindle Fire HD with Ubuntu.

I hope this quick tutorial solves the infinite loop of ‘trust this computer’ problem with iPhone and Ubuntu for you as well. In related problems, sometimes, Apple device don’t charge or charge slowly via USB, you can try iPad Charge to fix charging issues with Apple devices in Linux. Let me know if it worked for you or if you are still facing issues to mount iPhone with Ubuntu Linux. Ciao :)

About the author
Abhishek Prakash

Abhishek Prakash

Created It's FOSS 11 years ago to share my Linux adventures. Have a Master's degree in Engineering and years of IT industry experience. Huge fan of Agatha Christie detective mysteries 🕵️‍♂️

Become a Better Linux User

With the FOSS Weekly Newsletter, you learn useful Linux tips, discover applications, explore new distros and stay updated with the latest from Linux world

It's FOSS

Great! You’ve successfully signed up.

Welcome back! You've successfully signed in.

You've successfully subscribed to It's FOSS.

Success! Check your email for magic link to sign-in.

Success! Your billing info has been updated.

Your billing was not updated.