How to Upgrade an iPod touch 4 to iOS 7

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Last Updated: January 25, 2026

Want to experience the newer flat design on iPod touch 4th generation, which was released in 2010? Not officially because iPod touch 4th generation, which officially supports up to iOS 6.1.6, doesn’t officially support iOS 7 due to RAM limitations, but in 2018 the iOS community managed to port iOS 7 unofficially into the iPod touch 4th generation. This is because iPod touch 4th generation shares the same Apple A4 CPU as iPhone 4, which also supports iOS 7, albeit iPod touch 4th generation only having half the RAM (256MB) of iPhone 4 (512MB).^{[1]
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Research source} This wikiHow shows how to upgrade your iPod touch 4th generation to iOS 7.1.2 unofficially using LegacyiOSKit.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Upgrading your iPod touch

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1
Download LegacyiOSKit. On your computer, download the latest release of LegacyiOSKit and then extract the downloaded file.^{[3]
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- This will only work on a Mac or a Linux computer. However you can dualboot Linux on your Windows computer.
2
Plug your iPod touch into your computer. Use USB-A to 30-pin cable. Plug the 30-pin end into your iPod touch and USB-A end into your computer. Trust the connection on your computer and on your iPod touch.^{[3]
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3
Run the restore.sh script. On your computer, navigate to the extracted folder, right-click the restore.sh file and click Open in Terminal. This will run the restore.sh script in the terminal.^{[3]
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4
Download the IPSWs. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard of your computer to select Restore/Downgrade and press Enter key, then select iOS 7.1.2 and then select Download Base IPSW to download the iPod touch 4 iOS 6.1.6 IPSW, then select Download Target IPSW to download the iPhone 4 iOS 7.1.2 IPSW.
5
Select both IPSWs. After you have downloaded both IPSWs, Use the arrow keys on the keyboard of your computer to select Select Target IPSW and press Enter key, and select ../iPhone3,3_7.1.2_11D257_Restore.ipsw (which is the IPSW for iOS 7.1.2 for iPhone 4), then select Select Base IPSW and select ../iPod4,1_6.1.6_108500_Restore.ipsw (which is the IPSW for iOS 6.1.6 for iPod touch 4th generation).^{[3]
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6
Upgrade your iPod touch to iOS 7. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard of your computer to select (*) Start Restore and press Enter key, then select Yes if you want to jailbreak. Select pwnDFU and put your iPod touch into DFU mode by holding the home and power buttons on your iPod touch for 10 seconds, and let go of the power button while still holding the home button. Wait for iOS 7 to be flashed to your iPod touch, and after that your iPod touch should show recovery mode. To exit recovery mode, select Exit Recovery Mode, and this will boot to iOS 7.^{[3]
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- Jailbreaking is recommended because iOS 7 even on supported devices, like iPhone 5S, can no longer connect to App Store anymore.
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Finished.
- If you have set to jailbreak your iPod touch, you can install tweaks and IPAs through Cydia.
- Note this method is tethered, which you need to follow the next part every time you boot your iPod touch.

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Booting your iPod touch

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1
Plug your iPod touch into your computer. Use USB-A to 30-pin cable. Plug the 30-pin end into your iPod touch and USB-A end into your computer. Trust the connection on your computer and on your iPod touch.^{[3]
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Research source}
2
Run the restore.sh script. On your computer, navigate to the extracted folder, right-click the restore.sh file and click Open in Terminal. This will run the restore.sh script in the terminal.^{[3]
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3
Boot your iPod touch. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard of your computer to select Just Boot and press Enter key, then select iOS 7.1.2. Select pwnDFU and put your iPod touch into DFU mode by holding the home and power buttons on your iPod touch for 10 seconds, and let go of the power button while still holding the home button. Your iPod touch should boot into iOS 7. ^{[3]
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Warnings

Some features are not functional when running iOS 7. This include cameras, audio, Bluetooth, battery indicator and running some stock apps.^{[3]
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