idevicepair

Pair a device with the host

$ idevicepair pair

$ idevicepair list

idevicepair [-d|--debug] [-u|--udid UDID] [-n|--network] [-v|--verbose] [-c|--compat] [-r|--recovery] [-h|--help] [-V|--version] <pair|unpair|list|activate|trust|remove-trust|validate|remove> [args]

-h, --help
    Prints usage information

-V, --version
    Prints version information

-d, --debug
    Enable communication debugging

-u UDID, --udid UDID
    Target specific device by 40-hex-digit UDID

-n, --network
    Connect to networked device by IP:port or hostname

-v, --verbose
    Increase verbosity

-c, --compat
    Compatibility mode for iTunes backup/restore

-r, --recovery
    Force pairing in recovery mode

pair [service]
    Create pairing record (service optional)

unpair
    Delete pairing record

list
    List all pairing records

activate
    Activate device (iOS < 4)

trust
    Set pairing trust state (iOS < 4)

remove-trust
    Remove pairing trust state (iOS < 4)

validate
    Validate existing pairing

remove
    Remove pairing record (alias for unpair)

idevicepair is a command-line tool from the libimobiledevice suite for Linux and other platforms. It handles pairing records necessary for communicating with iOS devices over USB or Wi-Fi. Pairing enables access to services like lockdown, used by tools such as idevicebackup2 and idevicerestore.

Connect an iOS device via USB, run idevicepair pair, and approve the trust dialog on the device. Verify with idevicepair list. Unpair using idevicepair unpair to remove records. Supports targeting specific devices by UDID, network connections, and debug modes for troubleshooting.

Requires usbmuxd daemon running and proper udev rules for non-root access. Ideal for developers automating iOS interactions on Linux without iTunes.

Requires libimobiledevice, libusbmuxd, and usbmuxd daemon. Needs udev rules for non-root USB access. Network pairing requires device Wi-Fi enabled and same subnet. Some commands deprecated on newer iOS.

Install via package manager: apt install libimobiledevice-utils (Debian/Ubuntu) or dnf install libimobiledevice (Fedora).

idevicepair pair # Pair connected device
idevicepair -u <UDID> list # List specific device
idevicepair -n 192.168.1.100:62078 pair # Network pair

Part of libimobiledevice project started in 2007 by Nikias Bassen to support iOS on Linux. idevicepair added around 2010 with iOS 4 pairing support; evolved for newer protocols up to iOS 17.

usbmuxd(8), idevice_id(1), idevicebackup2(1), libimobiledevice(3)