All my files + applications disappeared

I

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Hello everyone.
I have an iPhone 4, jailbroken on 5.1.1 version (yes i know it's a little outdated)
Everything was fine. I opened iFile and a message appeared that said "iFile is now shareware,
if you like it please register" or something like that.
I tried to go into folders that should exist (private/var/mobile/library) but the folders were not there.
I did a respring with hope problem will be fixed, but instead everything became worse.
The start guide appeared (the screens that you see when you first activate your phone).
I had to choose my country, my wifi connection etc.
When i finished, i had a phone with NO appstore apps (everything disappeared) and no files at all.
Camera roll, messages, notes, contacts all EMPTY.
Recent calls were still there, but without names, only numbers.
Also, all Cydia apps were also there.

The weird thing is, when i check the available capacity on the settings, it's still the same.
I only have ~300 mb left.
If all apps and files were deleted, i would have at least 20-25GB free.
So, i believe files and apps are still there, but somehow hidden.

I tried to access my files through iFunbox and WinSCP.
Unfortunately, folders like DCIM appear empty.

I believe the phone thinks it was restored, and that's why it doesn't show anything.

My question is: is there ANY way i can save my files?
At least my photos (i had about 1.400)

Before you suggest iTunes backups, iCloud etc., i'll have to tell you i didn't sync with my pc,
and iCloud was full a long time ago (it has 5GB limit) so it hasn't been updated for a while.

I'm not trying to fix it like it was before. I know i can't and i will have to do restore.
The only thing i'm asking is if there is any way to be able to get my photos before i do that.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance, and sorry for the very long message.
 

Chargehammer

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Dec 16, 2013
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Hello everyone.
I have an iPhone 4, jailbroken on 5.1.1 version (yes i know it's a little outdated)
Everything was fine. I opened iFile and a message appeared that said "iFile is now shareware,
if you like it please register" or something like that.
I tried to go into folders that should exist (private/var/mobile/library) but the folders were not there.
I did a respring with hope problem will be fixed, but instead everything became worse.
The start guide appeared (the screens that you see when you first activate your phone).
I had to choose my country, my wifi connection etc.
When i finished, i had a phone with NO appstore apps (everything disappeared) and no files at all.
Camera roll, messages, notes, contacts all EMPTY.
Recent calls were still there, but without names, only numbers.
Also, all Cydia apps were also there.

The weird thing is, when i check the available capacity on the settings, it's still the same.
I only have ~300 mb left.
If all apps and files were deleted, i would have at least 20-25GB free.
So, i believe files and apps are still there, but somehow hidden.

I tried to access my files through iFunbox and WinSCP.
Unfortunately, folders like DCIM appear empty.

I believe the phone thinks it was restored, and that's why it doesn't show anything.

My question is: is there ANY way i can save my files?
At least my photos (i had about 1.400)

Before you suggest iTunes backups, iCloud etc., i'll have to tell you i didn't sync with my pc,
and iCloud was full a long time ago (it has 5GB limit) so it hasn't been updated for a while.

I'm not trying to fix it like it was before. I know i can't and i will have to do restore.
The only thing i'm asking is if there is any way to be able to get my photos before i do that.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance, and sorry for the very long message.


Have you tried doing a backup of the phone as it sits right now using iTunes? Or even connecting it to see if it's recognized by iTunes? Or maybe even doing a hard reboot (holding the power/home button until it reboots)?
 

Ipheuria

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Jul 21, 2009
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Try turning the device off wait for like a minute and then back on. If nothing has changed go into Cydia and uninstall iFile. If still the same uninstall the last Cydia tweaks you did. If there are Cydia updates do them. Do all of them select Complete not just the necessary updates. If you connect the phone in Windows you should see it like you would an external drive allowing you to copy your pictures and videos to the computer. On a Mac when it's connected you can use Image Capture to again copy the pictures and videos to the machine.


Sent from my Space Grey iPhone 5s
 

Chargehammer

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Dec 16, 2013
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Also, if iTunes doesn't see it or only says you can restore, try using iFunbox first. Restore should be your last option in all cases in my opinion. Good luck. That's definitely a weird one. Is the copy of iFile you're using a purchased one?
 

CyberbobGR

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Dec 19, 2013
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Have you tried doing a backup of the phone as it sits right now using iTunes? Or even connecting it to see if it's recognized by iTunes? Or maybe even doing a hard reboot (holding the power/home button until it reboots)?

When i connect to iTunes it says "Set up your iPhone". It feels like i just activated my phone after a restore.
I tried hard resets with no luck.

Try turning the device off wait for like a minute and then back on. If nothing has changed go into Cydia and uninstall iFile. If still the same uninstall the last Cydia tweaks you did. If there are Cydia updates do them. Do all of them select Complete not just the necessary updates. If you connect the phone in Windows you should see it like you would an external drive allowing you to copy your pictures and videos to the computer. On a Mac when it's connected you can use Image Capture to again copy the pictures and videos to the machine.

Even if i do that i don't think it will be fixed. The iPhone acts exactly like it would if i made a restore.
I tried all methods to access my files, but i'm getting empty folders.
I used WinSCP (through SSH), iFunbox, iTools. No luck.



Also, if iTunes doesn't see it or only says you can restore, try using iFunbox first. Restore should be your last option in all cases in my opinion. Good luck. That's definitely a weird one. Is the copy of iFile you're using a purchased one?

Unfortunately i tried iFunbox with no luck. The folders are empty. (For example DCIM folder)
Files are most likely not deleted (as free space shows) but are not viewable in any way :(

I had purchased iFile years ago, but at a time i had crashes with the latest update, so i installed an older version cracked.
It was working without problems, so i forgot to download the latest version from the official repo.
 

Chargehammer

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Dec 16, 2013
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Well if restoring the iPhone seems to be the end all option, I would try to first just set the phone up as new via the phone itself (not via iTunes) and see if your stuff is still there once it's re-activated. If iTunes shows it still being there, it's worth a shot. Worse case scenario you lose it all which is what's going to happen anyway.

I've never heard of anything like this and I've had my share of goofy foulups with my iDevices. Closest thing to this that has happened to me is when I was videoing a band at a gig and decided to turn the flashlight on. It deleted all my pix/vids and froze my phone until I could get home and reconnect it to iTunes. Good luck.
 

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