How iTunes reaches Apple Mobile Device Service, and where pairing records live #7

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opened 2026-10-28 09:58:08 +01:00 by The_Void · 0 comments

The_Void commented

2026-10-28 09:58:08 +01:00

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That only works if iTunes talks to AMDS over something a Linux socket can stand in for. To find out:

transport and endpoint (believed to be TCP on 127.0.0.1, port unconfirmed; check in AppleMobileDeviceService.exe / MobileDevice.dll / iTunesMobileDevice.dll, or by tracing under Wine);
whether the wire protocol is the same usbmux plist protocol usbmuxd serves on Linux, and which messages iTunes sends (Listen, Connect, ReadPairRecord, ReadBUID, ...);
where pairing records and the system BUID are kept on Windows (believed C:\ProgramData\Apple\Lockdown) versus Linux (/var/lib/lockdown), and whether the formats match;
prior art: netmuxd, usbmuxd2, and any project that has already bridged them.

Everything above marked believed is UNREFUTED until checked. "It can't be bridged, because X" is a legitimate outcome.

Done when KNOWLEDGE.md states transport, endpoint, protocol and pairing-record locations with tiers and methods, and says whether the bridge is viable.

Device sync is required, and getting Windows USB drivers into Wine is a dead end: WineHQ and forum reports through 2024 say iTunes under Wine never sees the phone. The route worth testing is to **skip Apple Mobile Device Service (AMDS) and give iTunes Linux's `usbmuxd`** (libimobiledevice), which already speaks to iPhones. That only works if iTunes talks to AMDS over something a Linux socket can stand in for. To find out: - transport and endpoint (believed to be TCP on 127.0.0.1, port unconfirmed; check in `AppleMobileDeviceService.exe` / `MobileDevice.dll` / `iTunesMobileDevice.dll`, or by tracing under Wine); - whether the wire protocol is the same usbmux plist protocol `usbmuxd` serves on Linux, and which messages iTunes sends (`Listen`, `Connect`, `ReadPairRecord`, `ReadBUID`, ...); - where pairing records and the system BUID are kept on Windows (believed `C:\ProgramData\Apple\Lockdown`) versus Linux (`/var/lib/lockdown`), and whether the formats match; - prior art: `netmuxd`, `usbmuxd2`, and any project that has already bridged them. Everything above marked *believed* is UNREFUTED until checked. "It can't be bridged, because X" is a legitimate outcome. Done when `KNOWLEDGE.md` states transport, endpoint, protocol and pairing-record locations with tiers and methods, and says whether the bridge is viable.

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2026-10-28 09:58:08 +01:00

The_Void added a new dependency

2026-10-28 09:58:11 +01:00

#8 Local bridge: socat 127.0.0.1:27015 to the desktop's usbmuxd, as a systemd user unit

The_Void added this to the Ready to work milestone

2026-10-28 09:58:15 +01:00

The_Void referenced this issue