explaingit

rockylabs-dev/trollinstallerdark

★ 18CAudience · developerComplexity · 4/5ActiveSetup · hard

TLDR

TrollStore installer for arm64 iPhones and iPads on iOS 15.7.2 through 15.8.x, forked from TrollInstallerX but swapped to the DarkSword kernel exploit.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((TrollInstallerDark))
    Inputs
      iOS device
      DarkSword exploit
      Sideloaded IPA
    Outputs
      Installed TrollStore
      Persistence helper
      Home screen icon
    Use Cases
      Install TrollStore on iOS 15.7
      Persist TrollStore across reboots
      Build IPA from Xcode source
    Tech Stack
      C
      Objective-C
      Xcode
      iOS arm64

Things people build with this

USE CASE 1

Install TrollStore on a supported iPhone running iOS 15.7.2 to 15.8.x without paying for an Apple developer account.

USE CASE 2

Set up a persistence helper inside a chosen system app so TrollStore keeps working after every reboot.

USE CASE 3

Build the installer locally from the Xcode project to inspect or modify the DarkSword integration.

USE CASE 4

Diagnose stuck installs using the FAQ steps for the Exploiting kernel hang or missing TrollStore icon.

Tech stack

CObjectiveCXcodeiOS

Getting it running

Difficulty · hard Time to first run · 1h+

Only arm64 devices on iOS 15.7.2 to 15.8.x are supported, and you need a sideloading tool to get the IPA onto the device before pressing Install.

In plain English

TrollInstallerDark is a tool for installing TrollStore on certain iPhones and iPads. TrollStore is a separate, well-known app that lets people permanently install regular iOS apps without the usual app signing rules from Apple. To get TrollStore onto a device you first need an installer that exploits a bug in the operating system, and this repository provides one such installer. The project is a modification of an existing installer called TrollInstallerX, originally written by a developer named Alfie. The change in this version is that it uses a different kernel exploit, called DarkSword, instead of the exploits used in the original. The maintainers state that this repository is the only official place to download it and warn against trusting copies hosted elsewhere. Support is narrow. It only works on arm64 devices running iOS versions 15.7.2 through 15.8.x. When it succeeds it installs TrollStore directly to the Home Screen and also sets up a persistence helper inside a system app that the user picks, so that TrollStore keeps working after a reboot. Using it is described as straightforward. The user downloads the latest release, sideloads the IPA file with any tool of their choice, opens the app on the device, and presses Install. The README also includes a short FAQ covering the most common problems, such as the installer getting stuck on the Exploiting kernel step, TrollStore not appearing after install (fixed by tapping refresh app registrations inside the persistence helper), and confusion about which app ends up as the persistence helper. For people who want to build the app themselves, the project is a normal Xcode project with a build.sh script in the root that produces an IPA. The README ends with a long credits list naming the authors of TrollInstallerX, the DarkSword exploit, and many of the underlying research pieces, and notes that AI assistance was used to wire DarkSword into the existing installer.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
Walk me through sideloading TrollInstallerDark onto an iPhone X on iOS 15.8.1 using AltStore on a Mac, including the trust-the-profile step.
Prompt 2
Explain in plain English what the DarkSword kernel exploit does at a high level and why it only targets iOS 15.7.2 to 15.8.x.
Prompt 3
I clicked Install and it hangs on Exploiting kernel. Walk through the FAQ remedies in order and how to know which one worked.
Prompt 4
Read build.sh in this repo and write a short note explaining how the IPA is assembled and which Xcode toolchain version it expects.
Prompt 5
Compare TrollInstallerDark, TrollInstallerX, and TrollHelperOTA for an iPhone 8 on iOS 15.8.2 and recommend the safest path.
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Generated 2026-05-22 · Model: sonnet-4-6 · Verify against the repo before relying on details.