inkstream.
Setup guide

Put Inkstream on the Kindle you already own.

Four steps: unlock the device, stop Amazon updating it, install KOReader, add the Inkstream plugin. Nothing here is permanent — a factory reset puts it all back.

Time20–30 minutes
You needA computer + USB cable
ReversibleYes
00

Find your device

Which unlock method works is decided by your firmware version, not your model. On the Kindle open Settings → Device Options → Device Info and read off the firmware number.

Pick your model
Firmware version
Your method

Waiting for input

Choose a model and type your firmware version above.

Check this before you start This page points you at the right method. The KindleModding wizard is the source of truth and updates within days of a new firmware — run your serial and firmware through it to confirm.
01

Stop Amazon updating it

This is the step people skip and regret. If your Kindle takes an over-the-air update mid-process, the exploit you were about to use gets patched and you wait months for the next one.

  1. Turn on Airplane Mode and leave it on until the guide tells you otherwise.
  2. Charge the device to full. Never start on a low battery.
  3. Fill the storage so there's no room for an update file to download — the filler guide has a tool for this.
  4. Delete any .bin files sitting in the Kindle's root folder.
  5. Copy off anything you care about: sideloaded books, clippings, notes.
One exception SpringBreak needs free space rather than filler. If step 00 sent you there, skip the filling and read its page first.
02

Unlock the device

Follow the official guide for your method — linked from your result in step 00. We deliberately don't copy the steps here, because each one changes as firmware moves and a stale copy is how devices get bricked.

Broadly, all of them look the same from your side: copy some files to the Kindle over USB, unplug, trigger the exploit on the device, watch the screen fill with text, and wait for the interface to restart.

  1. Read the whole guide once before touching anything.
  2. Run it. Text appears, the UI restarts — that's success.
  3. Install the hotfix when the guide offers it. This is what makes the unlock survive reboots.
  4. Confirm it worked: type ;log into the Kindle's search bar. A popup means you're in.
If it fails Retry from the start before changing anything. Most failures are a hidden folder that didn't copy across — on macOS and Linux, check that .active_content_sandbox actually made it onto the device.
03

Install KOReader

KOReader is the reading app Inkstream runs inside. It handles EPUB, PDF, CBZ, FB2, DjVu and more, and it's where the plugin lives.

You install it by typing commands into the Kindle's own search bar — the same box you'd search your library with. Press return after each.

  1. Reboot the Kindle if you haven't since unlocking it.
  2. Turn Wi-Fi back on. The hotfix is now blocking updates, so this is safe.
  3. Refresh the package list: ;kpm update Text scrolls across the top, then you're back at the home screen.
  4. Install it: ;kpm install koreader A new item appears in your library. The icon can take a minute to show up.
  5. Tap it to launch. Or run ;kpm launch koreader.
To remove it later ;kpm uninstall koreader — every package works this way.
04

Add Inkstream

The plugin adds Inkstream to KOReader's menu and sends your highlights, notes and reading sessions to your shelf over Wi-Fi.

  1. Download inkstream-plugin.zip on your computer and unzip it.
  2. Connect the Kindle over USB and copy the inkstream.koplugin folder into the plugins folder inside your KOReader directory. Check the folder is named exactly inkstream.koplugin — KOReader ignores it otherwise.
  3. Restart KOReader, then open ☰ → More tools → Inkstream.
  4. Enter the username and password you chose when you created your account. The server address is already set.
  5. Choose Test connection. Sync is on by default, so everything you mark appears on your shelf after the next Wi-Fi sync. (You can pause it any time with Enable highlight sync in the same menu.)
No account yet? Inkstream is invite-only for now. Ask the person who told you about it for an invitation link — you choose your username and password when you open it.
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When something breaks

  1. Kindle updated itself and the unlock is gone. Re-run the hotfix from scratch. KOReader and Inkstream usually survive; if not, reinstall KOReader with ;kpm and copy the plugin folder back (step 04).
  2. Search bar commands do nothing. The device isn't unlocked, or the hotfix didn't take. Start again at step 02.
  3. Inkstream isn't in the Tools menu. Fully close and reopen KOReader. Then check the plugin folder name.
  4. You want the Kindle back to stock. Re-enable automatic updates, factory reset, let it update. Nothing is left behind.