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Old 04-23-2014, 03:14 PM   #1
antithesis
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Device: Kindle DX White
Updating Kindle DX firmware -- any Kindle 3 owners willing to help?

I've been meaning to update my DX's firmware to 3.X (3.2.1, to be specific, since I read here that that's what you need to update to first) following Yifan Lu's method, but I'm unable to do this because I don't own a Kindle 3 device.

I was a bit surprised to learn that it's illegal to distribute the needed files. You're free to distribute the source code, so why not binaries compiled on the device? Is it certain that this is illegal?

I'd like to ask if any Kindle 3 owners could help me with the update. The idea is that I follow the instructions like normally, except for the part where a Kindle 3 is needed. When I run into that, I send the file I produced with my DX to you, you follow that part of the instructions, and send the file you produce back to me so I can finish the update.

For those not familiar with this process, I'll paste the instructions here so you have an idea of what I'm talking about.

Spoiler:

INSTALLATION

PART 1 - Preparing the client

1) Copy the correct prepare_kindle update file to the root of the USB drive of your client. Make sure to select both the correct model and the correct version. If your version is not listed, please upgrade the client.
k2 = Kindle 2 US
k2i = Kindle 2 International
dx = Kindle DX US
dxi = Kindle DX International
dxg = Kindle DX Graphite
2) Run the update from the Settings menu.
3) After the update process is done, copy the "output" folder to your computer and keep it safe in case you need to recover/restore later.

The Kindle prepare process will take from anywhere between 30 minutes to an hour. In this time, it will first generate rootfs.img to use on the host (and also for manual recovery), update_restore-os.bin for restoring back to the client's original software version, and flash a custom kernel that allows unsigned recovery packages and no-password MMC export.

PART 2 - Creating the update

1) Copy the correct create_updater update file to the root of the USB drive of your host. Make sure to select both the correct model and the correct version. If your version is not listed, please upgrade the host.
k3 = Kindle 3 Wifi + 3G US & Canada
k3g = Kindle 3 Wifi + 3G Elsewhere
k3w = Kindle 3 Wifi
2) Copy the "rootfs.img" file you obtained from the "output" folder of the client to the root of the USB drive of your host.
3) Run the update from the Settings menu.
4) After the update process is done, copy the "output" folder to your computer and keep it safe so you can always update to 3.X on the client even if you decide to restore in the future.

The update creation process will take from anywhere between an hour to an hour and a half. In this time, it will copy the host files to the root image of the client, then patch files for the client, then compress the image, and finally generate a update for the client.

PART 3 - Updating the client

1) Copy the .bin found in the "output" folder of the host and paste it on the root of the USB of the client.
2) In order to save space on the rootfs, I've removed the female voice from the TTS feature. If you wish to restore this feature, it will take use about 120MB of USB storage. Either copy "tts-files.tar" from the "output" folder to the Kindle, or extract "tts-files.tar" to the root of the USB drive of the Kindle.
3) Restart the Kindle either by the Settings menu or by holding the sleep switch down.

The Kindle will restore to the new version after the restart. This will take about ten minutes to complete. In the event that the restore process is interrupted or fails, don't panic: you have a special kernel that allows for easy recovery, read the troubleshooting guide on the bottom. Also, it is normal that the first bootup will restart the Kindle when about 20% done. It's just doing a factory reset and unzipping the TTS files.


Does anyone mind doing this? It'll take about 15 minutes of your time, and it'd help me enormously. Thanks in advance.
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Old 04-23-2014, 04:47 PM   #2
knc1
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Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Central Texas
Device: No K1, PW2, KV, KOA
Only a portion of the source code is "Open Source" -
Of that portion, only a small part of it **REQUIRES** that the source be available to those who receive the binaries.
That is the only part of the entire system source code that Amazon distributes. That minimum which they are legally required to distribute.

I.E: A small part of a small part - the rest is proprietary, the Intellectual Property of Amazon.

Translation:
Yes, we are sure it is illegal to re-distribute the **entire** system image.
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