[Kindle Fire HDX 7" & 8.9" Q&A, Help & Troubleshoot] Msxhai:
Warning: Potentially long post ahead with mini-intro/rant

Hi XDA! I'm a noob new user/newbie when it comes to rooting. I have some (little) experience with jailbreaking my iPhone previously (It turned out very well), when the guy I paid to do so practically bricked my old one (SHEESH, you can't count on other people to do these things, better do them yourself) but have not tackled rooting Android devices yet.

I have a 3rd gen Kindle Fire HDX 7" (Thor).

Don't get me wrong, I love my Kindle. It's been an awesome pal for the past two years, aside from the loose charging port, the lack of interesting stuff on the Amazon appstore, and the inability to change or customize YOUR device, I decided it was time to "get my feet wet". I've been coming back to these forums over the past few months, in hopes of finding a root for 4.5.5.2 but I'd always chicken out in fear of bricking it. Eventually, I learned that to root, I need to rollback to a certain firmware.

OKAY, so I've done a little reading here and there in the past two hours (or more) and have gathered the following information so far (if there's something worth clarifying or expounding, please do!):

Point 1: The steps are, in order: Rollback to 3.2.8, upgrade to 4.5.2, root, block OTA, install Safestrap v4, and (optional) flash custom ROM.

My options are CM11 and Nexus 4 as of the moment (from what I've seen on these forums, but CM11 has been discontinued[????] and there's a newer version of HDX Nexus ROM v4 called Fire Nexus ROM somewhere if I'm not mistaken)

Question: Which do you suggest? CM11 or Nexus 4? What are the pros and cons of each?

Point 2: I understand that I need to download everything in advance and store them in a unique folder so that it'd be easier for me later on.

Question: Do you recommend that I factory reset my Kindle before anything else and THEN download everything I need in preparation? Won't these downloads be deleted/removed if I rollback my device to 3.2.8? I'm planning on creating a backup of these files on my PC in case something goes wrong or missing.

Point 3: I saw something that said

Question: What's the difference between 14.4.5.2 and 13.4.5.2? I haven't dug deep enough in the forums to know if there's an answer to the question, but I made this thread to clear up everything I'm unsure of.

Point 4: Before anything, I know I've got to understand the basics of ADB before even attempting any of this (like commands and such). In one of the threads, I saw this:

Question: What's the difference between minimal adb versus the whole package/thing? Shouldn't it be better to just download or install the full thing (no matter how big the file/program/application is)? What are the pros and cons?

YES, I know I have to understand what USB debug means and/or how to enable it. (I bookmarked an article for further reading soon, but already have enabled the setting within my device).

Other things I've gathered so far:

-Always have a copy of ES File Explorer along with other important files.

-Use a Windows PC/laptop. I'm using a mac, which is basically useless for games and the like not ideal when rooting. (Tiny question. Do I really need to install Linux/Ubuntu even if I can use someone's Windows PC/lappy to root?

-To root successfully, I've got to enable mock locations from developer options (already did).

-Before installing/flashing custom ROMS, I need to make a backup of the stock ROM.

CONCERNS:

Known issues regarding safestrap include secondary slots which boot but the WiFi module doesn't load (Which means I have to flash Nexus v4 to the STOCK SLOT for now [?????] is there any workaround for this? Because from what I've read so far, tampering with the stock is a big NO-NO unless you know what you're doing or in this case, "...unless I know what I'm doing.".) Or at least any reassurance? A safe, fool-proof way of doing this without at least bricking my device (likely)?

That's all I've got so far. I've compiled everything the basic things I need to know in a notepad, from steps and instructions, to tuts and download links.

Apologies for my english, this is not my native language :)

Thanks to whoever can answer some of my questions! Cheers and good day :laugh: