Kinode Media Server · last updated 4 August 2026
These terms cover the Kinode Media Server software, the Kinode apps for phones, tablets, and televisions, and the hub service at usekinode.app. By installing the software, using an app, or creating a Kinode account, you agree to them. If you do not agree, do not use them.
Kinode Media Server is software you install and run on your own computer. It organizes media files you already have and streams them to your own devices. We do not supply, host, sell, or index any media. The optional hub service at usekinode.app does three things: it holds Kinode accounts, it helps apps locate your server when you are away from home, and it caches artwork and descriptions so your server does not depend on a third-party metadata provider staying online.
You may install and run the software on hardware you own or control, for as many people in your household as you like, for as long as you like. You may not remove or obscure attribution in the software, redistribute modified copies as though they were official releases, or resell the software as a product of your own. This licence does not transfer ownership of anything.
You are solely responsible for the media files you add to your server and for having the right to hold and play them. We have no access to your library and no ability to inspect, moderate, or remove anything in it. Do not use Kinode to store or distribute material you do not have the right to, and do not use the sharing features to make such material available to other people. If we receive a credible report that a hub account is being used to distribute infringing material, we may suspend that account; we cannot reach into your server, and we will not try.
A hub account is optional. If you create one, keep your password to yourself and keep the email address on it current, since that is how we would reach you about a security problem or a server that has stopped checking in. You are responsible for what happens under your account. Tell us promptly if you believe it has been compromised. You may delete your account at any time from your account page, and doing so removes your account record and your registered server entries.
The hub is provided free of charge and on a best-effort basis. There is no uptime guarantee. We may change, interrupt, or discontinue any part of it, and we will give reasonable notice before permanently shutting down something people depend on. Your server and apps are built to keep working on your own network when the hub is unreachable, and playback never passes through it.
When using the hub, the apps, or the community areas of this site, do not:
We may remove content and suspend accounts that break these rules.
Plugins listed in the directory, including those published by other people, run on your own server with the permissions you grant them. Review what a plugin may do before installing it. The apps are distributed through Google Play and use Google Cast, and your server may fetch artwork and descriptions from metadata providers; those services are governed by their own terms, not these.
The software and the hub are currently provided at no cost, with no subscription. If paid features are introduced in the future, the price and terms will be presented before any purchase, and nothing you already have will stop working because of it.
The software and the hub are provided “as is,” without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including any implied warranty of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. We do not warrant that the software will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that it will work with every file, codec, or device.
Kinode manages metadata about your files; it is not a backup system. Some actions, such as emptying a library's trash or deleting an item with its files, are permanent. Keep your own backups of anything you care about.
To the fullest extent permitted by law, we are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages, or for lost data, lost profits, or the cost of substitute services, arising out of your use of the software or the hub. Our total liability for any claim relating to them is limited to the amount you have paid us in the twelve months before the claim, which for a free product is zero.
You may stop using the software at any time and delete your hub account whenever you like. We may suspend or close a hub account that breaks these terms. Ending your hub account does not disable the software on your own hardware.
If these terms change we will update the date at the top of this page, and for material changes we will say so on the site or by email to account holders. Continuing to use the software or the hub after a change means you accept the updated terms.
How information is handled is described in our Privacy Policy, which forms part of these terms.
Questions about these terms: support@usekinode.app