InkwellStart here
Overview
Inkwell sends a fixed PDF to each signer in turn and keeps what proves it happened: the executed PDF, a certificate and a chained audit trail. It runs on your own computer, or on your own Cloudflare account, and it is MIT licensed.
How an agreement moves
Every agreement is an envelope: one fixed PDF, one to five recipients in signing order, and the fields each of them fills in.
- Prepare. An owner or admin uploads the final PDF, adds the recipients in order and places signature, text and date fields on the pages. Saving prepares the envelope; it sends nothing yet.
- Approve. A person reviews the document, the recipients and whether it is suitable for electronic signature, then approves it. Only then does Inkwell invite the first recipient.
- Sign in order. Each recipient opens their own private link, confirms their email address with a one-time code, reads the document, types their name and signs. The next recipient is invited only after the previous signature is recorded.
- Keep. When the last person signs, the envelope is completed: you can download the executed PDF, the certificate, the audit JSON and a handoff manifest, and recheck every fingerprint at any time.
An unfinished envelope can be voided with a reason, and the reason stays on record.
Envelope statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
prepared |
Saved and waiting for a person to approve it. Nothing has been sent. |
awaiting signature |
Approved; a recipient has an invitation and the others wait their turn. |
completed |
Everyone signed. The executed PDF and certificate exist. |
voided |
Stopped before completion, with the reason in the audit trail. |
expired |
The envelope expired before everyone signed. |
Who can do what
| Role | Can |
|---|---|
| Owner | Everything: prepare, approve, void, erase, move in, back up and restore, and issue agent tokens. |
| Admin | Prepare, approve and void envelopes. |
| Member | Read envelopes and download their records. |
The server checks these roles on every request, not only in the interface.
What Inkwell does not do
Inkwell places the signer's typed name into the PDF and records the email-code check, consent and order in its certificate. It does not apply a qualified cryptographic signature, verify anyone's government identity, notarise documents or decide whether a document may be signed electronically. You decide which documents are eligible.
Next: Getting started.