How to Block Amazon Fire Stick Updates – Full Guide with FAQs, Tips & More

The Amazon Fire TV stick is a neat little way of getting all the streaming content you want directly to your television. 

You get access to all popular streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, HBO, Disney+, and much more. 

That being said, like most internet-enabled electronic devices, the Amazon Firestick automatically installs updates constantly which you may not want. 

Why Would You Want to Disable Automatic Updates?

We don’t really think this is a necessary section to include because anyone who has ever used an internet-enabled device will know how annoying automatic updates are. 

While it’s true that they keep your Amazon Fire TV stick up to date, the truth of the matter is that oftentimes, they can do more harm than good. 

Firstly, an automatic update will show up on your Amazon Firestick without warning and you will be forced to complete it. You normally do not have the option to cancel the update and have to stick with it through to the end. 

Naturally, this can be very annoying, especially if you’re having a party or a gathering. Now, you’ll just be sitting with your friends staring at the installation bar, urging it to complete. 

Doesn’t sound like a fun time, right? 

Secondly, these automatic updates can often make unwanted changes to your Fire TV. 

Some examples of such changes are: 

1. It may change the interface in a way that is not intuitive to you. 
2. It may install certain media apps or software on your Fire TV that you don’t want. Note that you won’t be able to uninstall these apps in the future either. 
3. It may cause certain custom launchers and third-party apps within your Fire TV to stop working. 

So yes, while the Fire TV updates are intended to make the device better, they can oftentimes result in changes that users don’t want. 

Luckily, there is an effective (though complex) process for disabling automatic updates on your Fire TV. 

If you’re tech-savvy, then this process will be fairly simple for you. 

However, if you’re not, it might seem intimidating. Not to worry though. Just follow our simple guide and you’ll have your automatic updates disabled in no time. 

How to Disable System Updates on Your Amazon Fire TV Stick?

Follow these steps to disable updates on Amazon Fire TV devices: 

Opening Your Fire TV for Connections from Other Sources 

Step 1: The first step involves enabling Android Debugging Bridge, or ADB. ADB is a command-line-level program that allows you to make developer-level changes to Amazon Fire TV. 

To enable it, go to your Fire TV home screen and select “home”. 

Step 2: Select “My Fire TV”. 

Step 3: Go to “Developer options” as shown below: 

Step 4: Make sure “ADB debugging” is on. 

Step 5: Turn on “Apps from Unknown Sources” as well. 

Finding Your Fire TV Stick’s IP Address

Now, you need to determine your IP address that is assigned to your Fire TV by your Wi-Fi network. 

Here’s how: 

Step 1: Go to your Fire TV settings. 

Step 2: Scroll right and click “My Fire TV”. 

Step 3: Select “About” as shown below: 

Step 4: Click on “Network”. 

Step 5: You’ll see the IP address of your Fire TV on the right side of the screen. 

It will most likely be something like “192.168.1.XX” where the two X’s denote the identity of your Fire TV. 

Note down your IP address as you will need it later. 

Installing ADB on Your Computer

Step 1: Download Remote ADB Shell and install it onto your computer and launch it. 

Connecting Your Computer to Your Fire TV via ADB

Step 1: On your computer, hit “Windows key + R” to bring up the Run program. Enter “cmd” and hit enter to open up Command Prompt. 

Step 2: Once open, type “ADB kill-server” without the quotations and hit Enter as shown: 

Step 3: Type “ADB start-server” and hit Enter as shown: 

Step 4: Type “ADB connect [Your Fire TV’s IP address]” and hit Enter as shown below. Don’t include the brackets or the quotations. 

Your computer is now connected with your Fire TV via ADB.

Disabling Automatic Updates on Your Fire TV Using ADB

Once you have connected your computer to your Fire TV, disabling automatic updates is fairly simple. 

Just follow these steps: 

Step 1: With your command prompt still open and your computer connected to your Fire TV, type “su” and hit Enter. 

Now, you have admin-level privileges on your Fire TV. 

Step 2: If your Fire Stick has OS3, type “ADB shell pm disable com.amazon.dcp” and hit Enter as shown below: 

Step 2 (Alternate): If your Fire Stick has OS5 or greater, then type “ADB shell pm hide com.amazon.device.software.ota” and press Enter as shown below: 

And that’s pretty much it. Automatic updates on your Amazon Fire Stick have now been disabled. 

Enabling Automatic Updates on Your Fire TV 

If you’d like to ever reactivate automatic updates on your Amazon Fire TV for whatever reason, you have two options: 

1. You can either perform a factory reset. 
2. You can use ADB Shell again. 

To enable automatic updates on your Fire TV using ADB Shell, you just have to follow the same steps given above with one small change:

If you’re using OS3, replace the “ADB shell pm disable com.amazon.dcp” with the “ADB shell pm enable com.amazon.dcp” command. 

If you’re using OS5 or greater, replace the “ADB shell pm hide com.amazon.device.software.ota” command with the “ADB shell pm unhide com.amazon.device.software.ota” command. 

Wrapping Things Up… 

And that’s it. 

Using this process, you can make developer-level changes to your Fire Stick and disable those pesky automatic updates. 

Now, you’re free to install whatever custom apps you want without having to worry that they’ll stop working once an automatic update rolls around. 

You can also be stress-free that an update won’t come up when you have friends or family over. 

Have you ever had an unpleasant experience with automatic updates on your Amazon Fire Stick? Let us know in the comments below.