This detailed guide explains how to expand the internal storage on the Firestick and Fire TV Cube.
Many users have expressed frustration over the limited internal storage capacity of the Amazon Fire TV Stick.
The device comes with 8GB of internal storage, but only 5GB is usable due to the Fire OS and pre-installed apps by Amazon.
After installing favorite streaming apps and more, this remaining 5GB fills up quickly.
While connecting a USB thumb drive through an OTG cable is possible, previous limitations prevented installing apps on external storage—this has changed.
This guide will outline two methods to increase internal storage for different versions of the Amazon Firestick and Fire TV Cube.
The first method covers the new Firesticks and Fire TV Cubes running Fire OS 7, while the second method is tailored for Fire OS 6.
We recommend watching our video guides for crucial information not included in the step-by-step instructions provided.
The first video guide showcases expanding storage on the all-new Firestick 4K Max, which is also applicable to Fire TV Stick Lite, 3rd Generation Fire TV Stick, and Fire TV Cube.
For users of Chromecast with Google TV, a similar process can be followed, and our guide on that is available.
How to Expand Storage on Chromecast with Google TV
What You Will Require
- Firestick or Fire TV Cube
- OTG Cable
- USB 3.0 Flash Drive
- Rufus Drive Utility – only if formatting the USB drive is necessary
- Remote ADB Shell App (for Fire OS 6) – Installation instructions provided below.
Expanding Internal Storage on Firestick – Choosing a USB Drive
Throughout this guide, I conducted extensive testing with various USB flash drives available.
My best results were with USB 3.0 drives, specifically the SanDisk brand that I have linked above. While some 2.0 drives functioned well, others did not.
If your USB drive encounters issues, consider formatting it with Rufus to potentially resolve any drive-related problems.
How to Format USB Drive to FAT32
I recommend initially testing drives you already own. If problems persist, acquiring a SanDisk 3.0 model would be a reliable solution.
Flash drives are now quite affordable, and you can find a 64GB model for approximately $10.
Expand Internal Storage On Firestick & Fire TV Cube (Fire OS 7) Video Guide
OTG Cable with 3 USB Ports for Firestick
Screenshot Guide – Fire OS 6 (Original Firestick 4K)
The video above goes into more detail than the screenshot guide below. We recommend that you watch the video first.
The first thing you need to do is connect your USB flash drive to your Fire TV Stick 4K. Then, connect the Firestick to your TV and power it on.
You will seehow simple this is by looking at the image below.
You can purchase an OTG Cable from here for approximately $5.
1 Click Settings.
2 Click My Fire TV.
Type in "Downloader" and click on the "Downloader" option that will appear on the keyboard. Next, click on the Downloader app. After that, click on the "Download" button. Proceed by clicking on "Open," then "Allow," and finally, click on "OK."
On the home screen, enter the address "iptvproviders.info/radb" into the provided box to install the Remote ADB Shell Application. It is also possible to install the Remote ADB Shell App using the TROYPOINT App via Rapid App Installer. Lastly, click on "Install."
16 Click Open.
17 Click OK.
18 On the main screen of Remote ADB App type in your IP Address that you wrote down in Step #4 and then click Next.
19 Leave 5555 in the box and click Next.
20 Click Connect.
21 Check the box that reads “Always allow from this computer” and click OK button.
22 You are now presented with the command line within the Remote ADB application. Click the OK button on your remote to open the keyboard.
23 Type in the following command sm list-disks and then click Run.
24 In the background you will see your disk name listed. In my case, it is 8,0. You may see a different name listed. Make a note of this as you will need it in the next step. You can click the back button on your remote to close the keyboard if you prefer to view the words in the background without the dark tint.
25 Now, you need to decide how you would like to format your USB Flash Drive.
Option #1: sm partition disk:8,0 mixed 50
If your drive name is different than 8,0, input that instead when running this code.
This option will create 2 equal-sized partitions on your drive. I'm using a 256GB SanDisk 3.0 Flash Drive, split into 2 partitions with 128GB each.
One partition for applications (internal storage) and another for various files (external storage).
I prefer this choice because it lets me load movies & TV shows onto the storage partition from my computer, then play them through Kodi or another media player on the Fire TV Stick 4K.
I can also download media via APKs on the Fire TV Stick 4K and transfer them to the storage partition through my file explorer for later access. This is helpful when traveling without Internet access.
Option #2: sm partition disk:8,0 private
This option formats your entire disk as internal storage, removing the ability to store or access media files like with external storage.
Below, I'm selecting option 1. Enter your preferred command and click Run.
26 Once you enter the command, you may notice the bottom right corner indicates your USB drive is removed.
27 Then, it reconnects again, which is normal.
28 To confirm the formatting was successful, execute the following command: df -h, then click Run.
29 You can now see the size of each partition and how much space is available.
The first /dev/fuse in the list = Fire TV Stick 4K onboard storage. You will see that I only have 415MB left of onboard storage.
The second /dev/fuse in the list = external storage that may be used for media files, etc.
/dev/block/dm-2 = the partition that will store and run applications from.
App Installation Location
In theory, every application that we install from here on out shall be stored on the dm-2 partition of the USB drive but that's not the case.
After I went through this tutorial, I noticed that many of the apps that I installed through the Amazon App store didn't run from the USB drive.
You can quickly determine whether an application is running from the USB drive by going into Fire TV Stick 4K Settings, clicking Applications.
Click Manage Installed Applications.
You will see a USB icon next to the apps currently running off the USB drive.
From what I understand, if the application author doesn't declare support for running off external storage, it will default to internal storage.
Read more about specifying app installation location here.
So, if you install an application through the Amazon App Store and it doesn't show as it is running from the USB drive, this means that the app developer didn't declare this in their code.
Luckily, we can issue a command through the Remote ADB Shell app to move applications over to the USB drive.
Please note that all applications that I sideloaded such as Kodi, Cinema, TROYPOINT App, were automatically added to the USB drive which is great!
How To Transfer Apps from Onboard Storage to USB Drive
The first thing I want to do is write down or take a screenshot of the partition ID where we are moving the application to. We can easily get this by looking at the last command I issued in Remote ADB Shell App which is df -h.
If your screen doesn't show this information, just issue the command df -h again.
The ID that I will need for this next command that I'm going to issue is b364d821-f0b7-4f6f-8c67-eeb62f364ae1 You will see that I am getting this from the /mnt/ partition below. Yours will be different than mine.
The second step that needs to be completed is to determine the Android package name for the desired app transfer.
All package names installed on the device can be listed using the command below.
pm list packages
Once the command is executed, a similar screen will appear. Use the up and down arrows on your remote control to scroll for the specific application you wish to move.
In this instance, I'm relocating the UFC app to the USB drive, and you will notice the package name is com.neulion.firetv.ufc.android.amazon.
Next, combining the partition ID with the Android package name will facilitate moving the application using the following command.
pm move-package com.neulion.firetv.ufc.android.amazon b364d821-f0b7-4f6f-8c67-eeb62f364ae1
If the process is completed correctly, a success message will be displayed.
Upon revisiting Fire TV Stick 4K Settings / Applications / Manage Installed Applications, you will notice the UFC app now has a USB icon alongside it.
Refer to the video above this guide for additional tips on utilizing your new storage efficiently!