An Amazon Signage Stick, sometimes called "the Fire Stick," shows "obtaining IP address" when it has joined a network but has not yet been given an address. The Stick cannot finish setup until that happens. If you wired the Stick with Amazon's Ethernet adapter, check the adapter's power first: Amazon names that as the cause. If you set it up on Wi-Fi only, work through the Wi-Fi steps below in order.
Use the table to find the likely cause for your setup.
| What is true of your setup | Likely cause | Go to |
|---|---|---|
| Wired with the Ethernet adapter | Adapter powered from the TV's USB port | Fix the power first |
| On Wi-Fi, and it worked before | A stale saved network | Forget the Wi-Fi network and rejoin it |
| On a small office or shop network | MAC filtering | Rule out MAC filtering |
| None of the above fits | Router has no address to give | Confirm the router has an address to give |
Fix the power first (the adapter, not the Stick)
If the Stick is wired through Amazon's Ethernet adapter, this is the documented cause. Amazon's own support pages name it directly: the adapter loses power when it draws from a TV or display USB port, because those ports have limited output.
- Unplug the Ethernet adapter from the TV's USB port.
- Plug the Stick's own power adapter and cable into the Ethernet adapter instead, and plug that into a wall outlet or a powered strip.
- Wait one minute, then check the screen again.
See the Ethernet adapter and setup guide if you still need to buy or connect the adapter: it is Amazon's own micro-USB adapter, $14.99, never the USB-C version.
Restart the Stick, the modem and the router
Do this next, wired or on Wi-Fi.
- If you are picking a network during setup and yours is not in the list, press Back on the remote to refresh it.
- Unplug the Stick's power adapter. Wait one minute, then plug it back in.
- If you can, move the Stick and the router closer together.
- Unplug the modem and the router. Wait one minute.
- Plug in the modem first. Wait about a minute until it is online.
- Plug in the router. Wait about a minute.
- Let the Stick try again.
Forget the Wi-Fi network and rejoin it
If the restart does not fix it and the Stick is on Wi-Fi, forget the saved network and reconnect to it fresh.
- On the remote, open Settings, then Network & Internet, then Wi-Fi.
- Select your network, then choose to forget it.
- Select the network again and enter the Wi-Fi password. Use the Wi-Fi password, not your Amazon account password.
Rule out MAC filtering
A smaller network can block new devices by MAC address even without an Enterprise Wi-Fi setup. This is simpler to fix than Enterprise Wi-Fi: it is usually one setting on the router's admin page, not a RADIUS server.
- Find the Stick's address: Settings, then About Device, then Device Wi-Fi MAC address.
- Open the router's admin page (or ask whoever manages it) and look for MAC filtering, an access control list, or an "allowed devices" list.
- Add the Stick's MAC address, save, and power-cycle the Stick.
Confirm the router has an address to give
The Stick gets its address from the router automatically (DHCP). On a site with many screens and other devices on one network, ask whoever manages the router to check three things:
- The DHCP address pool still has free addresses left to hand out.
- No DHCP reservation gives the Stick's address to another device.
- A network-access control appliance, if the site has one, is not holding the Stick in a quarantine group waiting for approval.
If the Stick never joins a network at all
"Obtaining IP address" means the Stick already joined a network. If instead your network never appears in the setup list, or the Stick will not join it, the cause is different. Check these two things.
Check the Wi-Fi security type
The Stick's setup only joins a personal, password-protected network: Enhanced Open, WEP, WPA/WPA2-Personal or WPA3-Personal. It cannot join WPA/WPA2/WPA3-Enterprise, the type that checks a username, a password or a certificate against a RADIUS server. You can only pick the security type during setup, not after.
A venue's main Wi-Fi is often Enterprise. If that is the only network on site, three options work:
- Ask IT for a separate SSID set to WPA2-Personal or WPA3-Personal, used only for signage and similar devices.
- Ask IT to allow the Stick onto the network by its MAC address instead (MAC Address-Based Authentication, or MAB). Find the address under Settings, then About Device, then Device Wi-Fi MAC address.
- Wire the Stick with the Ethernet adapter and skip Wi-Fi entirely.
For the full network picture an IT team needs, see Amazon Signage Stick network requirements.
Check for a hidden network
The Stick cannot see a hidden (non-broadcasting) SSID while it sets up. Three ways around it:
- With the physical remote only, choose Join Other Network and type the network name, security type and password by hand.
- Unhide the SSID for the few minutes setup takes, then hide it again.
- Use the Ethernet adapter instead.
If several Sticks share one Wi-Fi 6E network
Give the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz bands the same network name (SSID). With one SSID, each Stick connects to the best band on its own, based on the signal from the router.
If nothing above fixes it
Email [email protected] with the Stick's Device Serial Number (DSN). Find the DSN on the box, or on the remote under Settings, then About Device, then Model & Hardware.
If it still will not move past the screen
Factory reset the Stick and start setup again: how to factory reset an Amazon Signage Stick. If the Stick does get an address but the connection drops again later, on its own or at random, Amazon ties that to the same cause: see Amazon Signage Stick keeps disconnecting for the full fix list.
Once it gets an address
The screen moves on to the Stick's own setup. Pick Brix Signage when it asks which app to use, finish the roughly 10-minute setup, then pair it in Brix: open Screens, select Add screen, then Pair a hardware device, and enter the code shown on the TV. After that, Brix's offline cache keeps content playing through a short network drop.
Ready to put a Stick on a screen today? Start a free trial: no card needed, and setup takes about 10 minutes once the network is sorted.
FAQ
Is "obtaining IP address" the same as not finding the network?
No. If the Stick cannot see or join the network at all, the network is often hidden, out of range or set to Enterprise security. "Obtaining IP address" means the Stick joined a network but has not been given an address yet, which points at power, DHCP or a filter, not the Wi-Fi signal itself.
Does the Signage Stick work on Enterprise Wi-Fi?
No, not during setup or after. The Stick's Wi-Fi setup supports only Enhanced Open, WEP, WPA/WPA2-Personal and WPA3-Personal. For an Enterprise-only site, use a separate Personal SSID, MAC-based authentication, or the wired Ethernet adapter.
How do I find the Stick's MAC address for IT?
Open Settings with the remote or the virtual remote, go to About Device, then Device Wi-Fi MAC address. IT needs this for MAC-based authentication or an allow list entry.
Will the Stick reconnect on its own after a power cut?
Yes, once the network problem is fixed. The Stick does not need its setup repeated for a dropped connection; it keeps its saved network and its Brix pairing, and reconnects by itself.