[Solved] Back button on Roku not working

Here is the text from my duplicate thread (I didn't re-edit it because I'm already hours and hours behind from troubleshooting all day long, and besides, it's interesting to see how coincidence and timing can cause some very misleading conclusions to be drawn):

I am the unluckiest person alive.

I just had a nightmare issue with YouTube where I had to reset the app, and lost the ability to turn off thumbnail preview.

To troubleshoot that, I temporarily hooked up a brand new Roku 4850X and signed in with my Roku account, and found that the thumbnail preview setting was there in the 4850X. So that tells me something.

But, that introduced a new problem, and a seemingly nasty and permanent one.

On the Roku 4850X, I found that the upper left "back" button on the remote control was *mostly* not working. It works in the YouTube app, but it does not work in many others, such as HBOMax, Tubi, and others (I have not tested them all as this will take way more time than all of the issues I have experienced in the past day have already taken up). Most importantly, it does not work in Roku Media player. That means I cannot exit the player, and it means that I cannot go back once I am inside any device, folder, or playlist.

I also have some audio problems with the 4850X, so I decided to go back to the 4660X for now.

But guess what?

THE BACK BUTTON ISSUE FOLLOWED ME.

So now, on the 4660X, not only have I lost the ability to turn off YouTube thumbnail previews, but I have lost the ability to use Roku Media Player correctly, which is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO ME.

Some examples of channels where the back button works as expected:

- Apple TV
- YouTube
- Weather4US
- Amazon Prime Video

Some examples of where the back button does NOT work:

- Roku Media Player
- Tubi
- HBO Max
- The Criterion Channel
- Hulu
- Disney+
- Fandango at Home

Here is something I have found:

I can temporarily recover the back button functionality by pressing "*" four times on the remote to turn on or off the screen reader shortcut. (The screen reader shortcut option must be enabled.) After doing that, the upper left back button on the remote starts to temporarily behave normally again. However, it will soon become disabled again for the above apps I have checked so far. If for example I press the back button when browsing Roku channels, it behaves as expected and goes back to the left menu (same as pressing left). However, this will disable the back button once again until pressing "*" four times on the remote to toggle the screen reader on then off again.

Because this only happened after I installed the 4850X (from a factory sealed box) and logged in with my Roku account, this tells me that it likely had some effect on my account on Roku's servers that is likely causing this behavior. The 4850X is no longer plugged in, and its included remote is not paired to the 4660X. Again, this problem started on the 4850X, then when I unplugged it and re-connected the 4660X, the problem of the remote's upper left back button not working began happening on the 4660X. The 4850X remote is NOT paired to the 4660X.

PLEASE TELL ME THIS CAN BE FIXED.

I am ***not*** going to ditch my entire Roku account for a new one ***JUST*** to try to get the back button working again. I would sooner try Amazon Fire than do that.

- Roku device model, serial number, device ID, and software OS/version
Device Model: 4660X - Roku Ultra
Serial Number: YJ00A47774754
Device ID: CK386A777475
Software OS/Version: 14.6.4 Build 9914-46
GC Version: 14.3.9

- Does this issue occur on a specific channel? If so, what channel and what version/build is the channel
Checked so far (and the back button is not working on):
Roku main channel navigation screen, Roku Media Player, Tubi, HBO Max, The Criterion Channel, Hulu, Disney+, Fandango at Home

- Tracker ID when this issue occurs (when you see this issue occur, press the Home button 5 times, followed by the Back button 5 times and provide us with this ID)
75-344-154 (Timestamp: 2025-08-27T23:54:49Z)

- Steps to reproduce the issue you are seeing
You would have to log on with my account on a Roku Ultra. This issue started when I hooked up a factory new 4850X temporarily to troubleshoot a different problem. When I disconnected it and hooked back up my original 4660X Roku Ultra, the exact same problem now manifested on it. On the 4850X, the problem was present with both its own remote as well as the 4660X's remote. I tried removing the batteries from the 4660X remote and it had no effect. I unplugged the 4850X and put it and the remote away. I am now using only the 4660X again with only the 4660X remote, yet the problem followed me back over to the 4660X. I confirmed that the 4850X remote is not paired to the 4660X. This problem was 100% non existent until I hooked up the factory sealed 4850X and signed in.