If ADE is working, I'd leave it alone since you only get to activate/reactivate so many devices through ADE.

The first thing I'd suggest doing is making a decision: do you want to return to firmware 1.9.17 or do you want to stick with 2.5. It's an important decision since you're using ADE and it only gives you so many device activations. You don't want to change your mind later.