[SOLVED] Xbian-config addon "check for system updates" stuck

[Roy Terhaar]

Software
XBian version: 20161221-0
XBMC/Kodi version:17.3-Git:2017-05-26-1521bf9
Overclock settings:default

Hardware
Device type and model (e.g. Raspberry Pi Model A/B 256/512 MB, CuBox-i i4Pro, ...):RPI 3
Power supply rating:Original power supply adapter
SD card size and make/type:16Gb
Network (Ethernet or wireless):Kodi using Ethernet; wireless adapter active too on different network
Connected devices (TV, USB, network storage, ...):Philips TV, External USB harddisks Seagate and Hitachi

Log files
Will post any if needed...

Problem description:
When I try running "Check for system updates" via kodi gui xbian-config addon in menu "Update", the addon will freeze in the splash screen "Please wait... Retrieving list of upgradeable packages...".

How to reproduce:
However if I stop dnsmasq (sudo service dnsmasq stop) that is also running on the same raspberry pi, the update check seems to continue and ends as you would expect and returns back to the menu.
Dnsmasq is used by all my network devices effectively configured in my router.
However I have excluded the raspberry pi from using dnsmasq by setting a static network ip address and configuring use of google dns servers locally. This seems to be ok; if I check /etc/resolv.conf it displays the google dns servers.
Also, on command-line sudo apt-get update and apt-get upgrade works just fine.
So it seems that the addon is doing something extra or different than the command line commands.

I have checked several log files, but I have not found any info that can solve the freeze problem of the addon; the only workaround I have now is stopping the dnsmasq service and once update check is done starting the service again.

Can anybody help me or give some pointers to solve my problem?

Thanks.