Unexpected outgoing connections from Firefox

[itc...@posteo.org]

Firefox 51.0.1 (64-bit; macOS)

I’m trying to get some information on a number of connections that Firefox initiates by itself on every launch and sporadically during browsing that appear to have no relationship to any functionality that I’m knowingly making use of. That is to say, blocking these connections does not appear to adversely affect my web browsing.

The following outgoing connections tend to occur immediately I launch Firefox, before I’ve undertaken any interaction myself:

firefox.settings.services.mozilla.com:443
tiles.services.mozilla.com:443
shavar.services.mozilla.com:443
self-repair.mozilla.org:443

The following outgoing connections tend to occur sporadically after I launch Firefox:

olympia.prod.mozaws.net
aus5.mozilla.org:443
versioncheck-bg.addons.mozilla.org:443
self-repair.r53-2.services.mozilla.com
versioncheck.prod.mozaws.net

I’ve also noticed that Firefox attempts to contact the following address whenever I click, “More…” to view the update settings of several third-party add-ons:

addons-cdn-geo.prod.mozaws.net

Ultimately, I’d like to know what settings I can change to prevent these outgoing connections from occurring, where desirable. I can’t simply block these connections outright because I do occasionally need to permit them temporarily, when I knowingly activate a feature that requires them (eg. manually checking for updates to Add-Ons).

Finally, in the same vein: does anyone know how to view and set the universal default update setting for add-ons? I think this may be a good start to blocking some of the connections mentioned.