This article explains how you can fix the software update problem. More specifically, the focus of this article is on what you can do to when your Mac won’t update to the latest version of macOS.
Macbook won't open anything. I've rebooted, tried everything, and nothing. Desktop and dock and menu bar appear, but my Documents and Downloads icons at bottom don't 'load' (they show empty) and no matter what I click on, nothing happens. Track pad and finder arrow are functional but literally nothing else. MacBook, Mac OS X (10.4.11). Safari never reverted back to the default settings and it still won't let me download anything on the profile I'm having issues with.
Some Mac users, unfortunately, have been and continue to be affected by various macOS software update issues where they may experience a stalled macOS update. By stalled, we mean that macOS updates won’t download and install successfully.
Sometimes, you may see an error message saying “The macOS installation couldn’t be completed” or “macOS could not be installed on your computer”.
Mac Won’t Update?
Please try the tips belove if you are unable to update your computer:
It is important that you back up your Mac before you do anything.
There could be a variety of reasons for this. Before you do anything:
Make sure there is enough space to download and install an update. If not, you may see error messages. To see if your computer has enough room to store the update, go to the Apple menu > About This Mac and click the Storage tap. You can easily free up storage space on your Mac.
If you see a “Update Not Found” error, see this article.
Make sure that you have an Internet connection to update your Mac. You can troubleshoot your connection.
Be patient. An update may take some time. Just waiting may fix your problem. Sometimes more than a few hours. Do not put your Mac to sleep or closing its lid. Also ensure than your Macbook, if it is a Macbook, it is plugged it into AC power.
If the update does not complete, your computer may seem stuck or frozen, for an extended time, try to restart your computer by pressing and holding the power button on your Mac for up to 10 seconds.
If you have any external hard drives or peripherals connected to your Mac, try removing them. And try to update now.
Reset PRAM on your Mac and then try again. To reset PRAM, turn off your Mac and then turn it on and immediately press and hold the Option, Command, P, and R keys together for about 20 seconds.
It is possible that your Mac may unable to reach the update server. There could be two reasons for this:
You may have a slow internet connection. You may want to restart your router and modem to fix this problem. If you are using a Wi-Fi connection, try a wired connection, if possible.
Or there could be issues with Apple servers. It is possible that Apple servers are overloaded as a lot of people may be trying to update. You can check if Apple servers are experiencing issues.
If you are still having issues, then you may try the followings:
Safe mode
Try updating your Mac in safe mode. Here is how:
Startup your Mac in safe mode. To do that, turn off your Mac and then turn on your Mac and immediately press and hold the Shift key until you see the login screen. Then release the Shift key. And login.
Now your computer is in safe mode. Try to update now.
Then exit safe mode when you are done (in either case). To exit safe mode, restart your Mac normally, without pressing the Shift key.
Combo update
You can use a combo update to install Mac updates. Please note that before you continue, you may want to back up your Mac. You can back up with Time Machine or you can use iCloud.
Please note that combo updates let you update your Mac from a prior version of macOS within the same major release. A combo update is a combined update that means that it contains all of the changes since the original release of that major version. This further means that, using a combo update, you can update from macOS 10.15 directly to Mac OS X 10.15.2, skipping the 10.15.1. But you cannot go from, let’s say, 10.14.x to 10.15.x. For example, using a combo update, you cannot upgrade from macOS Mojave to macOS Catalina.
Please note that combo updates are huge. Here is how you can use them:
Find the right combo update. And download it. As stated above, they can be huge. The combo will download as a .dmg file.
Now quit all apps on your Mac.
Double-click the downloaded file, if it does not start automatically.
Follow the onscreen instructions.
Using macOS Recovery to update your Mac
If you still could not update, you may try this. To do this, you need to restart your Mac from macOS Recovery. Using the method below, you will be able to upgrade to the latest macOS that is compatible with your Mac. Here is how:
Turn off your Mac.
Turn on your Mac and immediately press and hold the Option-⌘-R keys together until you see the Apple logo or the spinning globe icon.
Login.
Click Reinstall macOS and follow the onscreen instructions.
See also: How to fix Catalina update problems
Have you experienced problems on your Mac when you are updating apps but it won’t download the updates or the Mac app store won’t download anything, at all?
You are not alone because it is one of the most common problems encountered by Mac users whether it’s downloading or installing updates, apps, or files. There are also cases when the notification says the app or file has been downloaded but you just can’t find where it is, or when the installation process just quits all of a sudden even when you have a strong internet connection.
How To Fix The Download Problem
The easiest solution would be to empty your App Store’s temporary download cache folder. This solution works most of the time and it is easy to do. But before you start fixing your Mac download problems, run a scan of your computer first to make sure there are no corrupt files or cache affecting your App Store. You can use Outbyte MacRepair to scan and clean up your computer for all types of junk.
Once you’ve run the scan and deleted all unwanted files, don’t forget to backup your important files before you start fixing your App Store. This seems like a very simple problem with a very easy solution, but you’ll never know what could happen so always backup your files just to be safe.
After these preparations, log out of the App Store and then log back in. Then, follow these steps to solve your App Store download problems:
Go to Spotlight and type in Terminal.
Type in the following command: defaults write com.apple.appstore ShowDebugMenu -boot true ; killall AppStore ; exit.
Open App Store and sign out of it by going to Store > Sign Out.
Then go to Debug Menu.
Select Clear Cookies and Reset Application.
Next, type the following commands in the Terminal one at a time. These commands will reset the plists:
Then type in: open $TMPDIR../C/com.apple.appstore/. This opens your Mac App Store’s temporary download cache folder.
Delete these files:
apple.appstore.plist
apple.installer.plist
Or you can type in the following commands to delete these cached files:
rm -r ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.appstore
rm -r ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.storeagent
Close the folder and restart your Mac.
Then, try re-downloading your files that were causing problems before.
If this doesn’t solve the problem and your Mac App Store won’t download anything, the next solution is re-indexing. Your Mac uses Spotlight to determine what apps you have installed. And perhaps, due to a bug or a corrupted file, your operating system thinks that the app you are trying to download is already in your system which is why it is not letting you download it again.
To re-index your applications, follow these steps.
Go the Apple Menu and go to System Preferences > Spotlight > Privacy tab. This opens the Spotlight preferences pane.
Add your primary HD (the default name is Macintosh HD) by clicking the + and selecting your HD. This will stop your OS X from indexing that particular drive.
Close the System Preferences window.
Click the Apple Logo and choose Log Out.
Log back in and navigate back to the Spotlight preferences window.
Click the – button and select your HD.
Close the System Preferences window.
The system will begin re-indexing everything in your HD. If you see a dot in the center of the magnifying glass, which can be found at the top right of the menu bar, then that means the re-indexing is ongoing.
My Mac Won't Download Anything Google Chrome
Open the App Store to re-download the app or update what you were downloading previously.
My Mac Won't Download Anything Pc
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