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.
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?
Jun 16, 2020 If you're using macOS Mojave, get macOS Catalina via Software Update: Choose Apple menu System Preferences, then click Software Update. Or use this link to open the macOS Catalina page on the App Store: Get macOS Catalina. Then click the Get button or iCloud download icon. Once you see Mojave as a result, Get Download option, Click on it to Start download. Force Quite app store, If possible restart your Mac. And Check again. Once you update Mac with MacOS Mojave, Amazing features are ready to Enable: turn on automatic update software on macOS Mojave. Fix 5: MacOS Mojave Download issues. Jun 01, 2020 On Monday, Apple released the latest supplemental update for macOS Catalina 10.15.5. The update is minor in scale, but it does include important security updates. As is par for the course, the update is free for macOS users. If you have automatic updates switched on, the new software will be downloaded and installed without your direct input.
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.
Safer-running software. MacOS Catalina runs in its own read-only volume, so it’s separate from all other data on your Mac, and nothing can accidentally overwrite your system files. And Gatekeeper ensures that new apps you install have been checked for known security issues before you run them, so you’re always using good software. Oct 07, 2019 macOS Catalina, the latest version of the world’s most advanced desktop operating system, is now available as a free software update. With macOS Catalina, users are able to enjoy Apple Arcade, a groundbreaking new game subscription service featuring new, exclusive games from some of the world’s most creative developers.Adding to great entertainment on the Mac, Catalina also features. Jan 16, 2017 When the download finished, it popped up a window to run that installer, but I cancelled it since I didn't need it to run now. However, after quitting the installer, I wanted to add the Combo download to my MacOS X Updates folder on a backup drive, however, I couldn't find the file. Where does the App Store download its files to?
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:
- Visit Apple’s combo updates site: https://support.apple.com/downloads/macos
- 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
macOS Mojave updates improve the stability, performance, or compatibility of your Mac and are recommended for all Mojave users. To get these updates, choose System Preferences from the Apple menu , then click Software Update. Learn more about updating the software on your Mac.
For details about the security content of these updates, see Apple Security Updates.
macOS Mojave 10.14.6
This update:
- Makes downloaded issues available in the My Magazines section of Apple News+, both online and offline.
- Adds all publications in Apple News+, including newspapers, to the catalog at the top of the News+ feed.
- Adds the ability to clear downloaded magazine issues in Apple News+ by choosing History > Clear > Clear All.
- Addresses an issue which prevents creation of a new Boot Camp partition on iMac and Mac mini with Fusion Drive.
- Resolves an issue that may cause a hang during a restart.
- Resolves a graphics issue that may occur when waking from sleep.
- Fixes an issue that may cause fullscreen video to appear black on Mac mini.
- Improves file-sharing reliability over SMB.
Enterprise content:
- Addresses an issue where file-sharing connections would potentially drop.
- Improves compatibility of Xsan clients when accessing volumes that use 1K or larger LUN sector sizes.
macOS Mojave 10.14.5
This update:
- Adds AirPlay 2 support for sharing videos, photos, music and more from your Mac directly to your AirPlay 2-enabled smart TV.
- Adds the ability to follow a magazine from the Apple News+ catalog browsing view.
- Improves audio latency on MacBook Pro models introduced in 2018.
- Fixes an issue that prevented certain very large OmniOutliner and OmniPlan documents from rendering properly.
- Disables accessories with insecure Bluetooth connections.
Enterprise content:
- Fixes an issue that prevented resetting the user account password from the login window after using a personal recovery key (PRK) to unlock the FileVault volume.
- Fixes an issue that prevented the
InstalledApplicationList
MDM command from recognizing that updates are available for apps installed via VPP.
macOS Mojave 10.14.4
- Apple News+ is a new subscription service that extends the Apple News experience with hundreds of magazines and top newspapers.
- Our editors handpick top articles and magazine issues, and you also get personalized recommendations on the topics most interesting to you.
- Automatic downloads make it easy to read magazine issues offline.
- Apple News is now available in Canada, with a free experience that includes handpicked Top Stories, a personalized Today feed, and support for both English and French.
- Apple News+ is available in the U.S. and in Canada, with dozens of additional Canadian magazines.
Safari
- Adds Dark Mode support for websites that support custom color schemes.
- Streamlines website login when filling credentials with Password AutoFill.
- Allows push notification prompts only after interacting with a website.
- Adds a warning when an insecure webpage is loaded.
- Removes support for the expired Do Not Track standard to prevent potential use as a fingerprinting variable; Intelligent Tracking Prevention now protects against cross-site tracking by default.
iTunes
- Shows more editorial highlights on a single page in the Browse tab, making it easier to discover new music, playlists, and more in Apple Music.
AirPods
- Adds support for new AirPods (2nd generation).
More:
- Supports Air Quality Index in Maps for US, UK, and India.
- Improves the quality of audio recordings in Messages.
- Supports real-time text (RTT) for phone calls made through a nearby iPhone on Mac.
Available in the United States only. - Provides enhanced support for external GPUs in Activity Monitor.
- Fixes an App Store issue that may have prevented adoption of the latest versions of Pages, Keynote, Numbers, iMovie, and GarageBand.
- Improves the reliability of USB audio devices when used with MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Mac mini models introduced in 2018.
- Corrects the default screen brightness for the MacBook Air introduced in 2018.
- Fixes a graphics compatibility issue that may occur on some external displays connected to Mac mini (2018).
- Resolves Wi-Fi connection issues that may occur after upgrading to macOS Mojave.
- Fixes an issue where re-adding an Exchange account may cause it to disappear from Internet Accounts.
- Fixes an issue where AOL user passwords may be frequently requested in Mail.
Enterprise content:
Where Does Macos Download Os Updates
- Fixes an issue that could prevent mobile accounts from logging in from an off-network Mac after changing their network account password.
- Fixes an issue that intermittently prevented apps from downloading from the App Store or installing via MDM.
- Mobile Active Directory accounts that have used their personal recovery key (PRK) to unlock a FileVault volume are no longer required to continue using the PRK to unlock, but can use their login password instead.
macOS Mojave 10.14.3
This update improves the security, stability, and compatibility of your Mac and includes the following enterprise content: When making a file-sharing connection that uses a valid Kerberos TGT to authenticate, users are no longer prompted to enter credentials.
macOS Mojave 10.14.2
This update:
- Adds RTT (real-time text) support for Wi-Fi calling.
Available in the United States only. - Adds a menu item to News for opening a story in Safari.
- Resolves an issue that may prevent iTunes from playing media to third-party AirPlay speakers.
Where Does Macos Download Updates
Enterprise content:
- Allows administrators to enable FileVault via MDM for mobile accounts and users created by MDM.
- Allows users to reset their login password at the login window when that password has expired via a password policy.
- Resolves an issue that prevents displays from working when connected to MacBook Pro models introduced in 2018, if certain third-party USB graphics devices are also connected.
macOS Mojave 10.14.1
This update:
Where Does Macos Software Update Download Macos Windows 10
- Adds support for Group FaceTime video and audio calls, which support up to 32 participants simultaneously, are encrypted end-to-end for privacy, and can be initiated from a group Messages conversation, or joined at any time during an active call.
- Adds over 70 new emoji characters, including new characters with red hair, gray hair, and curly hair, new emoji for bald people, more emotive smiley faces, and additional emoji representing animals, sports, and food.