Mac Software Update Not Showing Updates

Dec 26, 2018  Often, this traps users in a loop of trying to install this “critical software update” that never seems to work, essentially locking down the Mac (not the first time Macs have encountered. Sep 05, 2015  Fix OS X El Capitan Beta Updates Not Showing in Software Update Sep 5, 2015 - 29 Comments If you’re a Mac user who is beta testing OS X El Capitan, either as part of the OS X Public Beta program or as a registered Mac Developer, you may have come across a situation where the latest available update does not appear for you in the Mac App Store.

Updating your MacBook or iMac should be free of headaches and drama. Apple even coined a marketing phrase “it just works!” But recently, a lot of readers and Mac users are finding the opposite–it just doesn’t work! Several users have recently had issues updating their MacBook with the latest version of macOS. Unfortunately, this appears to be a fairly common problem for some when updating to the latest macOS High Sierra update.

Nov 01, 2016  It tells me the following updates are available for my Microsoft software: Microsoft PowerPoint Update 15.27.0. Microsoft Word Update 15.27.0. Microsoft Outlook Update 15.27.0. If I cancel, the next time I run any of the products, AutoUpdate checks for available updates, and the cycle starts again.

Jan 28, 2020  May 26, 2020: Apple releases macOS Catalina 10.15.5. Apple has released macOS Catalina 10.15.5 to the public. This update adds the usual spate of bug fixes and performance improvements, but the highlight here is the new battery health management feature for Mac laptops. And, unlike all the other questions I found while searching for this, I am in Mac OS rather than iOS.) The closest thing I found was Why is the System Preferences Dock icon showing a Badge?, which was about iCloud security problems rather than software updates. My question isn't why, but how to ignore a software update for a while. Feb 03, 2019  My mac is stuck on OS X Yosemite 10.10.5 and won’t update past that, no updates on app store no nothing, I recently bought an iPhone x and iTunes won’t let me sync my old iphone back up because it needs an update which i cannot get, its frustrating me, I don’t know what to do anymore, I’ve looked everywhere on the internet and can’t find a solution. Jun 16, 2020  Mac Pro introduced in 2013 or later. To upgrade from Lion or Mountain Lion, first upgrade to El Capitan, then upgrade to Catalina. To find your macOS version, Mac model, memory, and storage space, choose About This Mac from the Apple menu. If your Mac isn't compatible with macOS Catalina, the installer will let you know.

The update gets stuck with a message “mac os could not be installed on your computer an error occurred installing macOS.” Some folks report seeing this message as well “the path /System/Installation/Packages/OSInstall.mpkg appears to be missing or damaged.”

Then your Mac prompts you to quit the installer and restart your computer. Well, Apple, whatever happened to it just works???

Contents

  • 1 Quick Tips
  • 2 Getting macOS could not be installed on your computer?
  • 3 How-To Fix macOS could not be installed issue
  • 6 Reader Tips

Quick Tips

  • Check that your Mac’s Date&Time are on Set Automatically
  • Reset your Mac’s NVRAM or PRAM
  • Free up some internal hard drive storage
  • Restart in Safe Mode and run Disk Utility’s First Aid
  • Try Recovery Mode
  • Use Terminal to identify and remove non-Apple KEXTs
  • Restart in Single User Mode to remove problematic files

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Getting macOS could not be installed on your computer?

If you are experiencing this issue with your update, here are a few tips that you can use to address this issue. Before proceeding with the steps below, we suggest that you ensure your Mac’s clock is correct. If your Mac’s Date&Time do not match your current timezone or date, macOS often won’t install. Go to System Preferences > Date & Time. Apple prefers if you choose the option to Set Automatically.

Next, let’s try out the basic NVRAM reset (or PRAM for older Macs) on your computer.

Follow these steps if you are not sure about how to do the NVRAM reset

  1. Shut down your Mac
  2. Turn it on and immediately press and hold these four keys together: Option, Command, P, and R
  3. Release the keys after about 20 seconds, during which your Mac might appear to restart
  4. Open System Preferences and check (and adjust, if necessary) any settings that reset, like volume, display resolution, startup disk selection, or time zone

Check Storage

The other thing is to make sure that your MacBook/Mac has enough space available to complete the update. If you are running low on space, Apple provides some guidelines that can help you recover some space on your Mac.

Beyond the Basics

Now, that we have taken care of the basics, we suggest that you try each of the processes below until your macOS install problem is fixed. We arranged the how-to-fix steps in three separate categories.

The first of the troubleshooting steps walk you through Safe mode options and then we suggest the Recovery mode. The last of the options shows you how to remove third-party KEXT files using simple terminal commands and then try the install process.

How-To Fix macOS could not be installed issue

Fixing the Install issue using Safe Mode on your Macbook

  • One of the best practices around updating is to make sure that you have taken a backup of the system before doing any troubleshooting. Better Safe than Sorry. We are assuming that you have already backed up your machine before you proceed with any of the steps below
  • The first thing to try is to get your Mac/MacBook into Safe mode. When you hold the ‘Shift’ key during startup, your computer will launch into Safe mode
  • Safe mode essentially forces the initiated process to ignore all third party launch daemons and startup items. Once you are in the Safe mode, the next course of action is to get into Disk Utility. Once your MacBook has entered safe mode, you will see it indicated in the top right-hand corner of your screen
  • Log in using your credentials and then go to your macOS Utilities folder. Here you will need to start up the Disk Utility Program. Once in the program, Click First Aid on the top and choose the volume (Your main HDD) and start the repair process
  • Once the Repair has completed, you will be notified of the status. At this point, you would want to rerun the macOS Update program and see if it works for you without giving you the error message

If you tried the steps above in Safe mode and did not find success, the next course of action is to try the Recovery mode.

Fixing macOS Install Problem in Recovery Mode

  • To get to recovery mode on your Mac or MacBook, you will need to press and hold Command + R keys together when booting up your computer
  • Once you are in the Recovery mode, click on the Apple logo on the top left corner of the screen and make sure that your startup disk is pointing to the Mac Boot disk
  • Now find the macOS update program and run the update

Sometimes, when you are facing install/upgrade issues, a workaround that works for many users is to create an external bootable installer and try to run the install program using it. Apple provides a detailed white paper on this process. You can create the bootable installer on a USB and then try it to update the macOS.

Removing Third Party KEXT Files

If you are still reading and have already tried the series of fixes in both Safe mode and Recovery mode to no avail, you may have to roll up your sleeves and do a little more digging into the root cause of the issue. Sometimes it’s the third party KEXT extensions that cause a lot of heartache during update/install of macOS.

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These KEXT Files get added to your Mac/MacBook when you are using third-party devices. If you are not sure about it, your best bet is to look and see what third-party extensions are currently there on your machine.

To do so, Open up terminal from your utilities and type in the following to see the non-Apple KEXTs.

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Kextstat | grep –v com.apple

This command should show you all the third party extensions. Now you can remove them one by one or remove the one that you think may be the suspect. Using terminal, you can unload the kext my using the following command.

sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/NAMEOFTHEKEXT.kext

Here ‘NAMEOFTHEKEXT’ needs to be replaced with the appropriate suspect KEXT file that you found above. Once you have unloaded the KEXT, you can go back and check to make sure that it has indeed been removed by using the kextstat command.

Once you have removed all the third party KEXT files and have made sure that you have enough space on your machine for the macOS update, please try and relaunch the install process.

Problems? Try Single User Mode

If your install process is failing because of a particular problematic file, you can also try to log in using the single user mode and delete that specific file and then try resuming the install. Sometimes you find these problematic ones off files in the Installer log files. To access these log files, open up the Console app in utilities and click on ‘/var/log’ on the left-hand column and then choose ‘instal.log’in the next column.

We are hoping that you were able to fix the macOS Install issue using some of these tips. If you have tried everything without any success, your best bet is to reach out to Apple Support folks so that they can help out. Please let us know how your install worked by using the comments below.

Reader Tips

  • Try restarting in recovery mode and install macOS High Sierra or Sierra from a bootable USB drive disk. If necessary, reformat your SSD to Mac OS Extended (Journaled), not APFS
  • Try setting up another admin user account to see if the same problem continues
  • Boot up your Mac using Cmd + R to access the recovery partition. Immediately, go the Apple menu choose Startup Disk. Select your HD. Unlocked it if necessary by entering your admin password. Reboot and see if it starts up normally
  • Update your system’s clock by using Terminal. Open Applications > Utilities >Terminal and type the command date. If the date listed is incorrect, type this command ntpdate -u “time.apple.com” then press return. If you live outside of the Americas, type in Apple’s time server nearest you, such as time.asia.apple.com or time.euro.apple.com inside the parenthesis
  • I created an ISO image of macOS High Sierra on a USB and installation was a breeze after that
  • Shut down your Mac and wait 30 seconds. After 30 seconds, press the power button and immediately hold down Command + R and keep pressing these keys until the apple logo appears. You should see a screen asking you to choose a language, select your language of choice, and navigate to your macOS Utilities. Check the WiFi button at the top right to make sure you’re connected to the internet. Then select reinstall the latest version of macOS, click continue, agree and allow it to download and restart on its own (just leave the Mac alone–really!) After macOS reinstalls, it should restart and end up at the login screen
  • I booted up while holding the Option key and chose my regular MacinstoshHD (not an update volume). Then I booted normally (not with safe mode) and tried again to reinstall the update. Took several reboots but in the end, it worked!
  • Oftentimes, this error means your Mac is trying to boot from a different HD partition, sometimes even the recovery partition. To fix it, restart in startup manager (holding option key) and select your regular HD to reboot from. Once successful, go to System Preferences > Startup Disk > Select your normal HD startup. That should fix the problem

Obsessed with tech since the early arrival of A/UX on Apple, Sudz (SK) is responsible for the editorial direction of AppleToolBox. He is based out of Los Angeles, CA.

Sudz specializes in covering all things macOS, having reviewed dozens of OS X and macOS developments over the years.

In a former life, Sudz worked helping Fortune 100 companies with their technology and business transformation aspirations.

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After updating to the latest version of macOS, some readers report problems with their macOS app store updates page. Apparently, the app store shows needed updates, but when clicking on the updates icon, it tells you “No Updates Available.”

But the app store badge continues to show needed updates. So there seems to be a disconnect between the app store badge and the app store updates page. And it’s rather infuriating!

Luckily, we have a couple of fixes that seem to do the trick for this macOS app store updates issue!

First of all, problems like this often occur in the hours and days following the release of a new macOS update. These requests to update inundate Apple Servers.

And often, the servers just can’t keep up. Consequently, your computer shows a disconnect between what is actually needing updates versus what is already updated.

In this case, your applications are up to date, but the badge is indicating updates are needed still appears. These are called ghost updates.

Alternatively, for some unknown reason, your software does indeed need updating, but the app store is not making those updates available for download even though it shows a badge indicating updates are needed.

So your app store shows you have some updates. But when you click the tab, it doesn’t show any update button or even indicates which apps need updates. Another disconnect! Ugh…

If your issues are that the app store is blank (nada, nothing), then check out this post.

So let’s get to it!

Contents

  • 2 If macOS app Store Updates Continue Not Showing Up
  • 3 Download and Install a Combo Update
  • 4 Use Terminal for Checking macOS app Store Updates
  • 5 Take Finder for a Spin
  • 6 Summary

The First Rule of Apple’s Thumb–Try a Restart

Before you spend a lot of time trying to fix your macOS app store updates issue, let’s shut down and then power back up.

Sometimes, performing this simple action resets the app store, so it recognizes what needs updates and what is currently up-to-date.

So give this one a try and shut down then power back up.

Best practice is to fully shut down and NOT restart

Why? Well, a shutdown powers down your computer almost entirely and only starts the operating system again when you press the power button.

A shutdown dumps everything and boots from an entirely zeroed state. All processes are released and reinitiated from scratch. If there is anything residual in any cache, it’s overwritten when you power back on.

On the other hand, a restart simply ends your session in macOS and then reloads the operating system. Restarts clear some caches such as processor hard drive and memory.

So that’s the short version on why we recommend shutting down versus restarting in this particular case. Garry's mod hack menu.

If macOS app Store Updates Continue Not Showing Up

So if shutting down did nothing for you, and you continue to see badges indicating updates are needed, take a look at your System Preferences for the app store.

Go to System Preferences and select the app store, turn on Automatically check for updates and checkmark ON all the options.

This includes download, install app updates, install macOS updates, and install system.

Once selected, click on the button “Check Now.” See if making changes to your System Prefs makes a difference and solves your issues.

Check app Store Purchases

If changing the System Prefs didn’t work for you, let’s check your app store for Purchased.

With the app store open, select the Purchased icon. You may need to sign in with your Apple ID and password to view all your previous purchases.

Often going to the “Purchases” tab reveals that you’re logged out of the store somehow.

And it asks you to log in again. Once you do that, you’ll be able to download updates.

Try the Manual Method

Look closely at your purchased apps and see if you can update the apps from there. This is considered the manual update method.

So, unfortunately, updating apps via purchased page is done one at a time, but this strategy updates any app that truly needs one.

Try updating just one app via the App Store Purchased page.

Some readers report that after manually updating one app, the remaining apps populate as normal in Updates window. Go figure!

Check Featured

Similar to your purchased apps, with app store open select the Featured icon. Then locate your apps on this Featured page.

Check and see if any of your apps have an update button underneath them. If so, update these apps from there.

You may discover that after updating one app from the Featured page that any remaining apps needing updates show up in the Updates window as normal. If so, update from that window.

Download and Install a Combo Update

A combo update contains all of the changes since the original release of a major macOS or OS X version. Combo updates often fix problems with previous updates because they are full versions of the software, not just updates (called deltas.)

Combo updates actually replace most of your operating software with a fresh version. But they do not overwrite or remove any of your user’s data and information.

Mac Software Update Not Updating

Update Your Mac With a Combo Update

To locate the combo update for your Mac, visit Apple’s Support website and type in the Search Bar the word Combo Update followed by the macOS or OS X version you want.

Then in the search results, locate the download for that combo update for the version you want.

So, for example, you want the combo update for macOS High Sierra

  1. In the search bar, type combo update macOS High Sierra
  2. Then scan the search results for download macOS High Sierra Combo Update
  3. Tap or click to open that result
  4. Select the Download button and follow all on-screen instructions to save the update and install it

Alternatively, take a look at Apple’s Downloads page and locate the combo update there.

Use Terminal for Checking macOS app Store Updates

The terminal is not for the faint of heart but the courageous.

So, use this method with caution and only if you feel comfortable. And remember that all terminal commands require administrator privileges and you must know and enter your admin password.

Open a terminal window and try the following command in the terminal to download and install updates available for your mac.

This command downloads and installs all available updates.

The caret does not move at all as you type and is not replaced by “*” per character of your password. Don’t worry when you don’t see it move; it’s totally normal. You get a message “Finding available software.”

Mac Will Not Update

After a few moments or minutes, a message appears letting you know what software has updates available.

Finding available software Software Update found the following new or updated software:


If Terminal locates any software updates, the following command updates all available updates

Mac Stuck Installing Software Update

Find Out What Your app Store Thinks You Need

Terminal also helps to uncover what the app store THINKS needs updating.

So if you are still stuck with your macOS app store updates not showing up, let’s try another terminal command.

Take Finder for a Spin

Finder is our friend, so let’s ask it to help us out on this one by clearing the app store cache. Just remember to backup before you delete any files.

Delete App Store Cache

  1. Go to Finder and press + Shift + G or select the Go menu and choose Go To Folder
  2. Type in ~/Library/Caches/
    1. Find the folder com.apple.appstore
    2. Delete this folder (com.apple.appstore)
  3. Again, go to Finder and press + Shift + G or select the Go menu and choose Go To Folder
  4. Type in /private/var/folders
    1. Open each of these folders and each subfolder until you find the folder com.apple.appstore
    2. Delete this folder
  5. Restart your Mac

Delete App Store Preferences

  1. Go to Finder and press + Shift + G or select the Go menu and choose Go To Folder
  2. Type in ~/Library/Preferences/com
    1. Find the file com.apple.appstore.plist
    2. Delete this file (com.apple.appstore.plist)
  3. Again, go to Finder and press + Shift + G or select the Go menu and choose Go To Folder
  4. Type in ~/Library/Preferences/com
    1. Find the file com.apple.storeagent.plist
    2. Delete this file (com.apple.storeagent.plist)
    3. If you do not have this file move to step 7
  5. Restart your Mac

Summary

When your app store gets a little gaga, it drives us really, really bonkers! Hopefully one of our methods helped you update your apps or removed your ghost updates so that all is well in your macOS world.

And no more annoying badges prompting you to look just one more time at the app store Updates page.

We love to update our software as soon as an upgrade is available. But sometimes it pays to wait a few days or weeks before updating, so all the kinks are worked out and connecting to Apple Servers when demand is down (usually a week or so after an update is released.)

Spending time troubleshooting does reap some rewards–you certainly get to know a few things about your Mac.

But time is money and troubleshooting requires patience. So next time you, think before you jump on the update immediately bandwagon.

Decide beforehand, so you’re prepared if things happen…

And of course, always alwaysbackup before you do any major update to your iOS, preferably following our 2X2 rule (2 local and 2 remote backups.)

And lastly, if you discovered some other ways to deal with these issues, keep us in the loop and share in the comments. We love to share and learn from you all.

For most of her professional life, Amanda Elizabeth (Liz for short) trained all sorts of folks on how to use media as a tool to tell their own unique stories. She knows a thing or two about teaching others and creating how-to guides!

Her clients include Edutopia, Scribe Video Center, Third Path Institute, Bracket, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Big Picture Alliance.

Elizabeth received her Master of Fine Arts degree in media making from Temple University, where she also taught undergrads as an adjunct faculty member in their department of Film and Media Arts.

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