To keep your mac updated with the latest security features and make it secure against all the latest prevailing threats and infections, it is highly recommended to install the latest macOS update whenever an update is available. Now although installing the latest macOS update is simple and straightforward, for some users it becomes one of the most painstaking things in this world.
Several users have reported that their mac is stuck at the time of installing the latest macOS update and they have to look for a way on how to cancel the mac update while installing.
So if you are one among those users for whom the update doesn’t go through smoothly and you want to know on how to stop a best mac software update in progress then this article will help you out.
Why Can’t I Update My Mac
This question will obviously pop up in the mind of every user who has faced difficulty in installing the latest version of macOS on his Mac. Now there can be several reasons for it however, the most common reason is the lack of space availability on your mac.
Often users feel that they only need to have space on their mac for downloading the updates. But the reality is that you also need to have space for installing the downloaded updates. To understand it more clearly, say you have 20 gb of free space on your mac, and the size of update is 19 gb, then the available free space is only good for downloading the update and not for installing it.
So folks, before getting the latest update for your Mac it is always recommended to have at least 50-60gb of free space. But in case you don’t have that much amount of free space then either delay the update(which is never recommended) or create some free space.
To create space on your mac following things are recommended:
- Deleting old and needed files.
- Cleaning junk and temporary data.
- Delete duplicate that consists of duplicate images, videos, music and documents.
- Delete application and user cache.
- Clear browsing data and browser cache.
Cleaning and removing all these files and redundant data will need a lot of patience and a bit of expertise. Therefore, we suggest going for a mac optimization tool that automatically removes all these junk, duplicate and temporary files. After trying various optimization tools, we find TuneupMyMac as one of the best mac optimization tools that delivers what it promises.
This amazing best mac optimization tool thoroughly scans your mac for the user and app cache, browser cache, redundant and duplicate files and then removes them all with a single click.
How To Fix When a Mac Stuck During Installing Latest Update
Now once you have an answer for why can’t I update my mac, it’s now time to learn the ways on how to fix a mac when it is stuck installing the latest updates.
Wait it Out
No one wants to be put on wait, but sometimes you need to wait, especially while you are installing a new version of macOS, as it takes a substantial amount of time to finish.
You may feel the progress bar appears to be stuck but in reality it is not as the mac performs a lot of activities in the background. So, it is better to wait and let the installation finish.
But in case you have waited more than usual and are sure that your mac has stuck while installing these updates then move ahead with the steps given below.
Note: There is no standard time frame assigned for an installation to complete but you should wait at least a couple of hours before moving on with the steps listed below.
Disable FileVault
FileVault, a security feature that comes along with your OS to secure the data stored on the mac by encrypting its contents, reported to interfere with the macos updates by many mac users.
Therefore to fix this we suggest you turn off FileVault when trying to update macOS.
To turn off FileVault, click on the Apple logo and from the dropdown menu select System Preferences > Security & Privacy > FileVault. Next click on the Turn Off FileVault button to disable FileVault.
Now once you have disabled FileVault, try installing the updates again.
You can turn on FileVault once you have installed the latest macOS update.
Reset Your NVRAM
NVRAM is a small hardware attached to the mac abbreviated as Non-Volatile Random-Access Memory. This NVRAM stores all those settings of the mac that a mac requires more frequently. This includes but is not limited to screen resolution settings, speaker volume settings, startup disk selection, time zone selection settings and also the kernel panic information.
Sometimes any of these settings become corrupt and interfere with the installation of the latest macOS update. So, our next step to troubleshoot the problem of installation of latest updates is resetting NVRAM. As resetting NVRAM will wipe out all the settings that it has stored inside it and hopefully the installation problem will be fixed.
To reset the NVRAM of your Mac try following the steps below:
- Power off of your mac if it is running. Now wait for a few seconds until the fan and hard drive of your mac stops completely.
- Next place your fingers on the Command + Option + P + R keys and power on your mac.
- Once your mac is powering on you will hear the regular startup sound. Now, as soon as you hear the startup sound, hold the Command + Option + P + R keys altogether.
- Keep holding these combinations of keys until you hear a chime sound. Once you hear that sound, release the keys.
This will reset the Non-Volatile Random-Access Memory (NVRAM of your mac. And once you have successfully reset NVRAM, try installing the updates again, and hopefully the installation process will go swiftly.
Boot into Safe Mode
For some users initially the installation of updates goes swift and smooth but then it gets stuck in the middle. However, there is no exact reason but it can be due to a third party application that is interfering with the installation process.
Therefore, to fix this, you can try starting your mac in Safe Mode,instead of normal mode. The reason for this is that in safe mode your mac only runs with essential and minimal system files. So if it is a third party application that is culprit for interfering with the installation of updates, then installing the latest macOS while running the mac in safe mode will be done without a problem.
- For booting into Safe Mode, keep pressing the Shift key while your mac is booting.
- Within a few moments, your macOS automatically starts booting into Safe Mode.
And once you are in safe mode, again try installing the latest updates. Hopefully, this time the updates will install without any problem.
Boot into Recovery Mode
If the above step doesn’t work and the update still keeps on stucking while installation then download a fresh copy and start all over again. But this requires you to first boot into macOS’s Recovery Mode by following the steps below:
- First power off your Mac.
- Next as soon as you power on your Mac, hold both the Command + R keys simultaneously. Mac will go into Recovery Mode.
- While your mac is in Recovery Mode, click on the Wi-Fi symbol located at the top-right corner.
- On the popup that appears, click on “Reinstall macOS”, and follow the onscreen instructions to download and install a new copy of macOS.
Note: For uninterrupted downloading we recommended you be on a high speed internet connection.
We hope that the above steps have helped you in completing the installation without any problem. But in case it doesn’t work then let’s learn how to cancel mac updates while installing.
How to Stop a Mac Update in Progress
Now since the above steps doesn’t worked for you, we suggest you to consider stopping the update in progress by following the steps below:
- Sign into the Mac App store with your username and password.
- Next, look for the Update button and click on it.
- This will pause the ongoing OS update in process.
- But, instead of pausing the update you wish to cancel the entire update, locate the update and then press and hold down the Option/Alt button.
- When you do so you will find the option to cancel the update.
- Click on the Cancel button to stop a mac update.
After cancelling it, start all over again, and hopefully this time you will be able to complete it without any problems.
Note: From Mojave, Apple has changed the way to download and stop the macOS Updates.
So if you are using Mojave and above then navigate to System Preferences > Software Update.
Now, to stop the mac update in progress, click on the x icon, next to the progress bar showing the download.
Wrapping Up
So folks, this is all from our side. We hope that we were able to help you out in fixing the problem of mac stucking while installing the latest update, and you are able to install the latest updates on your Mac.
