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Mac stuck on checking for updates

I run Big Sur 11.6.1 and have noticed that my System Preference reads "1 update". However, when I choose Software Update, the system gets stuck at "Checking for updates". Nothing freezes, but the wheel keeps spinning and nothing happens. I wish to update the OS (the option was there earlier).


I have tried repeated reboots. I have done a disk utility check. I have tried removing .plist files related to "software update" and "Apple store" (following various advice in seemingly older related threads. Nothing has worked. Any advice, please?


[Re-Titled by Moderator]

MacBook Pro 15″, macOS 11.6

Posted on Jan 23, 2022 12:32 PM

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Question marked as Apple recommended

11.6.2 is probably the update it is looking for. If you have insufficient space it won't download.

Make sure the Mac OS install data folder is removed before redownloading.


Are you in need of running something on Monterey? That is available only on the Mac App Store.


Backup your data before you install anything.

Posted on Jan 23, 2022 6:19 PM

69 replies

Mar 2, 2022 3:24 AM in response to Nevyn82

Hi. I’ve had exactly the same problem on Catalina 10.15.7, spinning forever in software update with no result. I’ve tried safe mode, deleting prefs etc. no joy.


Then I tried unchecking “automatically keep my Mac up to date” in the software update panel. Then shut down my Mac and rebooted.


After a few seconds of being back into my desktop I’m given a notification that I have updates and would I like to install now or later etc.


Back in software update it only spins for a few seconds and it’s all back to normal and I can select an update and it’s all good again.


Success!


Hopefully it’ll work for someone else too.



Mar 12, 2022 2:40 PM in response to P. Phillips

P. Phillips wrote:

This includes AntiVirus, Disk Cleaners, Disk Optimizes, UnInstaller etc.

And Avast Antivirus does not qualify as AntiVirus software ?

There are no known Windows-like Viruses in the wild that self replicate and affect macOS, because of the underling UNIX  Foundation and Permission Limitation. 

The only thing Avast Antivirus software is protecting the Developers Bank Account for a Non Existent Issue Affecting macOS.

That and giving Zero Return to the User ( you ) except a lot of problems and work to remove this Software as per the Developer Specific Instructions.

The The Built in Security  is all that is required to protect the computer.

This is simply not true. There are UNIX/macOS and even Linux viruses in the wild and they can get past the built-in security system. The statement that you don't need an antivirus on a Mac might have been true in the past, but is most certainly not the case anymore.


Even I myself had at one point noticed my mac being unusually slow and displaying weird behaviour sometimes. Since there is no "Scan for Viruses" button available with the built-in security, I downloaded a 3rd party antivirus and would you look at that, it found an adware virus. I removed it and voila my mac was back to normal as usual.


So don't believe Apple when they say that there are no viruses for mac and that you don't need an antivirus. I mean 95% of the time you won't need an antivirus and the built-in system will do just fine, but that doesn't mean you will never ever need them.

Mar 13, 2022 8:38 AM in response to Nevyn82

I had this exact problem with Big Sur 11.6.4. It happened after the security update. It was fixed by booting into Safe Mode and the Software update found Monterey immediately. It installed and after nearly 48 hours and the computer sleeping over night, the Software update function seems to be operating as expected. Hope this helps anyone. Worth a try. Much easier than entering terminal commands or wiping disks.

Mar 14, 2022 6:13 PM in response to RJH-333

This solution from Jamf worked for us. As soon as we entered the command

sudo launchctl kickstart -k system/com.apple.softwareupdated

I immediately got a popup notification about new software being available.

I clicked on Software Update, and this time, instead of spinning, the window showed MacOS Monterey available.


Tomorrow morning I will check to see if this was just a one-time solution, or if the solution maintained. I'll edit this post afterward.

Mar 14, 2022 7:31 PM in response to McDP9g

by all accounts the issue CAN come back. The kick just works temporarily only and the problem will at some point come back. If u are using JAMF I would suggest creating a policy that runs this once a day.

Also - this will potentially be causing issues with your recon, if you have the software updates check included in your inventory. The recon will never complete due to this same issue.

We have logged this with Apple and the advice is that the fix is included in Monterey, but at this stage will not be retrofitted to Big Sur.

Mar 15, 2022 7:26 AM in response to McDP9g

I'm no longer able to edit my post above, so here's this morning's update:


Last night, after the Software Update window showed MacOS Monterey was available, we then updated to Monterey. The download, install, and restart occurred as expected, without any problems.


As RJH-333 has mentioned in their reply, the fix does appear to be included in Monterey. Now that we're running Monterey, I checked for software updates this morning (having switched off the mac overnight) and it responds correctly, instead of spinning.


A big thanks to everyone for their inputs to Apple and to this forum.

Mar 17, 2022 5:41 PM in response to Nevyn82

I too have been having this problem under Big Sur. I believe it started when I wanted to upgrade from 11.6.3 to 11.6.4. The technique suggested of using the command sudo rm -rf "/macOS Install Data" worked that time and was needed again when I went from 11.6.4 to 11.6.5. However it is not working when I check for update under 11.6.5. I see it has been posted that this issue has been fixed under Monterey. But that does one no good if you can't get to Monterey! Come on Apple, you need to fix this bug for Big Sur users, I believe we are still in support.

Mar 18, 2022 11:47 AM in response to Nevyn82

I have experienced this issue with multiple MacOS versions, most recently with Catalina. While previous occurrences of this issue were resolved by either rebooting or removing the Software Update "plists" (/Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate.plist and ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate.plist) and rebooting, in this case those solutions did not work.


And being unsure of exactly when the issue started, a Time Machine restore was not really an option. I believe, however, the currently experienced issue was caused by [APPLE-SA-2022-03-14-6 Security Update 2022-003 Catalina] recently installed...either some inherent issue with the update or perhaps the update did not install or complete properly.


In any case, using MacOS Recovery Mode (Command-R on startup) or using MacOS Internet Recovery Mode (which is what I used...Command-Option-R) and selecting "Reinstall MacOS" will re-install all operating system and related files while not touching currently installed data or applications. And that solution resolved the issue. All Software Update (GUI or Terminal) functions now work properly.


Something to consider as an option if other suggested solutions do not work.

Mar 31, 2022 1:06 PM in response to donlobeto

Assume you have tried the previously-suggested...

sudo launchctl kickstart -k system/com.apple.softwareupdated


...which did not work in my case for the issue with Catalina.

After all of my testing, research, digging, investigating, plist removal, etc, the only solution I found that worked in my case was to reinstall macOS Catalina using "Recovery Mode." See my previous March 18 post.

May 14, 2022 9:35 PM in response to Nevyn82

Possible Solution: Shut down instead of restart.

I ran into this exact "checking for updates" stuck problem and like you I tried everything. I booted in safe mode, reset NVRAM, reset system preferences settings, and finally removed .plist files related to software update and Apple store. None of this worked. I had been doing these things and restarting so many times. Nothing worked until something told me to shut down instead of restart.

Sure enough this worked! I guess MacOS does something special in a shut down vs a restart.

I hope this works for you too!

May 15, 2022 8:05 AM in response to philinsofiadisc

Thank you so much! Your post was the key to solving my problem. It prompted me to look in my Applications folder -- without my knowledge, "Install macOS Monterey" had been downloaded there, even though I have "Download new updates when available" unchecked!


I had been unable to upgrade because Software Update would just give me a spinning wheel, and the App Store would just take me to Software Update. But I was able to run "Install macOS Monterey" from the application folder, and now the problem has disappeared!

Mac stuck on checking for updates

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