Cannot Update Purchased App Store Apps ... Error message (You have updates

Hemlaw wrote:
I am, of course, logged in as an administrator. I have deleted hundreds of apps over the last 25 years on various Macs.

The error message is:

+The operation can’t be completed because an unexpected error occurred (error code -8072)+

I don't recall seeing that before.

dggraphicsnyc wrote:
I don't see how this is solved, Having the same problem. Just did a brand new install, all fresh data, NUll account error still is occuring, Have tried fixes from all threads to no avail. Using the same account as iTunes, Purchased apps show up, no apps listed in updates, yet Purchases shows updates available, clicking on update produces error, NULL account.

Console shows error, multibyte IDS's are not allowed.

I had this problem for a long time before finding a fix. As other posters indicated, it does appear to be a Spotlight related problem, but simply reindexing the disk didn't fix it for me.

This however did work (although I'm not entirely clear what it does!!!) and after I posted it in another Apple discussion had a positive response. For full details see my blog (http://appleharvest.blogspot.com/2011/04/mac-app-store-good-bad-and-inexcusable. html) , but the terminal command I used successfully was

arch -i386 mdimport /Applications

Hope this works for other folk as well. It also fixed some other search related problems - specifically with the Alfred utility.

Spotlight re-index worked for me. I love it when you find suggestions that you skeptically apply; then smile broadly when it's successful. Thanks all!

The solution worked!!! Thanks a bunch.

Hi,

I have the same issue and followed the instructions to disable the spotlight indexing but it didn't work.

I really don't want to delete apps as the work around.

Help!

I had a very similar issue which prevented me from updating, only it was worded in a slightly different manner. Instead of reading "Sign in to (null) to update applications for that account," mine read "To update this application, sign into the account you used to purchase it."

The thing was, I knew that I hadn't used any other account because I (a) don't have any others and (b) had posted a review for the app in question under the single account name I use.

The Apple Support person was actually very helpful in my case – when I wrote that I'd already tried deleting the offending application and reinstalling it, Gautam explained that if there was still an icon pointing to it from the dock, the deleting and reinstalling procedure wouldn't work.

Is there a chance that the folks who are still having this issue have references to their apps from the Dock or from a Stack? I'm not knowledgeable about the technical side of all this, but perhaps the Spotlight re-indexing "solution" doesn't work when there's an alias lurking somewhere in the Dock/Stacks?

For the Terminal-averse, this is at least another thing to try, and it did indeed solve my issue. Good luck!

Yes thsi worked for me too. Seems that the App Store application thought it was not installed and displays the update notice but I guess when it starts the update the signature shows it alreay applied. I suspect the message is trying to say you have updated this machine but maybe not some others? In any event forcing a re-index of the hard disk cleared the problem.

Many thanks, Lawrence

You presented a Solution that saved my sanity

I've been attempting to get iTunes Support personal to understand the issue for three days: "application was not purchased on this account Please login to that account and update.

I even contacted my local Apple Store Manager to assist me in getting someone capable of assisting me with this Account Issue. He was understanding and told me he would contact corperate and go through channels to help me. He even offered me a copy of iLife 11.

iTunes Support wanted me to uninstall my iTunes, when there was nothing wrong with it. my only issue, is iPhoto would not update.

I've replied to Apple iTunes Support with your solution.

Thank you. 🙂