---
title: "An update check, download or installation fails"
description: "Identify whether the failure is checking, downloading or installing."
slug: "update-download-fails"
category: "troubleshooting"
language: en
editorial_status: published
capability_status: guide
reviewed_at: 2026-10-13
keywords: ["CueSpec update failed","Mac updater troubleshooting","old release migration"]
---

# An update check, download or installation fails

Identify whether the failure is checking, downloading or installing. Retain the working application and useful drafts while you investigate; do not delete local data as a first step.

## Check the route
Confirm the installed version and whether it uses the old update source. Versions 0.2.1 and earlier, plus old-feed installations, need one manual replacement with the current official package.

If the current route cannot check or download, retain the exact error and verify the network separately. If installation fails, note whether recording, sending or saving was still active. The published route installs on deliberate quit and should not force an exit during those actions.

## Scope of the evidence
The reviewed record includes an actual migration and automatic upgrade on the tested Mac. Real Intel, fresh-machine, interrupted-power and full-disk cases remain incomplete. A failure in one of those conditions needs its own evidence.

Use the official installation note when manually replacing the app. Confirm the version after reopening and check important drafts. CueSpec and Codex updates are separate processes; successfully updating one does not establish that the other is current or compatible.

## Related reading

- [Migrate from an older CueSpec update source](/migrate-old-version/)
- [Update log](/updates/)
- [What Mac 0.3.0 build 20 changed](/release-030/)
- [CueSpec product facts at a glance](/product-facts/)