Apple details fix for hanging Software Update installs

[AppleInsider]

Apple this week published a support document advising Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard users on how to resolve a problem that may cause Software Update to hang while attempting to apply software updates.

"When attempting to update software using Software Update in Mac OS X 10.5, the update process may stop responding while 'Configuring installation' is visible in the update window," the company said. "This can occur if Software Update attempts to install an update that was only partially downloaded."

To resolve the issue, Apple recommends that you quit Software Update and then navigate to the directory on your hardware where the contents of pre-installed software updates reside. To get there, select "Go to Folder" from the Go menu in the Finder and type in "/Library/Updates" without the quotes, then click Go.

When the directory opens, delete the entire contents of the folder by selecting every item and moving it to the trash. Once this is completed, you can use Software Update again to re-download and install the update.

If the hanging issue occurs while installing an update after you've logged out of your Mac OS X account (such as an update that requires you to restart), shut down your Mac by holding down the power button, then power it back on and complete the steps above.

To avoid the hanging issue going forward, Apple advises that users download and install Mac OS X 10.5.6 Update, which better checks the integrity of software update downloads before allowing installation to begin.

Apple notes that several users may have run into the hanging issue while attempting to install Mac OS X 10.5.6. The issue will only be resolved after Mac OS X 10.5.6 is successfully installed.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

[dontlookleft]

Can't they just release a better version? 10.5.6.1? I know it's a tad ridiculous to go that far with the number (GOD FORBID) but I really don't ever plan on installing this and dealing with the headache.

[charlituna]

Originally Posted by dontlookleft

Can't they just release a better version? 10.5.6.1? I know it's a tad ridiculous to go that far with the number (GOD FORBID) but I really don't ever plan on installing this and dealing with the headache.

I'm installed it and seen it install on about 2 dozen machines and none of them went wrong. I wonder really how many folks are having trouble. probably not that many compared to the successes.

as for a better version. they likely are working on fixing it now that they should have some data on the issue. but for those that grabbed it and got stuck they didn't want to act like they are clueless and don't care. and it's info for those at the tech bars in the stores to fix the issue. though they likely already know that delete and try again trick.

[Marc OSX]

I just did a forced shut down, powered up, did a normal restart and tried again and it worked. No other problems to report so far. 1st Gen MacBook Pro.

[dasein]

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

Apple notes that several users may have run into the hanging issue while attempting to install Mac OS X 10.5.6. The issue will only be resolved after Mac OS X 10.5.6 is successfully installed.

No kidding? Tautology at its finest!

[JeffDM]

Originally Posted by charlituna

I'm installed it and seen it install on about 2 dozen machines and none of them went wrong. I wonder really how many folks are having trouble. probably not that many compared to the successes.

I don't know if your example is saying much. If you're managing computers for a company, those Macs may be set up more homogenously than those of the general population, where most of the computers more or less have the same general set of applications. It may be a conflict with some framework that isn't installed on the computers you maintain, or some system preference setting, or third party preference pane that you don't use.

[tmedia1]

My system still froze during the update process using the stand alone installer (not software update) and I had a complete download. A hard reboot and everything is working fine showing 10.5.6 installed. Not exactly the smooth process I'd expect fro Apple, something is definitely not right... MacBookPro Intel Core 2 Duo Processor Speed: 2.5 GHz

[walletinspector]

I had no problems with this update so far. Though a previous update bricked my G4 because it froze. I tried a bunch of things before I had to reinstall Leopard and use a combined update to get it working again. Apple had no advice for me at the time nor did any forums. At least they are now recognizing the problem and attempting to supply some sort of fix.

[Virgil-TB2]

Originally Posted by dontlookleft

Can't they just release a better version? 10.5.6.1? I know it's a tad ridiculous to go that far with the number (GOD FORBID) but I really don't ever plan on installing this and dealing with the headache.

The only reason to put out another version is if the first one had errors or was wrong. An installation problem because the patch wasn't fully downloaded is another thing altogether.

It's also not "headache" if you don't intend installing it, and by far the majority of those installing it had no problems whatsoever anyway. You are seriously overstating the problem here.

[hillstones]

My iMac G4 1 GHz 17" installed flawlessly using the Combo Update. My iMac G5 2.1 GHz iSight froze when it tried to restart after the installation completed. I did not receive the "Updating Boot Cache" dialog box that appeared on the iMac G4. I did a backup, just to be safe, ran Disk Utility which repaired minor errors, then restarted the iMac. Ran the Combo Update again and the installation completed as expected. So my iMac G5 with the minor disk error may have caused the problem.

[hillstones]

Originally Posted by Virgil-TB2

The only reason to put out another version is if the first one had errors or was wrong. An installation problem because the patch wasn't fully downloaded is another thing altogether.

It's also not "headache" if you don't intend installing it, and by far the majority of those installing it had no problems whatsoever anyway. You are seriously overstating the problem here.

Well said. There is nothing wrong with the installer or the update. I had a slight hiccup with my iMac G5, but it had nothing to do with the integrity of the update itself. Fixed a disk error with Disk Utility, ran the Combo Update again, and all is good.

[jdlink]

I've installed 10.5.6 on two computers, one a MacBook Pro and one a PowerBook. The MacBook Pro works perfectly, but with the PowerBook I can no longer use the aluminum keyboard I had plugged into it. The keyboard still works if I plug it into the MBP and an older keyboard still works with the PB. It's just the PB and aluminum keyboard combination that doesn't work.

[yama]

I doubt there is anything 'wrong' with the update. Sounds more like all of the people who had problems were the result of incomplete downloads, which would be a connection problem.

Of course what Apple could do is build in more error checking into the Software Update installer to make sure that it doesn't try to install an incomplete download.

As the size of the updates grow, this sort of thing is more likely to crop up in the future. I wonder how it's going to turn out with Snow Leopard, which is supposed to have a smaller HD footprint?

[JeffDM]

Originally Posted by Virgil-TB2

The only reason to put out another version is if the first one had errors or was wrong. An installation problem because the patch wasn't fully downloaded is another thing altogether.

If it's an error in the download, the checksum checking portion of the installer should be able to flag that and abort installation before even trying to perform the installation.

[Mr. H]

Originally Posted by JeffDM

If it's an error in the download, the checksum checking portion of the installer should be able to flag that and abort installation before even trying to perform the installation.

That's the whole point. It would appear that versions of 10.5 prior to 10.5.6 have an issue whereby the installer doesn't check the integrity of the installer file before installing it. Oops.

If you are upgrading to 10.5.6, then by definition you have a version prior to 10.5.6 so you may suffer from this problem. The problem is not with 10.5.6, it's with earlier versions. To fix the problem, you must upgrade to 10.5.6; but in the process of upgrading you may run into the problem that you are trying to fix! Catch 22!

[JavaCowboy]

How much of this is due to the legacy crud that is the Carbon libraries that OS X is still using for many of its apps? Updates to Safari and Quicktime still require reboots, which is ludicrous considering that the Linux software updates that don't involve the kernel never require reboots.

Hopefully, the cocoa-fication of Snow Leopard and the advent of Quicktime X will remove the need for some of these reboots. I'm aware than any changes to the kernel and some system files will always require reboots, but some of the instabilities lately have been jarring.

[Virgil-TB2]

Originally Posted by JeffDM

If it's an error in the download, the checksum checking portion of the installer should be able to flag that and abort installation before even trying to perform the installation.

Granted that Apple is playing a bit fast and loose by not mentioning exactly *why* the download didn't complete in some cases, but it's still a good update. I seem to remember this exact thing happening on a few previous updates but I could be mis-remembering.

[JCE10]

Originally Posted by JavaCowboy

How much of this is due to the legacy crud that is the Carbon libraries that OS X is still using for many of its apps? Updates to Safari and Quicktime still require reboots, which is ludicrous considering that the Linux software updates that don't involve the kernel never require reboots.

That's an over-simplification.

I have a CentOS 4 installation (free equivalent of RedHat Enterprise 4, for those unfamiliar) that needs an entire OS update to CentOS 5 in order to run Firefox 3 -- due to library dependencies. There are ways around that to get Firefox 3 installed, but none of that is official (risky and kind of defeats the purpose of running a stable, enterprise-level Linux).

[JavaCowboy]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't CentOS an RPM distro?

I don't remember being required to do any reboot when I installed Firefox 3 on Ubuntu.

Originally Posted by JCE10

That's an over-simplification.

I have a CentOS 4 installation (free equivalent of RedHat Enterprise 4, for those unfamiliar) that needs an entire OS update to CentOS 5 in order to run Firefox 3 -- due to library dependencies. There are ways around that to get Firefox 3 installed, but none of that is official (risky and kind of defeats the purpose of running a stable, enterprise-level Linux).

[JeffDM]

Originally Posted by JavaCowboy

How much of this is due to the legacy crud that is the Carbon libraries that OS X is still using for many of its apps? Updates to Safari and Quicktime still require reboots, which is ludicrous considering that the Linux software updates that don't involve the kernel never require reboots.

Hopefully, the cocoa-fication of Snow Leopard and the advent of Quicktime X will remove the need for some of these reboots. I'm aware than any changes to the kernel and some system files will always require reboots, but some of the instabilities lately have been jarring.

The way I've seen that explained is that several programs use the frameworks behind Safari (and I think Quicktime too) such that it makes a reboot necessary. Maybe the underpinnings of the GUI depend on some parts of it too. I'm not that knowledgeable about the underpinnings of OS X to go into any more detail than that.

[JavaCowboy]

Originally Posted by JeffDM

The way I've seen that explained is that several programs use the frameworks behind Safari (and I think Quicktime too) such that it makes a reboot necessary. Maybe the underpinnings of the GUI depend on some parts of it too. I'm not that knowledgeable about the underpinnings of OS X to go into any more detail than that.

I'd be interested in knowing if these are the legacy frameworks that Apple is looking to get rid of, or if these are the new Cocoa frameworks that Apple is pushing.

[JCE10]

Originally Posted by JavaCowboy

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't CentOS an RPM distro?

I don't remember being required to do any reboot when I installed Firefox 3 on Ubuntu.

RPM long promised to solve Windows' DLL hell but never quite delivers. Library dependency is still a PITA.

Problem is that Firefox 3 requires pango-cairo library, where as Firefox 2 did not require it. CentOS 4, originally shipped w/ FF2, does not ship pango with cairo backend. You need to recompile pango library w/ cairo or install an RPM equivalent. That's what I remembered.

CentOS, being an enterprise-level distro, doesn't want to break compability without jumping a major release. So an official build of FF3 for CentOS4 is probably not gonna happen.

[Shookster]

Originally Posted by jdlink

I've installed 10.5.6 on two computers, one a MacBook Pro and one a PowerBook. The MacBook Pro works perfectly, but with the PowerBook I can no longer use the aluminum keyboard I had plugged into it. The keyboard still works if I plug it into the MBP and an older keyboard still works with the PB. It's just the PB and aluminum keyboard combination that doesn't work.

It's interesting you mention that. It seems that Apple has done "something" to the USB frameworks in this patch. Some people have reported improved USB performance and others have reported the inability to use DFU mode on the iPhone unless you put a USB hub in between.

[m2002brian]

I had a far worse problem with this update. Never had a problem with any other update before, but thank goodness for firewire on this one.

I downloaded and installed the update. Then, went to restart and it hung for over 45 mins at the Logo screen (with spinning circle). Considering it only took the G5, I did early in the day, about 5 mins, I figured something was wrong. I tried the install cd (repair disk, scan hardware) NOTHING. Last resort, target firewire, backed up my files and reinstalled the entire system. Must say it runs great now AND I still have all my files thanks to firewire. Of coarse I could have taken the HD out of the mbook, but that's a lot of work.

How would I have accomplished this w/o fw??

[hillstones]

Originally Posted by m2002brian

I had a far worse problem with this update. Never had a problem with any other update before, but thank goodness for firewire on this one.

I downloaded and installed the update. Then, went to restart and it hung for over 45 mins at the Logo screen (with spinning circle). Considering it only took the G5, I did early in the day, about 5 mins, I figured something was wrong. I tried the install cd (repair disk, scan hardware) NOTHING. Last resort, target firewire, backed up my files and reinstalled the entire system. Must say it runs great now AND I still have all my files thanks to firewire. Of coarse I could have taken the HD out of the mbook, but that's a lot of work.

How would I have accomplished this w/o fw??

Your MacBook can boot from a USB hard drive.

[m2002brian]

Originally Posted by hillstones

Your MacBook can boot from a USB hard drive.

My files were not on a USB HD (just saying), I could not install another OS (10.4.6) onto my FW dirve (even though I can boot from one, says the manual) I never tried using it as a usb drive because, well, because it has fw, why downgrade.

But that is a somewhat reasonable way to do it. Of coarse if you have two macs with FW wouldn't it just be faster, and more simple to use Target FW Mode.

How do I install a 2nd OS on a FW drive?

[Mr. H]

Originally Posted by m2002brian

How do I install a 2nd OS on a FW drive?

You could use your installation discs to install OS X on an external drive. An alternative is to use Carbon Copy Cloner to get your current OS onto an external drive.

This is what I do when a major update comes out:

1.) Clone my current installation to a firewire HD
2.) Perform the update
3.) Make sure everything's working ok

If I come across a problem I can't fix, I can simply boot off my firewire drive and restore my old installation back to the built-in drive with carbon copy cloner.

[lostkiwi]

I'm just glad to hear that I'm not the only one who has had this problem.

It has been a real PTA for me, even after I finally managed to get 10.5.6 working. I am running an old 1.3ghz iBook though. Can't afford to upgrade.... sigh....

[nvidia2008]

Just download and install combo update