Discord Update Failed - The Ultimate Fix

The Discord Update Failed - Retrying most probably occurs when the user is trying to open Discord and has their network connection off. The error goes into a loop as Discord keeps trying to update the app. Here's how you can fix the Discord Update Failed issue.

If your internet is working correctly and you're still having issues while opening Discord then this guide may help you fix the issue. Commonly this issue happens when your 'Update.exe' file gets corrupted and couldn't connect with the Discord server. We'll see in detail how to fix this issue.

TL;DR

How to Fix Discord Update Failed Error in Windows & Mac?

1. Rename the Discord Update File.

2. Check if the Discord is down.

3. Check your Internet connection.

4. Run Discord as Administrator.

5. Disable your Antivirus temporarily.

6. Disable VPN

7. Install the update to a different folder

8. Try Discord on another browser

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How do I fix the Discord Update Failed loop?

1. Rename the Discord Update File

This method is used to ensure that there are no issues with the Discord update file. If you rename the file name it'll force Discord to download a new version of the 'Update' file. Here's how you can do it:

1. Open the Command prompt by pressing Windows + X and choosing "Terminal (Admin)" or PowerShell (Admin).

2. Use the following command to rename the Discord Update file:

taskkill /f /im discord.exe

3. Now open the Run Window by pressing Windows + R and typing %LocalAppData%\Discord

4. Now rename the Update.exe to UpdateBackup.exe

5. Close Discord from your sidebar and restart it.

This should Fix your Discord Update issue. If you're still having problems then continue reading.

2. Check if Discord is down

Sometimes, there are chances that Discord's service might be temporarily down.

You can check the Discord status details on the Discord Status page.

In case you have a Twitter account you can see tweets with the hashtag DiscordDown. Check if these Tweets are recent. If yes, then all you can do is wait until it's back online.

There is various reason for Discord being down, which includes server maintenance, new features, etc. There is a high chance of issues that may happen on Discord's side like maintenance, which may cause a connection issue between you and the Discord system. It's sometimes hard to tell whether it's just down for you or it's a Discord outage.

3. Check your Internet Connection

To make sure your device does not face any network issues follow the steps below:

The first thing you can try is to reset your network configurations. For this, we'll use the Command prompt.

1. Press Windows + X

2. Choose Command Prompt (Admin) or Powershell (Admin)

3. Type the commands given below

netsh winsock reset
netsh int ip reset
ipconfig /release
ipconfig /renew
ipconfig /flushdns

Now you can restart your computer and see if that works. If you're still having network issues then you can try turning on Airplane mode or restarting your Wi-Fi Router. Alternatively, you can try opening Discord on a different device.

4. Run Discord as Administrator

As you already know, sometimes opening an application as an administrator on Windows fixes the issue by giving it all the required permissions to run the application.

Sometimes, granting Discord administrator permissions might allow it to fix the issues itself and download and install the update file automatically.

To run Discord in "Administrator Mode" follow the steps below:

1. Right Click on the "Discord" icon

2. Then click on Run as Administrator

Yes, it is that simple lol. You can also do it by clicking on "Windows Icon" in the search bar. Then search for Discord and click on "Run as Administrator".

5. Disable your Antivirus Temporarily

In some cases, Window's defender or your Antivirus measures conflicts with the Discord Update, which causes it to fail continuously. If you have an Antivirus installed try disabling it temporarily by going into the app settings of your program. If you don't have an Antivirus installed and using the default Windows Defender antivirus. Then follow the steps below to disable it.

1. Open the settings application by pressing the Windows+i key or from the start menu.

2. Click on the Update & Security tab.

3. Navigate to Privacy & Security → Windows Security

4. In the Windows Security application

5. Head over to Virus & Protection and turn off Real-time protection.

After following the steps given above, try running Discord as an administrator again. When the update succeeds you can turn on Virus Protection back again.

6. Turn off VPN

If you are using a VPN while using Discord then turning it off may help to fix the issue. Sometimes VPNs are slow and cause an interruption in the connection between your Discord Client and the server.

You can do this by opening your computer's task manager and right click on your VPN program and clicking on end task to turn off your VPN instantly.

7. Install Update To A Different Folder

Sometimes installing the update to a different folder may help you to fix the Discord update failed issue. Here's how you can locate the folder and change the updated file location.

Usually, it is located in the local app data:

Example: C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local

Follow the steps below to change the folder location:

1. Press Win+R to open the Run utility (The same thing we did in method 1)

2. Search %localappdata%

3. Now it'll open a folder that contains the data of all files & software

4. Create a new Folder named "Discord1"

5. Search for the "Discord" folder and copy the contents of that folder to our newly created folder.

6. Delete the original "Discord" folder

Restart Discord, and this should fix your issue. If the issue persists keep scrolling. If you are using Mac then the best way is to just restart your Mac and that can easily fix your problem.

8. Try Discord on another browser

Sometimes it might be possible that the Discord app is not working properly. To fix this issue, you can open Discord in your web browser.

I think you already know how to do that. If not here's how:

1. Search Discord in your browser

2. Log-in to Discord

3. Enter credentials & 2-FA if required

4. Click on the login button

And that's it, now you'll be logged into your Discord app without having to worry about the "Update Failed - Retrying" loop.

FAQ

How to fix the discord update failure?

There are various ways using which you can fix the discord update failure issue. The best workarounds that can resolve this issue are mentioned in this blog. For most users, running Discord as administrator or renaming the Discord Updater file helps them fix their issues.

How do I stop Discord from getting updated automatically?

Unfortunately, Discord does not give its users an option to stop Discord from looking for updates. For optional updates, it shows at the top right corner of your Discord app friends page. As updates help to keep the app working smoothly, Discord automatically applies the required updates while starting the application.

What to do if the Discord update fails on Mac?

The easiest way to fix Discord's failed update on Mac is to restart the device. This will probably fix your issue, if not you can try restarting your device.