Discord "Update Failed - Retrying" Loop — Fix in 2 Minutes (2026)

Q: How do I prevent this from happening again?

Three things: (1) add %localappdata%\Discord to your antivirus exclusions permanently, (2) make sure your Windows account owns that folder with full control, (3) keep Windows up to date — Microsoft has patched several permission regressions in 23H2 and 24H2 builds.

Quick Answer — Discord "Update Failed" Loop

The Discord desktop client is stuck retrying "Update Failed" because its updater downloaded a new build but cannot overwrite the installed files. In 9 cases out of 10 the fix is to delete the %localappdata%\Discord folder and reinstall from discord.com/download. The full step-by-step guide below covers all 7 working fixes, including advanced PowerShell repair and PTB switching for stubborn cases on Windows 10 and Windows 11.

What Is the Discord "Update Failed" Error?

The Discord update loop appears as a small launcher window showing a circular progress indicator and the message "Update Failed — Retrying in X seconds". The countdown restarts forever and the main Discord app never opens. The error has no error code, no log popup, and no obvious cause — which is why it frustrates users so much.

Under the hood, Discord uses a self-updating mechanism called Squirrel.Windows. Every time you launch Discord.exe, Squirrel checks for a newer build, downloads the delta package to %localappdata%\Discord\packages, and tries to extract it to a new versioned folder (for example app-1.0.9034). If anything blocks that extraction — a locked file, an antivirus quarantine, a permission denial, a disk error — the updater retries from scratch indefinitely.

Symptoms You'll See

Small Discord launcher window stuck on "Update Failed — Retrying in 10 seconds" (the timer counts down then resets)
Main Discord app never opens, no servers or friends list visible
CPU usage from Update.exe or Discord.exe stays high while looping
Sometimes the launcher shows "Installation has failed" instead of the retry timer
Issue affects stable Discord, Discord PTB, and Discord Canary builds equally

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Common Causes (Why This Happens)

The Discord "Update Failed" loop is almost always one of seven underlying problems. Identifying the right one means you fix it in one try instead of cycling through tutorials:

Corrupted update files in %localappdata%\Discord\packages or a half-extracted app-* folder
Antivirus or Windows Defender quarantining Update.exe or the new build's executables mid-extraction
Insufficient write permissions on the Discord folder (frequent on corporate or shared computers)
Locked DLL files still loaded by a hidden Discord.exe process that never exited cleanly
Conflicting installations — Discord stable + PTB + Canary writing to overlapping paths
Disk errors or full drive preventing the new version from being written
SmartScreen / WDAC policy blocking the new unsigned build (rare, but seen on Windows 11 Pro and Enterprise)

The 7 Fixes (In Order of Success Rate)

Work through these in order. Fix 1 resolves 70% of cases; the later fixes target stubborn edge cases. Close every Discord process (and check Task Manager for stragglers like Discord.exe, Update.exe, squirrel.exe) before starting any fix.

Delete the Discord LocalAppData folder (success rate ≈ 70%)

This is the cleanest reset and the first fix to try.

Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc → Task Manager → end every Discord.exe and Update.exe process.
Press Win + R → type %localappdata% → press Enter.
Right-click the Discord folder → Delete (or move it to your desktop as a temporary backup).
Also delete %appdata%\discord if it exists (this clears cached settings and login tokens).
Download the fresh installer from discord.com/download and run it. Re-login when prompted.

Your messages, servers and friends are not stored locally — they live on Discord's servers and reappear instantly after login.

Run Discord as Administrator (success rate ≈ 12%)

If your account doesn't own the Discord folder (common after a Windows reset or a profile migration), the updater can't replace files.

Right-click the Discord desktop shortcut → Run as administrator.
If it updates successfully, make the change permanent: right-click the shortcut → Properties → Shortcut → Advanced → check Run as administrator → OK.
Optional but recommended: take ownership of the Discord folder with takeown /F "%localappdata%\Discord" /R /D Y from an elevated Command Prompt.

Disable Antivirus and Add Discord to Exclusions (≈ 8%)

Avast, AVG, McAfee, Norton, Bitdefender and even Windows Defender have all been observed quarantining the Discord updater. The behaviour spikes when Discord ships a new major version.

Pause your antivirus for 10 minutes (right-click tray icon → Disable/Pause).
Launch Discord. Let it finish updating.
Re-enable the antivirus, then add %localappdata%\Discord to the exclusion list.
For Windows Defender: Settings → Privacy & security → Windows Security → Virus & threat protection → Manage settings → Exclusions → Add an exclusion → Folder → choose %localappdata%\Discord.

Clear the Temp Folder and Update Cache (≈ 5%)

Squirrel writes intermediary files to %temp% during extraction. A junk-stuffed Temp folder can block writes.

Press Win + R → %temp% → select all (Ctrl + A) → Shift + Delete (skip any "in use" files).
Then run Win + R → cleanmgr → tick Temporary files and Recycle Bin → Clean.
Re-launch Discord.

Install Discord PTB (≈ 3%)

Discord PTB (Public Test Build) lives at %localappdata%\DiscordPTB — a completely separate path — so it sidesteps whatever is locking the stable folder. Discord Canary works the same way.

Download from discord.com/download → scroll to Public Test Build.
Install and login with the same account.
If PTB works, use it temporarily while you troubleshoot the stable build with Fix 1 or Fix 6.

Reset Discord Permissions via PowerShell (≈ 1.5%)

When the folder ACL (access control list) is broken — typically after a Windows profile migration or an upgrade from Windows 10 to 11 — neither admin rights nor reinstalling will help until you rewrite permissions.

Open PowerShell as administrator (Win + X → Terminal (Admin)).
Run:

Stop-Process -Name "Discord","Update" -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
Remove-Item "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Discord" -Recurse -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
Remove-Item "$env:APPDATA\discord" -Recurse -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
icacls "$env:LOCALAPPDATA" /grant "$env:USERNAME`:(OI)(CI)F" /T
Start-Process "https://discord.com/download"

This kills all Discord processes, nukes the corrupted folders, repairs your user's permissions on LocalAppData recursively, and opens the download page in one shot.

Run Disk Repair and System File Check (≈ 0.5%)

If none of the above worked, the underlying drive or Windows itself is unhealthy. Run these in an elevated Command Prompt:

sfc /scannow
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
chkdsk C: /f /r

chkdsk will schedule a check on next reboot — confirm with Y and restart. After Windows boots clean, retry the Discord install.

Advanced Diagnostics: Read the Updater Logs

If you want to know exactly what is failing, Discord's Squirrel updater writes a verbose log to:

%localappdata%\Discord\SquirrelSetup.log

Open it in Notepad. Scroll to the bottom and look for lines containing ERROR, Access is denied, File is being used by another process, or HRESULT 0x80070005. The error you find maps to a fix above:

Access is denied / 0x80070005 → Fix 2 (admin) or Fix 6 (ACL reset)
File is being used by another process → kill Discord.exe/Update.exe in Task Manager, then Fix 1
The system cannot find the path specified → Fix 1 (full reinstall)
Operation did not complete successfully because the file contains a virus → Fix 3 (antivirus)

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Common Mistakes to Avoid

Don't reinstall on top of the broken install. The new installer will detect the existing folder and reuse the corrupted update files — looping you right back. Delete %localappdata%\Discord first.
Don't kill only the visible Discord window. Squirrel and Update.exe keep running in the background and hold file locks. Use Task Manager → Details tab → end every Discord-related process.
Don't grant Discord folder permissions to "Everyone". It works, but it's a security risk. Use your username or the local Administrators group only.
Don't run the installer from inside a OneDrive-synced folder. The sync engine will lock files during install and trigger the loop again.
Don't expect "Repair" from Settings → Apps to fix this. Discord isn't a normal MSI app — Windows Repair has no effect.

Preventing the Discord Update Failed Loop

Once you have Discord running again, a few one-time changes will keep the updater happy:

Add %localappdata%\Discord to your antivirus exclusions permanently.
Make sure your Windows user account is the owner of the Discord folder (Properties → Security → Advanced → Owner).
Keep at least 2 GB free on your system drive — Discord delta packages can briefly need 1 GB during extraction.
Install Windows updates monthly. Several Squirrel-related permission regressions were patched in Windows 11 23H2 and 24H2.
Never move the Discord folder to OneDrive, Dropbox or another sync folder.

Related Discord Errors We Cover

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Discord get stuck in an update loop?

The Squirrel updater downloads a new build but cannot replace the installed files — usually because they are corrupted, locked by another process, quarantined by antivirus, or your user account lacks write permission on the Discord folder.

Will I lose my Discord messages or servers if I delete the LocalAppData folder?

No. Everything — messages, servers, friends, DMs, settings synced to your account — lives on Discord's servers. Deleting %localappdata%\Discord only removes the local installation. After reinstalling and logging in, everything is back instantly.

Can I use Discord while it is stuck updating?

Yes. Open discord.com/app in any browser for full web access while you fix the desktop client. The web version has 95% of the features of the desktop app.

Why does running Discord as administrator fix the update?

The updater writes files to the installation directory and to system Temp folders. If your standard user account lacks write permission on either path, the operation fails silently and Squirrel retries forever. Admin rights bypass the permission check.

Is the Discord "Update Failed" loop caused by a virus?

Almost never. It's a Windows permissions or file-lock issue 99% of the time. If you're worried, run a quick Microsoft Defender scan after the fix — but the loop itself is not a sign of malware.

Does this fix work on Windows 10 as well as Windows 11?

Yes. The Discord updater is identical on Windows 10, 11 and even 8.1. The fixes above work on all three. macOS and Linux use a different update mechanism and are not affected by this specific loop.

How long should the Discord update actually take?

A normal delta update takes 5–30 seconds depending on your internet speed. A full version bump can take 1–2 minutes. If the "Update Failed — Retrying" message has been on screen for more than 90 seconds, you are stuck in the loop — start with Fix 1.

How do I prevent this from happening again?

Three things: (1) add %localappdata%\Discord to your antivirus exclusions permanently, (2) make sure your Windows account owns that folder with full control, (3) keep Windows up to date — Microsoft has patched several permission regressions in the 23H2 and 24H2 builds.

Should I use Discord PTB permanently instead?

You can — PTB is stable enough for daily use and gets new features 1–2 weeks before the stable channel. The only downside is occasional UI bugs that are quickly patched. Many power users run PTB as their main client.

What if Discord still won't update after all 7 fixes?

At that point, the issue is almost always with the underlying Windows installation (corrupted user profile, broken WinSxS store, failing drive). The fastest path is remote help from a technician who can read the Squirrel logs and patch the system. Book a remote session or call (888) 711-9428.

Discord Update Failed Loop: 7 Fixes That Actually Work (2026)