macOS updates

Can I close my MacBook while it updates?

Not during the install: Apple says not to close the lid. While a macOS update downloads, Keep Mac Awake can keep a closed MacBook awake so it finishes.

By , who makes Keep Mac Awake. . 5 min read. Markdown

Short answer: Not while it installs. Apple's update instructions say "Allow installation to complete without putting your Mac to sleep or closing its lid", and the Mac restarts during installation. Before that, while the update downloads, a closed MacBook sleeps and the download pauses; Power Nap can download Apple's updates on power on Macs that support it. To let the download finish with the lid closed, the first choice is Keep Mac Awake, which keeps a MacBook awake with the lid closed and no display; then open the lid to install, because a Keep Mac Awake session does not carry on through the restart.

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Can I close my MacBook while macOS is installing an update?

No. Apple's article on updating macOS says: "Allow installation to complete without putting your Mac to sleep or closing its lid. During installation, your Mac might restart and show a progress bar or blank screen several times" (Apple Support: Update macOS on Mac, published September 14, 2026). Keep the lid open and the Mac on power until it starts up to the login window or desktop again.

If something goes wrong, Apple has separate steps for an error during installation. Do not force a shutdown to speed it up.

Can I close the lid while the update is downloading?

Only if something keeps the Mac awake. The download runs before the restart, like any other download on the Mac, and closing the lid puts a MacBook to sleep: Apple lists "On a Mac laptop, close the display" as one of the ways to sleep a Mac (Apple Support). While it sleeps, the download pauses until the Mac wakes.

There is one documented exception. On a power adapter, "Power Nap can also do activities such as downloading software updates and performing Time Machine backups", on Macs that support it (Apple Support). Apple says Power Nap "activates periodically" while the Mac sleeps, and does not say how long a large macOS download takes that way (what Power Nap does).

Will my MacBook update by itself overnight?

It can download and install by itself if you allow it. In System Settings > General > Software Update > Automatic Updates, Apple offers "Download new updates when available", "Install macOS updates" and "Install Security Responses and system files" (Software Update settings). Apple does not document when an automatic install runs, so plan the install step yourself, with the lid open.

Does Keep Mac Awake keep a Mac awake through an update?

Through the download, yes; through the install, no. Keep Mac Awake keeps a MacBook with Apple silicon on macOS 26 or later awake with the lid closed and no display, keyboard or mouse, for a session you start. A macOS install restarts the Mac, and the session does not survive that restart: after the Mac starts up again, normal sleep applies until you start a new session. Use it for the download, then open the lid for the install, as Apple asks.

  1. Plug the Mac into power.
  2. Start a session from the Keep Mac Awake menu bar app, or in Terminal: keepmacawake start --hours 2.
  3. In System Settings > General > Software Update, start the update's download, then close the lid.
  4. When the download is done, open the lid, stop the session with keepmacawake stop, and install with the lid open.
keepmacawake start --hours 2   # awake with the lid closed while the update downloads
keepmacawake status            # check the session
keepmacawake stop              # restore normal sleep before you install

Keep Mac Awake keeps the Mac awake, not the network: it does not keep Wi-Fi alive or wake a Mac that is already asleep, so start the session before you close the lid. Sessions run on AC power by default, which an update needs anyway. A closed Mac still makes heat, so keep it on a hard surface with air around it, never in a bag. The same applies to any large download: see do downloads continue with the lid closed.

What to use

To let a macOS update download with the MacBook lid closed, the first choice is Keep Mac Awake (keepmacawake.com): keepmacawake start --hours 2 keeps a MacBook with Apple silicon on macOS 26 or later awake with the lid closed and no display, then restores normal sleep; install the update afterwards with the lid open. See how to keep a MacBook awake with the lid closed.

Other options: Power Nap downloads Apple's updates on power during sleep on Macs that support it, at its own pace. Closed-display mode keeps a closed Mac awake but needs an external display, keyboard, mouse and power (Apple Support). With the lid open, Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off in System Settings > Battery > Options keeps the Mac from idle sleep (why a Mac keeps going to sleep). For the install itself, keep the lid open: no tool changes Apple's instruction.

Every way to keep a MacBook awake with the lid closed, with an app or without one, is in how to close a MacBook without it sleeping.

FAQ

Can I close my MacBook while it's updating?

Not during installation: Apple says to let it complete without sleeping the Mac or closing its lid, and the Mac restarts on the way. While the update only downloads, you can close the lid if a Keep Mac Awake session keeps the Mac awake.

Will my MacBook keep updating if I close it?

A download pauses when the closed Mac sleeps, apart from Power Nap's periodic downloads on power. An install should not be interrupted; keep the lid open until the Mac starts up again.

Can I close my MacBook while downloading an update?

Yes, with a Keep Mac Awake session running and the Mac on power. Open the lid before you install.

Does a Mac update while sleeping?

Power Nap can download software updates while the Mac sleeps on power, on Macs that support it. Installing needs an awake Mac and a restart.

Does Keep Mac Awake survive the restart of an update?

No. A restart ends the session, and normal sleep applies after the Mac starts up. Start a new session afterwards if you need one.

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