An automated WordPress update has failed 📝 WordPress

An automated WordPress update has failed to complete - please attempt the update again now

A background core update stopped mid-way, so WordPress asks you to run it again (and may be stuck in maintenance mode).

Seen on: WordPress

Meaning

Timeouts, file permission problems, disk space or server limits interrupt automatic updates. WordPress records the failure in auto_core_update_failed.

Common causes

  • Update interrupted (timeout, memory)
  • File permissions preventing writes
  • Disk full
  • .maintenance file left behind

⚡ Quick fix

  1. Run the update again from Dashboard → Updates
  2. Remove .maintenance if the site is stuck
  3. Fix permissions/disk space

Detailed fix by platform

Shell

  1. php
    rm -f /var/www/html/.maintenance
wp core update && wp core update-db

How to diagnose

  1. Logs — PHP error log during update
  2. Disk — Free space
  3. Files — Ownership

🔧 Still not fixed?

Many errors look alike. If the steps above didn’t solve it, one of these is probably what you’re facing:

🧠 Still stuck? Analyze your error

Paste the full message, response headers or stack trace — we'll detect the platform and point to the most likely cause.