App Store Fix: Unable to update free apps.

I couldn’t update iMovie today at the lab where I work.  It just said:

“Update unavailable with this Apple ID

This update is for an app downloaded with a different Apple ID. Sign in with that Apple ID and try again.”

I tried deleting the half-downloaded app from the Applications folder, restarting the computer, and that fixed it.

But then it happened a few more times on other computers, and by the third time my fix didn’t work anymore!

After trying a few things, including signing out and back into the app store, restarting everything, re-indexing my whole hard drive on spotlight, deleting iMovie and copying a version that worked on another computer into the failing computer’s Applications folder, here’s what worked:

When I started the App Store update, it made another copy of iMovie in the Applications folder (in addition to the one I copied from another computer), with the same name.  Bizarre, but whatever.

I noticed that Launchpad had a “downloading” strip in its icon.  Clicking that in the dock brought up a page of apps, one of which was a blank square with “downloading” written underneath.  So I clicked and held on it until all the apps started wiggling (with little x’s, iphone-style).

I deleted the delinquent app, then tried the app store again.  Now it didn’t even show any need to update – everything works fine.

The end!

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