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Every morning I turn off the alarm on my phone, look at it, see there aren't any updates and unplug it.

A few seconds later I'll start to receive several notifications about apps that need updates. These updates will not automatically download or install even though I've set that option in the Play Store; instead they sit waiting until I manually go to the Play Store and hit "Update All."

My phone spends all night plugged in and on Wi-Fi; why aren't they updating then?

For reference, I'm running an LG V20, with Android version 7.0. Play Store is version 8.5.39. If it matters, my alarm is set for 3:45 am. I didn't see any option in the store to change the update time.

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    @beeshyams even with that off, the apps should start auto-updating with the screen on if that setting were at fault. // Benjamin: Those apps might have been installed before you set to auto-update everything. Next time this happens, check the settings for one of those apps – auto-update is set per-app on install, with the setting you mentioned being the default.
    – Izzy ♦
    Jan 17, 2018 at 12:49
  • I checked the auto-update settings on one of the apps (Twitter) and it is enabled on that app.
    – Benjamin Chambers
    Jan 17, 2018 at 13:27
  • "Keep Wi-Fi on when screen is off" says "Yes"
    – Benjamin Chambers
    Jan 17, 2018 at 13:29
  • OK, that's weird now.Do PlayStore and Play Services auto-update themselves, or are they also part of that "pending list"? IOW: Is anything at all auto-updating, or does it affect all apps? Not that I see a pattern, but it might provide a clue to someone else.
    – Izzy ♦
    Jan 17, 2018 at 15:15
  • You can try signing out of your account and setting it up again
    – beeshyams
    Jan 18, 2018 at 6:34

1 Answer 1

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This is an easy fix and the reason is pretty easy to determine. The reason is that Androids' "Optimize Battery Usage" feature puts Google Play Store or Google Play services to sleep and restricts background activity. This means that when your phone screen turns off, the app is put to sleep so it does not consume battery; or if the phone is charging, it doesn't have any background activity access.

To fix this, you need to go to Settings, Apps, and scroll until you find Google Play Services and Google Play Store. Check Google Play Store first, click it and then click "Battery". If you see that it says "optimized", click the "Optimize Battery Usage" button and it will take you to a list at the top change it from "Apps not optimized" to "All". Scroll down the list until you find Google Play Store and switch the toggle to off; repeat this process for Google Play Services (most likely this will not be optimized, but just in case, check).

Now that you have done this, your phone will update because the app will no longer be put to sleep and it will be allowed to work in the background while your phone is charging or on Wi-Fi and it will update your apps. I have fixed this issue on a few phones and if this does not work for you, there is something else wrong with your device or Android.

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  • My Samsung Galaxy Store is set to auto-update and to not optimize the battery usage, but it doesn't auto-update. What reasons could there be with the Samsung Galaxy Store?
    – root
    May 22, 2021 at 7:57

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