935 Software will not update - wrong version indicated in Garmin Express

Garmin Express will say you are up to date when it has merely prepared your watch for an update [sent the update file to your watch]. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that your watch has actually installed the update. Yes, it is misleading.

1. Try rebooting: Hold down Light, select Power Off from the menu, then hold down light to turn it back on.
Hopefully your watch should tell you an update is available and offer to install it.

2. If that doesn't work, connect your watch to USB and edit the \garmin\garmindevice.xml file with Notepad.

Look for the following section:
<SoftwareVersion>410</SoftwareVersion>

If the number in the SoftwareVersion tags is 410, change it to 330, and sync with Garmin Express. You may also need to reboot.

Try the update process again.

3. If you still get the "app requires an update message", edit the garmindevice.xml file again and change the version to 410, and sync with GE. You may also need to reboot.

Once the about page says 4.10, AND the XML file says 410, hopefully you should be able to download your watch face. (The About page tells you what firmware you actually have, while the XML file tells the store what version it thinks you have.)

Yes it is a pain. I have had the scenario where GE said I was up to date but my watch wasn't, so I had to reboot my watch to install the update. I also had the scenario where I was up-to-date but the XML file said I wasn't, so I couldn't download new apps. What didn't happen to me was totally being unable to update to 4.10, so step 2 is purely speculative.

I'm having the exact same issue today as well. I received my replacement Forerunner 935 today after an RMA request the past week. The device came with version 3.4 and it will not update to the latest software version. Both Garmin Connect on Android and Garmin Express on PC is telling me that the version the watch is at is the latest 4.10 build. However checking the about screen on the watch shows the watch still at 3.4. As mentioned in the first post, some Connect IQ apps won't install since the software is outdated.

I've tried rebooting it, relinking the watch to PC and Android, resetting watch to factory, edit the watch version in the XML file (as mentions above)... nothing seems to be working. I've also updated the watch to the latest 4.02 beta built (since it is manually available to download). It updated fine, but Garmin Express or Connect still thinks its on version 4.10 rather than 4.02. Version 4.02 still has issues with some Connect IQ apps refusing to install.

Garmin Connect on Android has a Device Sync Audit log in the settings menu. It list the 935 with software version 4.02, yet for some reason still doesn't update the software. Garmin Express on PC just says its on 4.10 as well as the Connect website. I thought it had something to do with settings being retained from the previous 935 I had, but it doesn't seem to be the case since the first poster mentioned that his was just purchased.

I'm out of ideas right now. The only think left to do, it seems, is wait for a newer build or wait for Garmin to update something on their end that may be causing the issue.

Just noticed in the 'New Topics' list that there is a number of users reporting problems updating new devices. Maybe the problem is with Garmin Connect and not Garmin Express. Might also explain why my Garmin Express has 'lost' my new 935 on a couple of occasions in the last few days.

You guys could try to manually update the watch to 4.10. Look for the file Forerunner935_410.gcd at http://gawisp.com/perry/forerunner and copy it to the GARMIN folder inside the watch. Haven't tried this procedure with my 935 yet but it worked just fine many times with my old fenix 3.

Thank you for all the advice. After trying everyone's ideas out, the one that worked was FernandoLordelo's suggestion to update the file. That did the trick.

drop the file in the >>Garmin folder on your watch, rename it to GUPDATE.GCD and upon unplugging from the computer let it do the update.

Something else to look at here as an option is webupdater:

http://www8.garmin.com/products/webupdater/howtoinstall.jsp

Can confirm that WebUpdater helps me when I was in exactly the same situation

I think the issue is with Garmin Express. I had the same problem trying to update my Fenix 3HR yesterday. GE was reporting the watch had the most up to date software, but that was not the case. At one point I reset the watch and it said there was an update to install. I selected update now and it did the install sequence for about 2 seconds and rebooted. After the reboot it still had the old software version. I think something got screwed up with GE.