Use Speedify as Your Starlink Companion
A Starlink “Software Install Pending” alert means your Starlink dish has downloaded a software update and needs to restart to install it. Your internet drops for a few minutes during that restart. Starlink usually restarts to install updates on its own, between 2:30 and 3:30 AM local time.
If it’s your Starlink subscription or service plan that says “Pending”, that’s about your Starlink account, not the software on your Starlink dish. Log in to your Starlink account at starlink.com, or contact Starlink support, to find out why.
Speedify is an app that uses your Starlink internet connection together with a second internet connection, like your phone’s cellular data, so your calls and streams keep going while your Starlink dish restarts to install an update.
Speedify keeps you online while your Starlink dish sorts itself out
Starlink Internet Connection Drops Happen to Everyone
Speedify measures thousands of Starlink users in more than 140 countries. In September 2026, fixed Starlink dishes went offline for about 38 minutes a day on average, and Starlink dishes on RVs and boats for about 46 minutes a day.
All Starlink dishes also see short dropouts roughly every 15 seconds as the Starlink internet connection switches from one moving satellite to the next. Even a perfectly installed Starlink dish goes offline, and about 7 in 10 Starlink users on Speedify use Starlink together with a second internet connection, like 4G/5G cellular.
Why Your Starlink Dish Needs to Install Software Updates
Like any modern device, your Starlink dish gets regular software updates that fix bugs and improve how it works. Starlink’s documentation for businesses says updates are usually released every 2 weeks, and they are meant not to get in your way. That’s why your Starlink dish restarts to apply them in the middle of the night, between 2:30 and 3:30 AM local time.
What to Do When a Starlink Software Update Is Stuck on Pending
- Check the Starlink app. Make sure “Software Install Pending” is the only alert. If your internet is down for another reason, go through the Starlink not working troubleshooting steps.
- Keep your Starlink dish plugged in, with a clear view of the sky, so it can finish the update and restart.
- Contact Starlink support if the alert doesn’t clear after the next night’s restart.
Why You Need Speedify: Stay Online While Your Starlink Dish Installs an Update
When your Starlink dish restarts to install an update, your Starlink internet connection is off for a few minutes. Most updates happen at night, but if a restart lands during a video call, a live stream or an online game, it cuts you off. That’s why you need a second internet connection that takes over on its own.
Speedify uses your Starlink internet connection together with any other internet connection you have:
- Cellular data (4G/5G)
- A DSL or cable line
- Public Wi-Fi in range
- A mobile hotspot
When your Starlink dish restarts to install a pending update, Speedify moves your internet traffic to your other internet connection right away, so you stay online without a break.
How to Stay Online When Starlink Is Installing a Pending Update, with Speedify
- Get the Speedify app on your devices. It runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS and even on OpenWrt routers.
- Connect your computer or phone to Starlink and to your second internet connection at the same time. On a phone, stay on your Starlink Wi-Fi and keep cellular data turned on. On a computer, use your Starlink Wi-Fi plus an Ethernet cable to your other internet line, or your phone plugged in with a USB cable to share its cellular data.
- Turn Speedify on. It uses both internet connections at the same time on its own, with no settings to change.
- Stay online while your Starlink dish installs its update.
You also get nearly the full speed of both internet connections combined, not just a backup.
Speedify needs that second internet connection: if both are down at once, you are offline either way.
Download Speedify now and stay online through every Starlink update.
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