# Update a skill, a runtime, or a hub

> A skill update, a runtime update, and a hub update are three different things. This page says which one you want.

Source: https://docs.thalovant.com/manage/manage-updates/

---
{/* Last Edit: Codex (model identifier unavailable) - 2026-10-26 - Motive: Explain observable listener-only maintenance and readiness. */}

A skill update, a runtime update, and a hub update are three different things,
and each belongs to a different page. The rule is simple: **update the smallest
thing that owns the change.**

## Which Update Do You Want?

| Update type | Open | What changes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Skill update | [Skills](/concepts/skill-sets/) | One skill package in the selected skill set. |
| Runtime update | [Runtime](/concepts/runtime/) | The software that runs a skill set. |
| Hub update | [Hubs](/concepts/hubs/) | The software that handles hub connections and browser previews. |
| A locked update button | [Billing](/workspace/billing-and-plans/) | Nothing — it tells you which allowance is full. |

## Before You Update

- You know whether this is a skill, a runtime group, or a hub.
- The skill set or hub selected on screen is the one you mean to change.
- Dashboard has no unrelated warning that should be dealt with first.
- A short restart or sync is acceptable right now for whatever is affected.
- For a hub update, its runtime has no attention item of its own.

  Apply one update, wait for it to report ready, and only then start the next.
  Two at once makes a failure much harder to read.

## Who Owns What

  
    Skills lists what is installed, what version is available, and an Update all.
    A skill update normally applies while the runtime keeps running. Test the
    skill you changed afterwards.
  
  
    A runtime update upgrades the software running the skill set and restarts
    it. Wait for Runtime to report ready before testing your skills.
  
  
    A hub update upgrades connections and browser previews. If its runtime
    needs attention, fix that first — a hub update on an unhealthy runtime is
    hard to interpret.
  

## Applying One

1. **Start from what you were told.** Dashboard, Skills, Runtime, or Hubs will
   already be showing the thing that has an update.
2. **If the button is locked, open [Billing](/workspace/billing-and-plans/).** A
   locked update is a plan limit, not a fault.
3. **Read the target before you press anything.** Check the version, and any
   warning sitting beside the resource.
4. **Apply it.** Update skill, Update all, Update runtime, or Update hub —
   whichever the owner page offers.
5. **Wait for ready.** Check the status on the Runtime or Hubs page before
   testing a request.
6. **Check it still works.** Return to Dashboard, and to
   [Topology](/concepts/topology/) if the update touched connected clients.

## During a Listener-Only Hub Update

A listener handles connections to a hub. A listener-only update changes that
software without selecting a new browser-preview or runtime version. It keeps
the hub's other settings, ownership and visibility. Connections may briefly
restart while the change takes effect.

The hub's overall version label can stay the same during this smaller update.
Do not use that label alone to decide whether the update finished. Check the
hub's status and test a connection once it is ready.

An accepted update request does not mean the hub is ready. Wait for readiness
before testing the hub or starting another
update. If you use a public hub maintained by someone else, you do not need to
apply the same update to your own runtime or skills.

  If an update conflicts or its result cannot be confirmed, do not immediately
  repeat it. Refresh and inspect the hub's current status first. A lost response
  does not prove that no update happened. If the state is still unclear,
  [ask for support](/account/get-support/).

## When The Button Is Locked

Some updates need capacity your plan may not include:

- public hubs and the connections you already have keep working on Free;
- private skill sets, marketplace installs, and runtime operations need runtime
  capacity;
- owned hubs and hub updates need hub capacity;
- paid skill add-ons renew monthly, separately from the workspace plan;
- custom hub addresses are plan-controlled.

If the plan allows the action and the update still fails, go back to the owner
page and write down exactly what it says before
[asking for support](/account/get-support/).

## Common Questions

A skill update changes one ability; a runtime update changes the software running the whole skill set. If you can't update a hub, look first at whether its runtime needs attention, then at whether the button is locked by your plan. A runtime restart after an update is normal: runtime updates and runtime configuration changes both restart it, while a skill update normally doesn't.

## Done When

- the skill, runtime group, or hub shows the version you expected;
- a changed runtime has reported ready;
- a changed hub has reported ready;
- Dashboard is no longer asking for attention;
- Topology still shows your clients connected.