Unable to update WoodMart new licence – “Download failed: Forbi

Hello,

I inherited a website that was built by a previous developer and no longer have access to the original ThemeForest purchase.

Because automatic updates were failing with “Download failed: Forbidden”, I purchased a brand new WoodMart licence today and registered it with my XTemos account.

My WordPress site still shows the theme as activated, but it appears to be using the old activation. Clicking Update now still immediately returns “Download failed: Forbidden.”

Before I deactivate the existing activation on my live website, I’d like to know the correct procedure for replacing the old activation with my new purchase code.

Could you please advise the safest way to migrate the activation to my new licence without disrupting the live site?

Thank you.

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out.

“Download failed: Forbidden” usually means the theme on your site is still linked to the old purchase code. You can safely switch the activation to your new license without interrupting the live site. Deactivating the license does not disable the theme or remove any settings—it only removes the update connection.

Please do this on the live site:
1) Go to Dashboard -> WoodMart -> Theme License and click Deactivate license.
2) Go to Dashboard -> Updates and click Check again to refresh update data.
3) Return to Dashboard -> WoodMart -> Theme License, enter your new purchase code, leave “Development domain” unchecked (since this is the live site), and Activate.
4) Update the theme via Dashboard -> Updates or Appearance -> Themes.

Optional (staging-first approach):
– If you prefer to test before touching the live site, create a staging copy and activate your new code there with the “Development domain” checkbox enabled. WoodMart allows one staging and one live activation for the same site. After you confirm everything works on staging, follow the steps above on the live site.

If you still get “Forbidden” after reactivating with the new code and refreshing updates, please share temporary WordPress admin access (and the site URL) in the forum’s Private Content so we can check the activation status and update endpoint on your installation.

Kind regards,
XTemos Studio

Still not working. please advise and thank you for help

Attachments:

You must be logged in to view attached files.

As we can see, the theme is still activated. Note that if you can’t deactivate it then you have a nulled version of the theme installed. In this case, you need to download our theme from ThemeForest and reinstall it completely via Appearance -> Themes -> Add new.

Thank you for your reply.

I purchased a new licence specifically because I no longer had access to the original one.

Before I reinstall the theme, could you please confirm whether this conclusion is based on something you can see from my activation, or is it simply because the update fails?

Also, will reinstalling the official ThemeForest version preserve my existing WoodMart settings and website layout, or do you recommend taking any additional precautions first?

Hello,
Thanks for the follow-up.

Our conclusion isn’t just because the update fails. It’s based on the fact that the Deactivate license button on your site doesn’t work even when clicked multiple times. With the official theme, deactivation works; when it doesn’t, it typically indicates a modified/nulled copy.

Reinstalling the official ThemeForest build will not change anything in your current site. Your existing WoodMart settings and layout will remain intact after you install the genuine package.

Kind regards,
XTemos Studio

thank you

[Author]

Posts