diff --git a/Makefile.am b/Makefile.am
index 1fd386e8..e17290da 100644
--- a/Makefile.am
+++ b/Makefile.am
@@ -167,6 +167,7 @@ BATS = \
 	test/functional/update/update-client-certificate.bats \
 	test/functional/update/update-delta-without-rename-flag.bats \
 	test/functional/update/update-download.bats \
+	test/functional/update/update-fail-to-get-mom.bats \
 	test/functional/update/update-include.bats \
 	test/functional/update/update-include-old-bundle.bats \
 	test/functional/update/update-include-old-bundle-with-tracked-file.bats \
diff --git a/src/bundle.c b/src/bundle.c
index 687e48a4..0e39fac9 100644
--- a/src/bundle.c
+++ b/src/bundle.c
@@ -56,9 +56,9 @@ int list_installable_bundles()
 	}
 
 	mix_exists = (check_mix_exists() & system_on_mix());
-	MoM = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists);
+	MoM = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists, NULL);
 	if (!MoM) {
-		return EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		return EMOM_LOAD;
 	}
 
 	list = MoM->manifests = list_sort(MoM->manifests, file_sort_filename);
@@ -87,9 +87,9 @@ static int load_bundle_manifest(const char *bundle_name, struct list *subs, int
 
 	*submanifest = NULL;
 
-	mom = load_mom(version, false, false);
+	mom = load_mom(version, false, false, NULL);
 	if (!mom) {
-		return EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		return EMOM_LOAD;
 	}
 
 	sub_list = recurse_manifest(mom, subs, bundle_name, false);
@@ -203,10 +203,10 @@ int show_included_bundles(char *bundle_name)
 		goto out;
 	}
 
-	mom = load_mom(current_version, false, false);
+	mom = load_mom(current_version, false, false, NULL);
 	if (!mom) {
 		fprintf(stderr, "Cannot load official manifest MoM for version %i\n", current_version);
-		ret = EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		ret = EMOM_LOAD;
 		goto out;
 	}
 
@@ -301,10 +301,10 @@ int show_bundle_reqd_by(const char *bundle_name, bool server)
 		goto out;
 	}
 
-	current_manifest = load_mom(version, server, false);
+	current_manifest = load_mom(version, server, false, NULL);
 	if (!current_manifest) {
 		fprintf(stderr, "Unable to download/verify %d Manifest.MoM\n", version);
-		ret = EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		ret = EMOM_LOAD;
 		goto out;
 	}
 
@@ -540,10 +540,10 @@ int remove_bundles(char **bundles)
 			fprintf(stderr, "Removing bundle: %s\n", bundle);
 		}
 
-		current_mom = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists);
+		current_mom = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists, NULL);
 		if (!current_mom) {
 			fprintf(stderr, "Unable to download/verify %d Manifest.MoM\n", current_version);
-			ret = EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+			ret = EMOM_LOAD;
 			bad++;
 			goto out_free_curl;
 		}
@@ -1052,10 +1052,10 @@ int install_bundles_frontend(char **bundles)
 
 	mix_exists = (check_mix_exists() & system_on_mix());
 
-	mom = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists);
+	mom = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists, NULL);
 	if (!mom) {
 		fprintf(stderr, "Cannot load official manifest MoM for version %i\n", current_version);
-		ret = EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		ret = EMOM_LOAD;
 		goto clean_and_exit;
 	}
 
diff --git a/src/curl.c b/src/curl.c
index 61c2aa79..fb435b60 100644
--- a/src/curl.c
+++ b/src/curl.c
@@ -435,7 +435,7 @@ exit:
 			err = -ENONET;
 			break;
 		case CURLE_FILE_COULDNT_READ_FILE:
-			err = -1;
+			err = -ENOENT;
 			break;
 		case CURLE_PARTIAL_FILE:
 			fprintf(stderr, "Curl: File incompletely downloaded from '%s' to '%s'\n",
diff --git a/src/manifest.c b/src/manifest.c
index c95b55d4..22c605ac 100644
--- a/src/manifest.c
+++ b/src/manifest.c
@@ -487,11 +487,6 @@ static void remove_manifest_files(char *filename, int version, char *hash)
 	}
 }
 
-struct manifest *load_mom(int version, bool latest, bool mix_exists)
-{
-	return load_mom_err(version, latest, mix_exists, NULL);
-}
-
 /* Loads the MoM (Manifest of Manifests) for VERSION.
  *
  * Implementation note: MoMs are not huge so deltas do not give much benefit,
@@ -504,7 +499,7 @@ struct manifest *load_mom(int version, bool latest, bool mix_exists)
  * loaded into memory, this function will return NULL. If err is passed, it is set
  * with the error code.
  */
-struct manifest *load_mom_err(int version, bool latest, bool mix_exists, int *err)
+struct manifest *load_mom(int version, bool latest, bool mix_exists, int *err)
 {
 	struct manifest *manifest = NULL;
 	int ret = 0;
diff --git a/src/search.c b/src/search.c
index 224b6825..77f81141 100644
--- a/src/search.c
+++ b/src/search.c
@@ -805,10 +805,10 @@ static int download_manifests(struct manifest **MoM, struct list **subs)
 		return ECURRENT_VERSION;
 	}
 
-	*MoM = load_mom(current_version, false, false);
+	*MoM = load_mom(current_version, false, false, NULL);
 	if (!(*MoM)) {
 		fprintf(stderr, "Cannot load official manifest MoM for version %i\n", current_version);
-		return EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		return EMOM_LOAD;
 	}
 
 	list = (*MoM)->manifests;
diff --git a/src/swupd-error.h b/src/swupd-error.h
index b606d3dc..4860c0f6 100644
--- a/src/swupd-error.h
+++ b/src/swupd-error.h
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
 
 #define EBUNDLE_MISMATCH 2      /* at least one local bundle mismatches from MoM */
 #define EBUNDLE_REMOVE 3	/* cannot delete local bundle filename */
-#define EMOM_NOTFOUND 4		/* MoM cannot be loaded into memory (this could imply network issue) */
+#define EMOM_LOAD 4		/* MoM cannot be loaded into memory (this could imply network issue) */
 #define ETYPE_CHANGED_FILE_RM 5 /* do_staging() couldn't delete a file which must be deleted */
 #define EDIR_OVERWRITE 6	/* do_staging() couldn't overwrite a directory */
 #define EDOTFILE_WRITE 7	/* do_staging() couldn't create a dotfile */
diff --git a/src/swupd.h b/src/swupd.h
index d75f5040..1f5478a6 100644
--- a/src/swupd.h
+++ b/src/swupd.h
@@ -218,8 +218,7 @@ extern void apply_heuristics(struct file *file);
 
 extern int file_sort_filename(const void *a, const void *b);
 extern int file_sort_filename_reverse(const void *a, const void *b);
-extern struct manifest *load_mom_err(int version, bool latest, bool mix_exists, int *err);
-extern struct manifest *load_mom(int version, bool latest, bool mix_exists);
+extern struct manifest *load_mom(int version, bool latest, bool mix_exists, int *err);
 extern struct manifest *load_manifest(int version, struct file *file, struct manifest *mom, bool header_only);
 extern struct manifest *load_manifest_full(int version, bool mix);
 extern struct list *create_update_list(struct manifest *server);
diff --git a/src/update.c b/src/update.c
index b8c369d7..0fba0874 100644
--- a/src/update.c
+++ b/src/update.c
@@ -315,25 +315,27 @@ version_check:
 	grabtime_stop(&times);
 	grabtime_stop(&times); // Close step 1
 	grabtime_start(&times, "Load Manifests:");
+	int manifest_err;
 load_current_mom:
 	/* Step 3: setup manifests */
 
 	/* get the from/to MoM manifests */
 	if (system_on_mix()) {
-		current_manifest = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists);
+		current_manifest = load_mom(current_version, false, mix_exists, &manifest_err);
 	} else {
-		current_manifest = load_mom(current_version, false, false);
+		current_manifest = load_mom(current_version, false, false, &manifest_err);
 	}
 	if (!current_manifest) {
 		/* TODO: possibly remove this as not getting a "from" manifest is not fatal
 		 * - we just don't apply deltas */
-		if (retries < MAX_TRIES) {
+		if (manifest_err == -ENET404 || manifest_err == -ENOENT) {
+			fprintf(stderr, "The current MoM manifest was not found\n");
+		} else if (retries < MAX_TRIES) {
 			increment_retries(&retries, &timeout);
-			fprintf(stderr, "Retry #%d downloading from/to MoM Manifests\n", retries);
+			fprintf(stderr, "Retry #%d downloading current MoM manifest\n", retries);
 			goto load_current_mom;
 		}
-		fprintf(stderr, "Failure retrieving manifest from server\n");
-		ret = EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		ret = EMOM_LOAD;
 		goto clean_exit;
 	}
 
@@ -344,21 +346,17 @@ load_current_mom:
 load_server_mom:
 	grabtime_stop(&times); // Close step 2
 	grabtime_start(&times, "Recurse and Consolidate Manifests");
-	int server_manifest_err;
-	server_manifest = load_mom_err(server_version, true, mix_exists, &server_manifest_err);
+	server_manifest = load_mom(server_version, true, mix_exists, &manifest_err);
 	if (!server_manifest) {
-		if (retries < MAX_TRIES && server_manifest_err != -ENET404) {
+		if (manifest_err == -ENET404 || manifest_err == -ENOENT) {
+			fprintf(stderr, "The server MoM manifest was not found\n");
+			fprintf(stderr, "Version %d not available\n", server_version);
+		} else if (retries < MAX_TRIES) {
 			increment_retries(&retries, &timeout);
-			fprintf(stderr, "Retry #%d downloading server Manifests\n", retries);
+			fprintf(stderr, "Retry #%d downloading server MoM manifest\n", retries);
 			goto load_server_mom;
 		}
-		fprintf(stderr, "Failure retrieving manifest from server\n");
-		if (server_manifest_err == -ENET404) {
-			fprintf(stderr, "Version %d not available\n", server_version);
-		} else {
-			fprintf(stderr, "Unable to load manifest after retrying (config or network problem?)\n");
-		}
-		ret = EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		ret = EMOM_LOAD;
 		goto clean_exit;
 	}
 
diff --git a/src/verify.c b/src/verify.c
index fab4b1e9..1cbd33ab 100644
--- a/src/verify.c
+++ b/src/verify.c
@@ -765,9 +765,9 @@ int verify_main(int argc, char **argv)
 	 * disable checks for mixer state so the user can easily switch back to their
 	 * normal update stream */
 	if (version != sys_version) {
-		official_manifest = load_mom(version, false, false);
+		official_manifest = load_mom(version, false, false, NULL);
 	} else {
-		official_manifest = load_mom(version, false, system_on_mix());
+		official_manifest = load_mom(version, false, system_on_mix(), NULL);
 	}
 
 	if (!official_manifest) {
@@ -776,7 +776,7 @@ int verify_main(int argc, char **argv)
 		 * not provided.
 		 */
 		fprintf(stderr, "Unable to download/verify %d Manifest.MoM\n", version);
-		ret = EMOM_NOTFOUND;
+		ret = EMOM_LOAD;
 
 		/* No repair is possible without a manifest, nor is accurate reporting
 		 * of the state of the system. Therefore cleanup, report failure and exit
diff --git a/test/functional/testlib.bash b/test/functional/testlib.bash
index 9509c4d5..9ce15d57 100644
--- a/test/functional/testlib.bash
+++ b/test/functional/testlib.bash
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ export SWUPD="$SWUPD_DIR/swupd"
 # Error codes
 export EBUNDLE_MISMATCH=2  # at least one local bundle mismatches from MoM
 export EBUNDLE_REMOVE=3  # cannot delete local bundle filename
-export EMOM_NOTFOUND=4  # MoM cannot be loaded into memory (this could imply network issue)
+export EMOM_LOAD=4  # MoM cannot be loaded into memory (this could imply network issue)
 export ETYPE_CHANGED_FILE_RM=5  # do_staging() couldn't delete a file which must be deleted
 export EDIR_OVERWRITE=6  # do_staging() couldn't overwrite a directory
 export EDOTFILE_WRITE=7  # do_staging() couldn't create a dotfile
diff --git a/test/functional/update/update-fail-to-get-mom.bats b/test/functional/update/update-fail-to-get-mom.bats
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..66d70e6b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/functional/update/update-fail-to-get-mom.bats
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bats
+
+load "../testlib"
+
+test_setup() {
+
+	create_test_environment "$TEST_NAME"
+	create_version -p "$TEST_NAME" 20 10
+
+}
+
+@test "update do not re-attempt download 'from' MoM if it was not found" {
+
+	# remove the "from" mom
+	sudo rm -rf "$WEBDIR"/10/Manifest.MoM.tar
+
+	run sudo sh -c "$SWUPD update $SWUPD_OPTS"
+
+	assert_status_is "$EMOM_LOAD"
+	expected_output=$(cat <<-EOM
+		Update started.
+		Preparing to update from 10 to 20
+		Failed to retrieve 10 MoM manifest
+		The current MoM manifest was not found
+	EOM
+	)
+	assert_regex_is_output "$expected_output"
+
+}
+
+@test "update do not re-attempt download 'to' MoM if it was not found" {
+
+	# remove the "to" mom
+	sudo rm -rf "$WEBDIR"/20/Manifest.MoM.tar
+
+	run sudo sh -c "$SWUPD update $SWUPD_OPTS"
+
+	assert_status_is "$EMOM_LOAD"
+	expected_output=$(cat <<-EOM
+		Update started.
+		Preparing to update from 10 to 20
+		Failed to retrieve 20 MoM manifest
+		The server MoM manifest was not found
+		Version 20 not available
+	EOM
+	)
+	assert_regex_is_output "$expected_output"
+
+}
\ No newline at end of file