Messenger is a popular online messaging platform. This app has already earned a reputation among the leading audio/video messaging platforms ever since it was still embedded into its mother app, Facebook. And now that it’s already a standalone application, a lot of new and advanced features were added to ensure app’s security and stability. But despite the constant updates and software enhancements, random issues still managed to find a way to halt Messenger from working properly. And one of the common problems with Messenger app, which this post attempts to address in on random crashes or loading errors. Feel free to refer to this easy guide on how to deal with a similar issue on your iphone 11 Messenger app that keeps crashing or not loading up steady.
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Troubleshooting an iPhone 11 Messenger app that keeps crashing or not loading up steady
The following solutions will help you eliminate common software-related factors that can trigger apps to crash or fail loading up as intended. Before you proceed, check and make sure that your iPhone has a stable internet connection. One of the key requisites for online apps like Messenger to work steady is a stable internet connection. If your phone is experiencing random internet connectivity issues, then that’s what you need to deal with first. Otherwise, proceed with these steps to troubleshoot your device.
First solution: Force close Messenger app then restart your iPhone 11.
Even the sturdy and well-maintained apps like Facebook and Messenger apps can still give into random errors and that’s when the application portrays some flaws. For minor app problems inflicted by random software errors, quitting and restarting the app will usually fix it. Thus, you can consider this among the first potential solutions to try on. Here’s what you should do then:
- Swipe up from the bottom of the screen then stop when your finger reaches the middle and pause until the app cards/previews show up.
- In the app switcher, swipe sideways to find the Messenger app card/preview.
- Swipe up on the card preview to force close the app.
Follow the same steps to clear out all other background applications to prevent any of them from causing conflicts the next time you launch Messenger app on your iphone 11.
After quitting Messenger and other background applications, restart or soft reset your iphone 11 to clear cache and to refresh its system functions. Here’s how it’s done:
- Simultaneously press and hold the Side and Volume Up buttons for a few seconds.
- Release both buttons when the Slide to Power off bar appears.
- Swipe or drag the bar to turn your device off.
- After about 30 seconds, press and hold the Side button and then release when the Apple logo appears.
Allow your device to finish its boot sequence and loads up the Home screen. Then retry launching Messenger app when your iPhone has re-established internet connection. Try loading up Messenger and see if the problem is solved.
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Second solution: Restart and refresh your Internet connection.
Intermittent connection or Wi-Fi drops, slow internet or no internet connection at all can also be the underlying cause of the problem. If any of these symptoms is transpiring on your iphone 11, online apps and services will likewise fail to work or become unavailable. This is when refreshing your internet connection is needed. There are many ways to get this done. And they are as follows:
- Reboot or power cycle the network equipment. The network equipment that I am referring to is either a wireless router or modem (depending on your network setup). If the network equipment is near or accessible at the moment, then try to power cycle it with these steps:
- Press the power button/switch to turn off the network equipment completely.
- While the equipment is turned off, unplug its AC adapter from the power source and keep it unplugged for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- After the elapsed time, plug it back into the power source and then turn it back on.
- Wait until all the light indicators become stable. Once the Wi-Fi signal has stabilized, your iPhone should reconnect to your Wi-Fi network (if you’ve set it up to auto-connect). If it doesn’t, then you’ll have to manually connect it to the desired network.
- Toggle Wi-Fi off and on. Turning the Wi-Fi switch on your iPhone can also help resolve minor issues affecting wireless functions and online applications. Doing so gives a quick refresh to your phone’s Wi-Fi system and thereby eliminates any existing connection errors Here’s how it’s done”
- Tap Settings from your Home screen.
- Select Wi-Fi.
- Tap the Wi-Fi switch to the OFF position.
- After about 30 seconds, tap the switch again to turn Wi-Fi back ON.
- Wait for your iPhone to reconnect to your Wi-Fi network and then try launching Messenger again to see if the problem is gone.
- Perform the Airplane Mode trick. Another simple old trick that’s been used to rectify various wireless connectivity issues that caused online apps to crash or stop working on an iPhone is the so-called Airplane Mode trick. It works by giving a simultaneous restart on your phone’s wireless features. Here’s how it’s exactly done:
- Tap Settings from your Home screen.
- Select Airplane Mode.
- Tap the switch to turn Airplane Mode on. Doing so simultaneously disables wireless radios of your iPhone.
- While Airplane mode is turned on, restart/soft reset your iPhone.
- Then head back to Settings-> Airplane Mode menu.
- Toggle the switch to turn Airplane Mode off again.
- Wait for your iPhone to re-establish wireless signals.
After disabling Airplane Mode, you will need to re-enable Wi-Fi to reconnect to your Wi-Fi network and get back online. As soon as your Internet connection is restored, you can retry loading Messenger and see if that solves the problem.
Third solution: Disable restrictions to fix your iPhone 11 Messenger app that’s not working.
When enabled, restrictions can also prevent certain apps from loading or working properly on your device. To make sure that this isn’t hindering your iphone 11 Messenger app from loading up steady, follow these steps to check and manage restriction settings on the new iphone 11:
- Tap Settings from the Home screen.
- Then tap on Screen Time.
- Select Content & Privacy Restrictions then toggle the switch to turn the feature off.
You may also opt to keep restrictions enabled but be sure to enable Messenger app under the Allowed Apps section. Simply toggle the switch next to Messenger to allow the app to run while others are restricted.
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Fourth solution: Install pending updates for Messenger app.
App updates may also contain the ultimate solution. Just like what you usually get from periodic iOS updates released by Apple, app updates also embed some necessary fix patches to address existing in-app errors inflicted by stubborn software bugs and glitches. If you haven’t set your third-party apps to auto-update, then there’s a great chance that you’ve missed to install some critical updates for Messenger and that has eventually resulted in the application becoming unsteady. If your internet connection is fine and you’ve got ample battery life, follow these steps to manually check and install pending app updates for Messenger:
- From the Home screen, tap on the App Store icon to open the application.
- Tap on Today tab at the bottom.
- Then tap on the user profile icon (Apple ID header) on the top right corner of the screen. You should see the account details.
- Scroll down to the Available Updates section.
- Tap on Update next to the Messenger app to install pending update for the app.
- If multiple app updates are available, tap on Update All to update all apps simultaneously.
Installing the latest iOS version available for your iPhone may also help fix the problem if system bugs are inflicting it.
- To check on available firmware updates, just go to Settings-> General-> Software Update menu on your iphone 11 then follow the onscreen prompts to download and install the latest firmware available.
Reboot your iPhone after installing updates to apply the recent software changes and likewise to implement any embedded fix patches. Then try launching Messenger app and see if it is still crashing or fails to load up steady.
Fifth solution: Uninstall then reinstall Messenger app on your iPhone 11.
The app might have been totally corrupted and is therefore not working as intended unless you have it reinstalled. This also means uninstalling the corrupted version of the application beforehand. Doing so is also a way of clearing errant caches from that might have been bugging the Messenger application on your iPhone. Just refer to these steps if you wish to proceed:
- From the Home screen, swipe to the Messenger app icon.
- Then touch and hold on the Messenger app icon.
- Wait for a few seconds for the pop-menu to show up and then red X to appear on the top-left corner of the app icon and the icons jiggle. This is an indication that you’re already entered edit mode.
- Tap Delete from the pop-up message to confirm deletion of the selected application.
- Then tap Done to exit edit mode.
Restart your iPhone after deleting the app and once it’s finished rebooting, continue with these steps to re-download and install Messenger app on your iphone 11:
- Tap the App Store icon from the Home screen.
- Tap Search at the bottom right corner.
- Tap the Games, Apps, Stories, and More field.
- Type in Messenger in the search field then tap the Search key on the onscreen keyboard.
- Tap the GET button to start downloading the application.
- When the download is finished, tap the Install button to install the application. You can also use Face ID or your Apple ID password, if prompted to authorized download.
- Tap Sign In, to sign into your App Store account if necessary.
- Tap the OPEN button when the download completes.
This should prompt the recently installed Messenger application to launch. Wait until it’s finished loading up and then see how it does.
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What to do if your iPhone 11 Messenger app still keeps crashing?
There might be some complex in-app errors with the Messenger application that need more advanced solutions. Another possibility is that the Messenger server may be experiencing some temporary difficulties and is therefore not available at the moment. For more suggestions and further assistance in carrying out more advanced in-app solutions, report the Messenger support team or Facebook support.
Otherwise, you can use other alternative messaging applications until the Messenger app developers roll out permanent solution.
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