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Apps don't start - any ideas?

F

frunze

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 5, 2009
61
0
So on my iPhone, all of a sudden, none of the apps start up! I click on one, say Tetris, and it just takes me back to homescreen! I am restoring now - but this really freaked me out! I took the phone in to the Apple store today to check the battery life (that's a story for a whole other thread) - but this now has me worried. This happened twice before - and I just turned the phone off and on again, and the apps worked, but this time - no go. The internet apps work - such as google maps, trapster, etc. - but not the apps that run from the phone itself.

I guess I should say that this is a brand new 3GS that I bought on the release date.

Help? Please?
 
You could have tried resetting it first, but restoring it is good. I would suggest restoring it as a new phone, and reinstalling the apps. Something may be corrupt in your configuration, and restoring from backup will simply copy back the corruption and continue the headaches...
 
Sorry - what's the difference between resetting and restoring? I turned it totally off and then on again - does it count as resetting?

I guess it's an idea to restore it as a new phone. Currently it's restoring from backup, just like you said. Let's see what happens after that. Stay tuned; I shall report expeditiously.

Edit: Ok, no go - the restore from backup just finished, and the apps are still not working. Now I will try to restore as a new iPhone and copy the apps back, like you said.
 
frunze said:
Sorry - what's the difference between resetting and restoring? I turned it totally off and then on again - does it count as resetting?

I guess it's an idea to restore it as a new phone. Currently it's restoring from backup, just like you said. Let's see what happens after that. Stay tuned; I shall report expeditiously.
Click to expand...

There is sleep. (hit the sleep button)

Then there is power off (hold the sleep button until the power off swipe option appears)

Then there is reset (hold the sleep button and menu button until the white Apple logo appears - this is like a reboot. I imagine the effect is similar to powering off and on).

Then there is restore, which wipes out the iPhone and reinstalls the OS.

Restore usually clears most problems, provided you don't restore from backup, as many problems get backed up and are restored along with the restore operation. Setting it up as a new phone lets you "start from scratch". If that doesn't do the trick, its time to call the Apple Store.... :D
 
ZBoater said:
There is sleep. (hit the sleep button)

Then there is power off (hold the sleep button until the power off swipe option appears)

Then there is reset (hold the sleep button and menu button until the white Apple logo appears - this is like a reboot. I imagine the effect is similar to powering off and on).

Then there is restore, which wipes out the iPhone and reinstalls the OS.

Restore usually clears most problems, provided you don't restore from backup, as many problems get backed up and are restored along with the restore operation. Setting it up as a new phone lets you "start from scratch". If that doesn't do the trick, its time to call the Apple Store.... :D
Click to expand...

Ah, ok - so I did both reset and restore from backup now. (I had done the reset before, where you hold both buttons etc.) Now I will do the third thing you said, but this really has me freaking out, since this device has been the center of my attention since the second I got it.
 
grantsdale said:
Resyncing with iTunes should allow you to DL them all without much of a problem.
Click to expand...

OK, maybe.
So what kind of a corruption problem could cause such a thing? I've paroused this forum quite a bit but haven't been able to find anything similar to the problem I am having.
 
I have also never seen you specific problem, but I have seen and experienced all sort of "weird" behavior with contacts, calendar, music, etc. that can almost always be traced back to some sort of corruption. Deleting and resyncing a contacts or calendar database is somewhat easy, but if the phone itself begins to misbehave, then restoring is the only option.

The important thing to remember is that the iPhone should NEVER be your primary storage for ANYTHING. Not just because of the potential for corruption, but such as small mobile device can be easily lost or stolen, so you dont want to put ANYTHING on there that you cannot easily recreated when you replace it with a new iPhone. Contacts, calendar, songs, apps, EVERYTHING should reside on your computer or an online service (like Google or MobileMe). Restoring your iPhone should be a painless and data loss-free activity.

In my opinion. :)
 
ZBoater said:
I have also never seen you specific problem, but I have seen and experienced all sort of "weird" behavior with contacts, calendar, music, etc. that can almost always be traced back to some sort of corruption. Deleting and resyncing a contacts or calendar database is somewhat easy, but if the phone itself begins to misbehave, then restoring is the only option.

The important thing to remember is that the iPhone should NEVER be your primary storage for ANYTHING. Not just because of the potential for corruption, but such as small mobile device can be easily lost or stolen, so you dont want to put ANYTHING on there that you cannot easily recreated when you replace it with a new iPhone. Contacts, calendar, songs, apps, EVERYTHING should reside on your computer or an online service (like Google or MobileMe). Restoring your iPhone should be a painless and data loss-free activity.

In my opinion. :)
Click to expand...

I totally agree. I still shudder when I think of that guy who the other day posted a thread about his iPhone being stolen - the thief sent obscene messages to his Facebook contacts. I am connected to a number of colleagues on facebook because of what I do for work (marketing/market research), and that would be really bad - and one just doesn't think of Facebook when there are more important things to protect (bank accounts, stocks, contacts - whatever else is typically kept on the phone).

So definitely, back up often, and back up much, right?

Yet still don't know whether the restore will fix my problem. Will report in a bit (gotta put the kids to bed).

UPDATE: restore as a new iPhone did the trick, hopefully for good. Thanks very much ZBoater!!
 
Try downloading a new free app from the app store.
I had the same problem in the past where every single app would crash to the home screen. I was told it is a digital rights management issue. Once you download a new app it resets the DRM problem and they should all work. Worked like a charm for me. Give it a try first, if it doesn't work oh well no harm done.
Good Luck
 
davejep said:
Try downloading a new free app from the app store.
I had the same problem in the past where every single app would crash to the home screen. I was told it is a digital rights management issue. Once you download a new app it resets the DRM problem and they should all work. Worked like a charm for me. Give it a try first, if it doesn't work oh well no harm done.
Good Luck
Click to expand...

This worked for me as well. Just didn't realize it until I read this and realized I downloaded the Wells Fargo app and it stopped happening.
 
davejep said:
Try downloading a new free app from the app store.
I had the same problem in the past where every single app would crash to the home screen. I was told it is a digital rights management issue. Once you download a new app it resets the DRM problem and they should all work. Worked like a charm for me. Give it a try first, if it doesn't work oh well no harm done.
Click to expand...

That method worked for me a few times but then I got to a point where replacing a crashing app would only sort itself and not others in the same situation.

I had heard that the 3GS can start to act strangely (crash while loading, corrupt app icon) if you have more than four pages of apps. No idea why greater than four pages makes a difference, seems rather arbitrary...

Anyway, I went though the painful business of deleting apps until I had only four pages and have yet to experience any more problems...
 
I had this happen to me yesterday. iTunes freaked out and was going to remove all of my apps (it thought it wasn't authorized), so I went into the store and deauthorized all computers. Then I re-authorized my computer, synced, and my apps worked again.
 
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