Apple Intelligence now features Image Playground, Genmoji, Writing Tools enhancements, seamless support for ChatGPT, and visual intelligence.

Apple Intelligence has also begun language expansion with localized English support for Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the U.K. Learn more >

You can make a difference in the Apple Support Community!

When you sign up with your Apple Account, you can provide valuable feedback to other community members by upvoting helpful replies and User Tips.

📰 Newsroom Update

Voice Memos update brings Layered Recordings to iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. Learn more >

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

User profile for user: CS Fossett
CS Fossett Author
User level: Level 1
13 points

Group iMessage Conversation Keeps Muting Itself on iPhone

For the last month, one group iMessage conversation on my iPhone repeatedly mutes itself. I'll unmute the conversation and typically receive one new notification before the conversation remutes itself. Sometimes I'll have replied, sometimes not. Sometimes mere seconds will have passed, sometimes a couple days. But the conversation always remutes itself, and I often miss messages.


There are four people in the conversation. I have separate individual exchanges going with all three of the other participants. None of those conversations have ever muted themselves—just the group conversation. No other group conversation has ever muted itself . . . though now I'm afraid to mute another for fear of never being able to unmute it and have it remain so.


I've tried:

  1. Unmuting the conversation from my list of conversations (swipe left, tap unmute).
  2. Unmuting the conversation from within the conversation (get info, then unmute).
  3. Restarting my iPhone.
  4. Restarting my iPhone and my Apple Watch after unmuting the conversation on both devices.
  5. Unmuting the conversation on every device and restarting them all.
  6. Varying the order in which I unmute and restart all my devices.


None of these have worked.


I have not yet tried:

  1. Leaving the conversation and asking another participant to re-add me.
  2. Resetting my iPhone entirely.


I won't refuse to do these things in the long run—they shouldn't be necessary to unmute a dumb, mostly jokey conversation—but I don't want to lose the conversation history. According to another thread on this topic (inaccurately marked "solved"), people with more important group conversations are resorting to these measures, but they shouldn't have to. The mechanics for muting and unmuting a group conversation are not functioning correctly, and I'm definitely not the only person experiencing this. It's clearly some kind of bug.


Any suggestions? Apple? Anyone?

iPhone 11, iOS 14

Posted on Mar 28, 2021 12:55 PM

Reply

Similar questions

16 replies
User profile for user: ras5280
ras5280
User level: Level 1
39 points

Apr 17, 2021 10:01 AM in response to CS Fossett

Same problem here in Colorado on my iPad Pro 9.7" (vintage 2016), iPadOS 14.4.2. Been happening for a few weeks now. I've posted in the other thread on this topic that the OP referred to, as have dozens of others having the same problem. Missing lots of notifications from an important 3-person conversation, a couple of which have been medical related. It's only happening to ONE conversation thread. Hoping Apple solves this soon, as there doesn't appear to be a user solution. I refuse to delete (and start over) a conversation that includes family members and is several years old. So very frustrating.

Reply
User profile for user: Bleubeary
Bleubeary
User level: Level 1
4 points

Apr 17, 2021 9:14 AM in response to CS Fossett

This is also an issue I have been dealing with. It is very frustrating and I, too, have tried all sorts of combinations of updating and restarting iPads and Apple Watch and phone- all to no avail. This is terribly frustrating and I refuse to have to do a hard reset of my phone or delete the group chat- there HAS to be another option. Please help!

Reply
User profile for user: CS Fossett
CS Fossett Author
User level: Level 1
13 points

Apr 19, 2021 6:57 AM in response to CS Fossett

Yep. Still no solution. I've since tried leaving the conversation and having a friend re-add me, but it didn't work. I was nervous about losing the conversation, but I didn't. So that's good? But it feels like the core problem has actually gotten worse. Every single time I go into the conversation it remutes when I come out again, whether I've texted something or not.


All that remains (as far as I can see) is the "nuclear option" of resetting my phone entirely, which is just ridiculous. There's too much risk of data loss in a complete reset! This is a serious bug, Apple. Please pay attention.

Reply
User profile for user: CS Fossett
CS Fossett Author
User level: Level 1
13 points

May 23, 2021 11:21 AM in response to CS Fossett

I can't say this definitively yet, but I'm tentatively hopeful that updating to iOS 14.5.1 has helped. I need to test it fully, but my text thread with the issue does seem to remain unmuted, at least on my iPhone. I've remuted it and unmuted a few times, and which state I want it in seems to once again be under my control for moment.


HOWEVER!


I don't know this for sure, but I've suspected that accessing this iMessage conversation on more than one of my devices (iPhone 11, Macbook Pro, iPad Pro, iMac) is what caused the issue in the first place. I can't know for sure, since every single one of my devices has accessed iMessage at some point, but I sort of suspect the culprit was my Macbook Pro (my oldest device). I promise to test my theory some more . . . though I admit I'm not eager to get the problem to recur.


I don't think I should mark this "solved" yet. I'd like more people to weigh in after updating to iOS 14.5.1 because a couple people have already said that doing so didn't help. But it also sounds like maybe an extra step or two—such as closing iMessage prior to updating the iOS—might do the trick.


Maybe we're starting to narrow down the cause? 🤞

Reply
User profile for user: zermie
zermie
User level: Level 1
4 points

Jun 19, 2021 2:45 PM in response to CS Fossett

I know the date this issue began for me, because I know the event I was at - March 26, 2021.


With the most recent IOS update 14.6 the moon/mute symbol is now gone. And for just a few times earlier this week one (but not both) of the other people in the thread alerted me.


So now my thread does not show it is on mute, but it still is.



Reply

Group iMessage Conversation Keeps Muting Itself on iPhone

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.
Learn more Sign up