Messages app crashing on start

Read this whole message before doing anything.

Back up all data.

Quit Messages if it’s running.

Step 1

Hold down the option key and select Go ▹ Library from the Finder menu bar. Delete the following items from the Library folder (some may not exist):

Caches/com.apple.Messages

Leave the Library folder open. Try Messages again. If it works now, stop here. Close the Library folder.

Step 2

If you still have problems, quit Messages again. Go back to the Finder and move the following item from the open Library folder to the Desktop:

Messages

(Note: you are not moving the Messages application. You’re moving a folder named “Messages.”)

Test. If Messages now works, delete the Messages folder on the Desktop. Otherwise, quit Messages again. Put back the folder you moved, overwriting the newer one that may have been created in its place, and continue.

Step 3

In the Preferences subfolder, there may be several files having names that begin with "com.apple.iChat". Move them all to the Desktop.

Also in the Preferences folder, there's a subfolder named "ByHost". Open it and do the same thing.

Test again. This time Messages should perform normally, but your settings will be lost. You may be able to put back some of the files you moved to the Desktop in this step. Relaunch and test after each one. Eventually you should find one or more that causes Messages to malfunction. Delete those files and recreate whatever settings they contained.

If the issue is still not resolved, quit Messages again and put all the items you moved to the Desktop back where they were. You don’t need to replace the files you deleted in step 1. Stop here and post again.

If you later decide that you don’t like the results of steps 2 and 3, you can undo them completely by quitting Messages and restoring the items you deleted in those steps from your backup.

Hi Linc Davis,

I would modify Step 3.

Deleting All iChat items in the Preferences ignores the two created for the iMessages account.

If the whole App is not working concentrate of com.apple.imagent first

This does all the Login bits and also does the "Listening" part of Off Line IMs and iMessages (it's what starts the App up if you receive one).

IF then the AIM account(s) have issues then delete com.apple.ichat.AIM.plist

Same for Jabber (Google and Facebook are in this group) with com.apple.ichat.Jabber.plist

You should not have reason to delete com.apple.ichat.Subnet.plist as this is the Bonjour Info.

It is also pointless deleting the Shared List item (Your complete Recent Lists created by the setting in System Preferences > General at the Documents item - set this to 20 and you get 20 Recent Items)

The same goes for Save Status Messages.

I have never worked out why some of these .plists create separate ones in the By Host folder with extra hexadecimal type additions to the file name.

I just clear them now and then.

I have not found they make any difference to the way an App runs (it only seems to read the plain .plist)

10:16 PM Friday; December 14, 2012

Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.2)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Thanks for the suggestions.

The imagent process launches from an agent and is not a child process of Messages. In my tests, the application will post an error, rather than just hanging, if the imagent process is not running. I guess it may be possible for Messages to hang if imagent is running but not responding to IAC events. I don't think I've run into that situation yet and don't know how to reproduce it.

The items in the ByHosts subfolder apply only to the host with the hardware UUID that matches the file name. The purpose is to allow the user to set some preferences differently if he synchronizes his home folder between different hosts, or has a network account that he accesses from different clients.

Thanks for your detailed instructions. Unfortunately, Messages is still crashing on startup for me!

Interestingly, iTunes has also been crashing on startup…

HI Linc,

Thanks for the info on By Hosts.

I tend not to use my Mac in that manner.

8:23 PM Saturday; December 15, 2012

Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.2)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Hi Jayphen,

This may be a Font issue.

If certain Fonts are turned Off then some Apple Apps cannot launch properly.

For Instance iChat needs Helvetica which is a System Font (Hard Drive Name/System/Library/Fonts)

1) it should be in that Location.

2) It should show as Active (i.e Not Diabled) in the Font Book.

The Buddy lists in iChat use Lucida Grande to display the name in the list and will also fail if this is missing or not active.

In the past there has been issues with installing Helvetica Fractions (a variant on Helvetica) which causes typograpgical issues.

8:31 PM Saturday; December 15, 2012

Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.2)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Both Helvetica and Lucida Grande are enabled.

I also just found that display prefs (but no other prefs) crashes as well. Weird…

Hi,

AT this point I would download and install the COMBO version of the 10.8.2 update over what you have.

7:37 PM Monday; December 17, 2012

Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.2)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

I tried to install the combo update, but it said the drive is not eligible (probably because it already has 10.8.2)

EDIT: I found the issue to be an AirPlay device on the network that had no name (undefined). This was causing display prefs, iTunes, and Messages to crash (and probably anything else that used AirPlay)

Glad to hear you found a solution.

7:30 PM Tuesday; December 18, 2012

Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"

 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Mountain Lion 10.8.2)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously