Messages is offline

Please read this whole message before doing anything.

This procedure is a test, not a solution. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.

Step 1

The purpose of this step is to determine whether the problem is localized to your user account.

Enable guest logins* and log in as Guest. Don't use the Safari-only “Guest User” login created by “Find My Mac.”

While logged in as Guest, you won’t have access to any of your documents or settings. Applications will behave as if you were running them for the first time. Don’t be alarmed by this behavior; it’s normal. If you need any passwords or other personal data in order to complete the test, memorize, print, or write them down before you begin.

Test while logged in as Guest. Same problem?

After testing, log out of the guest account and, in your own account, disable it if you wish. Any files you created in the guest account will be deleted automatically when you log out of it.

*Note: If you’ve activated “Find My Mac” or FileVault, then you can’t enable the Guest account. The “Guest User” login created by “Find My Mac” is not the same. Create a new account in which to test, and delete it, including its home folder, after testing.

Step 2

The purpose of this step is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party system modifications that load automatically at startup or login, by a peripheral device, by a font conflict, or by corruption of the file system or of certain system caches.

Please take this step regardless of the results of Step 1.

Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards, if applicable. Start up in safe mode and log in to the account with the problem. You must hold down the shift key twice: once when you turn on the computer, and again when you log in.

Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, or if the startup volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Ask for further instructions.

Safe mode is much slower to start up and run than normal, with limited graphics performance, and some things won’t work at all, including sound output and Wi-Fi on certain models. The next normal startup may also be somewhat slow.

The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.

Test while in safe mode. Same problem?

After testing, restart as usual (not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of Steps 1 and 2.

Hi,

If you mean that the iMessages account appears to log in but when you try and send an iMessage to a Contact t reports they are "Not Registered" then you are experiencing what is becoming a "Known Problem".

Although this has been reported on and off throughout Mountain Lion and Messages 7.x.x and Mavericks it seems to have got particularly bad after 9th September this year.

At present we do not have a fix for it.

The most extreme attempted fix has been to Erase the drive and start from a new Mac User Account once the OS is reinstalled.

Only two things remain unchanged in doing this:-

1) The Apple ID and the way it logs in to the iMessages server

2) the Serial Number used to create the Auth Token seen in the Keychain needed to complete the Login process.

As the Auth token appears that leave the Apple ID login to the iMessages server.

We know of a similar issue that produces this Error Message

This can ONLY be fixed by contacting Apple Support.

It only effects the Mac Login to the iMessages servers and requires Apple Staff to reset the connection to the Servers.

It would seem that the "Not Registered" issue is close and will require intervention from Apple Support Staff.

The issue has been raised with the Hosts here for Forwarding to the Engineers and via the Feedback process.

If this is the issue you have then I would add your name to the list of people that have the issue. (the more there are the more time and staff Apple will devote to the issue).

7:52 pm Thursday; October 9, 2014

Launch the Console application in any of the following ways:

☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)

☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.

☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Console in the icon grid.

The title of the Console window should be All Messages. If it isn't, select

SYSTEM LOG QUERIES ▹ All Messages

from the log list on the left. If you don't see that list, select

View ▹ Show Log List

from the menu bar at the top of the screen. Click the Clear Display icon in the toolbar. Then take one of the actions that you're having trouble with. Select any messages that appear in the Console window. Copy them to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Paste into a reply to this message by pressing command-V.

The log contains a vast amount of information, almost all of which is irrelevant to solving any particular problem. When posting a log extract, be selective. A few dozen lines are almost always more than enough.

Please don't indiscriminately dump thousands of lines from the log into this discussion.

Please don't post screenshots of log messages—post the text.

Some private information, such as your name, may appear in the log. Anonymize before posting.

Have you tried to logout and then re enter your Apple ID on Messages preferences?

I didn't mean inactivate and activate, I mean logout your Apple ID and then enter your ID again, as if you were configuration it again.

Take a look on Messages > Preferences > account.

Back up all data.

Quit Messages if it’s running. Force quit if necessary. Relaunch it and test after each of the following steps. If the problem isn't resolved, quit again and go on to the next step.

Step 1

Make sure you know the ID and password you use with iMessage. Launch the Keychain Access application in any of the following ways:

☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)

☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.

☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Keychain Access in the icon grid.

Use the search box in the toolbar of the Keychain Access window to find and delete all items with "iMessage" or "com.apple.idms" in the name. Log out and log back in.

Step 2

Hold down the option key and select

Go ▹ Library

from the Finder menu bar. Move the following items from the Library folder to the Trash (some may not exist):

Caches/com.apple.Messages

Caches/com.apple.imfoundation.IMRemoteURLConnectionAgent

Containers/com.apple.iChat

Containers/com.apple.soagent

IdentityServices

Leave the Library folder open. Log out and log back in.

Step 3

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.”

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.

Step 4

In the Preferences subfolder, there may be several files having names that begin with any of the following strings:

com.apple.iChat

com.apple.ids

com.apple.imdsmsrecordstore

com.apple.imessage

com.apple.imservice

Move them all to the Desktop. There may also be a file with the name "com.apple.imagent.plist". Move that to the Trash.

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

Log out and log back in. 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 items you moved to the Trash. Stop here and post your results.

If you later decide that you don’t like the results of Steps 3 and 4, you can undo them completely by quitting Messages and restoring the items you deleted in those steps from your backup.

HI,

That is a variant I have not seen posted about.

However I see in a lower post it has been sorted.

8:11 pm Friday; October 10, 2014

Step 1 worked fine. But that was not a satisfying solution. Step 2 also worked with me (MacBook Pro Retina 2012, 2.3 GHz Intel Core i7 with OS X Yosemite 10.10.1)

I eliminated these 4 login-items:

- Font Explorer XAutolo (program)

- iTunes Helper (program)

- FontExplorer X Pro (program)

- Android File Transfer (program)

and reinstalled only FontExplorer X Pro

Thanks a lot!

Hi,

Check the Contacts app is 1) showing your details in the My Card and 2) has an account lists in the Preferences > Accounts for a Sync.

9:41 pm Sunday; January 4, 2015

Can I chime in here as well? My Messages gmail account is logged in and active but my contacts are all offline, except for my iMessage contacts (only 2 people). This happened suddenly after working perfectly for the last year. I did just update my iPhone to iOS 8.2 but didn't change anything else. I looked for a logout in Messages but only have a log in and an inactivate. I thought of deleting the account to add it back but it said I could only delete it in Internet Accounts. I wasn't sure I wanted to delete it from there and lose all of my data. This is the same on my iMac and my Macbook.

Hi,

On a Mac in Messages you can delete any account except for the Bonjour one (can only be disabled) or the iMessages one (Disabled or Signed Out).

If an Account that can be deleted (AIM, Jabber including GoogleMail IDs or Yahoo) are removed this way the settings in in Internet Accounts just removes the active tick for the Messages option.

It does not stop that ID being used with other Services or apps like Mail.

Your Buddy list for that Accounts is held on the Server. In this case the GoogleTalk servers.

This is why when you delete someone you should be logged out of other logins and delete from one device - otherwise the other logins re-update the Buddy List and put them back.

If you have not already you can enable th Cha option on your GoogleMail Login settings (it then shows up in the left hand menu and you can see your On-Line Buddies.

If this is different from the Messages app on your Mac then the Mac is not actually Logged in properly.

Just to be clear.

A Google ID can be used as an Apple ID and may well be the one used in the iMessages account (if so the Internet Accounts thing does not apply).

It can be used in Messages as a Jabber ID in it's own right (the settings in Internet Accounts will effect Messages if your turn it Off - Deselect it).

Also, in System Preferences > iCloud (or Internet Accounts > iCloud which is the same place) there is no setting for Messages (sort of inferred in the Original Post). The iMessages login is separate from every other Apple Login you have. i.e. If iTunes goes down then you can still chat in iMessages (the account not the Messages app - the app also still works.) Or if the Games Centre, or FaceTime or the App Store are inaccessible iMessages will still work.

Put another way you can use different Apple IDs with all the servers including iCloud and it will not effect the others.

Certain pairings should be favoured though - iMessages and FaceTime as the iMessage account in Messages invokes FaceTime for Video (Or Audio) chats and your Contacts can get confused if another ID calls them. iTunes and the App Store as they have access to the same Money settings.

That is not to say that Logging out of iCloud is a good idea.

If you are using this to Sync your Address Book (Contacts app) across a Mac and iPhone then the relevant app on both can lose Names if the Sync is not done.

8:01 pm Saturday; March 28, 2015