10.9 Messages not working

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Level 1

5 points

10.9 Messages not working

A couple weeks ago (perhaps around the time of the iOS9 launch), one of my contacts tried messaging me and noticed that 1. the message never got delivered to me and 2. my later responses started appearing as a different contact. Now I'm seeing that my messages sent on my Macbook Pro (OSX 10.9 Messages.app) are failing to send. I've tried logging in and out several times and that doesn't help. The contact is using iMessage on an iPhone 6 Plus.

What gives???? Starting to look like it's time to dump Apple for messaging, which is super frustrating.

Posted on Oct 5, 2015 12:31 AM

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Answer 1

Eric Root

Level 10

684,039 points

Oct 5, 2015 10:45 AM in response to paulwais

Do a backup, preferably 2 backups on 2 separate drives.

Quit the application.

Go to Finder and select your user/home folder. With that Finder window as the front window, either select Finder/View/Show View options or go command - J. When the View options opens, check ’Show Library Folder’. That should make your user library folder visible in your user/home folder. Select Library. Then go to Preferences/com.apple.iChat.plist. Move the .plist to your desktop.

Restart the computer, open the application and test. If it works okay, delete the plist from the desktop.

If the application is the same, return the .plist to where you got it from, overwriting the newer one.

If that doesn’t work, repeat the above but delete the com.apple.imagent.plist

Thanks to leonie for some information contained in this.

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Answer 2

Oct 6, 2015 2:04 PM in response to paulwais

Hi,

It sounds as if your iPhone has lost the Sync with the Mac.

That can be caused by the iPhone not having the iPhone number selected in Settings > Messages > Send and Receive.

If it is unticked it will eventually de-register from the iMessages servers and this can be an issue if the iPhone Number is the "Start Conversations from" ID on the Mac.

If this is the case the iPhone will need Messages reset (Sign out of the Apple ID and then Quit Messages and then restart it and wait fro the Number to Verify before adding back the Apple ID).

I am a bit lost as to why you mention what iPhone the Contact has.

8:39 p.m. Monday; October 5, 2015

 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 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

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Answer 3

paulwais Author

Level 1

5 points

Oct 5, 2015 2:14 PM in response to Ralph-Johns-UK

I tried deleting the iChat plist and restarting (thanks Eric Root!) but that didn't help- Messages.app is still failing to send for me. I even tried force quitting and then deleting the plist-- Messages.app gives me the new user sign-in flow, and I sign in and then I try to send something and the message doesn't send.

I verified that my phone number is listed in both the "You can be reached at" and "Start new conversations from" fields of the Messages settings on both my iPhone and in Messages.app on my desktop. I tried re-ordering some of the prefs (Start new from my iCloud address instead) and that didn't help.

This looks like a back-end problem with Apple's iMessage system to me. I haven't changed anything and had a related issue a few weeks ago ( Re: iMessage un-activated on me. What happened? ). I suspect Apple broke something during the iOS9 push.

How can I contact iMessage support? I've looked everywhere on Apple's website and there's nothing. I'm willing to give this one more try but then I'm dumping iMessage and getting my contacts to switch to something else (WhatsApp, FB Messenger, ...). The iMessage back-end still runs on Microsoft Azure and Amazon S3, so clearly Apple is lacking competence in how to run messaging products.

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Answer 4

Oct 6, 2015 2:04 PM in response to paulwais

Hi,

Since OS X 10.8.2 there have been instances where the Mac version does not login to the servers.

There is no visible show of this until you try and send an iMessage.

At this point either all the Contacts return "Not registered with iMessage" and turn the name red or the iMessages appears to be sent but is quickly followed by the "Not Delivered" info alert.

It can sometimes be cured by removing the iChat.plist or the com.apple.imagent.plist one and restarting the app.

More often than not it required you phoned Apple Support saying you have an ID issue with logging in to the iMessages server.

As this tends to be the same service as Apple Care the first responders tend to be Script Led and looking for Software or Hardware causes.

You have to be point an patient and ask to speak to a Level 2 person stating again it is an Apple ID issue (Free to fix outside of Apple Care or paying for the call).

7:48 p.m. Tuesday; October 6, 2015

 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 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

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Answer 5

Oct 6, 2015 2:06 PM in response to Ralph-Johns-UK

for the Points

Good Luck with this.

10:06 p.m. Tuesday; October 6, 2015

 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 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

Reply

Answer 6

paulwais Author

Level 1

5 points

Oct 6, 2015 2:09 PM in response to Ralph-Johns-UK

Yikes! Horrible! Thanks Ralph!!

Tried jiggering with the iChat.plist and the com.apple.imagent.plist again and didn't help.

Any idea if this issue is fixed in 10.10? (Can I upgrade to 10.10 and not 10.11 even though 10.11 was just released)? I had been planning to upgrade but haven't had time yet to deal with the upgrade fallout (10.10 and 10.11 break build tools I need).

At this point I think I'd have better luck getting my contacts on WhatsApp than calling Apple Support.

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Answer 7

Oct 6, 2015 2:13 PM in response to paulwais

Hi,

Much as I hate to say it Whatsapp has some advantages.

It also has draw backs as it is Wifi only on the iPhone.

Realistically as difficult as it can be (it is not always) it is better that Apple get the feedback that something is Amiss.

10:13 p.m. Tuesday; October 6, 2015

 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 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

Reply

Answer 8

Eric Root

Level 10

684,039 points

Oct 7, 2015 11:26 AM in response to paulwais

Any idea if this issue is fixed in 10.10? (Can I upgrade to 10.10 and not 10.11 even though 10.11 was just released)?

If you haven't previously downloaded 10.10, it is no longer available.

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