An internal Messages error occurred. (tried everything)

Yup. Catalina fixes the problem. I upgraded yesterday and fingers crossed so far it's resolved the problem. Pity Apple couldn't have provided an interim fix earlier to save us all the aggravation.

Thanks to UKiss & 99Ramon for their very useful help.

I just loaded MAC 10.14.6 update and (cross your fingers) no messages error yet. Will update this thread after a few days.

Catalina fixed it 100%. I did the beta and it was easy.

I did this (started in safe mode then restarted). Then I used Disk First Aid. Now the message app opens, but all past conversations are gone. When I write a message, it doesn't appear. Messages to me show up blank. However iMessages works on my phone. Is there a better answer to fix this? obviously it's a widespread issue.

I definitely think this is a syncing issue. I ran the recovery disc repair and it fixed the error message. But, the moment I hit the Sync button for iCloud in the preferences, it started all over again. I can't see messages from some of my contacts in Messages. I can see them in notifications but they don't appear anywhere on my screen. They do, however show up in my iPhone.

I have the same problem. I tried the Safe Mode reboot and nothing. It started when i upgraded to mojave on my 2013 MacBook air and i couldn't solve it. it was so frustrating i bought a mac book pro having given up. now it's happening in my MacBook pro! i agree with the previous writer that it is triggered by certain contacts. I isolated it to one contact. Deleted that contact, deleted all text messages from that contact - still the problem persists. so now I have a new computer with an old problem and i'm attributing it to mojave. i spoke with a senior tech on one of the multiple calls and he informed me that this is a known issue and that apple is working on a fix. I've been asked to hang tight until that update materializes.

I have deleted the complete database 10 times now and Tim always build it back with the same problem. This is a server side problem. We can't do anything.

An easy way to try a clean setup: On you Mac, create a new user and log in as that user and log in with messages there. This is a complete clean environment so if the problem is local: messages will work.

But it won't. Tim/Apple are totally incompetent and factually charges me for iCloud each month and it does not work. How hard is it for Apples software team to reproduce the problem. Use messages. Use 10.14.x + iCloud sync with some data and it won't work.

There is some kind of real incompetence since when I delete all local messages data and Tim rebuild the messages database: Tim downloads every single byte of my 7Gig messages. I can see the files in finder (not in terminal as Root since someone is bonkers and do not understand Unix systems at Apple). I can see every single message. I can open every single message in iMessage. But then it crashes. 5 months.

5 months. incompetence and the leader of Apple only care about making Apple a service company. How when you can't even get this simple stuff to work? Why does it work in iOS? Is the solution that macOS mergers with iOS like will happen next year? In WWDC: "now you can use iMessage from iOS in macOS. Look how great syncing in the cloud work". Darn.. even give me an X-term to iOS messages. Or how can my Apple Watch handover my messages to macOS and the only component that does not work is macOS?? its even the same Darwin Unix... iCloud outsourced to amazon that's the problem?

You can't solve it since its a server side issue (or a macOS SIP problem).

One year this problem have solved. Anyone who "upgrade" to 10.14 and enable iMessage cloud sync + press sync now will get this message.

Solution? Like I joked almost one year ago: the iOS version of messages works. So Apple ported messages from iOS to macOS in 10.15. So maybe that will solve it. Maybe someone who will "upgrade" or use the public beta can test. I can't use 10.15 since Apple locks down macOS where all apps needs Apple certificates to install = no fun apps + Apple removes 32bit (even if the CPU on X86 will have 32bit forever) so 1000 of apps won't work.

And like I have written: I pay for iCloud space. I am a paying user of Apple and still the can't fix this problem since Tim don't have this problem.

I finally removed cloud sync and it takes 30days until Apple removes the data from iCloud, then messages will start to work again. I will just loose 12 years of messages thanks to Apple. (since I can't download them and make backups because of their error).

Created a new account on computer and still got the error after turning on "Enable messages in iCloud". Seems to be an iCloud issue, not a Mac issue.

Catalina solved it!

Finally!!!!

I have this issue as well. To add some useful data points, it appeared on both my work and home Mac as soon as I upgraded each of them to Mojave, and it seems triggered only when I have received messages by *some* contacts, i.e. if since the last opening I have received messages from contact A or C, the error always shows, but messages from B do not trigger it.

I too noticed the problem (since updating to Mojave - but believe its an iCloud issue) was with one particular 'contact' who I deleted on all my devices and iCloud and after rebooting created a new contact card with slightly different details. I was feeling smug as this seemed to solve the problem as messages on my Mac for that contact 'filled' with older messages in the conversation thread.

However! This morning on using my Mac messages for the first time up came 'An internal messages error etc..'

I'd previously tried (3 times) rebooting in safe mode and prior to that had deleted my .plst file (as suggested in an older thread).

I've been talking to Apple 'senior' support over the past week. Today I was told that Apple Engineers were aware of the problem and were working on it. I was recommended to update my iMac to 10.14.1 (not auto updated despite my preferences!) and devices to 12.01 (similarly on auto update which didn't happen!) in the 'hope' that they may include a fix.

Unfortunately not. I'm getting back to them and will advise if and when they tell me they've fixed it. Don't hold your breath.

I have exactly the same issue. Once I open the iMessage - this message pops up. I have done clean install of Mojave and it returned once I configured iCloud. So certainly it has something to do with iCloud and formatting Mac does not help. My computer: MacBook Pro 13" 2017 with Touch Bar, Mojave 10.14.1 and iOS 12.1 on iPhone X.

Can confirm that macOS 10.14.2 did not solve it.

Tim is trolling me hard. My messages icon shows new messages, and from who. But I can't see them. My crappy devices that do not support iCloud messages = works. I therefore thought: Maybe I can uncheck macOS from messages in the cloud. I uncheck it and get popup windows "this device or all" press this. And the popup window come back, so Tim won't let me stop using the non working iCloud messages.

Now. I know a bit about Unix. The messages I can see is sms messages. 0 iMessage. But if I write to a person with messages the thread is populated. (and the thread is gone later because "internal error")

I start a unix shell promt and check library messages. My user have no right to see the folder. Strange. I can't change it even if I am administrator. So. Time to play with the big guns. Enable root user. Hahahahaaa... Root does not have right to see the files.

If I play Microsoft and use a windows/Finder. I can see the files in finder. I can see 2 gig of raw messages files that should be in my messages app. I can even read every single thread. But no.. messages does not work.

I can even go to the archive folder with all messages. Again my user can't see the files (admin user). Root can't see the files.

This does not simply work and Tim does not care. Instead spends billions on hiring people to cast stars, to produce Snoopy episodes and doctors medicine. A hint to Tim: They can't program. Thats why this is a mess. And this is junior stuff. Isync managed this in 10.2. How hard is it when a user have MANY iOS/macOS devices and sync them? Especially since Apple have "handover" peer-to-peer syncing. If 4 devices have same data and 2 devices miss data: How hard is it?? 2 lines of "if and or" shell script? I would do it myself but I can't since Root/Admin have no right on these local files. (and the most simple unix support solution that I used to fix 1000+ of workstations. Just move the messages folder to messages_off so the folder would resync. But I can't since ROOT DOES NOT HAVE PERMISSION.

ACL-Sandbox crap that override SuperUser. First time for me in 30+ years in this business. No wonder APPL shares are down 20%. If they even can't get messages /icloud to work over multiple devices. This is competence in class of Microsoft that have done zero good products in history and still have 95% market share. Guess that is Tims goal. Be bad as MSFT because we can't do anything about it. Maybe do a complete reinstall of 10.14 and DO NOT USE iCloud messages.

I have converted 1000 and 1000 of new Mac users after Apple started to use a real OS. But its time to leave this since it does not work (and that is the reason for falling sales numbers. Apple computer does not exist. Think Different is gone. Its Think what makes Tim happy. (Hollywood, causes, censorship of legal opinion, learn customers to "think right"). oh.. I just got it. This IS MSFT. They called all bugs features. So.. non working iMessage: Feature.