iPhone apps crash on launch (cont.): the fix

Posted by ryopang
28 August 2008 @ 10am

Hi,

I found a possible alternate fix for this issue. I had the same experience as many other users, all of sudden all 3rd party apps don’t launch anymore (I had never jailbroken my phone). I was not by my usual syncing computer so I had no way to restore or sync to fix the issue. I did try to restart the phone a couple time but that didnt’ help.

However, I saw there’s a notification on the “app store” app indicating some of my apps have updates. I figured if I freshly install / update a 3rd party app it should be launching correctly.

And so I did, update one of my existing 3rd party app over 3G network. It took a while (as the inconsistent 3G speed), but after it’s done. I can successfully launch the updated application (i wasn’t be able to launch ANY 3rd party app). And I tried the rest of the apps and they all work.

I am not a software engineer but my guess will be somehow the “launching right” for all 3rd party apps got flipped to “no”, as I updated the app, it flipped back to an “yes”, and led to all apps launching as usual.

That’s my experience and my fix. I am not sure if other users had tried this method. All my apps are working okay so I don’t have 2nd chance to test this method again. Please let me know if there are other feedback.

Thanks

Ryo

Posted by teejayhanton
28 August 2008 @ 10am

Are you frickin’ kidding me?! You might as well say “buy a new computer, and a new iPhone and start from scratch … hopefully all your problems will be solved.”

This is the most ridiculous fix I’ve ever heard of.

Posted by DistortedLoop
28 August 2008 @ 11am

Confusion abounds.

The step that reads: “When prompted, set the phone up as a new device and restore.”

If you set up as a new device, you’re not restoring a previous backup, correct? If that’s the case, what are you restoring?

If that is the case, this method needs a warning or disclaimer advising that setting up as a new device will delete all SMS and Call History records for the phone. SMS histories are important to some people.

There are workarounds, I believe, such as a $20 application for Macs that I think lets you transfer SMS and Call History back and forth off the phone; but I’m not sure how well they work.

Posted by Razvan Dobre
29 August 2008 @ 2am

Guys I had that issue (all the apps crashing) a number of times, because at a certain point during a restore my Internet connection was off.

And the solution is simple and logical: just de-authorize your computer from iTunes (Store->De-authorize computer), authorize it again (Store->Authorize computer) and then sync your iPhone/iPod Touch again. Boom, all apps will be working just fine.

Posted by man290663
29 August 2008 @ 3am

There is a much easier way to do this….(why overcomplicate things its like using semtex to open a cooler box!)

delete the app off the iphone that does not launch…

Sync it again so the app is reinstalled (selecting ALL under the Apps tab or re-checking the app you have removed).

the App generally then works fine.

if the App then fails to work simply delete it in itunes and download it again unless and update is available.

Posted by DrDave
29 August 2008 @ 1pm

To man290663:

Thee is a syndrome in which no non-built-in app will successfully launch. Once you have this syndrome, your media will fail to show up either (although it is still there in the phone). Also, custom ringtones can be selected, but they do not play any audio. Your proposed solution is not effective for this syndrome.

An equally problematic syndrome is the WHITE APPLE LOGO SCREEN OF DEATH. Great name. Basically, it is a ‘That’s all folks…” Once you see it, it is all you see again. There is a way to get out of it if your phone has been previously jailbroken. Otherwise, you must erase everything and start over.

The procedure described here is somewhat effective, but you can still experience the LOGO syndrome, particularly if you exceed thirty apps or update/download directly from the store.

While I am writing, remember folks, DO NOT add back your apps alphabetically. Especially if you have the large dictionary program (ADH4), ambiance, and/or aSleep. Add them back from smallest to largest. You will find this MUCH faster. By several hours if you have many apps.

I also recommend turning the phone off and back on BEFORE and AFTER each major install operation (reboot). This is a good idea whether you are installing one program or twenty.

Posted by jrbtempe
29 August 2008 @ 8pm

So far so good… after having several occasions of apps suddenly not working this week and finding my short-term cure failing to work very long, I followed the steps in the article above and it seems to be OK. Time will tell!

Strangely, after I set up as a new iPhone and then did the restore (which included all of my apps), it didn’t work right away. I was in the process of deleting the apps again via iTunes when I decided to cancel as the first one was deleting and then signed out of my iTunes account. For whatever reason, my apps all started working again! I was able to sign in again, install the deleted app and have been sailing along good so far. Fingers crossed!

Posted by Enoch Soames
30 August 2008 @ 6am

Two days ago my iPhone was stricken with the White Apple Logo Screen of Death. Since then, I’ve had to restore the phone five times, and it’s no picnic: The phone appears to be bricked and It takes some time to get it to respond at all (I finally stumbled on the ‘hold both home and top buttons down until it reboots, then keep holding the home button, plug the cable in, and wait for the ‘connect to iTunes’ screen technique); then the restore takes a long time, appears to hang up for awhile, then finally kicks in. I’ve discovered that I cannot shut the phone off completely - if I do that and turn it on again, I will get the White Apple Logo. If I try to sync the phone, the sync will fail and I will get the dreaded White Apple Logo. If I attempt to update an app, same thing. So basically I can’t turn my phone off, sync it, or do anything involving apps (other than run the apps already on my phone) until Apple fixes the problem (whatever the problem is). To say I’m frustrated would be an understatement. It renders the phone unusable for long periods of time - not to mention the time wasted in getting it recognized in iTunes and restoring it repeatedly. Just for clarification’s sake, I own a 1st gen. iPhone, I’ve never jailbroken it, and I’m running the current versions of iTunes and the iPhone software (there’s my problem right there, I suspect).

Posted by dspiers
31 August 2008 @ 11am

In a way these instructions are useless, because they are incomplete. You go through all these things, searching, deleting, downloading, installing. But then when you start up iTunes, you get this error message that it can’t read your iTunes library because it was created by a newer version of iTunes.

So still no dice. Still more work to be done.

Posted by yreguy
1 September 2008 @ 5am

I had the same app launch error. About half of my apps would not open! Instead of going to the extreme, I just turned my iPhone off and then back on. Problem solved. I would reccomend trying that before restoring apps through iTunes.

Posted by IP-3G
1 September 2008 @ 3pm

Hi there,

I was very happy to see someone finally found a solution to this problem. So I decided to give it a try. (i’m using a Intel Mac - Leopard and a iPhone 3G. (deleted the files/folders mentioned - deleted iTunes - rebooted - installed 7.7)

But now iTunes doesn’t find my iPhone anymore. It doesn’t show up at all. (it is charging however) Tried the iPhone on my notebook, and there it works fine (but is doesn’t have my music library on it - so i would realy want to use the mac) - also restarted the mac and iphone a few times, but still it can’t be found.

Someone any suggestions?

Posted by bernie90210
3 September 2008 @ 6am

When apps start to quit, try rebooting the iPhone. It has worked twice for me.

Does downgrading to iTunes 7.7 resolve the problem definitively?

Posted by Riled
7 September 2008 @ 6pm

Something much less cumbersome worked for me. I went to my apps in iTunes and when I double-clicked on one (Windows XP), I noticed that it popped up an iTunes login window. I filled in my info, re-synched, and they all started working again.

Posted by bananapeel17
7 September 2008 @ 7pm

I had trouble starting apps with a brand new iPhone with OS 2.0.2. Every app I installed on the iPhone would not start. I tried all the things listed here, and more - nothing worked. Note that this was a new iPhone, no app had aver worked on it. What finally got things working was to download an app from iTunes (on my mac - i had already downgraded to iTunes 7.7). When I syned this app to my iPhone, it worked, and subsequent apps downloaded on the iPhone also worked.

Posted by superschmauch
21 September 2008 @ 4am

All 3rd party apps crashing? While syncing with iTunes my WLAN and thus my internet connection went offline => after that my iphone (2G 2.0.2 jailbroken) refused to start any off my fresh new (3rd party) apps. how frustrating!

Razvan Dobres solution worked fine for me and within minutes(!):
“just de-authorize your computer from iTunes (Store->De-authorize computer), authorize it again (Store->Authorize computer) and then sync your iPhone/iPod Touch again. Boom, all apps will be working just fine.”

Try this first before investing mach more time in up/downgrading iTunes on your PC and restoring n Gigs!

Posted by it_group
1 October 2008 @ 3pm

Razvan Dobre’s fix worked perfectly for me…So try that first, the fix in this article is absurd…Nuke the thing, waste hours…The deauth-auth takes 30 seconds and works like a charm.

Posted by MopariusMaximus
18 October 2008 @ 8am

Thanks Razvan Dobre!!!!!!!!

Deauthorize —- Reauthorize. Come on people lets try the simple stuff first before getting crazy. Thanks Dude.

I just got this phone and paid out the wazoo. I was getting worried I made a huge mistake.

Thanks again,