Messages photos come back after deleting

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Level 1

22 points

Messages photos come back after deleting

I try to delete older photos from texts to save space on my phone.

I do this in Messages by clicking a name/Photos See All and then either deleting one at a time or selecting a bunch and deleting.

Sometimes I delete single photos from the actual text thread.

But… every single one of my threads has a random collection of photos that won’t disappear. Sometimes they delete in See All but then are there again the next time, sometimes nothing happens at all when I say to delete. They just repopulate.

It’s not all of the photos and the ones that stay don’t have anything in common. Usually they disappear from the text thread but are still in the See All Photos page.

They’re obviously still somewhere because I can open them up.

I don’t backup my texts in iCloud so it has nothing to do with that.

Please help because there are painful photos in there that I really need to never see again.

iPhone 13 Pro

Posted on Oct 20, 2022 09:50 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

barberlives123

Community Specialist

Nov 16, 2022 09:14 AM in response to siren74

Hey siren74,

If your iPhone up to date? This could have an impact on the issue. Go to Settings > General > Software Update to see if any are available to you. If they are, back up and update:

1. Back up your device using iCloud or your computer.

2. Plug your device into power and connect to the internet with Wi-Fi.

3. Go to Settings > General, then tap Software Update.

4. If you see more than one software update option available, choose the one that you want to install.

5. Tap Install Now. If you see Download and Install instead, tap it to download the update, enter your passcode, then tap Install Now. If you don't know your passcode, learn what to do.

Update your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

If the issue continues after that, reach out to Apple Support to look further into this with you:

Contact Apple Support

Take care.

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Answer 2

Trish313

Community Specialist

Oct 22, 2022 12:58 PM in response to siren74

Hi siren74,

Since noticing that the photos were repopulating, has the Messages app been closed out and your iPhone restarted? Performing these steps can help resolve many unexpected issue we may face with our devices.

To close out the app:

From the Home Screen, swipe up from the bottom of the screen pausing in the middle.
Swipe left or right to locate the Messages app preview
Swipe up on the preview to close out the app

Close an app on your iPhone or iPod touch - Apple Support

Once closed out, you can follow the steps here: Restart your iPhone - Apple Support

Hope that helps!

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Answer 3

siren74 Author

Level 1

22 points

Nov 16, 2022 09:02 AM in response to danakayw

Sometimes photos I’ve taken and sometimes ones I’ve received so it has nothing to do with whether they’re in Photos.

Part of the problem to solving this is that they have nothing in common or to differentiate them from the Messages photos that delete just fine.

I can’t delete the actual message threads in case I can’t get them back. I know there are ways of keeping them but these threads are too important to take the chance.

I always keep track of my storage and delete things - this is more about photos that I want out of my history for various reasons.

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Answer 4

danakayw

Community Specialist

Nov 16, 2022 08:08 AM in response to siren74

Hey there siren74,

Thanks for reaching back out with those details. Are these photos you received or that you took using the Camera app? If you delete them from the Photos app instead, or delete the actual message thread, does that resolve the issue? Keep in mind, deleting the thread also deletes the conversation history. Here's a guide: Delete messages on iPhone - Apple Support To get rid of them forever, be sure to clear the Recently Deleted area.

If you need more help clearing storage because you've been seeing storage warnings on your iPhone, check out the following guide with tips that may work for you: How to check the storage on your iPhone and iPad - Apple Support

Take care.

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Answer 5

siren74 Author

Level 1

22 points

Nov 16, 2022 07:47 AM in response to Trish313

Yes, I’ve restarted lots of times!

it’s a random selection of photos that always repopulate Messages even if I’ve deleted them many times.

Also sometimes they still show up in the threads even if I’ve deleted them through the person’s info/photos/see all page, and vice versa.

If I don’t delete things in a couple of days, a lot of them become un-deletable.

where are they coming from? Where are they being stored? Are they using some of my storage, because I have to pay for that and it’s not ok.

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Messages photos come back after deleting

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