Spotlight search showing "dead" apps bug ios 16.5

a VERY annoying bug after installing 16.5. I can no use spotlight search on my iPhone for all apps. Some apps do not come up in search at all and when they do they come as this "Dead" grid icon that you can't click.


I have tried

  1. Hard reset
  2. Soft reset
  3. Moving the app out of app library
  4. installing and uninstalling the app
  5. Turning siri searchable on and off
  6. Resetting network and location settings


Note that it doesn't impact all apps but enough that its annoying. A long way to get around it is to search the app on the app store and open from there but that is obviously ridiculous. Apart from rolling back the update to 16.0 any other suggestions


iPhone 12 Pro

Posted on May 23, 2023 11:15 PM

Reply
3 replies

May 23, 2023 11:30 PM in response to bnaveed

They are not "Dead".


If you had changed any of the following recently.


  • Apple ID
  • Apple ID Country
  • App Store Country
  • App is offloaded and you have downloaded the app and the developer does not provide any more support the app in the App
  • Data transferred from another iPhone. When you transfer between iOS devices only the app data gets transferred the app needs to be downloaded from the App Store.


Based on your image posted, it's possible that the app icon you're seeing on your iPhone with a mesh-like texture is actually a placeholder icon that appears when the original app icon cannot be displayed properly.


This can happen for a variety of reasons, such as when the app has been removed from the App Store or when the app has lost its connection to the App Library. In some cases, this can also happen when there is a problem with the app's icon file or when the app is no longer supported by the developer.


If you suspect that the app is no longer supported or has been removed from the App Store, you can try searching for the app in the App Store to confirm whether it is still available. If you cannot find the app, it is possible that the developer has discontinued support for it.


Finally, it's possible that the mesh-like icon you're seeing is related to device compatibility. Some apps may not be optimized for all iPhone models or iOS versions, which can cause them to display incorrectly. If this is the case, you might try contacting the app developer for support or looking for an alternative app that is compatible with your device.


Alternatively, if you believe that the problem is related to a lost link to the App Library, you can try resetting your iPhone's home screen layout. To do this, go to Settings > General > Reset > Reset Home Screen Layout. This will reset your home screen layout to its default settings, which should fix any problems with missing app icons or links to the App Library. However, please note that this will also remove any custom app layouts or folders that you have created on your home screen.



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May 23, 2023 11:35 PM in response to bnaveed

Thanks SravanKa,


It is happening to a lot of apps, including Google Maps so it's definitely not a developer problem. Its as if there is an issue with spotlight's index as I can see and access the app if I just scroll through my home screen


I have not changed any of the things you mentioned such as ID, country etc. Also as I mentioned I can go to the app store, search for the app, the app store recognises that its already installed and I can open it via the app store. So its definitely a spotlight issue it seems.


rA

Sep 10, 2023 11:37 AM in response to bnaveed

For me, this is VERY ANNOYING!

I hope Apple fix this really soon…


the same issue is happening to me and started to happen suddenly, without changing anything.


it doesn’t seem to happen to Apple

apps. They simply work.


the every other app work only if i scroll trough the screens and launch it directly or launch App Store, search the app and launch it from there …

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Spotlight search showing "dead" apps bug ios 16.5

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