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Messages don't sync between iPhone and MacBook Air

Hi people!

So I tried to connect the Messages apps. I am already signed in from the iPhone Messages and Mac Messages but the messages don't sync seamlessly. I tried signing-out and then in again but still no syncing of the messages instantly.

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 12.1

Posted on Dec 28, 2021 6:15 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Dec 29, 2021 5:00 AM

Turn on Messages in iCloud, on both devices. On your iPhone, go to your Apple ID settings at the top of the Settings app, iCloud, and then toggle on Messages.

On your Mac, click Messages in the menu bar, and then preferences, and go one of the two tabs. I can’t remember which one, but there will be a checkbox to enable Messages in iCloud.

Once enabled on both devices, click sync now in Messages preferences on your Mac.

9 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 29, 2021 5:00 AM in response to meshaunds

Turn on Messages in iCloud, on both devices. On your iPhone, go to your Apple ID settings at the top of the Settings app, iCloud, and then toggle on Messages.

On your Mac, click Messages in the menu bar, and then preferences, and go one of the two tabs. I can’t remember which one, but there will be a checkbox to enable Messages in iCloud.

Once enabled on both devices, click sync now in Messages preferences on your Mac.

Dec 28, 2021 9:16 PM in response to meshaunds

meshaunds Said:

"Messages don't sync between iPhone and MacBook Air: Hi people! So I tried to connect the Messages apps. I am already signed in from the iPhone Messages and Mac Messages but the messages don't sync seamlessly. I tried signing-out and then in again but still no syncing of the messages instantly."

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Refer to the link provided atop this post.


Moreover, Stay Signed In:

If you keep signing out, then it will not sync. Elsewise, give it a few.

Jan 19, 2022 9:31 AM in response to dwstranger

Well I do agree with you. I’m not sure why I have to do a secondary click on every single message, every single time I want to delete it…. Why I can’t do a shift select or something is beyond me. I don’t know what else to suggest apart from restarting the mac, and force restarting the iPhone: Force restart iPhone – Apple Support (UK). A lot of Apple’s Mac ports from iOS / iPadOS do seem to be quite finicky.


In any case, it looks like it’s time for a bug report: Product Feedback - Apple

Jan 1, 2022 2:21 PM in response to GreeniusGenius

Greenius,

So I have made sure everything's on regarding iCloud and messages, and the messages are downloading to my Mac, but they aren't synced (i.e., I deleted some from the phone, but they're still on the Mac in Messages).


And a few updates ago, they made it harder to delete - meaning you can't select the msg and then hit DELETE, you have to go to the menu and do each one individually... but if I deleted them on the phone, it would show up synced (deleted) the next time I opened Messages on the Mac. But not now. I have gone to the Messages preferences and synced now, but nope.

Jan 19, 2022 9:34 AM in response to katsapple88

I don’t really know what else to suggest, apart from the restarts I mentioned in my reply to dwstranger. As I also said in that reply, it is probably a good opportunity to report it as a bug using the feedback link as above.


I do think that it is really frustrating when features like this don’t quite work… Especially due to how great they are when they do.

Messages don't sync between iPhone and MacBook Air

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