How to fix Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016) that shows “Unfortunately, Gallery has stopped” error [Troubleshooting Guide]

The error message “Unfortunately, Gallery has stopped” is notifying the user that built-in multimedia manager has crashed. Many #Samsung Galaxy J3 (#GalaxyJ3) owners seem to be experiencing this problem so we have to tackle this issue to find out if it’s just a minor problem that may occur to any other owners or if it’s a firmware-related issue that may have triggered by an update or any app.

In this post, I will walk you through in troubleshooting your Samsung Galaxy J3 that’s plagued with this error message. We will have to try to rule out one possibility after another until we can arrive at something that may help us determine what the real issue is and find a way to fix it or work around it.

Before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many issues with this phone since we started supporting it. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the troubleshooting procedures or solutions we suggested. Should you need further assistance from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s free.

Troubleshooting Galaxy J3 “Unfortunately, Gallery has stopped” error

When troubleshooting your device due to an app issue, it’s recommended to go after the app itself or, at least, rule out the possibility that it’s just a minor app problem. If the problem persists after that, try to discover if your other apps have something to do with it and then go after the firmware if the problem remains. That said, here’s what you should do:

Step 1: Reboot your Galaxy J3

Before we troubleshoot your phone, it’s important that you reboot your device a couple of times because it might be just a simple glitch in the system or an app problem that only needs a reboot.

We did receive a lot of problems in the past that were solved by a simple reboot so it’s worth it especially if there’s no apparent reason or cause. It’s easy and safe to do so there’s nothing to lose.

Step 2: Clear the cache and data of the Gallery app

If the error still occurs after you’ve rebooted your phone a couple of times, then it’s time to go after the Gallery app because it might just be crashing due to corrupt cache or data. This procedure will reset the app but won’t delete any of your pictures and videos as they are saved somewhere else. This is how you do it…

1. From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
2. Tap Settings.
3. Tap Applications.
4. Tap Application manager
5. Tap the Gallery.
6. Tap Storage.
7. Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
8. Tap Clear cache.

As I said earlier, the error message might just be the result so if the problem occurs when you open or use other apps, delete the cache and data of the apps that triggered the error.

Step 3: Boot your Galaxy J3 in safe mode

Booting in safe mode will temporarily disable all third-party apps so if the error is caused by one of your downloaded applications then the Gallery shouldn’t be crashing when in this mode. It is a necessary step to isolate the problem so it’s worth doing it.

1. Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
2. Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
3. When ‘SAMSUNG’ appears on the screen, release the Power key.
4. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
5. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
6. Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
7. Release the Volume down key when you see ‘Safe Mode’.

While the phone is in this mode, try to open the Gallery app or the apps that you were using when the error popped up. If it still shows up then we might be facing a minor firmware issue.

Step 4: Delete the system cache

If the error started after a firmware update, then we might be looking at a possible result of corrupt cache. Cached files are created by the system and we often refer to these files as “system cache” because the system uses them to improve the overall performance and add to the fluidity in the execution of commands.

However, these files are prone to being corrupted and when it happens, the system would continue to use them but the performance will surely be affected. So, the best thing to do is to delete them by following the steps below assuming the Galaxy J3 can successfully boot up into the Recovery Mode:

1. Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
4. When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
5. Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
6. Press the Power key to select.
7. Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
8. When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
9. Press the Power key to restart the device.

Step 5: Perform master reset on your phone

If the steps 1 to 4 failed to fix or get rid of the error message, then it’s time you backed up your data and files so that you won’t lose them as you will be doing the master reset on your phone. It will bring your device back to its factory default settings or a configuration that works. It might be a serious problem so you need to rule it out:

1. Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up button and then press and hold the Home key. While holding both, press and hold the Power key.
3. When the Android logo appears on the screen, release all three keys. It may take a minute before the Android recovery screen appears.
4. While on Android recovery screen, use the Volume Down key to highlight options, in this case, highlight the option ‘wipe data/factory reset.’
5. Press the Power key to choose the highlighted option.
6. Press  the Volume Down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ option is highlighted.
7. Press the Power key to confirm the reset.
8. Once the reset is complete, press the Power key to choose ‘Reboot system now.’
9. The phone will restart a little longer than usual and the reset is finished.

I hope this guide can help you. If ever you need further assistance, feel free to contact us.

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