How to fix Galaxy S9 text messaging issue: sent items disappear after sending

Welcome to another troubleshooting article for the day! There’s been a number of texting and calling issues that we received for the past several days so we address some of them here. The main issue that we want to answer first is regarding a perplexing SMS problem about sent messages disappearing for no apparent reason. We also cover three other related problems so we hope you’ll find this article helpful.

Problem #1: How to fix Galaxy S9 text messaging issue: sent items disappear after sending

My husband’s phone has been having issues lately. He has the Samsung Galaxy S9. When he texts me and his brother, a text message will appear and it’s green background and then it disappears. he has sent a text and screenshot quickly to show that it’s there but then the whole message disappears. this only happened with me and my brother-in-law. all his other text messages to people are normal. We all have galaxy so it’s not and android to apple problem. Sometimes his message says sent or delivered but the odd thing is, is it’s a green background them disappears. some texts come in normal some just get deleted.

Solution: This may be caused by an unknown bug (we haven’t heard of this issue before) in the text messaging he’s using. Make sure that you tell him to clear the app’s cache and data. This will force the phone to return the app configuration back to its defaults. Here’s how:

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Tap on More settings at the upper right (three-dot icon).
Select Show system apps.
Find and tap the text messaging app.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear Data button.
Restart your Galaxy S9 and check for the problem.

Use another text messaging app

If the problem returns after wiping the data of text messaging app, try using another app such as Google’s Android Messages.

Use correct system time and date

If the phone’s system date and time are incorrect, this can result to text messages being sorted incorrectly. Newly created messages like sent items are arranged by time and date so there’s a chance that newly created ones may be buried deep under the list. This may be the reason why your brother actually sees the sent as sent but it doesn’t show on top of the list.

To use the correct date and time, follow these steps:

Open Settings app.
Tap General management.
Tap Date and time.
Tap Automatic date and time.

Factory reset

Should the solutions above won’t work, wipe the phone and return its software information to defaults. The problem is most likely due to a software bug so factory reset should help.

To factory reset your S9:

Create a backup of your data.
Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the green Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
Press the Volume down key several times to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’.
Press Power button to select.
Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

Problem #2: How to fix Galaxy S9 speaker that won’t work during calls

On my Samsung S9, I have lost the ability to hear when the phone is held up to my ear. It is very very faint, so faint that you cannot hear the other party. The speakerphone works fine but the speaker when held to the ear does not work properly. Boosting the volume to the top, using extra volume, neither have an impact on overall sound volume. . . . . . Please help! I have done to reboot and shut down all apps on the phone manually. None of these have resolved my issue. I did do the most recent update of Samsung’s push last evening.

Solution: If the top speaker works only when the phone is set to speakerphone, there may be a operating system bug, app bug, or hardware malfunction causing it. To identify the reason for it, follow our suggestions below.

Clear the cache partition

System updates may sometimes corrupt the system cache stored in the cache partition. To ensure that your device has good system cache, follow the steps below:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the Android logo displays, release all three keys.
An ‘Installing system update’ message will show for 30 – 60 seconds before the Android system recovery menu options appear.
Press the Volume down key several times to highlight wipe cache partition.
Press Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight yes, them and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, Reboot system now is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

Observe on Safe Mode

Another reason for the problem may be a third party app. Make sure that you check this possibility by restarting your S9 to safe mode. In this mode, only preinstalled apps will be able to run. With all third party apps prevented from working, it’s a good way to know if our suspicion is right. Be sure to replicate the issue while your phone is on safe mode by asking someone to call you. If the top speaker works fine on safe mode only, that means an app is causing the problem.

To boot your S9 to safe mode:

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode.
Check for the problem.

To identify which of your apps is causing the trouble, you should boot the phone back to safe mode and follow these steps:

Boot to safe mode.
Check for the problem.
Once you’ve confirmed that a third party app is to blame, you can start uninstalling apps individually. We suggest that you begin with the most recent ones you added.
After you uninstall an app, restart the phone to normal mode and check for the problem.
If your S9 is still problematic, repeat steps 1-4.

Factory Reset

Factory reset may be a necessary troubleshooting step in this situation if the issue won’t be resolved at this point. There may be an issue with the operating system that prevents the speaker from working when the proximity sensor is activated during calls. To see if that’s the case, make sure to wipe the phone by doing a factory reset. Refer to the steps above on how to do it.

Get professional help

If the problem remains after a factory reset, there may be a hardware issue that causes it. While it may be a minor annoyance, this is not supposed to be case. If it’s okay with you to lose your phone for days, contact Samsung so they can repair or replace it.

Problem #3: Galaxy S9 calls keep dropping after phone was repaired

Hello there! I have replaced my S9 screen after it has fell and got broken.So now i got the problem with the phone not getting network connectivity. i replaced my old SIM with a new one and it worked well on the other phone. i received calls effectively with no problem but in my s9, at times, people who try to contact me said they can not reach for me while am available. It has also a tendency of those who call me during the conversation they cant hear me while me on the end i hear them. then it ends uo dropping off itself. The soft keys are not working and i downloaded an app so i can use them. Please help me what might be the problem with my S9.

Solution: If this calling issue started only after dropping the phone and repairing it, we doubt the cause is external. The most likely reason for it must be something in the phone itself. There must be a hardware malfunction due to a broken circuit or component. It can also be an antenna or modem issue. Unfortunately, you’ll need an experienced technician to diagnose the real reason. Independent technicians without expertise in fixing Samsung devices may not be able to diagnose the problem. We suggest that you allow a professional examine the hardware to know if the problem is fixable or not.

Problem #4: Galaxy S9 not receiving text messages

Hello, I am not receiving all texts. It seems like most pictures are not coming through either. I had an iPhone SE and switched to Samsung S9. I disabled imessages and facetime on my old device. I have data on on my new device and I’ve reset the Access Point Name (Rogers LTE). I’ve done a soft and hard reboot as well. Please advise if there is something else I’m missing. Thank you!

Solution: Disabling iMessage is a solution for a problem that involves receiving texts from iPhones or iOS devices.

Even if you haven’t disabled iMessage, you should have no problem sending and receiving text messages from non-Apple devices. If your S9 has trouble sending and receiving all text messages, you should try to reset your phone’s network settings with these steps:

From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
Tap General Management > Reset settings.
Tap Reset Network settings.
If you have set up a PIN, enter it.
Tap Reset settings. Once complete a confirmation window will appear.

You might also need to perform a factory reset should nothing work after resetting network settings. If that work either, you should talk to your network operator for further troubleshooting. The cause is most likely outside the device so it’s their job to figure it out.