Signal-Android
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signalapp
None stop "Checking for messages..." notification
- [x] I have searched open and closed issues for duplicates
- [x] I am submitting a bug report for existing functionality that does not work as intended
- [x] I have read https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/wiki/Submitting-useful-bug-reports
- [x] This isn't a feature request or a discussion topic
Bug description
This issue has been reported 2 years ago and it started happening again 2 releases back: https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/issues/11071
I get bombarded none stop while listening to music, browsing the internet, typing a note. basically, anything.
Steps to reproduce
The issue happens after upgrading to the latest signal app (since the last 2-3 releases) No specific steps to reproduce it.
Screenshots
Device info
Device: Oneplus Nord N10 5G (BE2029) Android version: 11.0.12.BE86AA Signal version: 6.17.3
Link to debug log
Hi @h-n-a when you see these notifications, do you then see message notifications shortly there after or is it only even "checking for messages..."?
@cody-signal only that message. sometimes it's about an actual notification. like someone adding emoji to a comment or just "checking for messages..." without an actual new message or interaction.
it's very inconsistent and becoming a nuisance.
it's very inconsistent and becoming a nuisance.
I feel ya, unfortunately this is currently by design to ensure proper message delivery. Android requires us to post a notification in order to get foreground execution time when we receive a push notification.
However, you should almost always see a message notification afterwards unless most of the messages are in muted/blocked chats.
lol, what? why did this only happen recently? If you don't want to address the issue. that's fine. but this is something recent, not "by design". Your team forces users to update the software from working versions to untested code just to bloat the app with unnecessary features. trying to make it like whatsapp.
@cody-signal said,
Android requires us to post a notification in order to get foreground execution time when we receive a push notification.
Ok, so why does the notification persist for minutes at a time? ... while another person on an iPhone has already received the common message? What are you doing during that "foreground execution time"? Mining cryptocurrency!?
This has been going on across multiple app updates. These messages are definitely not muted both blocked. I want these messages promptly at almost any hour of the day or night. The app release notes often talk about new emoji and make claims such as "• Go fast – Messages are delivered quickly and reliably, even on slow networks. Signal is optimized to operate in the most constrained environment possible." I have a greater-than 100Mbps fiber ISP, and messages are often delayed. I associate the "Checking for messages..." notification with new Signal app versions on Android. Should I get off Android? Or get off Signal?
@h-n-a
but this is something recent, not "by design".
It's both recent and by design. A lot of people have issues receiving Signal notifications because of various OEM battery optimization policies, and one of the things we're trying is starting a foreground service when we receive the push to give us a more reliable execution window to fetch messages.
@neirbowj
Ok, so why does the notification persist for minutes at a time?
Not sure, but guessing that your device is restricting our network access, even when we receive a high-priority push and have a foreground service active. If you share a link to a debuglog, I can look and verify that theory.
Should I get off Android? Or get off Signal?
I understand the frustration. We get frustrated too, because getting notifications to work reliably across all OEMs is a real struggle (can read more here). Many popular messaging applications are "whitelisted" on some OEMs so that they'll always have their notifications delivered, while other apps get heavily throttled in the name of battery optimization. Since we're not on those lists, we have to try a lot of different approaches, and we're continually working on more. If you could share a debuglog that would really help us so we can look into the specific issue you're having.
@greyson-signal I captured this debug log while the "Checking for messages..." notification was active.
I noticed that the trigger happens when i try to check the desktop client on my muted group chats, it would trigger that immediately. Something has been changed 100% and it wasn't by design. And it also gets triggered while reactions/new comments are being made on my muted rooms. Sometimes it's triggered when someone reads my comments in a muted room.
This issue is becoming more annoying within the last 2 releases. those unneeded notifications are more frequent.
I start noticing this issue also android 14 clean one, and it is spinning for a long time without any new message after. This happens after I disable battery optimalization for Singal. With enabled it spin for shorter time
It's both recent and by design. A lot of people have issues receiving Signal notifications because of various OEM battery optimization policies, and one of the things we're trying is starting a foreground service when we receive the push to give us a more reliable execution window to fetch messages.
I guess that would explain battery drain that I notice recently more details here https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/issues/12341#issuecomment-2017856655
Same here! Super annoying. Even with Signal app open, I'm looking at my messages. Then that notification comes and it takes 30 seconds or longer before I actually see the new message. It makes no sense and if I need an urgent reply I nowadays switch more often to WhatsApp because of this.
Android 14 on Asus ZenFone 9. Whether I have battery usage set to "optimized" (default) and background app management enabled (default), or set the former to "unrestricted" and the latter to disabled doesn't seem to matter. For WhatsApp I never changed these values.
Android 14, Asus ZenFone 10, just switched to this phone and I am having exact same issue as zilexa. Didnt happen on my old Pixel phone.
Hey folks, for people who are newly experiencing this, can you please post a debuglog? Otherwise we can't do much. Thank you!
https://debuglogs.org/android/7.2.4/f3dd16127917c659247d8a6520c1a08d87b31652fa7983a1a47eae710e9ca2c8
Quite annoying https://debuglogs.org/android/7.8.1/3b454d7950f24a233ed758a0f59feef1e555c653ddd6e0edfdb8fb4811b668cb
https://debuglogs.org/android/7.10.3/d1e48eccb288bf129a6ffcd24ca0b5b442f20cce4b5cbed8ed71c7e50186a5e6
https://debuglogs.org/android/7.11.3/83622cbe91760bd9cd8c7c6782ac5d13bba9b23419e28468957acf3f463c6bac
I don't notice them on my phone (they disappear almost immediately under normal circumstances), however my smartwatch catches them and alerts me all the time.
Also I noticed that the notification appears far more often when I actually Mute a conversation. In that case I get no notification about new messages but loads of "Checking for messages..." on changes (not only on new messages but also on emoji reactions).
Everyone I know in Netherlands already stopped using Signal because of this annoyance. I made such a huge effort for years to get family and friends to move. I give up. Millions of dollars of donations and not a single native Android app developer that can solve this year's old issue or even take a moment to report back here.
No more Signal for me.
EDIT: The issue was caused by Adguard on my system. I was having very significant slowness. Turning Adguard off and on again resolved the issue.
I have been seeing this also. It is coinciding with slow message delivery to my Android (Pixel 6a) but not to my desktop app. The notification lasts for a minute or so, and the message arrives at the end, not the beginning. Debuglog: https://debuglogs.org/android/7.12.3/ec062f0c233a6fe5e746c33bebe8cf4e9257d9fabcb3bd380d3ad25ec88cf359
This happens on my Android 14 (Oneplus 12) regularly, too. Mostly when I use the desktop version. I think it happens when I am idle on the desktop version - I get a "Checking for messages" from Signal. I wish I could disable that, as I check my watch every time, only to see that there is no new message.
Not sure why, but in the latest version this has gotten way more annoying. I now get a notification every time I minimize signal.
Hi folks, we made a recent change in 7.14.x (beta with some prod rollout) to hopefully/maybe/try to help this.
@omartijn are you on 7.14? If so, can you provide a log after encountering the issue.
For others, once you're on 7.14 and hit the issue, can you provide updated debuglogs please and thank you?
Unfortunately I am still encountering the issue.
https://debuglogs.org/android/7.15.4/112a102eb809ace4984914e26d19dfb2627f7f12572ea82d1e6c25a46e5b762f
@hegerj and this happens even after opening Signal? It looks like you have Signal setup to get demoted by the OS for power reasons which could be why you're getting the message in the first place. But if it doesn't go away after opening the app that's a whole other issue.