Question :

I need the Google Authenticator.app on my iPhone to generate a authentication code for one of the online (Google) services I need to use on my Mac.

This used to work great, but now, whenever I start the Google Authenticator.app it quits during startup…

I already tried shutting down my iPhone and restarting it, but that didn’t help… the problem persists.

So… how can I fix this ?

Answer :

The way to solve this problem with Google Authenticator.app is the same as what you would do with any cashing iOS-app : delete and reinstall.

…but in the current versions of iOS, it is slightly more complicated to remove and reinstall an app from iOS, because Apple has now included the option to delete the app but keep the connected data / information in case you want (or need) to reinstall the app later on.

To delete and reinstall an app from iOS (e.g. Google Authenticator.app), do this :

• open the Settings.app on your iPhone / iPad
• in the next window, click on General
• in the next window, click iPhone Storage
• in the next window, find Google Authenticator (or any other app you want to delete and reinstall) in the list of apps on the bottom
  • note that the list of apps is not alphabetical, but based on the amount of data an app uses… so if you have lots of apps finding the right one may be a little complicated… you will probably need to scroll almost the end of the list, as Google Authenticator is usually listed for about 15MB
• click on the name of the app you want to delete (“Authenticator” with the gray-on-white Google’s G logo)
• in the next window, click “Offload App” (in blue) first
• when done, click the “Reinstall App” when it appears
• then exit
• then open the Google Authenticator.app to check if it runs & works properly
• if it does, your problem is solved !
  • when the app still crashes, do this :
  • open the Settings.app
  • then click on General
  • then click on iPhone Storage
  • then find (Google) Authenticator in the list of apps, and click on it
  • now, in the next window, click “Delete App” (in red)
    • BEWARE that this does delete all additional data and info that was stored with the app on your iPhone ; if that’s passwords that you have in iCloud (or somewhere else in a cloud service, on your computer or offline in writing) you’re okay… but if it might be photos, videos or documents that you do not want to lose… do NOT click “Delete App”, and try “Offload App” again
  • then exit
  • now open the AppStore.app
  • click on the Search-button (bottom right)
  • click on the seach-line (in gray, on top, with the looking glass and “Games, Apps, Stories and More” in it)
  • then typ the app’s name : Authenticator
  • then click the Search-button
  • in the window that opens, scroll down to the app you need (make sure it’s exactly the one you need, since sometimes various publishers have apps with very similar naming)
  • then click the blue Get-button next to the app’s description to reinstall the app
  • when done, open the app and check if the app runs & works properly

That’s it !

enjoy 😉