Have you tried opening an app and it force closes, then you try again and again and the same thing happens? From that you notice there is a problem with your device which can be fixed by clearing app data and cache on the device. Too much data and cache from an app can be corrupted and cause problems on a device.
Cache and data are the two basic files that can be cleared from within apps. Cache files are temporarily stored files that the app downloaded, when cleared, the app just downloads any files it saved for temporary use.
Data on its part is crucial information stored by an app. It contains login info, app preferences and more. Clearing app data means deleting everything the app stored.
How to Clear App Cache and Data
If you have an issue with an app, start by clearing its cache, it may not be a solution but this is the first step. To do this:
- Head to the Settings menu, and then to the “Apps & Notifications” section.
If your phone runs Android Oreo, tap, “See All Apps” button to view the full list. And then search for the app that’s causing you problems.
- When you find the app, kill all instances of it running. This you do by tapping “Force Stop” button and then confirming the action in the popup.
- When the app closes, tap “Storage” option.
- In the Storage menu, tap “Clear Cache”.
After you have done this, tap the app again and if the problem continues, repeat the steps above but tap “Clear Storage” or “Clear Data” in place of “Clear Cache”. But, when you clear data you will lose every data associated with the app.
When next you launch the app, you’ll have to set it up as though it was newly installed.
If none of these steps fixes the issue, then it may not come from you, but from a broken update by the app developer, and if that’s the case, submit a bug report to the developer and hope they fix it.