4S/ios5 - how to clear or force quit recent apps list

Joined
Oct 14, 2010
Messages
141
Reaction score
3
Points
18
I've spent the last hour on youtube trying to work out how to clear my recent apps list on my iPhone 4S - virtually everything is open, and nothing i've tried has had any impact on the list, so hoping you guys may have a few tips to try. It's not causing any problems, it just irks me that earlier in the week I could clear the list and kill any apps potentially using the limited data on my plan - now I can't.

I can double tap the home button to show me the list of recent apps, get the 'x' in the corner of the icon, but they won't delete from there.

I've tried opening an app in the list and force quitting it, but it still remains in the recent app list.

I've tried opening up the app and holding down the home button for 5 secs, but then SIRI opens up instead.


What should I try next?
 

Raz0rEdge

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
Messages
15,734
Reaction score
2,059
Points
113
Location
MA
Your Mac's Specs
2022 Mac Studio M1 Max, 2023 M2 MBA
So to go through the process..

You double-tap the home button, the bottom drawer opens up with all of your previously run applications. You press and hold any application in the drawer and they start jiggling (only the apps in the drawer) and sow a red caution sign. You click the sign and the apps disappear into the ether one by one until your drawer is empty.

You go through this process and when you get to hitting the caution sign, the apps don't disappear??
 

Raz0rEdge

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
Messages
15,734
Reaction score
2,059
Points
113
Location
MA
Your Mac's Specs
2022 Mac Studio M1 Max, 2023 M2 MBA
OK, have you tried to power-down the device, turn it back on and then go through the process?
 

Raz0rEdge

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
Messages
15,734
Reaction score
2,059
Points
113
Location
MA
Your Mac's Specs
2022 Mac Studio M1 Max, 2023 M2 MBA
That is very strange..I would definitely give Apple a call since you have one year of warranty..perhaps they have an idea on how to fix this..and if they do help you fix it, please report back so it helps others..
 
Joined
Mar 16, 2007
Messages
756
Reaction score
14
Points
18
Did you try the hard reboot? I believe it was holding the home and "lock" button (at the top right) both together for a few seconds until it reboots. That should do a clean startup and no apps should be open. Then try again to open an app and quit it as described above.
 

Raz0rEdge

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
Messages
15,734
Reaction score
2,059
Points
113
Location
MA
Your Mac's Specs
2022 Mac Studio M1 Max, 2023 M2 MBA
@dekan, is that different than just holding down the power button, getting the power-down slider and sliding it power down the device? I use the home-power button combination when the UI is not responding and in my experience have not noticed any difference in behavior once the device boots back up..
 
Joined
Mar 16, 2007
Messages
756
Reaction score
14
Points
18
@dekan, is that different than just holding down the power button, getting the power-down slider and sliding it power down the device? I use the home-power button combination when the UI is not responding and in my experience have not noticed any difference in behavior once the device boots back up..

I had this issue of the battery drain due to connections through Mail, that didn't get closed properly. When I was trying to find a solution for this I read/heard that the regular power down is more like a hibernate and the device would just resume when you switch it back on. The way I described above is like the good old reset button on a PC and would do a fresh start. Would that make sense?
 
OP
C
Joined
Oct 14, 2010
Messages
141
Reaction score
3
Points
18
OK, problem solved.

Settings --> General --> Reset --> Reset ALL settings

A bit of a pain in the bum to go this route, but at least the background processes are under control.
 
OP
C
Joined
Oct 14, 2010
Messages
141
Reaction score
3
Points
18
I spoke too soon. Reset cleared the list, but now it's building up again and I still can't delete at will.

Does this point to a software glitch or perhaps a third party app causing a hangup? I've contacted Apple and they can't resolve my problem apart from suggesting a format and reinstall.
 
Joined
Dec 16, 2011
Messages
18
Reaction score
0
Points
1
@dekan, is that different than just holding down the power button, getting the power-down slider and sliding it power down the device? I use the home-power button combination when the UI is not responding and in my experience have not noticed any difference in behavior once the device boots back up..

Yes it is different to simply swiping the normal power-off slider. Hold the top switch and home button until the device powers off itself without swiping the slider...

This can be the remedy to many issues!
 

Raz0rEdge

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
Messages
15,734
Reaction score
2,059
Points
113
Location
MA
Your Mac's Specs
2022 Mac Studio M1 Max, 2023 M2 MBA
Yes it is different to simply swiping the normal power-off slider. Hold the top switch and home button until the device powers off itself without swiping the slider...

This can be the remedy to many issues!

Actually I don't think it is. If the phone was frozen or the UI was somehow unavailable, the home&power button combination is useful to reset the device, but otherwise doing the power down with the swipe and then pressing the power button to wake up ends up doing the same thing..

I'm an embedded developer by trade, so I know a little bit about how this stuff works inside..
 
Joined
Mar 16, 2007
Messages
756
Reaction score
14
Points
18
Actually I don't think it is. If the phone was frozen or the UI was somehow unavailable, the home&power button combination is useful to reset the device, but otherwise doing the power down with the swipe and then pressing the power button to wake up ends up doing the same thing..

I'm an embedded developer by trade, so I know a little bit about how this stuff works inside..

But then, here is the thing: I hold the button at the top, slide to power off, power the device back on and all apps are still running when I double click the home button after restart.
I hold both buttons and restart without the swipe, double click after it's back up and the list of running apps is empty.

That tells me it's not doing the same thing at all.
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top