Google Contacts App problem

[Natep]

All my contacts have vanished from the google Contacts app. This is the stock app on my Nexus 7, 2012. The app is empty! Hundreds of contact information is just gone. Any ideas on how to get it back. I have not backed this up, sadly. Does google back up work automatically? (please, please say yes!) Thanks for any help you can provide! I'm too numb to even panic.

 

[mplevy]

If you go to your Gmail account, do you see your contacts there? You may just need to adjust a setting in the app to display a different set of contacts (device, SIM, Google). If your contacts are saved as Google Contacts then yes, they should be backed up, but keep in mind that any changes may have synced and deleted them all.

 

[Natep]

Thanks. I seldom use Google email. So I just now went there and can find no icon or item called "contacts." What kinds of changes might cause every-single-one of my entries to vanish? I'm wondering of the Kit Kat system change might have caused this, although I've not found any other complaints....

Also, when I go to Settings, Apps, Contacts, I find 1.78 MB listed. Under Contacts Storage, I find 1.29 MB. Is this meaningful in anyway? Oddly, the Contacts icon has vanished from the App drawer; doesn't show up in the "Downloaded Apps" list or the "Running" list. Thanks for any knowledge you may have on this heartbreaking issue!

 

[mplevy]

It won't show in "Downloaded Apps" as it should have been a system app, check "All". Look in your app drawer for "People", my Moto X has a "People" app, no "Contacts" app but oddly enough it's listed as "Contacts" in Settings > Applications.

In Gmail, find the "Gmail" button (top left corner, below the Google logo), click it and select Contacts.

Oh yeah, once you find your "Contacts" or "People" app and you still see it empty, tap the menu button (3 dots vertical, bottom right or top right corner), tap "Contacts to Display" and select the account you want to display or select to see all of them.

 

[Natep]

OK. Contacts does show up in "All." That is where I was able to locate "Contacts Storage" which showed 1.29 MB.

I did find "People" in my app drawer. Thanks. When opened, it is the "Contacts" app and is sadly 100% empty. I also went to Google email, there is NO item listed called "Contacts" I clicked on the three dots, "Contacts to display" and selected the one google account that I use. Then I tried selecting all. Nothing.

Does it matter that my primary email is through the "accounts" setting offered by the Nexus 7. And under the accounts, my primary email is Yahoo. (Not using the official Yahoo app or official Yahoo email app) I don't understand why Contacts is entirely dependent on the email, anyway. I understand why the two are linked --but not why contacts is dependent on email settings. I guess that's neither here nor there --the why isn't what matters here. What matters is getting my contact back! Thanks again.

 

[El Presidente]

Were you storing your contacts on the device itself or were they backed up to Google?

Can you log in to your Gmail account via a PC and see if the contacts are visible there?

If they aren't, there's a restore option in the "more" pull down. Try that and see if they return.

 

[Natep]

Where is the "More" pull-down? On pc or Nexus 7? If on Nexus, are you referring to something within the Contacts app?

I did log onto my Google Account on a PC and found no contacts.

I was storing and using my contacts on my Nexus 7 only. Until today, I have never used Google (other than search) on my pc or laptop or other devices.

 

[El Presidente]

It's along the top of the page, just underneath the search bar, one of the options there is restore.

 

[Natep]

The top of what page? I can't find it.

 

[El Presidente]

The top of the contacts page when you access gmail via a web browser.

 

[Natep]

It's a start! Yippeeee. It shows 46 names with spotty info on email, street addresses, phone numbers, etc. It shows none of my extensive notes, personal preferences that I had written down, directions, etc. It does not show the other 200+ entries. I tried the 30 day option. But this is the most it will cough up.

You are the first with a working idea, so thank you, thank you. Hate to push my luck, but... Any ideas on getting back notes, or the other 200+ entries?

Any thoughts on how to get to the data stored on my Nexus that is shown under Google Contact Storage as 1.29 MG?

 

[El Presidente]

The data might just be generic app data. It's quite small, on my handset, contact storage is sitting at about 6.9MB.

Aside from the contact restore via the web interface, I'm not sure what your other options are, sorry.

Do you have facebook? I know that syncs a lot of contact information, so if you've every logged in to the FB app on your tab, if you do it again, you might get some additional info back.

 

[funpig]

Did you try changing: Contacts - Settings - Contacts to Display?

 

[Natep]

El Presidente: fb was of no significant help - - but I appreciate every idea offered and I keep trying each one.

funpig: (what a name) I double-checked Contacts - Settings - Contacts to Display. "All" is selected.

 

[Natep]

New information for the missing Contacts data dilemma: Data re-entered has now vanished, as well. The stock "Contacts" app is retaining no data at all. sigh... Any ideas on what to do now? A factory reset is not an appealing choice until I'm certain that my contact data is not in there somewhere.

 

[BigRedGonzo]

How are you storing your contacts? As Phone or Google contacts? I would recommend that you use the Google option. They are backed up almost immediately to your gmail account and if you phone eats them again, you can at least get them back. I'm not on Kit Kat, but when I add a new contact, it lets me chose Device, Google, etc... I have been through your predicament before and its is not fun.

Good Luck,

 

[Natep]

BigRedGonzo: thanks! My Nexus 7 tablet does not give those choices. Contacts are saved to (or in this case NOT) to Google.

The email customer assistance rep told me to force stop Contacts, then clear cache and data then restart the app. Seems to me that takes away any small chance I have of retrieval. The rep also told me to go to Google Play and re-download the Contacts app. Wonder of he knows that this app is stock and isn't located in the Play Store? grrrrr.