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FieldValue
Page typeTroubleshooting reference
ScopeAll CometChat React Native UI Kit v5 issues — initialization, rendering, theming, calling, extensions, AI features, localization, sound, events, native setup
When to referenceWhen a component fails to render, data is missing, styling doesn’t apply, a feature doesn’t appear, or native build fails

Initialization and Login

SymptomCauseFix
CometChatUIKit.init() fails silentlyInvalid App ID, Region, or Auth KeyDouble-check credentials from the CometChat Dashboard
Component doesn’t renderinit() not called or not awaited before renderingEnsure init() completes before mounting components. See Methods
Component renders but shows no dataUser not logged inCall CometChatUIKit.login({ uid }) after init
Login fails with “UID not found”UID doesn’t exist in your CometChat appCreate the user via Dashboard, SDK, or API first
Blank screen after loginComponent mounted before init/login completesUse state to conditionally render after login resolves
getLoggedinUser() returns nullUser not logged in or session expiredCall login() or loginWithAuthToken() first
sendTextMessage() failsUser not logged in or invalid receiverEnsure login completes before sending messages
Auth Key exposed in productionUsing Auth Key instead of Auth TokenSwitch to Auth Token for production

React Native CLI Setup

SymptomCauseFix
Android build fails with Maven errorMissing local Maven repository for @react-native-async-storage/async-storageAdd the Maven URL to android/build.gradle. See Integration
iOS build failsPods not installedRun cd ios && pod install && cd ..
App crashes on launchreact-native-gesture-handler not imported at top of entry fileAdd import 'react-native-gesture-handler'; at the very top of index.js before any other imports
Permission denied errors on AndroidMissing permissions in AndroidManifest.xmlAdd required permissions (INTERNET, CAMERA, RECORD_AUDIO, etc.). See Integration
Camera/microphone not working on iOSMissing Info.plist entriesAdd NSCameraUsageDescription and NSMicrophoneUsageDescription to Info.plist

Expo Setup

SymptomCauseFix
App crashes in Expo GoExpo Go doesn’t support native modulesUse development builds instead of Expo Go
Build fails with native module errorMissing development buildRun npx expo run:ios or npx expo run:android to create a development build
Permissions not workingMissing app.json configurationAdd iOS infoPlist and Android permissions to app.json. See Expo Integration

Theming

SymptomCauseFix
Theme not appliedMissing CometChatThemeProvider wrapperWrap your app with CometChatThemeProvider. See Theme
Dark mode not workingmode not set in theme propSet theme={{ mode: "dark" }} on CometChatThemeProvider
System theme changes not reflectedApp not wrapped in CometChatThemeProviderWrap app in CometChatThemeProvider to enable automatic system theme detection
Custom colors not applyingColors not in hex formatEnsure all color values are hex strings (e.g., #F76808)
Component-level style override not workingStyle prop not taking priorityStyle props have highest priority — check for typos in prop names
Primary color unchangedWrong token nameUse primary token under color object: theme={{ light: { color: { primary: "#F76808" } } }}
Icon styles not applyingUsing unsupported imageStyle propertiesFor default SVG icons, only tintColor, height, and width are supported

Components

SymptomCauseFix
Callback not firingWrong prop name or signatureCheck the component documentation for exact prop name and parameter types
Custom view not appearingReturning null or undefined from view propEnsure view function returns valid JSX
Messages not loadingInvalid user/group object passedEnsure you fetch the user/group via SDK before passing to components
Gesture handling not workingMissing GestureHandlerRootView wrapperWrap your app with GestureHandlerRootView from react-native-gesture-handler
Safe area issuesMissing SafeAreaProvider wrapperWrap your app with SafeAreaProvider from react-native-safe-area-context

Calling

SymptomCauseFix
Call buttons not appearing in Message Header@cometchat/calls-sdk-react-native not installedRun npm install @cometchat/calls-sdk-react-native — UI Kit auto-detects it
Incoming call screen not showingCometChatIncomingCall not mounted or call listener not registeredRender CometChatIncomingCall at app root and register CometChat.addCallListener(). See Call Features
Call accepted but no audio/videoMissing call session setupAfter acceptCall(), generate a token and render the call component
onIncomingCallReceived not firingCall listener not registered or registered too lateRegister CometChat.addCallListener() after login completes
Call fails on AndroidMissing permissions or wrong SDK versionEnsure minSdkVersion is 24+, compileSdkVersion is 33+, and permissions are added
Call fails on iOSMissing permissions or wrong deployment targetSet IPHONEOS_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET to 12.0+ and add camera/microphone permissions to Info.plist
WebRTC errorsMissing peer dependenciesInstall react-native-webrtc, @react-native-community/netinfo, react-native-background-timer

Extensions

SymptomCauseFix
Extension feature not appearingExtension not activated in CometChat DashboardEnable the specific extension from your Dashboard
Stickers not showing in composerSticker extension not enabledActivate Sticker Extension in Dashboard
Polls option missing from action sheetPolls extension not enabledActivate Polls Extension in Dashboard
Link preview not rendering in messagesLink Preview extension not enabledActivate Link Preview Extension in Dashboard
Collaborative whiteboard/document not appearingExtension not enabledActivate Collaborative Whiteboard or Collaborative Document in Dashboard

AI Features

SymptomCauseFix
AI features not appearingFeature not activated in CometChat DashboardEnable the specific AI feature from your Dashboard
Conversation Starter not showingFeature not enabled or no conversation contextEnsure Conversation Starter is activated in Dashboard
Smart Replies not appearing in composerFeature not enabled in DashboardEnsure Smart Replies is activated in Dashboard

Localization

SymptomCauseFix
UI text not translatedLanguage code not matching supported codesCheck the supported languages table in Localize for exact codes (e.g., en-US not en)
Auto language detection not workingMissing react-native-localize packageInstall react-native-localize: npm install react-native-localize
Custom translations not appearingCometChatI18nProvider not wrapping appWrap app with CometChatI18nProvider inside CometChatThemeProvider
useCometChatTranslation returns undefinedHook used outside providerEnsure component is wrapped by CometChatI18nProvider
Fallback language not workingfallbackLanguage prop not setSet fallbackLanguage prop on CometChatI18nProvider

Sound

SymptomCauseFix
No sound playsAudio file not found or unsupported formatEnsure the path is correct and the file is a valid audio format (WAV/MP3)
Custom sound not playingInvalid file pathVerify the asset path is correct; use isRequire: true if using require() for local assets
Sound keeps playingpause() not calledCall CometChatSoundManager.pause() to stop playback
Sound plays multiple timesMultiple sound triggersEnsure you’re not calling play() multiple times for the same event

Events

SymptomCauseFix
Event listener not firingSubscribed to wrong event nameCheck the Events page for exact event names
Duplicate event triggersMultiple subscriptions without cleanupRemove listeners in useEffect cleanup or component unmount
Event fires but UI doesn’t updateState not updated in event handlerEnsure you call setState or equivalent in the handler
Call events not receivedCometChatUIEventHandler listener not registeredRegister both CometChat.addCallListener() and CometChatUIEventHandler.addCallListener()

Native Dependencies

SymptomCauseFix
react-native-video not workingNative module not linkedFor React Native CLI, run cd ios && pod install. For Expo, use development builds
react-native-svg icons not renderingPackage not installed or linkedInstall react-native-svg and run pod install for iOS
@react-native-clipboard/clipboard errorsPackage not installedInstall @react-native-clipboard/clipboard
@react-native-community/datetimepicker errorsPackage not installedInstall @react-native-community/datetimepicker
dayjs date formatting issuesPackage not installedInstall dayjs