How to fix Android error code 963

What is Android error code 963

Some people face problems while trying to update or download new apps from Google Play Store on Android. They receive an error saying “‘App Name’ could not be downloaded due to an error (963)”. The first discussion upon this issue started a long time ago in 2016 when many users owned LG, Samsung, and HTC smartphones. Despite the error is likely to touch users of older smartphones, some modern devices of current years may deal with this problem as well. The 963 error code is usually related to corrupted cache data, SD card incompatibility, and malfunction of settings. Luckily, there is a set of versatile solutions that will help you get rid of this issue and download or update the application you need. Follow our tutorial below to perform them and fix the error.

Can’t download app (error code: 963)

Can’t update app (error code: 963)

Download repair tool

To fix Android error code: 963, we recommend you use Tenorshare ReiBoot for Android, an excellent repair tool for Android, that can fix more than 50 typical Android phones issues, like stuck on the Samsung logo, black or blue screen of death, dead Android, or red triangle errors. The fixing process goes automatically and does not require specific technical knowledge. Download Tenorshare ReiBoot for Android by clicking on the button below:

Download Android Repair Tool

ReiBoot for Android (Step 1)

ReiBoot for Android (Step 2)

ReiBoot for Android (Step 3)

ReiBoot for Android (Step 4)

1. Clear Google Play Cache and Data

One thing causing intervention in the proper operation of updates and downloads could be accumulated cache. The solution is pretty simple – to clear both cache and data of Google Play Store, Google Play services, and Google services framework. Here is what you should do:

Note that some steps may have different names depending on what smartphone you use. We wrote out a general process that looks quite similar on all Android smartphones.

1. Open Settings on your smartphone.
2. Then navigate to Application Manager > All.
3. Find Google Play (Store) from the list of all applications and tap on it.
4. Click Force Stop, then Clear cache. If you are still unable to download/update the app successfuly, tap on Clear Data as well. This action will reset Google Play and log you out of your account.
5. Do the same steps with these other two apps called Google Play services and Google services framework.

If necessary, log back into your account and try to download/update a problematic app again. In case there was something wrong with Google Play itself, these actions should resolve all the problems and get your download/update process finally working. No result still? – Then follow the other methods below.

2. Unmount your SD card

Some apps require to be installed only in device storage and no SD cards. If you are trying to download a new application, try to switch off your SD card and download it again. This is how:

1. Go to Settings and open Storage.
2. Under the SD card section, tap Unmount SD card and confirm the action if necessary.
3. Now check if this resolved the problem by downloading the app from Google Play Store once more.

3. Move your app from SD card to Device Memory

Otherwise to the previous method, this should be tried if you are trying to update an already existing app. If you have it installed on an SD card, then you should try and shift its storage to your device’s internal memory. Do the following:

1. Open Settings on your smartphone and navigate to the list of all applications as we did above in the first method.
2. Find an app that refuses to update and tap on it.
3. If there is such a button available, click on Move to device storage or a similar option.
4. After that, your app should be moved to internal memory. Try to update it and see the result. We hope it changes in your favor.

4. Specific instructions for HTC devices

As mentioned in the beginning, HTC users were on the list of being frequently hit by this error. The majority of HTC owners reported they managed to eliminate the issue by uninstalling updates for HTC Lock Screen App:

1. Go to Settings and open the list of all Applications as we did multiple times above.
2. Search for the application named HTC Lock Screen.
3. Once found, tap Force Stop and Uninstall Updates afterwards.

We hope the situation will change and you will be able to download or update applications without a problem.

5. Delete and re-add your Google account

If you are still facing the issue, try to delete and re-add your Google account again. This will help get rid of older and maybe corrupted settings that could be the root of the problem.

1. Open Settings and scroll down to bottom until you find the Accounts section.
2. Tap Google and choose your account name. Then click Remove account through Menu by clicking on three vertical dots in the top right corner.
3. Confirm the action and re-add your deleted Google account back in the Accounts section. You can also do it by opening Google Play Store and adding your account there instead.

We hope you said goodbye to this error and became finally able to download or update the necessary apps.

6. Perform a Factory Reset

If you continue to stumble upon the same 963 Google Play error despite performing the solutions above, then you might consider resetting your smartphone to factory settings. This step will remove all the data (including photos, videos, apps, music, etc.) stored on your system and roll all configuration settings back to their default state. In other words, you will reinstall your system from scratch. This should recover healthy settings and install all Google services that could start working badly after long-term usage. Make sure you make a backup of stored data or that you simply don’t have important data to lose. After this part is done, get down to performing the steps.

1. Open Settings and go to About phone.
2. Right there, you will see information about Android and UI versions, your CPU, RAM, Memory, and more.
3. Somewhere at the bottom, you will see the Reset button. Click on it and choose Factory Reset to erase all data and get your smartphone back to default settings.
4. Agree with everything prompted and wait until your device completes the reset. It might take 30 minutes or close.
5. Also, if you do not have the same location of settings and unable to find some of these steps, you can type Reset being in Settings and open it up.

In fact, you can find any setting you need using the search. It is our responsibility to provide detailed instructions so you have a full picture of the entire process.

Summary

Although error 963 was popular around older versions of smartphones, it is still able to pop on newer generations of Android devices as well. Even if the name of an error is different, but symptoms remain the same, the methods listed above should still be helpful in the majority of similar issues. If you have anything else bombarding your smartphone or PC usage with errors, use our guide to find and resolve them immediately with precise and effective instructions.