Android devices that have the Facebook Messenger app installed on their device might come across a package file named com.facebook.orca. The storage folder with this name consumes a significant portion of the internal storage in your device.
com.facebook.orca is the Android package name of the Facebook Messenger application which is an Instant Messaging app that allows users to send and receive chats, voice messages, voice calls, and video calls to other Messenger users.
In this article, we’ll provide some more details on com.facebook.orca, what is its purpose, how to recover deleted messages on Messenger from com.facebook.orca.
Page Contents
What is com.facebook.orca Used For?
com.facebook.orca is the package file of the Facebook Messenger app which contains the installable APK file and a data storage folder that stores all the data related to the Facebook Messenger app including your chats, contacts, images, videos, GIFs, cache files, cookies, plugins, downloaded emojis and other data files for your video calls, voice calls.
Since all this data from the Messenger app is stored in this folder, it occupies a lot of space in your internal storage or SD card. Deleting the folder doesn’t help because if you delete the folder, it will again reappear when you open the Messenger app on your device. So, deletion of com.facebook.orca data folder is temporary.
The com.facebook.orca is related to another package file called com.facebook.katana which is actually the package name of the Facebook app on Android devices.
Another package that is installed along with the Facebook app is com.facebook.appmanager whose function is to provide security updates and prevent app crashes of the Facebook app.
Is com.facebook.orca Safe or Is it a Virus/Malware?
com.facebook.orca is not a Virus or Malware that causes intentional harm to your device. It is a safe application that is required to use the Facebook Messenger app on your device.
This app doesn’t spy on your personal data. The storage folder of this package only stores data related to the Messenger app and it doesn’t interfere with other data stored in your device. So, it can be concluded that this app is not Spyware.
Is com.facebook.orca Important?
Yes, com.facebook.orca is an important application for those who have the Facebook Messenger app installed on their device.
Without com.facebook.orca you cannot use the Facebook Messenger app on your phone or tablet. This package contains the main APK file and the data storage file so it is required for the proper functioning of the app.
Even if you use Facebook from a web browser on your phone or tablet, Facebook won’t allow you to chat with others. They will instruct you to install the Messenger app for chatting with others.
This package is not required only for those users who use Facebook on their computer and don’t use it from their phone or tablet.
Why Does com.facebook.orca Consume So Much Space?
There have been several complaints that com.facebook.orca consumes a lot of storage space. One user reported that this folder took up around 1.1 GB of space on their device while another user found the folder consuming around 700 MB space.
The com.facebook.orca data folder consumes a lot of space because it contains the APK file which is around 50 MB and the data files including chats, images, videos, data related to voice calls, video calls, GIFs, emojis, cache files, and others which take up most of the space.
If you have a lot of images and videos shared in the Messenger app then the size of this folder will be larger. This is because the images and videos received are saved inside this folder.
How to Recover Deleted Facebook Messages Using com.facebook.orca?
There have been a lot of instances where we mistakenly deleted chat messages from the Messenger app and later found out that it was something important. If you want to recover deleted messages on Messenger then this guide will help you.
When you delete messages on Facebook Messenger, it is only removed from the app but the files are not deleted. The files are stored in an encrypted format inside the com.facebook.orca data storage folder. You can restore these deleted files whenever you want.
Below you will find the detailed steps of recovering deleted Facebook messages. The steps vary slightly with the device you are using. For mobile and tablets, the steps are the same but for computers the steps are different.
Recover Deleted Messages On Mobile or Tablet
Here are the steps to recover deleted Facebook messages on your smartphone or tablet.
- Open File Explorer app on your device. Don’t use third-party file explorer app, instead use the stock file manager app on your phone.
- Go to SD Card or Storage in the file explorer depending upon where is the data folder located. In most cases, the data storage folder will be located in the Internal Storage.
- Tap on the android folder and then tap on the data folder.
- Tap on the Applications folder.
- Locate the com.facebook.orca folder and then tap on it.
- Go to the cache folder and inside there you will will find fb_temp folder.
- Copy the fb_temp folder.
- Now, uninstall the Facebook Messenger app from your device by long pressing on the app icon and selecting Uninstall.
- Now, re-install Facebook Messenger from the Google Play Store.
- Once installation is complete, Do not login to the app.
- Now repeat the steps to visit the Cache folder by going to File > SD Card or Storage > android folder > data folder > application folder > com.facebook.orca > cache folder.
- Now, paste the fb_temp folder inside the cache folder.
- Open the Facebook Messenger application and Log in with your Facebook id and password.
You’ll find that all the deleted messages are back and you have successfully recovered all your deleted messages.
Recover Deleted Messages On Computer
Here are the steps to recover deleted Facebook messages on your computer including desktops and laptops for both Mac and Windows.
- Connect your tablet or mobile with your computer using a USB data cable.
- Go to This PC or My Computer in Windows or File explorer in Mac.
- Your device will show up and you have to double click on your device.
- Click on internal storage folder.
- Then, click on the android folder.
- Now, click on the data folder.
- Open the applications folder.
- Go to com.facebook.orca and double click on this folder.
- Open the Cache folder and Find fb_temp folder.
- Copy the fb_temp folder.
- Uninstall the Facebook Messenger app from your phone or tablet.
- Reinstall Facebook Messenger from Play Store but don’t login to the app.
- Repeat the steps to get back to cache folder from This PC or My computer > Internal Storage > android folder > data folder > application folder > com.facebook.orca > cache folder.
- Now, paste the fb_temp folder inside the cache folder in your computer.
- Open the Facebook Messenger application and Log in with your Facebook id and password.
All your deleted messages have been successfully recovered and you can view them inside the Messenger app.
The Application Manager Process com.facebook.orca Has Stopped Unexpectedly?
Sometimes, the com.facebook.orca process stops working suddenly and an error message pops up that reads “Unfortunately com.facebook.orca has stopped” or “com.facebook.orca has stopped working.”
Here are the reasons why this app might stop working:
1. Corrupted or Overloaded Cache Files – If the app cache isn’t cleared for a long time the cache files become corrupted. The cache file storage folder can store a limited number of files so when the size of the cache files becomes more than what could be stored, the cache files become overloaded which leads to these error messages.
2. No Free Memory Available – If there’s not enough free memory on your device then the app might stop working suddenly. It happens on devices with low RAM because the device cannot provide enough Free RAM for the app to work.
3. App Issue – These error messages could also occur if there is an internal app issue with the Facebook Messenger app.
4. Firmware issue – The app could also stop working if there are you’re using outdated Firmware or there are issues with your device’s Firmware. It may also happen if you’re using Custom Firmware instead of the Stock Firmware.
How to Fix com.facebook.orca Has Stopped Error?
You can fix the “com.facebook.orca” has stopped issue by using the following methods:
(1) Clear Messenger App Cache and Facebook App Cache
- Open Settings.
- Tap Apps.
- Find Facebook Messenger and tap on it.
- Tap Storage.
- Tap Clear Cache
- Tap Clear Data.
- Go back to Apps and tap on Facebook.
- Tap Storage
- Tap Clear Cache
- Tap Clear Data
(2) Force Stop Messenger app
- Open Settings.
- Tap Apps.
- Find Facebook Messenger and tap on it.
- Tap Force Stop.
(3) Uninstall Messenger and Reinstall it
If the error messages are occurring due to an internal app issue with the Messenger app then you should uninstall the app from your device and re-install it. This should hopefully fix the error messages.
(4) Factory Reset Your Device
A Factory Reset erases all the data from your phone and restores your phone to its original state. It can fix the annoying error messages popping up.
Before factory resetting your device, you should backup your data on Samsung Cloud or Google Drive. Once the backup is complete, follow the steps below to Factory Reset your Samsung Android device.
- Go to Settings.
- Tap General.
- Tap Reset.
- Tap Factory Data Reset.
- Tap Reset and you may need to enter your PIN or password.
- Tap Delete all and your phone will be reset.
(5) Flash Stock ROM(Firmware)
Flashing the Stock ROM(Firmware) reinstalls the system software on your device which can get rid of the app has stopped error messages.
You can flash the Stock Firmware using these two steps:
- Download the Stock Firmware files for your Samsung Android device from a Firmware file downloading website.
- Flash the downloaded Firmware files using a Firmware Flashing tool.
Samsung users can flash Stock ROM using the Samsung Odin flashing tool and other Android users should use the SPFlash tool. Once the stock Firmware is flashed your phone will have the old firmware installed and this will surely get rid of the error messages.
com.facebook.orca empty
The com.facebook.orca storage folder is empty when you’ve just installed the Messenger application. However, if you have been using the app for a while and you find that the folder is empty, it means that Messenger is not able to store the data files in here or it has created another duplicate folder inside internal storage or your SD card.
Normally, the com.facebook.orca empty folder shouldn’t be empty because it stores all the data files related to the Messenger app like chats, images, videos, etc.
Sometimes, even the com.facebook.orca cache may be empty because the Messenger app is not saving your cookies and cache files. This could happen if you cleared the cache files and data from Settings. This is not something to worry about because when you start using the Messenger app, the Cache files will be stored again inside the Cache folder.
com.facebook.orca/.auth.start screen activity
When you open the Facebook Messenger app and enter your login details, the Messenger app initializes a screen activity named com.facebook.orca/.auth.start which is used to authorize the login information.
This screen activity only starts when Messenger is authorizing your entered information to find out if it’s the correct information. If the information is legit, then you’ll be successfully logged in but if it’s incorrect then you won’t be logged in.
Can I Delete com.facebook.orca?
Yes, you can delete com.facebook.orca folder from your device but if you remove it then all the data related to the Facebook Messenger app including your chats, sent/received images, videos, audio files, GIFs, etc. will be also be deleted.
The next time when you open the Messenger app, it will create a new com.facebook.orca data folder but it won’t contain all the previously saved information. As you continue using it, the data folder will start filling up with new data.