Nowadays, we live in a world where online channels are the most preferred, basic, and easiest form of communication. There are many different platforms to use; moreover, there are many different ways to communicate, from voice and video calls to voice and text messages. However, texting certainly stands out as the fastest and the most popular form of online communication. Nevertheless, despite being practical and fast, lots of text messages may create disorder and chaos in a message box since it is the most preferred way of online communication, as aforementioned. Luckily, it is easy to prevent your message box from being a chaotic environment just by following some easy steps. In this article, we’ll talk about archived threads on Facebook, briefly mentioning their purposes, pros, cons, and how to use them.
Differences Between Archiving, Deleting, and Ignoring Messages
First, before going into the details of archived messages on Facebook, let’s briefly explore the differences between archiving, deleting, and ignoring messages.
Archiving messages is a way to save messages in the message box. It’s mostly used to keep important messages you want to refer back to later. For example, if you do not regularly text with a person but still chat occasionally, you can archive your messages to avoid chaos in your message box. Of course, there are other reasons to archive your threads as well. You might just want to keep the conversation for any reason, and you can think of archiving as an equivalent to putting a pile of letters in a drawer, just to keep them safely in case you could need or re-read them later on. Namely, archived threads on Facebook are a way of keeping your messages in a pocket, which is just one click away!
On the other hand, deleting messages is a way of getting rid of messages for good. In other words, if archiving is equal to putting a pile of letters in a drawer, deleting messages is the equivalent of tearing up the papers and putting them in a trash bin, only to lose them forever. Both methods make the threads disappear from your message box, while the first method transports them into another box until you decide to return them. Some users prefer keeping all the messages; however, it could be useful to regularly delete unnecessary or spam messages to keep your message box tidy and ordered to avoid clutter.
Step-by-Step Guide: How to Archive Messages on Facebook
Now that we know the difference between archiving, deleting, and ignoring messages on Facebook, let’s see how archived messages work.
Archive Messages on Facebook Web
To archive a conversation, you just need to follow some easy steps:
- From the “home” symbol, click Messenger in the menu on the left.
- Select the conversation you want to archive on the left sidebar and remove your cursor on top of the conversation.
- When your cursor is on the conversation, three dots will appear. Click on these dots and then select “archive chat.”
Archive Messages on the Facebook App
If you are already using Facebook Messenger, chances are you are likely to use the mobile app even more frequently than the desktop version. The good news is archived threads on Facebook are even more practical in the mobile app:
- Open the application and then tap on the “Messenger” button.
- Choose a conversation to archive.
- Swipe right the conversation.
- Tap on the archive button.
It’s just this simple! Now, the conversation is hidden from your chat list until the next time you want to bring it back. Facebook will preserve the conversation history, and you can reach the conversation anytime you want. Also, if that person sends you a new message, you can still see it as well, although it is archived because the conversation will automatically be brought back to your inbox.
As aforementioned, deleting messages is completely different from the archived threads on Facebook since there is no way of undeleting your messages. By deleting, you lose the conversation permanently from your chat box, unlike archiving. If you didn’t archive and delete the messages, check the three ways to retrieve deleted Facebook messages.
How to Retrieve Archived Messages on Facebook
We have briefly covered what is archiving and how to use it. So, how do we retrieve archived threads on Facebook when we want the conversation to be back on our chat list again?
It’s just as easy as archiving them; you just need to follow several steps:
- Open Facebook and sign in to your account first -if you haven’t already.
- Click on the “messenger” icon on the right upper bar.
- Click “see all in messenger” below your chat list.
- On the “chats” bar above, there is a dot symbol in a circle.
- After clicking on the dots icon, select “archived chats.”
- Once you click on “archived chats,” you’ll see all your archived threads on Facebook on the left pane.
- To retrieve an archived thread back to your inbox, you can simply reply to the message for Facebook to automatically bring it back to your chat list.
- However, if you do not want to reply but still want the conversation back in your inbox, you can hover your cursor over the conversation you want to retrieve to see the dots symbol.
- Click on the three dots symbol to see the “unarchive chat” option on the little pane that appears.
- Once you select “unarchive chat,” the conversation is returned to your inbox.
If you can’t see your messages archives, you should contact Facebook Support.
Managing Group Conversations: Archiving vs. Muting
Group conversations could be a fun way of interacting with lots of people at the same time. However, most of the time, group chats mean lots of messaging and ongoing conversation, which can distract you with constant notifications, especially if you are a part of various group conversations.
At this point, Facebook provides you with archived threads on Facebook or muting options to avoid chaos in your inbox.
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We have basically mentioned what is archived threads on Facebook and how you can archive a conversation. But what if you simply want to get zero notifications instead of removing a conversation from your chat list? It’s also possible, thanks to Facebook’s “muting” option. On Messenger, you can just choose to mute a conversation, which means you’ll keep getting new messages without any notification, and it is even possible to set a timer for this option. You can either permanently mute a conversation until you want to unmute it again or set a time limit for this option. Facebook will automatically unmute it for you once the time is up.
Pros and Cons of Using Facebook’s Message Archiving Feature
As we have covered so far, archived threads on Facebook are a great option to avoid clutter and disorder in your chat list, which is the most outstanding advantage of archiving. It helps you keep your inbox ordered and simple, especially when we live in a world where texting is the first thing that comes to mind among all other online communication options.
On the other hand, for example, if you tend to archive messages as a way of procrastination, thinking, “I’ll reply to it later on, let’s archive it for now so my inbox does not get messy with lots of conversations,” it might create a disadvantage depending on the situation. You might simply forget you received a message because it is out of sight. In other words, the chances are you are likely to forget it in your dusty drawer!
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Useful Option? Archived Threads on Facebook
As aforementioned, as a result of being the most preferred form of online communication, texting has its advantages and disadvantages. At this point, online platforms offer their defense mechanism against clutter and confusion in their users’ inboxes to keep the experience enjoyable and functional. Likewise, archived threads on Facebook are a useful option that Facebook offers its users, along with muting, ignoring, and deleting to boost the texting experience.
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