If you already are an experienced iPhone user, you are probably used to seeing numerous icons in the Status Bar or upper right corner of your iPhone. There are icons for several settings and features, and the list of these icons includes a crescent moon symbol.
It can be very confusing, especially for people who are new to the use of an iPhone, which probably can make them wonder what it represents and how to remove it when necessary.
If you are one of those people, and that is precisely the question that has been on your mind, you have certainly come to the right address: this article will provide you with the answer. Let’s start with the basics.
What is the meaning behind the crescent moon icon?
Some of the users believe the half-moon showing on their device to be a glitch. But in reality, the icon has a certain purpose.
In some cases, there is the crescent moon icon clinging to the Status Bar, and in other ones, you will notice the symbol being displayed near an iPhone text message in the text message conversations. And depending on its location, it can indicate different things.
On the Status Bar
During activated “Do Not Disturb” mode, you can notice the half-moon on iPhone Status Bar. You won’t be receiving iPhone notifications in this scenario. Phone calls will be immediately forwarded to voicemail. Text messages will continue to appear, but they won’t be popping up on your screen and won’t be accompanied by any kind of notification.
Moreover, no other app will pass alarms and notifications as well. Thus, there won’t be anything to bother you in cases you don’t want to be disturbed, for example, during your work, your rest, or at night.
On text messages
The half-moon icon on the text messages reveals that the conversation has been put on mute. There will be no alarms or sound notifications accompanying a message arriving until you change the mode. In this case, there are two colors that the half moon appears on your screen in.
Gray crescent moon icon: in case you see the gray half-moon icon, it shows that your text messages have been neither viewed nor opened.
Blue crescent moon icon: in case the half-moon near the contact name is blue, it shows that your text messages were both opened and read.
Methods to make the crescent moon disappear
Since the crescent icon can appear in only several parts of the iPhone, we will go over several situations and methods to remove the crescent moon on iPhone screen that you can try.
Situation 1: the crescent moon icon on your home screen
In case you notice the crescent moon icon on the home screen and intend to get rid of it, there are a couple of techniques you can implement.
Control Center
One of the best and easiest ways to deactivate DND mode and thus remove the half-moon icon is with the use of the Control Center.
After your iPhone has been unlocked, slide down to open the Control Center. Choose the half-moon icon from the list of choices. Click on it, and “Do Not Disturb” mode can thus be deactivated. Check the icon’s color to make sure the “Do Not Disturb” mode has been correctly disabled.
Settings Panel
There is no need for concern if, for some reason, you find accessing the Control Center a little challenging. You can always do it via the Settings panel.
As soon as your iPhone is unlocked, click on the Settings icon. Select Focus mode and activate or deactivate the “Do Not Disturb” mode.
Situation 2: the crescent moon icon near your text messages
Find the Messages app icon. Choose the message conversation that you would like to unmute. Tap on the name of your contact at the top of the discussion thread.
Find the “Details” (“info”) button in the upper right corner of the text message thread, which is a circle. Click on it. Afterward, you will be directed to the “Details” screen. After having opened it, you can deactivate the “Hide Alerts” button.
In the latest versions of iOS, a crossed-out bell icon is used instead of the half-moon. Here’s how you can dispose of it on the latest iOS versions.
First, go to the messaging app. Swipe left on the conversation that you are planning to unmute. After pressing the bell that has appeared, the particular text message conversation becomes unmuted.
Hide Alerts and DND: are they similar?
The functions of the “Do Not Disturb” and “Hide Alerts” features are nearly identical. Current iOS versions and the company’s operating system now refer to the “Do Not Disturb” setting as “Hide Alerts”. The language has been changed to make it clearer and easier for users to comprehend the goal of this feature.
Users now find it simpler to enable or disable this feature thanks to iOS upgrades. Simply slide the chat to the left and hit the Hide Alerts icon to enable Hidden Alerts. The same procedures must be followed again, and the same button must be tapped to turn it off.
“Do Not Disturb”: how is it useful?
If you are wondering why the iPhones have this feature in the first place and why it is worth using, we can provide a valid answer.
You may activate the “Do Not Disturb” mode for a variety of reasons. If you tend to receive fresh SMS frequently and right now are eager to get time for yourself or your work, you can use this feature and spend some time in peace.
In case you are part of a group chat, and you grew tired of your phone buzzing constantly, you can turn on “Do Not Disturb” in the “Scheduled” option by specifying the time you like for the mode to automatically turn on and off. You can easily choose locations, create exceptions, apply DND as you see fit, and pick quiet hours.
With a scheduled DND mode, the iPhone half-moon icon will be visible just in the hours you selected. Follow the instructions below on how to schedule DND mode.
- Open Settings, find Focus mode and tap it.
- Choose the “Do Not Disturb” button.
- Go to “Add Schedule or Automation”.
- Choose the time and location from the screen that is most suitable for you.
- Click the Done button to finish.
Read the additional step-by-step guide in the article “How To Remove the Moon on iPhone“.
FAQ
Why is there a crescent moon on my iPhone?
If you find a half moon on iPhone screen, it is clear that the “Do Not Disturb” mode has been turned on. In this scenario, the phone restricts the sending of any form of notification.
The text messages will continue to appear in your inbox anyway, but there won’t be any sound or notifications. In addition to the typical messaging and calling features, the other applications will no longer be able to pass alarms.
In the situation when you notice a half moon on iPhone text messages, it serves as a visual cue that the discussion was muted, whether purposefully or not. Consequently, you won’t hear when a text message arrives.
How do I get rid of the half-moon next to someone’s name?
Open Messages app. Choose the chat where you see a crescent moon next to it. Click the circle-shaped “Details” button that can be found in the top right corner of the message thread. You will be taken to the “Details” screen, and there, you can disable the DND mode.
On the latest versions of iOS, tap on the name of the contact at the top of the particular conversation thread. An options panel will show when you press the “info” button. Then, switch the “Hide Alerts” button to the “Off” position.
The newer iOS versions begin to use a crossed-out bell icon instead of the moon symbol. The “Hide Alerts” feature for particular iPhone text message conversations is enabled with this icon as well, which shows that with the replacement of the icon, its purpose hasn’t changed.
How do I get rid of the half-moon symbol?
There are two methods you can try to use to get the half-moon on iPhone removed, depending on where the icon is located.
In case you see a half moon in the upper area of your screen, that means that you have enabled the “Do Not Disturb” feature. Here are the steps you need to complete to disable it.
There is a “Focus” mode option in the iPhone Settings app, which you may access by opening it. You will see several settings that allow you to muffle calls, disable notifications, and just minimize disruptions if you are engaged in personal or professional activities and don’t want to be bothered. There, you may also deactivate the DND completely.
The second method requires the use of the Control Center. A crescent moon will show up on the iPhone Status Bar at the top of the screen if you tap the moon to enter DND mode. If you tap the symbol again, it will vanish from the top of the screen.
If you see a crossed-out bell icon or a half-moon on iPhone text messages, it means that the Hide Alerts setting for that text messages discussion has been enabled. Here’s how you can change it.
Open the Messages app. To mute a text messages discussion that has a crossed-out bell icon, a half moon, or both, simply swipe left on the chat. Tap the bell symbol to add or remove the moon from the text message chat.
You might also enter the text message conversation by choosing its name at the top of the screen. Then select the info option, and turn on or off the Hide Alerts option.
Conclusion
Even the most experienced iPhone users sometimes are unaware of the meaning of the half-moon icon appearing on the screen of their iPhones.
This can only indicate that either the DND feature is activated, or if the symbol is seen next to a text message, that notifications for this particular conversation have been muted.
You will know you have the Do Not Disturb feature activated if you see a half-moon or crescent-moon icon on your iPhone’s Status Bar. This mode applies to your entire iPhone, whereas a symbol near a text chat means only this specific conversation is put on mute. There will be no alerts or notifications for you while you are in this mode.
Depending on which one of these situations reflects yours, there are different ways to get rid of this icon. And, thankfully, they are quite simple and can be done in a matter of seconds. We hope that this article has helped you to do so!
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