Spotify Desktop doesn't work properly after using Mobile app

[Forfen]

Plan

Premium

Country

Poland

Device

Desktop PC, Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro

Operating System

Android Oreo, Windows 11

My Question or Issue

Hi, I'm having this particular issue with Spotify Desktop for a couple of weeks now and I was unable to find any post about it.

I'm using Spotify Desktop and Mobile on a regular basis and the issue happens on the Desktop app from Microsoft Store.

When I'm using Spotify Desktop alone during the day then everything is working fine. Issues start when I'm using Spotify Mobile for example at work or outside while connected to a mobile network, then later I switch to Spotify Desktop at home. The app suddenly takes longer to load, starts randomly skipping through tracks, then stops at one. It allows me only to stop and play that current track, doesn't let me switch to any other track or change playlists or play anything else, there's no reaction to the buttons. Issues persist until I restart my computer, then the desktop app suddenly work fine.
If I use Spotify Desktop and Mobile apps in the same network (home wi-fi) then everything seems fine, maybe it's a Spotify Connect issue?
Tried different combinations of switching between Desktop, Mobile and Web apps and it's only the Desktop app that is having such issues. 
Clean reinstall of both Desktop and Mobile apps didn't help, Spotify Web seems to be completely unaffected and works properly.
I sometimes use VPN for remote work but I already ruled it out as I was able to properly use Spotify with VPN on before.
The issue appeared suddenly one day and persists since then so I assume it happened during some update.

I'll appreciate any help in figuring out what is happening.

[Forfen]

Just did another test today and did not use Spotify Mobile at all at work, waited to come back home and then launched Desktop app.
It had the same issues as before, long loading, skipping through random tracks then lack of response to any GUI buttons.
So it looks like Spotify Mobile is completely unrelated and it's all a Desktop app problem.

[Vasil]

Hey @Forfen,

Spotify should best not be used together with VPN services. 
The effects on the app cannot be predicted and we cannot guarantee there won't be any issues.

Would you mind turning your VPN off to see if that makes any difference?
If the issue persists after your switch it off, I'd suggest doing another clean reinstall (with VPN still disabled for the entirety of the process).
Note: If your currently installed version of Spotify is downloaded from our website, you can also try installing the one from the Microsoft app store instead 🙂

Keep us posted on how things go!

[Forfen]

Currently I am not using VPN with Spotify. The issue shows up regardless of it.
I already did a clean reinstall multiple times along with cache clearing, this didn't really help.
As I mentioned before I am using Spotify from Microsoft Store.

I will try to record a video of this issue the next time it shows up so I can show you what exactly happens.

[Forfen]

I've recorded a video of what happens when I turn on Desktop app fresh after Windows boot.
The tracks randomly skip, the app takes about 15 seconds to show the GUI and I can't switch to any other track or playlist.
The issue persists until I restart my PC and try to turn on Spotify again.

[Lyubka]

Hey @Forfen,

Thanks for getting back to us.

It sounds like you've tried a couple of things already, but let's try some more troubleshooting.

First off, open the Desktop App's Settings and turn off "Enable hardware acceleration". This setting is located under Compatibility then restart Spotify. After you toggle it off, the setting should look like this.

As a second step, we'd suggest that you disable any antivirus or ad-blocking software that might interfere with the app's performance on your PC. 

Lastly, it's worth checking your hosts files - steps for this can be found here.

In case the issue persists, we'd like you to try to reproduce this with a different account. If a family member has a Spotify account, ask them to log in on your device to see if the app behaves the same way.
 

Hope something here helps. Don't hesitate to reach out if you have further questions.

[Forfen]

Hey @Lyubka,
Tried running with hardware accelaration off and that didn't help.
I don't use any specific antivirus except for default Windows Defender. Turned off my firewall and antivirus protection, still didn't work.
My hosts file does not contain any keys related to Spotify or Fastly.
Tried using Spotify on my girlfriends laptop, she has a separate Premium Individual plan and her desktop app works 100% properly.

[Lyubka]

Hey @Forfen,

Thanks for keeping in touch.

In that case it's worth restarting your PC in Safe Mode with Networking to see if the issue would persist there. Safe mode basically allows only the core Windows programs to run, which would help us narrow down the probable cause for this, as it's possible that another program is interfering with Spotify. Head here to see how to do that.

If you're still experiencing this, would you mind downloading the App from the Spotify website to check if that makes any difference?

 Let us know how things work out, we'll be keeping an eye out for your reply 🙂

[Forfen]

Hey @Lyubka.
I started off my PC in Safe Mode with Networking and the Spotify Desktop app didn't even want to turn on. There was no reaction to the shortcut, exe file or any process starting in the task manager, the app just didn't want to start at all.

I've deleted the Microsoft Store version and downloaded the regular App from the website, I'll keep you posted if the issue shows up on the regular App as well.

UPDATE: The issue appeared on the App from the website as well, long loading, randomly skipping through tracks and no response to the GUI buttons. Same thing as on Microsoft Store version.

[Eni]

Hey @Forfen,

Thanks for getting back to us and letting us know. 

We understand you tried using your account on your girlfriend's laptop already, but we'd also like to know if she or another friend/relative could log in to their account on your desktop app to see if they can replicate this behavior on your device with their own account. This will help us narrow down if the issue is account-related. 

On another note, we'd recommend heading over to Settings > toggle on Show Local Files > toggle off all the sources that appear there > toggle off Show Local Files.

If this doesn't do the trick either, could you give a different internet connection a go to see if that makes the difference? You can try creating a hotspot on your phone and using that. 
 

Keep us posted on how it goes. 

[Forfen]

Hi @Eni.
I'v easked my girlfriend to log on her account on my PC and she had the same issues as I did on mine. We also tried the other way, I logged into my Spotify on her laptop and I could use her desktop app properly. So it can't be an account issue.

I've toggled off the Local Files, but that wouldn't change much as I don't have any local files imported into my desktop app.

I also tried switching internet connections, turned on a mobile network on my phone and made a hotspot so I connected my PC into it. No dice, the app still couldn't work properly on a different network.

As a reminder, the Web and Mobile apps are working 100% correctly, so it must be an issue with the Desktop app. I just wonder why it still doesn't want to work when I've clean reinstalled it a couple times already. It only starts to work after I restart my PC, then I can use it. The next day it stops working again and I have to restart again. It's like some default Windows time setting or process is stopping it from working properly.

[AlejaR]

Hey @Forfen,

Thanks for your reply and for all the info provided.

Since we couldn't replicate this issue on our end, we'd recommend keeping both your computer and the app up-to-date. It's quite a bit of troubleshooting we've been through, and we're at a point where the issue seems to be isolated to your computer. In that sense, it'd need help from Microsoft instead.

We're usually able to solve most common issues that the Spotify app might stumble upon due to some Windows settings, but this is turning out to be beyond our scope. In that sense, we recommend checking with Microsoft support for more detailed instructions and troubleshooting.

We appreciate your patience with this and all your cooperation. 

Keep us in the loop on this!

[Forfen · Accepted solution]

Hi, I have managed to find the cause of the issue.
The issues started 2 months ago, somewhere around I bought myself a new microphone Audio Technica AT2020+ USB.
As it turned out, apart from Spotify not working well, throughout this time it caused a lot of various unrelated Windows issues for me such as not being able to move tabs in Chrome, use the scroll wheel, select text in Visual Studio Code etc.
This specific microphone was the main cause of all these issues and relates to the Windows Power States where it stays in a "hibernate" state where the system context is turned off, but there's minimal power to the USB devices for fast-startup which shows up in LED lights staying on after turning off the PC. This explains why after restarting the PC the issues were temporarily gone.
I found a reddit thread with a comment specifically describing all of the issues I had. 
After unplugging and plugging the microphone back in, all of the issues were gone just like that. Either I'll have to do that every day, or change the ACPI settings in BIOS to not keep any power in devices while the PC gets turned off.

So it was not an issue with Spotify or Windows itself but rather with connected USB devices staying in a "hibernated" power state.