Will iOS region monitoring launch my app in the background if the user enters a region that was successfully being monitored for prior to the app being terminated?
I know that the significant change API will do so and will let me know at launch time via the inclusion of the UIApplicationLaunchOptionsLocationKey key. If region monitoring will wake my app up out of a terminated state too, then what does the launch process look like? Is there a special key I should be looking for?
Yes, see Region Monitoring
In iOS, regions associated with your app are tracked at all times,
including when your app is not running. If a region boundary is
crossed while an app is not running, that app is relaunched into the
background to handle the event. Similarly, if the app is suspended
when the event occurs, it is woken up and given a short amount of time
(around 10 seconds) to handle the event.
I have been searching for similar answer, but came across this: Region monitoring in ios 7
Seems like if the app is manually terminated by the user in iOS 7, location notifications will not wake the app to process it. Apple employee has commented here https://devforums.apple.com/thread/209302?tstart=0
Related
I apologise for the redundancy of this topic, but in spite all the given answers, I can't identify the possibility of getting accuracyBest location updates when the app is terminated.
I don't want to use monitoringSignificantChange, I want the best possible accuracy; I won't submit the app on the AppStore, so Apple restrictions are not a problem either.
I have gone through these:
-Location update even when app is killed/terminated
-iOS update location even when app is terminated
-Working with location updates when app is terminated
-http://mobileoop.com/getting-location-updates-for-ios-7-and-8-when-the-app-is-killedterminatedsuspended
and many more, but it is not clear whereas it's possible or not. I currently have my project, everything works great with significantChange but I now need better accuracy.
Could somebody tell me straight forward if getting best accuracy location update when app is killed is possible please ?
Thank you infinitely,
Looking at the below content from the Apple doc, you clearly have 2 alternatives against using significant location changes to wake a app from the background. I have marked in bold the services you can use to relaunch the app if it has been terminated.
Using Location Services in the Background Most location services are
meant to be used while your app is in the foreground but some can also
run in the background. In some cases, location events can even cause
your app to be relaunched to process an event. To run most location
services in the background, you need to enable the location updates
background mode in the Capabilities tab of your Xcode project. For
services that launch your app, you need to request (and be granted)
“Always” authorization from the user.
The standard location service delivers events normally while an app is
running in the foreground. When your app is in the background, this
service delivers events only when the location-updates background mode
is enabled for the app. This service does not relaunch iOS apps that
have been terminated.
The significant location change service delivers events normally
while an app is running in the foreground or background. For a
terminated iOS app, this service relaunches the app to deliver
events. Use of this service requires “Always” authorization from the
user.
The region monitoring service delivers events normally while an
app is running in the foreground or background. (You can use this
service for both geographic and beacon regions.) For a terminated
iOS app, this service relaunches the app to deliver events. Use of
this service requires “Always” authorization from the user.
Beacon ranging delivers events normally while an app is running in the
foreground. When your app is in the background, this service delivers
events only when the location-updates background mode is enabled for
the app and the standard location service is running. (If the beacon
region’s notifyEntryStateOnDisplay property is YES, waking the device
causes the app to range for beacons for a few seconds in the
background.) This service does not relaunch iOS apps that have been
terminated; however, you can be relaunched by monitoring beacon
regions using the region monitoring service.
The heading service delivers events normally while an iOS app is
running in the foreground. When your app is in the background, this
service delivers events only when the location-updates background mode
is enabled for the app and the standard location service is running.
This service does not relaunch iOS apps that have been terminated.
The visit service delivers events normally while an iOS app is
running in the foreground. When your app is in the background, this
service delivers events only when the location-updates background mode
is enabled for the app and the standard location service is running.
For a terminated iOS app, this service relaunches the app to deliver events. Use of this service requires “Always” authorization from the
user.
Enabling the location-updates background mode ensures that an app
continues to receive location events while in the background. When the
app moves to the background, the system adds the location-services
indicator to the status bar to let the user know that an app is using
location services. The system may still terminate the app at any time
to reclaim its memory or other resources.
Also from the doc,
Getting the Visited Locations
In iOS, the visits service provides an alternative to the significant location change service for apps that need location
information about interesting places that the user visited. For
example, if the user is in one location for an extended period of
time, the service might generate an event when the user arrives at
that location and another when the user leaves that location. The
service is intended for apps that might already be using the
significant location change service and want an even lower power way
to do so. You would not use this service to create navigation apps or
apps that rely on regular location updates.
Document Link:
https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/documentation/CoreLocation/Reference/CLLocationManager_Class/index.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40007125-CH3-SW73
Continuous location updates stop when your app is terminated.
Geo-fence notices will re-launch your app even if it's not running. I think a significant location change will also relaunch you're app but I'm not as sure about that.
Once you're relaunched you can start location updates again with the accuracy set to best like you want, but I think you're going to need to use one of those two APIs to get relaunched again after you've been terminated.
I'm wondering if, in iOS8 with all possible background-modes turned on, the app will be woken up after termination to deliver location updates using the standard-location updates monitoring?
I've read all possible documentations, but I find it quite confusing because it at one point says the device will wake up the app, and at another point is says the device will not wake up the app when using standard-location updates.
My app needs continuous location updates with a movement-threshold of about 150 meters (max), and therefore the standard-location-monitoring seems appropriate. It also needs to keep getting these updates even if the app is terminated by the system, as it is crucial to the user.
I've come to understand that if using the significant change location monitoring the app will be woken up upon delivery of new data, but I'm still confused about the standard location monitoring when having requested Always authorization and having the background updates for location turned on.
Have anyone tested this, or know what happens? And if the app is not woken up after being terminated by the system, how can I solve that problem?
Thanks.
Standard location is something your app does. Thus your app needs to be running. It can operate in the foreground or you can even run in the background. But if your app is not running, it's not running; there is nothing to track.
Significant location monitoring and region monitoring, on the other hand, are done for you by the system, so it runs even if your app is not running, and you are woken up or launched to receive updates.
From http://blog.venmo.com/hf2t3h4x98p5e13z82pl8j66ngcmry/2014/7/8/introducing-background-nearby-with-ibeacons, they suggest that they were able to forcibly bring app into the foreground:
"Whenever a device enters a beacon region, it briefly launches the Venmo app into the foreground in order to broadcast its peer identifier over the MPC framework, thus establishing a Nearby connection. In other words, whenever our users open Venmo to pay or charge the people they are around, they can instantly emit a beacon signal that momentarily wakes up their friends’ devices to connect and populate the user's Nearby drawer."
Every post on here about this suggests this isn't possible. Can someone explain?
I suspect that "foreground" is a simplification and that Venmo actually takes advantage of the iOS location background capabilities (the iOS location background mode is also applicable to iBeacon); meaning the app doesn't actually enter the foreground, but is launched into the background to complete the necessary tasks even if the app has been terminated.
Here's a bit of info from the docs about iBeacon background usage: https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/documentation/iPhone/Conceptual/iPhoneOSProgrammingGuide/BackgroundExecution/BackgroundExecution.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40007072-CH4-SW7
I am creating an application that sends updated location to server regardless of app state. I have tried silent push to wake my application in background but it didnt work (it works fine except if my app is killed by user from app switcher). I am using location manager for getting current location.
Does IOS7 provides this feature to launch your application in background (even if app is killed by user from app switcher)??
I have spent five days without any success on this. If anyone can help me that would be highly appreciable.
Thanks in advance!!
If you need precise GPS locations you can set add the "location" value to the UIBackgroundModes array in your Info.plist as described in "UIBackgroundModes location and significant location changes with region monitoring". If you need only approximate locations you can use the startMonitoringSignificantLocationChanges method of CLLocationManager. As it is written in the documentation: "If you start this service and your application is subsequently terminated, the system automatically relaunches the application into the background if a new event arrives."
You can wake your app by using significantlocationchange.
You have to start significant location change while you switch your app to background.
Then system will wake your app after significant location change.
The frequency is not faster than 5 min and for every 500 meters.
You will have to catch the event by checking for LocationKey in didFinishLaunchingWithOptions in projects AppDelegate.
Will iOS region monitoring launch my app in the background if the user enters a region that was successfully being monitored for prior to the app being terminated?
I know that the significant change API will do so and will let me know at launch time via the inclusion of the UIApplicationLaunchOptionsLocationKey key. If region monitoring will wake my app up out of a terminated state too, then what does the launch process look like? Is there a special key I should be looking for?
Yes, see Region Monitoring
In iOS, regions associated with your app are tracked at all times,
including when your app is not running. If a region boundary is
crossed while an app is not running, that app is relaunched into the
background to handle the event. Similarly, if the app is suspended
when the event occurs, it is woken up and given a short amount of time
(around 10 seconds) to handle the event.
I have been searching for similar answer, but came across this: Region monitoring in ios 7
Seems like if the app is manually terminated by the user in iOS 7, location notifications will not wake the app to process it. Apple employee has commented here https://devforums.apple.com/thread/209302?tstart=0