“DeviceActivityMonitor”

i'm trying to shield and block apps on child device. i managed to block apps by creating a variable blockedApps : Set = Set() that contains a list of applications like Application(bundleIdentifier: com.apple.calculator) inside the intervalDidStart on my DeviceActivityMonitor extension now i'm trying to shield an app using the same extension and nothing happens. for this i used this code inside intervalDidStart: let calculatorApp = Application(bundleIdentifier: com.apple.calculator) var blockedApps : Set = Set() guard let token = calculatorApp.token else { return } blockedApps = [token] store.shield.applications = blockedApps and i cant tell what is the reason for this not working is there a token issue that is nil? does shielding requires a different app extension? does my app extension requires some additional configuration maybe a different NSExtensionPointIdentifier?

I've successfully obtained Distribution entitlements for Family Controls. However, this seems to only apply to the main target/identifier and not the extensions, like DeviceActivityMonitor, ShieldConfigurationDataSource, or ShieldActionExtension. Did I perhaps fill out the form with the wrong bundle ID? If I go to Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles, my main identifier for the app has the Distribution entitlement. But the extensions and the wildcard don't. This means that trying to create an archive results in the following two errors, each repeated twice: Provisioning profile failed qualification (Profile doesn't support Family Controls (Development)) Provisioning profile failed qualification (Profile doesn't include the com.apple.developer.family-controls entitlement) Note that my entitlement files are set up correctly. Do I need to fill out the form with a wildcard instead? Or am I doing something wrong? Thank you.

Hi everyone, I’m developing a screen-time and focus app that uses Apple’s Family Controls framework to block distracting apps and reward users through a gamified experience. Apple approved Family Controls (Distribution) for the main app identifier, but they did not approve the required extension target (which implements DeviceActivityMonitor, required for the framework to function). Because of this, I can’t archive or upload the app to TestFlight — and I’ve been stuck in limbo for over 2 months. This is severely delaying my launch. The app works perfectly, but I can’t release it because the extension wasn’t included in the entitlement approval. Has anyone else run into this with Family Controls? Is there any known way to escalate or fast-track approval for additional app IDs or targets? Would really appreciate any help, advice, or hacks. 🙏 Thanks, Enzer

I use DeviceActivityCenter to monitor app usage. For DeviceActivityEvent, I set 30 events, and the threshold of each event increases by 2 minutes: var events: [DeviceActivityEvent.Name: DeviceActivityEvent] = [:] for index in 0..<30 { let threshold = (index == 29) ? DateComponents(hour: 1) : DateComponents(minute: (index + 1) * 2) let name = DeviceActivityEvent.Name((prefix)|(index)) events[name] = DeviceActivityEvent(applications: tokens, threshold: threshold) } After reaching the last DeviceActivityEvent, I will restart directly in DeviceActivityMonitor private func restartMonitoring(activity: DeviceActivityName) { let center = DeviceActivityCenter() let currentEvents = center.events(for: activity) do { try center.startMonitoring(activity, during: schedule, events: currentEvents) } catch { print(Fail: (error)) } } But I found that after restarting, DeviceActivityEvent will be automatically executed even if I don't use the app. My iOS version is 18.5

Hello! I'm trying to build an app that incorporates the screentime API using a DeviceActivityMonitor extension. I've found a couple public repo's accomplishing what I'm trying to make. When cloning, editing identifiers and app groups, I keep getting this error message when trying to execute the DeviceActivityMonitorExtension Error: Error Domain=UsageTrackingErrorDomain Code=101 Failed to fetch a usage budget UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=Failed to fetch a usage budget, NSLocalizedRecoverySuggestion=See Console for additional details.} In mac console it does not show further details, just the same error message lol. This happens on my app as well that was built from scratch under my own identifiers etc. It only occurs when trying to make a call to the extension. I believe my PLists and entitlements are properly setup but I still get this error. The screentime API has been out for a while now and I can't seem to find an answer to my question. I've been trying to battle this for weeks now does anyone

Hi everyone, I'm running into what appears to be a stuck Family Controls entitlement request and wanted to see if anyone has experienced something similar. Request ID: 9D7MU547QH The request is still showing a status of Submitted. Context: • Our main app bundle ID was already approved for the Family Controls entitlement. • Two related extensions (ShieldConfiguration and DeviceActivityMonitor) were also approved within a few days. • The remaining request is for a ShieldAction extension, which handles button taps from the shield UI. This entitlement is currently blocking our business's beta testing, so we’re trying to understand whether this is just normal queue delay or if the request might be stuck. Has anyone seen a case where the main app and other extensions were approved but a ShieldAction request remained in Submitted for an extended period? If an Apple engineer happens to see this, I’d greatly appreciate any guidance on whether the request might be stuck in the review queue. Thank you!

I was able to start the device activity monitor. I was able to see the Device Activity Monitor Extension as a process, and was able to attach to it via Xcode. Now I am trying block a specific 3rd party application, via the Shield. I am using this piece of code for intervalDidStart : override func intervalDidStart(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { NSLog(Interval started for Device Activity) let blockedApps : Set = [Application(bundleIdentifier: com.facebook.Facebook)] store.application.blockedApplications = blockedApps super.intervalDidStart(for: activity) } I've declared store in the DeviceActivityMonitor class as follows : let store = ManagedSettingsStore() This is the error I see in the Console: Error Domain=UsageTrackingErrorDomain Code=1 Something without a application-identifier entitlement tried to manage usage budgets UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=Something without a application-identifier entitlement tried to manage usage budgets} The above use case should work right? I should be able to

Hello! I am using the eventDidReachThreshold callback in the DeviceActivityMonitor in order to shield a target app after the user has spend x amount of time on it (e.g. x = 5 minutes). Many times this works fine, and I can trigger my shield after the specified threshold has been met. However sometimes, when they leave the target app before the threshold has been reached, the eventDidReachThreshold callback gets called randomly while they are doing something else on their phone (e.g. using a different app, on the Home Screen, phone locked…). From my perspective this does not make sense, since they are not actively spending time on the target app, and that time should not be counted towards the target app’s threshold. And it is also very confusing for the users because they will then find a blocked target app even though they haven’t used their time budget completely. This is not related to the intervalDidStart / intervalDidEnd callbacks, because they are not correlating with the timing of when the eve

I've asked several questions about DeviceActivity performance issues where the answers have cited limitations to the lifecycle of the DeviceActivity App Extensions. For example: Question about DeviceActivityReport lag and performance issues responded letting me know that my extension may be exceeding its memory limit of 100MB and subsequently getting terminated by the system. Question about async tasks in DeviceActivityMonitor responded letting me know that the monitor extensions lifecycle ends and is terminated by the system once all synchronous functions return, so it has no async support. I couldn't find either of these facts documented anywhere, and the DeviceActivity docs mention very little about how the extensions actually work. In general, it seems like these app extensions are basically a black box. Is there any additional comprehensive documentation about the true lifecycle of the app extensions, their limitations, and how apps should handle error cases (like the system terminating the app

I've been stuck on Guideline 2.3 for two weeks now and I'm running out of ideas. My app is iPhone-only (UIDeviceFamily = [1]) and has been on the App Store since January. Version 2.1.9 passed review fine. The only change in 2.1.10 is adding two DeviceActivity extensions — a DeviceActivityMonitor and a DeviceActivityReport — for screen time-based stress detection. Every build since then gets rejected with the same message: The UIRequiredDeviceCapabilities key in the Info.plist is set up in such a way that the app will not install on the device used in review. Review devices: iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPad Air M3. Here's what I've tried across 13+ submissions: UIRequiredDeviceCapabilities as [arm64] (array) — rejected Empty array [] — rejected Removed the key entirely — upload validation fails, Xcode re-injects arm64 anyway Post-build script to force [arm64] — rejected Dictionary format {arm64: true} — rejected Added com.apple.developer.family-controls to extension entitlements — rejected Enabl

Can the Screen Time API in iOS be used to block specific applications or application categories from getting launched? I went through the documentation here: https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/wwdc2022/110336/ and it indicates that we should be able to block certain app categories using the DeviceActivity and FamilyControl Framework. So, I created the following code snippet: class DeviceActivityMonitorExtension: DeviceActivityMonitor { let store = ManagedSettingsStore() override func intervalDidStart(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalDidStart(for: activity) NSLog(interval did start) let model = MyModel.shared let applications = model.selectionToDiscourage.applicationTokens store.shield.applications = applications.isEmpty ? nil : applications store.dateAndTime.requireAutomaticDateAndTime = true } And made a class model var selectionToDiscourage = FamilyActivitySelection() { willSet { NSLog (got here (newValue)) let applications = newValue.applicationTokens let categories = newValu

I'm building a cross-device parental-control app: separate child and parent devices in the same Family Sharing group. I want to show the child's per-app (and per-category) Screen Time usage on the parent device. After extensive testing I can only get the child's total minutes across, and I'd like to confirm the supported architecture before building further on a path the framework may intentionally forbid. Authorization / setup Child device: AuthorizationCenter.shared.requestAuthorization(for: .child) — approved. Confirmed authorized: my app appears under Settings → Screen Time on the child, and the child's own DeviceActivityReport(users: .all) renders full per-app data. Parent device: separate device in the same family. Targets: main app + DeviceActivityReport extension + DeviceActivityMonitor extension, all with com.apple.developer.family-controls and a shared App Group. Physical devices, iOS 26.4.1. Xcode ⟦version⟧. What works: only the child's total minutes reach the parent — and only via my own

I'm having trouble with my DeviceActivityMonitorExtension. The intervalDidStart function is not being called when the scheduler is created. Does anyone have an idea why this is? let schedule = DeviceActivitySchedule( intervalStart: DateComponents(hour: 15, minute: 23), intervalEnd: DateComponents(hour: 16, minute: 55), repeats: true ) class MySchedule { static public func setSchedule() { let center = DeviceActivityCenter() center.stopMonitoring([.daily]) do { try center.startMonitoring(.daily, during: schedule) } catch { print(Error monitoring schedule: , error) } } } class DeviceActivityMonitorExtension: DeviceActivityMonitor { override func intervalDidStart(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalDidStart(for: activity) SelectedApps.shared.setRestrictions() } private let _SelectedApps = SelectedApps() class SelectedApps: ObservableObject{ @Published var selection: FamilyActivitySelection let store = ManagedSettingsStore() init() { if let savedSelection = UserDefaults.standard.object(forKe

I have developed a Flutter application to lock selected apps using the Screen Time API (iOS). My app has been registered in Family Control and currently successfully executes app restrictions in both emulators and devices through TestFlight. I intend to incorporate a countdown timer feature to ensure that the app restriction function is activated when the timer stops (e.g 15 minutes after function called). However, the issue I'm facing is that on iOS, when the app goes into the background mode, all processes, including the countdown, halt, rendering the restriction function unusable. I have attempted various mechanisms, such as: DeviceActivityMonitor extension => Not triggered even though DeviceActivitySchedule is set. Cron => Stops when in background mode. Local notification => Only triggered when the user interacts with the notification, not automatically execute function in background Is there a solution to address this matter? Here is my snippet code, startAppRestrictions() is already wo

Hi, I’m using FamilyControls + DeviceActivity. Users select apps/categories/web domains via FamilyActivitySelection. I need to show today’s total usage for that selected group only, not the device’s full Screen Time. Setup: A visible DeviceActivityReport shows today’s per-app list with a daily DeviceActivityFilter for the selected tokens. This visible list is usually accurate and updates quickly. A separate hidden DeviceActivityReport uses the same filter to compute an aggregate total by summing app.totalActivityDuration in makeConfiguration(representing:). The extension sends that total to the main app via notify_set_state + Darwin notification. DeviceActivityMonitor is only used as a fallback. Problem: The visible app list stays current, but the aggregate total for the same selected apps sometimes lags by several minutes or updates only after new selected-app usage occurs. Sometimes the total appears temporarily frozen while the app list still looks correct. Questions: Is a hidden DeviceActivityRep