I'm building a parental-control app using FamilyControls, ManagedSettings and DeviceActivity. A guardian can lock a child's device from their own device, and the child's device applies the shield locally. The delivery problem: a background push can't wake our app once it has been force-quit, which is common on a child's device, so guardian-initiated changes sit undelivered until the child happens to open the app. I've found that DeviceActivityMonitorExtension still receives intervalDidStart / intervalDidEnd while the app is force-quit, and that a URLSession request started from the extension completes. So I could register a couple of short recurring DeviceActivitySchedule activities purely to wake the extension every ~15 minutes, check the server, and apply the resulting shield. My question: is using DeviceActivitySchedule purely as a wake mechanism — where the schedule doesn't correspond to any real usage-monitoring window — a supported use of the API, or is it working by accident? I'd rather not build on it if it's the latter. Two smaller ones, if anyone knows: Is network activity from the monitor extension expected to be given time to complete, and is there a documented execution budget? I've seen reports here that the extension stops being invoked after some days without the host app launching. Is that expected, and what re-arms it? If there's a supported mechanism for this that I've missed, I'd much rather use it.

Hi, I am developing a Screen Time App and I am having issues with the ShieldConfigurationExtension (ShieldConfigurationDataSource). I know this extensions is sandboxed but I should be able to read data from the main app. I am using SwiftData as my database, but I am unable to initialize it in the extensions with an error indicating insufficient file permissions. I have App Group set up and I am able to share data using UserDefaults but that is just inconvenient. Is there any way I could just open the SwiftData in read only mode so that I could display the user some info on the shield? SwiftData Init: private func setupContainer() throws { let schema = Schema([ DogEntity.self, HouseEntity.self ]) // Use app group container if available let config: ModelConfiguration if let containerURL = FileManager.default.containerURL( forSecurityApplicationGroupIdentifier: "group.\(Bundle.app.bundleIdentifier ?? "")" ) { config = ModelConfiguration(schema: schema, url: containerURL.appendingPathComponent("default.sqlite")) } else { config = ModelConfiguration(schema: schema) } self.container = try ModelContainer(for: schema, configurations: [config]) } Error in extension: fault: Attempt to add read-only file at path file:///private/var/mobile/Containers/Shared/AppGroup/51431199-5919-4AE6-940C-6FE3C53EEB46/default.sqlite read/write. Adding it read-only instead. This will be a hard error in the future; you must specify the NSReadOnlyPersistentStoreOption. error: (3) access permission denied error: Encountered exception error during prepareSQL for SQL string 'SELECT TBL_NAME FROM SQLITE_MASTER WHERE TBL_NAME = 'Z_METADATA'' : access permission denied with userInfo { NSFilePath = "/private/var/mobile/Containers/Shared/AppGroup/51431199-5919-4AE6-940C-6FE3C53EEB46/default.sqlite"; NSSQLiteErrorDomain = 3; } while checking table name from store: <NSSQLiteConnection: 0x154100300> error: Store failed to load. <NSPersistentStoreDescription: 0x15402d590> (type: SQLite, url: file:///private/var/mobile/Containers/Shared/AppGroup/51431199-5919-4AE6-940C-6FE3C53EEB46/default.sqlite) with error = Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 "The file “default.sqlite” couldn’t be opened." UserInfo={NSFilePath=/private/var/mobile/Containers/Shared/AppGroup/51431199-5919-4AE6-940C-6FE3C53EEB46/default.sqlite, NSSQLiteErrorDomain=3} with userInfo { NSFilePath = "/private/var/mobile/Containers/Shared/AppGroup/51431199-5919-4AE6-940C-6FE3C53EEB46/default.sqlite"; NSSQLiteErrorDomain = 3; } Any help appreciated 🙂

Hi there! My claim is that ManagedSettingsStore.TokenExpiryMessage API family doesn't work properly. I'm curious if that's only me, or others have also found it confusing, or non-working? I haven't found much public discussion about it, so this is the start of it. There are multiple confusing scenarios from my playing with it, but the simplest example is that ~30% of my apps NEW users get the ".tokensDidExpire" as soon as they approve Screen Time Permissions. Note that they haven't even seen the FamilyActivityPicker! FB23391495 is the feedback. Apple dev responded, but it didn't give confidence that my bug report was deemed correct (which can be fair!). However, it's current status is "Potential fix identified - For a future OS update," so maybe there is something to it. The API is likely quite difficult to get right, so I am happy to provide feedback on potential implementation so it's 100% solid.

We adopted the "com.apple.developer.family-controls.app-and-website-usage entitlement" to read usage through "DeviceActivityData.activityData(filteredBy:using:)" after "approvedWithDataAccess". It works as documented. We want to clarify the exclusivity issues. The consent sheet says, under "Limited Access", that Screen Time "will lose access to this data as only one app or service can access it at a time." On our test devices that is exactly what happens: after allowing, the Screen Time pane in Settings shows no new usage until the app is toggled off under Apps with Screen Time Access. Is this intended as permanent design, and is there any supported way for a third-party app and Apple's Screen Time to hold the data simultaneously?

Hi Apple Developer Support, I’m developing an iOS app that uses FamilyControls, ManagedSettings, and DeviceActivity. My app requests Screen Time authorization with: try await AuthorizationCenter.shared.requestAuthorization(for: .individual) Issue: On my development-installed build, AuthorizationCenter.shared.authorizationStatus becomes .approvedWithDataAccess, and the app can display usage data. However, after installing the App Store / App Store Connect distribution build, the same device and same flow returns .approved instead of .approvedWithDataAccess. As a result, the app only treats the authorization as management access, not usage-data access. App details: App name: App时记 Main bundle ID: com.qteqpid.appstop Device Activity Monitor extension: com.qteqpid.appstop.AppStopMonitorExtension Device Activity Report extension: com.qteqpid.appstop.AppStopReportExtension Version/build tested: 2.0 (4) Team ID: 5N6B48T57B What I verified: I exported an App Store Connect IPA from Xcode Organizer on September 3, 2026 and inspected the actual signed entitlements with codesign. The main app and both Screen Time extensions all include: com.apple.developer.family-controls = true com.apple.developer.family-controls.app-and-website-usage = true com.apple.security.application-groups = group.com.qteqpid.appstop get-task-allow = false The DistributionSummary.plist also shows Apple Distribution signing and App Store provisioning profiles for the main app and both extensions. Question: Given that the App Store Connect distribution IPA appears to contain the app-and-website-usage entitlement on the main app and both extensions, what conditions would cause AuthorizationCenter.shared.authorizationStatus to return .approved instead of .approvedWithDataAccess for an .individual authorization? Is there an additional distribution-side approval, App ID setting, provisioning support setting, device state, or Screen Time privacy limitation that can prevent .approvedWithDataAccess even when the signed entitlements are present? I would appreciate guidance on how to verify why data access is not granted in the App Store/TestFlight environment. Thank you.

Hello, I’m looking for some guidance regarding an App Store review that has been taking significantly longer than expected. Our app, SafeKnot, was originally submitted on August 20, 2026 at 20:24. Shortly after submission, we received an automated App Review message indicating two issues: The app uses Screen Time APIs and needed the Family Controls entitlement. The app offers auto-renewable subscriptions but the App Store metadata was missing a functional Terms of Use (EULA) link. We addressed both issues: The required Family Controls entitlement/configuration was completed. The Terms of Use information was added correctly. We then resubmitted the app for review. Since the resubmission, the app has remained in “In Review” status for several days, and we have not received any additional questions, rejection messages, or requests for information from App Review. We also contacted Apple Developer Program Support and received the following case number: Case ID: 20000149485605 Could an Apple engineer or App Review representative please advise whether the submission is still progressing normally, or whether there may be an issue preventing the review from proceeding? We do not want to cancel and resubmit the app unnecessarily, as it is already in the review process. Thank you very much for your help.

Hello, Apple Developer Technical Support directed me to the Developer Forums for clarification on the following Family Controls use case. DTS reference: Case-ID 21723677 I am evaluating an iOS app called “Zone” before beginning full development. I would like to determine whether the proposed architecture is considered permitted individual device management for focus and productivity, or prohibited use “in organizational settings” under Section 3.3.3(P) of the Apple Developer Program License Agreement. Proposed architecture: Zone is offered to companies as a workplace focus and productivity service. The app is installed on an adult employee’s personally owned iPhone. Participation and each Focus Session are voluntary. The employee independently requests Family Controls authorization using individual authorization. Only the employee can select the apps and websites to restrict. Only the employee can start or stop a Focus Session. During the session, Zone applies restrictions locally on that employee’s iPhone using Family Controls and Managed Settings. The employer cannot authorize or revoke Family Controls access. The employer cannot select restricted apps or websites. The employer cannot remotely start, stop, or schedule a Focus Session. The employer cannot remotely manage or control the employee’s device. Zone would not provide the employer with: Screen Time or Device Activity data App or website tokens App usage history Website browsing history Information about attempts to open restricted apps Location, messages, photos, or other personal device information However, Zone would include a company web dashboard. The dashboard would show only an app-generated boolean status for each participating employee: Zone ON: the employee has voluntarily started a Focus Session Zone OFF: the employee has not started a Focus Session This status is generated by the Zone app itself. It is not derived from Screen Time usage data and does not indicate whether the employee actually attempted to use any restricted app or website. My questions are: Would this architecture be considered permitted individual device management for focus and productivity, even though the service is offered through an employer and the employer can see the Zone ON/OFF status? Or would the employer relationship and company dashboard make this prohibited use of Family Controls “in organizational settings”? If sharing the app-generated ON/OFF status with the employer is incompatible with the Family Controls terms, would the use be permitted if Family Controls operated entirely on-device and no Focus Session status or device information were sent to the employer? Is there another Apple-supported framework or architecture recommended for this use case? I understand that final entitlement approval and App Review decisions may depend on the submitted application. I am seeking architectural guidance before investing in implementation. Thank you.

Hi there, Starting with iOS 26.2 RC, all my DeviceActivityMonitor.eventDidReachThreshold get activated immediately as I pick up my iPhone for the first time, two nights in a row. Feedback: FB21267341 There's always a chance something odd is happening to my device in particular (although I can't recall making any changes here and the debug logs point to the issue), but just getting this out there ASAP in case others are seeing this (or haven't tried!), and it's critical as this is the RC. DeviceActivityMonitor.eventDidReachThreshold issues also mentioned here: https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/793747; but I believe they are different and were potentially fixed in iOS 26.1, but it points to this part of the technology having issues and maybe someone from Apple has been tweaking it.

Our app — a screen-time / focus app — has had no App Review activity for two weeks, and we believe the trigger was an automated Guideline 2.5.1 check that froze an otherwise actively progressing review. (This forum account is linked to the developer account in question; we can provide the App ID, bundle IDs, submission IDs, and support case numbers through any private channel on request.) Context: Jul 2–5: Our first submission (Version 1.0.0) was under active review. We went through several ordinary metadata / paywall-related iterations, and the reviewer responded within roughly 24 hours each time. Nothing related to Screen Time was raised in these human reviews of builds 9 and 10. Jul 8: After we submitted build 11 — which addressed the remaining human-review feedback — we received an automated Guideline 2.5.1 (Performance: Software Requirements) message stating that the app uses the Screen Time API but has not been submitted with the Family Controls entitlement, and that review of the submission cannot proceed. All reviewer activity stopped at that point, and there has been none since. What we verified: The Family Controls (Distribution) entitlement is granted to our account and assigned to all four bundle IDs (the main app plus its DeviceActivityMonitor, ShieldAction, and ShieldConfiguration extensions). We verified with codesign that com.apple.developer.family-controls = true is present in the code signature and embedded provisioning profile of every one of the four executables in the submitted IPA — so the entitlement named in the automated message is present in the flagged build. For context: builds 9 and 10, with an identical Screen Time API surface and identical entitlements (verified at the binary level with nm against the submitted artifacts), had been human-reviewed on Jul 2–5 with no Screen Time-related objection. We recognize those builds may simply not have reached the automated analysis stage before being superseded, so we do not draw firm conclusions from that. What we did anyway (build 12, submitted Jul 9): In case the automated check actually concerns the separate com.apple.developer.family-controls.app-and-website-usage entitlement (which we do not request and do not need), we removed every reference from our main app to the APIs associated with it: AuthorizationStatus.approvedWithDataAccess, ManagedSettings.Application.bundleIdentifier, ManagedSettings.Application.localizedDisplayName, ManagedSettings.ActivityCategory.localizedDisplayName, and ManagedSettings.WebDomain.domain. We verified with nm that none of the four executables in the build 12 IPA reference these APIs. The app does not use FamilyActivityData, DeviceActivityReport, app usage events, web usage events, or App and Website Usage data access. No automated message has appeared for build 12. What has happened since: Jul 9–14: No reviewer activity on build 12. We filed an expedited review request and opened two Developer Support cases (Jul 8 and Jul 14). No response to any of them. Around Jul 15: Hoping to clear the frozen state, we cancelled and resubmitted the same Version 1.0.0 / build 12. Around Jul 17: Filed a second expedited review request for the new submission. Jul 22 (today): The new submission has been in "Waiting for Review" since Jul 15, with no reviewer activity and no reply to either support case or either expedite request. What we are asking: Could someone check whether the Jul 8 automated flag is still attached to the app record and blocking reviewer assignment, and help get the current submission assigned to a reviewer? If the automated check flags build 12 again, could the message specify which entitlement and which binary / API references triggered it, so we can address it precisely? We can provide codesign output, entitlement plists, provisioning profile dumps, and nm symbol listings on request. Thank you.

With the declining literacy rates I think it would be incredibly valuable for apple to implement a separate keyboard experience for minors. One without auto or predictive text, swipe to text, or even potentially also voice memos. These are all very convenient features that I think could unfortunately contribute or even enable the literacy crisis as more and more children grow up and rely on technology. I also think bringing back the ‘look up’ tool on highlighted text into the main options would support and encourage more education (or even adding a thesaurus option as well) From: A Gen Z adult who grew up learning how to spell at the same time I learned how to text. Without relying on all of the convenience features that in turn can remove the mental friction that learning to fix your mistakes provides, my iPhone was teaching me how to spell with simple red lines that required me to interact with my spelling in order to correct my mistakes. Note: Autocorrect was still a feature at the time however was often turned off by most people because of text slang culture which coincidentally helped create more intentional spell check interactions. I believe the decision to turn off autocorrect should be considered a more conscious responsibility so it should not necessarily be left up to a child to decide for themselves.

I am the developer of a screen time awareness app currently on the App Store. It uses the Family Controls and DeviceActivity frameworks, with the distribution entitlement approved, to show users their own cumulative screen time since install. All tracking today is fully on-device and nothing leaves the user's phone. I am planning an optional social feature and I want to confirm Apple's position before building it, because I want to stay clearly within the Developer Program License Agreement, specifically Section 3.3.3(P) regarding data received through the Family Controls framework. Here is how the feature would work: The app monitors the user's own device activity via DeviceActivityMonitor threshold events. This is the same mechanism the app already uses for its on-device counter. On-device, that counter is converted into an abstracted, gamified score. The score is not expressed in hours, minutes, or any unit of time, and the app never displays it as time. If, and only if, the user opts in to the feature, the app uploads a self-chosen username, the date the user's count began, and the user's abstracted score values to my backend. Score values may be computed over different time windows, for example a lifetime score alongside daily, weekly, or monthly scores, but they are all the same abstraction: no raw time totals, no per-app or per-category data, no contacts, and no identifiers beyond what the account itself requires. Friends who have mutually opted in see each other's usernames and scores on a leaderboard. The app never displays another person's screen time, and no time values are stored server-side. The feature is off by default, data is encrypted in transit and at rest, and users can delete their account and all associated data from within the app at any time. The privacy policy will disclose all of this. My question: does transmitting this opt-in, abstracted score, derived on-device from DeviceActivity threshold events, comply with DPLA Section 3.3.3(P) and the intended use of the Family Controls framework? If this specific design is not acceptable, is there any form of opt-in social comparison feature that would be, and what constraints would it need to satisfy? I am aware of earlier threads here where sending screen time data off-device was flagged as non-conforming, which is exactly why I am asking before writing any code rather than after. I would rather design this correctly from the start than risk a rejection later. Thank you for your time. Happy to provide any additional detail about the design.

I'm building a consumer iOS app that helps users be more intentional about opening distracting apps. It never hard-blocks; it only nudges. I have Family Controls (Distribution) approved and a working TestFlight build using FamilyControls / DeviceActivity / ManagedSettings. I've confirmed from testing and the forums that: ShieldActionResponse is only .none / .defer / .close (no supported way to open my main app from the shield extension — threads 719905, 793060). ShieldConfiguration is a static snapshot (no countdown/animation; FB14237883). DeviceActivityMonitor events are threshold/schedule based and cannot hook "the app was just opened," and on iOS 26 eventDidReachThreshold fires immediately/incorrectly (thread 808470). I'd like to confirm the supported approaches for these UX patterns (each = every-app-open vs on-a-schedule): On app open, present my own full-screen UI (a brief non-blocking "pause") without requiring the user to manually create a Shortcuts personal automation. Is there any supported API for this, or is a user-created Shortcuts automation the officially recommended path? On app open, deliver a local notification (rather than UI) — supported only via a user-created Shortcuts automation, or is there another way? On a schedule / at fixed intervals, automatically bring my app's UI to the foreground (e.g., re-show a screen every N minutes) — I believe this is not allowed (apps can't self-foreground); can you confirm, and is a user-tapped notification the only path? On a schedule / at fixed intervals, send repeating local notifications while a usage limit is exceeded — given the iOS 26 eventDidReachThreshold regression, what's the recommended way to reliably detect "over limit" and drive repeating reminders? Some third-party apps appear to open their main app from a shield/monitor context. Is there any supported mechanism enabling that which I may have missed? I'd rather build on a supported path than risk anything review-sensitive. Guidance (or where to file an enhancement request) is appreciated. Thank you.

Hi everyone, I am currently working on a specialized analytics and time-tracking application, and I am trying to find a reliable way to detect which app the user currently has open in the foreground in real-time. On Android, this is typically handled via Accessibility Services or UsageStats, but I am well aware of iOS’s strict sandboxing rules and privacy protections. So far, I have researched and tested a few workarounds, but none perfectly fit the use case: Screen Time API (FamilyControls / DeviceActivity): This is fantastic for blocking apps or getting daily aggregate usage, but it does not provide real-time callbacks or the bundle ID of the app currently on the screen. MDM (Mobile Device Management): Requires enterprise enrollment and wiping the device, which isn't feasible for a consumer-facing app. ReplayKit (Broadcast Extension): We are currently utilizing RPBroadcastSampleHandler to screen record the device and using OCR and Core ML to visually identify the app (e.g., detecting the YouTube UI). However, this is incredibly resource-intensive and pushes the 50MB Jetsam limit for extensions. My Question: Is there any official API, restricted entitlement, or system notification (like NSWorkspace.shared.frontmostApplication on macOS) that allows a background process to simply read the bundleID of the active foreground app on iOS? If not, is ReplayKit combined with OCR or Machine Learning truly the only way to detect what app a user is actively viewing on iOS without a jailbreak? Thank you in advance for any insights!

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 DeviceActivityReport a supported way to compute a selected-app aggregate total? Is makeConfiguration expected to run often enough for a near-live total? Why would the visible per-app report update while a hidden report with the same filter does not? What is the recommended architecture for a reliable, non-inflated today total for selected apps only? Thanks!

Hello, I am developing a parental control app using FamilyControls, DeviceActivity, and DeviceActivityReport. My current setup is: The child device requests FamilyControls authorization with .child The parent device requests FamilyControls authorization with .individual The parent app displays reports through a DeviceActivityReportExtension The report filter uses users: .children and devices: .all I would like to clarify two questions: Can a third-party app use the Screen Time API to retrieve or display screen time activity per child or per child device from the parent app? For example: Child A's total screen time today Child A's iPhone screen time today Child A's iPad screen time today At the moment, I can only display an aggregated report using users: .children and devices: .all. I do not see a public API for selecting a specific child or a specific child device. Is this a current limitation of the public Screen Time API, or is there a recommended approach to implement this? Can the Screen Time API report activity data for family members aged 14-17? Specifically, if a family member is between 14 and 17 years old and their device has completed .child authorization, can the parent app still display their Screen Time data using DeviceActivityReport(users: .children)? Or are there restrictions related to Apple ID age, Family Sharing, or Screen Time permissions that prevent third-party apps from retrieving or displaying activity data for users in this age range? My goal is to understand what third-party apps can implement in a compliant way using the public APIs, without attempting to bypass any system limitations. Thank you.

Hello, Quick clarification regarding age ratings: If a user is 17 years old and wants to download a 16+ app, is parental approval required? Or is parental consent only needed if the app’s rating does not match (or exceeds) the user’s actual age? Also, is this fully enforced by Apple, or is it up to developers how to implement these checks? Thanks!

Hello, I want to echo the DeviceActivityReport "concurrency" problems flagged in https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/720549, and ask a related question. (Thanks to Kmart and other Apple dev support folks who have been monitoring these forums and responding diligently.) I would like to display daily and weekly stats in the same view, broken down by specific apps (as in the native Screen Time). However, instantiating multiple DeviceActivityReport objects with different filters and/or different contexts leads to confusion, where the two views will incorrectly and intermittently swap data or duplicate data where it shouldn't (seemingly upon some interval when the extension provides fresh data). There isn't documentation on how to display multiple reports at once. Is the idea that logic for multiple reports should be embedded within the extension itself in the makeConfiguration() function and there should only be a single DeviceActivityReport in the main App, or is this a bug? Even with a single DeviceActivityReport, I run into inconsistencies where the View provided by the extension takes multiple seconds to load or fails to load altogether. The behavior seems random...I will build the application with the same code multiple times and see different behavior each time. Finally, a plug for better support in the Simulator for the entire set of Screen Time APIs. Thanks!

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 relay: a DeviceActivityMonitor extension on the child writes aggregate totals to the App Group, the host app syncs them through CloudKit. No Screen Time API itself delivers the child's app/category breakdown to the parent. ⸻ Finding 1 — the report extension computes correct per-app data but cannot export it. On the child, makeConfiguration(representing:) iterates the results and produces correct per-app durations: LumicoActivityReport makeConfiguration done — 1 activityData, 1 segments, 5 apps, 17 min total Writing those aggregates to the shared App Group from inside the extension is then denied by the sandbox: Couldn't write values for keys ("screen_time_per_app_json") in CFPrefsPlistSource (Domain: group.servusjon.Lumico.shared …): setting preferences outside an application's container requires user-preference-write or file-write-data sandbox access (UserDefaults.set doesn't throw — the write silently no-ops; only this CFPrefs log reveals the denial.) Q1: Is there any supported way to surface aggregated, non-identifying per-app usage (app name + minutes + category) computed inside the DeviceActivityReport extension to the host app, given that App Group writes from the extension are denied? Or is the DeviceActivityMonitor extension (threshold events) the only supported way to get any usage signal out of the Screen Time sandbox? Finding 2 — on the parent, users: .children shows the parent's OWN data. On the parent I embed DeviceActivityReport(_:filter:) with DeviceActivityFilter(users: .children, …). The report renders, but shows the parent's own apps/categories — no child data. FamilyActivityPicker on the parent behaves the same (lists the parent's own apps). The identical code on the child (users: .all) returns the child's full data — so the pipeline works; only the cross-device delivery to the parent fails. Q2: What is required for DeviceActivityReport(users: .children) to deliver a child's activity to a third-party app on the parent device? Must the parent app hold a specific FamilyControls authorization (which FamilyControlsMember)? What conditions make FamilyActivityPicker surface a child's apps (not just categories) from the family on the parent device — authorization type, Family Sharing roles, child managed status, sync timing? ⸻ Already ruled out: physical devices (not Simulator); Screen Time data present on the child; extension correctly embedded (ExtensionKit com.apple.deviceactivityui.report-extension) and running makeConfiguration normally; family-controls + App Group present on app and both extensions; iCloud container named conventionally iCloud.. Core question: What is the supported architecture for showing a child's per-app usage on a parent's device in a third-party app? I want to build on the sanctioned path rather than a workaround. Thanks!

Dear Developer Technical Support, I wanted to ask for technical advice regarding the DeviceActivityMonitor which is part of the DeviceActivity framework: The DeviceActivityMonitor has a very strict memory limit of 6MB. That’s not a lot and it doesn't leave a lot of room for any kind of code that accesses permanently stored data. I would therefore like to ask for advice on best-practices on how to share information between the main app and that extension: Is UserDefaults a good idea to use here? Can/should we use CoreData or SwiftData? Should we build super small file-based data sharing (e.g. via .plists)? Why is it necessary to share data? This can be simple things that inform the decision of the device activity monitor in intervalDidStart, intervalDidEnd, eventDidReachThreshold, eventWillReachThresholdWarning. For example a setting where the user decides if they want to receive a push notification on eventWillReachThresholdWarning. Or the list of tokens that is supposed to be blocked in eventDidReachThreshold or intervalDidStart. I’m asking because even though we are super careful and conservative about memory allocations in our DeviceActivityMonitor we are regularly seeing it being killed due to memory pressure. What’s the best way to approach this? I’m grateful for any kinds of hints! Thanks a lot and have a great day! – Frederik

Our app com.dalesidebottom.betterus (Team: TK8M23SECQ) cannot upload to App Store Connect. Build 28, v2.0.0 is rejected server-side with a 409 error for two new extension points in v2.0: • com.apple.ManagedSettings.ShieldConfigurationExtensionPoint — Error ID: 7624408a-f318-4b4f-a8b8-1c359923f560 • com.apple.deviceactivity.report-extension — Error ID: 51b40a9e-fc60-402d-9ba7-f29bfbfc84b5 The com.apple.developer.family-controls Distribution entitlement IS correctly in our Distribution provisioning profiles (resolved via case 102892887667). The rejection is not a provisioning issue — it is App Store Connect's submission validation layer rejecting these extension point identifiers because they are new in v2.0 (not present in our approved v1.0). Our com.apple.deviceactivity.monitor-extension passes fine as it was in v1.0. We need these two extension points authorised on the App Store Connect submission backend for this app. We have been waiting weeks and have case 102892887667 open with no resolution.