We are using React Native and I am trying to check if an iOS URL can be opened before attempting to open it. I use Linking.canOpenURL followed by Linking.openURL for a mailto link. I have also added mailto to LSApplicationQueriesSchemes. When I test on a real device, behind the scenes Linking.canOpenURL returns true but Linking.openURL throws an error. However, what I'm seeing on the actual device is that a confirm dialog shows up that looks like:
Restore "Mail"?
You followed a link that requires the app "Mail", which is no longer on your iPod touch. You can restore it from the App Store.
Show in App Store
Cancel
Looking through the documentation, I see that open sets the success boolean to false and then Linking.openURL goes to this branch and then throws an error.
I'm guessing the reason canOpenURL returns true is because Mail is considered an Apple / system app and can be recovered. Is this the case for any Apple / system app when using canOpenURL? Is it safe to ignore errors thrown by React Native due to open returning false but canOpenURL returning true?