iOS 18 open settings URLs

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Created 3d

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A lot of apps use undocumented App-prefs URLs to help users get to the iOS Settings screen needed to set up the app. In iOS 18, it seems like these all stopped working.

Here are the ones I currently use:

App-prefs:MESSAGES - broken in iOS 18

Used for SMS Protection.

App-prefs:Phone - broken in iOS 18

Used for Live Voicemail, Silence Unknown Callers, and SMS Reporting.

Some but not most paths have specific documented replacements. E.g. for Call Blocking & Identification you can use CXCallDirectoryManager.sharedInstance.openSettings() and this still works in iOS 18. But I don't see any other direct replacements.

Apple probably doesn't consider this a bug but I filed FB14378568 anyway.

I consider this an accessibility issue because many older, inexperienced, or users with disabilities have trouble finding the right Settings screen based on a textual description alone.

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Answer 1

Scott OP

3d

Apple probably doesn't consider this a bug but I filed FB14378568 anyway.

Did you frame it as a bug report, or as a feature suggestion?

It’s definitely not a bug, since of course an “undocumented API” is no API at all. But lots of developers probably would concur with a suggestion to add proper APIs for these examples and others. You could call for others to submit their own suggestion feedback and reference your FB number.

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Answer 2

mungbeans OP

3d

I filed a feature suggestion years ago, FB12745207. It remains open to this day. I know that similar feature requests have been filed by large well know companies.

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