Hello everyone,
I'm developing an app for iOS 18 using SwiftData, with iCloud synchronization enabled. My app also includes an interactive widget that allows users to mark tasks as complete, similar to Apple's Reminders widget.
I'm facing a specific issue with how iCloud sync is triggered when changes are made from the widget.
My Setup:
- Xcode 16
- Swift 6 / iOS 18
- SwiftData with iCloud Sync enabled.
- An interactive widget using App Intents to modify the SwiftData model.
What's working correctly:
- App to Widget (Same Device): If I mark a task as complete in the main app, the widget on the same device updates instantly.
- Widget to App (Same Device): If I mark a task as complete using the interactive widget, the main app on the same device reflects this change immediately.
- App to App (Across Devices): If I make a change in the app on my iPhone, it syncs correctly via iCloud and appears in the app on my iPad.
The Problem:
The synchronization issue occurs specifically when an action is initiated from the widget and needs to be reflected on other devices, or when a change from another device needs to be reflected in the widget.
- Widget Change Not Syncing to Other Devices: If I mark a task as complete in the widget on my iPhone, the change does not sync to my iPad. The task on the iPad only updates after I manually open the main app on the iPhone.
- Remote Change Not Syncing to Widget: Similarly, if I mark a task as complete in the app on my iPad, the widget on my iPhone does not update to show this change. The widget only refreshes with the correct state after I open the main app on the iPhone.
It seems that the widget's AppIntent correctly modifies the local SwiftData store, but this action isn't triggering the necessary background process to push the changes to iCloud. The sync only seems to happen when the main app, with its active ModelContainer, is brought to the foreground.
My goal is for any change made in the widget to be reflected across all of the user's devices in near real-time, without requiring them to launch the main app to initiate the sync.
Is there a specific API I need to call from my AppIntent to force a SwiftData sync, or a project capability I might be missing to allow the widget extension to trigger iCloud pushes?
Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!