I'm developing a PHBackgroundResourceUploadExtension and finding it difficult to debug because the system controls when the extension launches.
Current experience:
- The extension starts at unpredictable times (anywhere from 1 minute to several hours after photos are added)
- By the time I attach the debugger, the upload may have already completed or failed
- Breakpoints in init() or early lifecycle methods are often missed
Questions:
- Is there a way to force-launch the extension during development (similar to how we can manually trigger Background App Refresh in Xcode)?
- Are there any launch arguments or environment variables that put the extension in a debug/eager mode?
I tried taking photos/videos, but this doesn't trigged app extension in all cases.
Any tips for improving the debug cycle would be greatly appreciated.
Environment: iOS 26, Xcode 18