General:
Forums subtopic: App & System Services > Networking
TN3151 Choosing the right networking API
Networking Overview document — Despite the fact that this is in the archive, this is still really useful.
TLS for App Developers forums post
Choosing a Network Debugging Tool documentation
WWDC 2019 Session 712 Advances in Networking, Part 1 — This explains the concept of constrained networking, which is Apple’s preferred solution to questions like How do I check whether I’m on Wi-Fi?
TN3135 Low-level networking on watchOS
TN3179 Understanding local network privacy
Adapt to changing network conditions tech talk
Understanding Also-Ran Connections forums post
Extra-ordinary Networking forums post
Foundation networking:
Forums tags: Foundation, CFNetwork
URL Loading System documentation — NSURLSession, or URLSession in Swift, is the recommended API for HTTP[S] on Apple platforms.
Moving to Fewer, Larger Transfers forums post
Testing Background Session Code forums post
Network framework:
Forums tag: Network
Network framework documentation — Network framework is the recommended API for TCP, UDP, and QUIC on Apple platforms.
Building a custom peer-to-peer protocol sample code (aka TicTacToe)
Implementing netcat with Network Framework sample code (aka nwcat)
Configuring a Wi-Fi accessory to join a network sample code
Moving from Multipeer Connectivity to Network Framework forums post
NWEndpoint History and Advice forums post
Network Extension (including Wi-Fi on iOS):
See Network Extension Resources
Wi-Fi Fundamentals
TN3111 iOS Wi-Fi API overview
Wi-Fi Aware framework documentation
Wi-Fi on macOS:
Forums tag: Core WLAN
Core WLAN framework documentation
Wi-Fi Fundamentals
Secure networking:
Forums tags: Security
Apple Platform Security support document
Preventing Insecure Network Connections documentation — This is all about App Transport Security (ATS).
WWDC 2017 Session 701 Your Apps and Evolving Network Security Standards [1] — This is generally interesting, but the section starting at 17:40 is, AFAIK, the best information from Apple about how certificate revocation works on modern systems.
Available trusted root certificates for Apple operating systems support article
Requirements for trusted certificates in iOS 13 and macOS 10.15 support article
About upcoming limits on trusted certificates support article
Apple’s Certificate Transparency policy support article
What’s new for enterprise in iOS 18 support article — This discusses new key usage requirements.
Technote 2232 HTTPS Server Trust Evaluation
Technote 2326 Creating Certificates for TLS Testing
QA1948 HTTPS and Test Servers
Miscellaneous:
More network-related forums tags: 5G, QUIC, Bonjour
On FTP forums post
Using the Multicast Networking Additional Capability forums post
Investigating Network Latency Problems forums post
WirelessInsights framework documentation
iOS Network Signal Strength forums post
Share and Enjoy
—
Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"
[1] This video is no longer available from Apple, but the URL should help you locate other sources of this info.
Networking
RSS for tagExplore the networking protocols and technologies used by the device to connect to Wi-Fi networks, Bluetooth devices, and cellular data services.
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I want to know the right way/API/usage to use NWConnectionGroup to send both datagram and non-datagram stream.
I am currently working on an P2P video streaming app. I want to leverage NWConnectionGroup over QUIC to handle both message channel (traditionally handled by a TCP connection) and media channel (traditionally handled by sth. over UDP) to transmit SRT packets back and forth.
I created a NWConnectionGroup and it worked fine on non-datagram parts. The problems are with datagram part. I tried
extracting a connection with datagram = true either from the group or from message, doesn't and in some cases it breaks other non-datagram connections.
I currently send datagram directly using the NWConnectionGroup.send(content:completion). It kinda works but I keep seeing it canceled a lot of messages, which breaks SRT shortly after start. The warnings belong flooded my console. (Seems like want me to create a connection to transmit datagram, how?)
nw_connection_create_with_connection [C1600] Original connection not yet connected
nw_connection_group_create_connection_for_endpoint_and_parameters [G1] failed to create connection with parameters quic, local: fe80::439:68b4:6ec2:694%en0.60517, definite, attribution: developer, server
I must use it in wrong way. What should I do to fix it?
Hey there
Are there any recommendations or guidance for apps on alternatives to certificate pinning to secure their device network traffic?
I want to move away from the overhead and risk associated with rotating certificates when using leaf pinning.
However, I also don't want people to be able to perform a MITM attack easily using something like Charles Proxy with a self‑signed certificate added to the trust store.
My understanding is that an app cannot distinguish between user‑trusted certificates and system‑trusted certificates in the trust store, so it cannot block traffic that uses user‑trusted certificates.
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
cant open this website: https://appstoreconnect.apple.com/apps
Bad Gateway
Correlation Key: EJMQBY3TQQI6QR2RBCFRFK7WSM
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
Hello,
is there a way to get MCC/MNC carrier codes on iOS? I'm also wondering if there's a private API.
I want to obtain network information while I am abroad to determine the country of residence.
Why is the WiFiAware framework not importable in Mac Catalyst? Are there any plans to support Wi-Fi Aware technology on Mac Catalyst in the future?
As part of the OpenJDK testing we run several regression tests, including for Java SE networking APIs. These APIs ultimately end up calling BSD socket functions. On macos, starting macos 26, including on recent 26.2 version, we have started seeing some unexplained but consistent exception from one of these BSD socket APIs. We receive a "ENOBUFS" errno (No buffer space available) when trying to construct a socket(). These exact same tests continue to pass on many other older versions of macos (including 15.7.x). After looking into this more, we have been able to narrow this down to a very trivial C code which is as follows (also attached):
#include <stdio.h>
#include <sys/socket.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <unistd.h>
#include <sys/errno.h>
static int create_socket(const int attempt_number) {
const int fd = socket(AF_INET6, SOCK_STREAM, 0);
if (fd < 0) {
fprintf(stderr, "socket creation failed on attempt %d,"
" due to: %s\n", attempt_number, strerror(errno));
return fd;
}
return fd;
}
int main() {
const unsigned int num_times = 250000;
for (unsigned int i = 1; i <= num_times; i++) {
const int fd = create_socket(i);
if (fd < 0) {
return -1;
}
close(fd);
}
fprintf(stderr, "successfully created and closed %d sockets\n", num_times);
}
The code very trivially creates a socket() and close()s it. It does this repeatedly in a loop for a certain number of iterations.
Compiling this as:
clang sockbufspaceerr.c -o sockbufspaceerr.o
and running it as:
./sockbufspaceerr.o
consistently generates an error as follows on macos 26.x:
socket creation failed on attempt 160995, due to: No buffer space available
The iteration number on which the socket() creation fails varies, but the issue does reproduce. Running the same on older versions of macos doesn't reproduce the issue and the program terminates normally after those many iterations.
Looking at the xnu source that is made available for each macos release here https://opensource.apple.com/releases/, I see that for macos 26.x there have been changes in this kernel code and there appears to be some kind of memory accountability code introduced in this code path. However, looking at the reproducer/application code in question, I believe it uses the right set of functions to both create as well as release the resources, so I can't see why this should cause the above error in macos 26.x.
Does this look like some issue that needs attention in the macos kernel and should I report it through feedback assitant tool?
Apple supports Wi‑Fi Aware, but it’s not clear what channel bandwidth Apple’s Wi‑Fi Aware uses. Is it 80 MHz or 40 MHz? Also, what is the channel bandwidth used by AirDrop?
I have an app that has been using the following code to down load audio files:
if let url = URL(string: episode.fetchPath()) {
var request = URLRequest(url: url)
request.httpMethod = "get"
let task = session.downloadTask(with: request)
And then the following completionHandler code:
func urlSession(_ session: URLSession, downloadTask: URLSessionDownloadTask, didFinishDownloadingTo location: URL) {
try FileManager.default.moveItem(at: location, to: localUrl)
In the spirit of modernization, I'm trying to update this code to use async await:
var request = URLRequest(url: url)
request.httpMethod = "get"
let (data, response) = try await URLSession.shared.data(for: request)
try data.write(to: localUrl, options: [.atomicWrite, .completeFileProtection])
Both these code paths use the same url value. Both return the same Data blobs (they return the same hash value)
Unfortunately the second code path (using await) introduces a problem. When the audio is playing and the iPhone goes to sleep, after 15 seconds, the audio stops. This problem does not occur when running the first code (using the didFinish completion handler)
Same data, stored in the same URL, but using different URLSession calls. I would like to use async/await and not have to experience the audio ending after just 15 seconds of the device screen being asleep. any guidance greatly appreciated.
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
Tags:
Files and Storage
Network
CFNetwork
Background Tasks
Hello, I hope the title is self explanatory.
As a system administrator I would like to use macOS server
on Sequoia to manage the protected network behind this server:
bootpd,
natpmpd,
paquet filter,
postfix mail server,
squid proxy…
I am at a lost not to find in less than 15 minutes
where this is available.
Sorry for the silly question.
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
Hi,
I’m implementing a macOS DNS Proxy as a system extension and running into a persistent activation error:
OSSystemExtensionErrorDomain error 9 (validationFailed)
with the message:
extension category returned error
This happens both on an MDM‑managed Mac and on a completely clean Mac (no MDM, fresh install).
Setup
macOS: 15.x (clean machine, no MDM)
Xcode: 16.x
Team ID: AAAAAAA111 (test)
Host app bundle ID: com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy
DNS Proxy system extension bundle ID: com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy
The DNS Proxy is implemented as a NetworkExtension system extension, not an app extension.
Host app entitlements
From codesign -d --entitlements :- /Applications/NetShieldProxy.app:
xml
com.apple.application-identifier
AAAAAAA111.com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy
<key>com.apple.developer.system-extension.install</key>
<true/>
<key>com.apple.developer.team-identifier</key>
<string>AAAAAAA111</string>
<key>com.apple.security.app-sandbox</key>
<true/>
<key>com.apple.security.application-groups</key>
<array>
<string>group.com.example.NetShieldmac</string>
</array>
<key>com.apple.security.files.user-selected.read-only</key>
<true/>
xml
com.apple.application-identifier
AAAAAAA111.com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy
<key>com.apple.developer.networking.networkextension</key>
<array>
<string>dns-proxy-systemextension</string>
</array>
<key>com.apple.developer.team-identifier</key>
<string>AAAAAAA111</string>
<key>com.apple.security.application-groups</key>
<array>
<string>group.com.example.NetShieldmac</string>
<string>group.example.NetShieldmac</string>
<string>group.example.agent.enterprise.macos</string>
<string>group.example.com.NetShieldmac</string>
</array>
DNS Proxy system extension Info.plist
On the clean Mac, from:
bash
plutil -p "/Applications/NetShieldProxy.app/Contents/Library/SystemExtensions/com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy.systemextension/Contents/Info.plist"
I get:
json
{
"CFBundleExecutable" => "com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy",
"CFBundleIdentifier" => "com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy",
"CFBundleName" => "com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy",
"CFBundlePackageType" => "SYSX",
"CFBundleShortVersionString" => "1.0.1.8",
"CFBundleSupportedPlatforms" => [ "MacOSX" ],
"CFBundleVersion" => "0.1.1",
"LSMinimumSystemVersion" => "13.5",
"NSExtension" => {
"NSExtensionPointIdentifier" => "com.apple.dns-proxy",
"NSExtensionPrincipalClass" => "com_example_agent_NetShieldProxy_dnsProxy.DNSProxyProvider"
},
"NSSystemExtensionUsageDescription" => "SYSTEM_EXTENSION_USAGE_DESCRIPTION"
}
The DNSProxyProvider class inherits from NEDNSProxyProvider and is built in the system extension target.
Activation code
In the host app, I use:
swift
import SystemExtensions
final class SystemExtensionActivator: NSObject, OSSystemExtensionRequestDelegate {
private let extensionIdentifier = "com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy"
func activate(completion: @escaping (Bool) -> Void) {
let request = OSSystemExtensionRequest.activationRequest(
forExtensionWithIdentifier: extensionIdentifier,
queue: .main
)
request.delegate = self
OSSystemExtensionManager.shared.submitRequest(request)
}
func request(_ request: OSSystemExtensionRequest,
didFailWithError error: Error) {
let nsError = error as NSError
print("Activation failed:", nsError)
}
func request(_ request: OSSystemExtensionRequest,
didFinishWithResult result: OSSystemExtensionRequest.Result) {
print("Result:", result.rawValue)
}
}
Runtime behavior on a clean Mac (no MDM)
config.plist is created under /Library/Application Support/NetShield (via a root shell script).
A daemon runs, contacts our backend, and writes /Library/Application Support/NetShield/state.plist with a valid dnsToken and other fields.
The app NetShieldProxy.app is installed via a notarized, stapled Developer ID .pkg.
The extension bundle is present at:
/Applications/NetShieldProxy.app/Contents/Library/SystemExtensions/com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy.systemextension.
When I press Activate DNS Proxy in the UI, I see in the unified log:
text
NetShieldProxy: [com.example.agent:SystemExtensionActivator] Requesting activation for system extension: com.example.agent.NetShieldProxy.dnsProxy
NetShieldProxy: [com.example.agent:SystemExtensionActivator] SystemExtensionActivator - activation failed: extension category returned error (domain=OSSystemExtensionErrorDomain code=9)
NetShieldProxy: [com.example.agent:SystemExtensionActivator] SystemExtensionActivator - OSSystemExtensionError code enum: 9
NetShieldProxy: [com.example.agent:SystemExtensionActivator] SystemExtensionActivator - validationFailed
And:
bash
systemextensionsctl list
-> 0 extension(s)
There is no prompt in Privacy & Security on this clean Mac.
Question
Given:
The extension is packaged as a system extension (CFBundlePackageType = SYSX) with NSExtensionPointIdentifier = "com.apple.dns-proxy".
Host and extension share the same Team ID and Developer ID Application cert.
Entitlements on the target machine match the provisioning profile and Apple’s docs for DNS Proxy system extensions (dns-proxy-systemextension).
This is happening on a clean Mac with no MDM profiles at all.
What are the likely reasons for OSSystemExtensionErrorDomain error 9 (validationFailed) with "extension category returned error" in this DNS Proxy system extension scenario?
Is there any additional configuration required for DNS Proxy system extensions (beyond entitlements and Info.plist) that could trigger this category-level validation failure?
Any guidance or examples of a working DNS Proxy system extension configuration (host entitlements + extension Info.plist + entitlements) would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
I'm developing an iOS app that needs to continuously inform a server whether the user's paired Apple Watch is currently reachable for interactive messaging. If this reachability is lost unexpectedly, the server should be alerted within seconds. This is a safety-critical feature where reliability is essential.
The goal (abstractly): The iPhone app needs real-time or near-real-time awareness of whether the paired Apple Watch is reachable. The specific mechanism doesn't matter - I'm open to any approach that achieves this reliably.
Context - what already works:
The iPhone app successfully maintains continuous server connectivity using an NEAppPushProvider network extension. In practice, this runs reliably in the background and sends periodic heartbeats to the server regardless of main app state. This pattern works well for the phone component.
I need to extend this to include the watch's connectivity status in those server updates.
Note: WCSession APIs are only available in the main app process, not the Network Extension, so any watch connectivity information must be bridged via the main iOS app (e.g. shared UserDefaults and Darwin notifications).
What I've tried:
1. Companion watchOS app sending heartbeats to iPhone via WCSession
This was my primary approach: a watchOS app sends messages to the iPhone at short intervals using WCSession.sendMessage(). The iPhone forwards this to the server. If heartbeats stop, the server raises an alert. (I tested various intervals from 2-15 seconds; the specific interval doesn't matter because the fundamental problem is that the watch app is suspended regardless.)
Problem: The watch app is suspended almost immediately when:
The user presses the Digital Crown
The user switches to another app
The watch screen dims and shows the clock face (even without explicit backgrounding)
Once suspended, Timer.scheduledTimer() stops firing and no heartbeats are sent.
2. WCSession.isReachable monitoring on iPhone
I hoped the iPhone could monitor WCSession.isReachable to detect when the watch becomes unreachable.
Problem: isReachable indicates whether the counterpart app is reachable for interactive messaging, not the underlying physical connection. It returns false for many reasons - watch app suspended, backgrounded, or various system conditions - making it unreliable as a proxy for actual watch connectivity. The iPhone cannot distinguish "watch app not ready for messaging" from "watch physically disconnected".
3. WKExtendedRuntimeSession on watchOS
Problem: Only available for specific scenarios (workout, mindfulness, etc.). My use case is general activity, not fitness tracking. Misusing workout sessions would likely be rejected by App Review.
4. WKApplicationRefreshBackgroundTask on watchOS
Problem: These tasks are system-scheduled with timing that varies from minutes to hours depending on system conditions. Far too slow and unpredictable for second-level detection.
5. BLE advertising from watchOS app
Problem: BLE advertising stops when the watchOS app is suspended. Same fundamental limitation as the timer approach.
6. Server directly pinging the watch (ICMP or similar)
Problem: While Apple Watch can have an IP address via Wi-Fi or cellular (on LTE models), inbound connections to the watch aren't feasible - the watch is behind NAT with no public address, and watchOS doesn't support inbound server sockets (especially in background). This approach isn't practical regardless of connection type.
7. CoreBluetooth scanning from iPhone
Problem: Apple Watch doesn't advertise as a discoverable BLE peripheral to third-party apps. The system-level pairing isn't exposed.
Why this works on Android/WearOS:
On WearOS, a Foreground Service continues running in the background regardless of UI state or screen status (subject to standard OS background limits, but in practice it works reliably). The service sends heartbeats via MessageClient consistently. This "always-on background execution" pattern has no equivalent on watchOS.
Questions:
Is there any mechanism for an iPhone app to have continuous or regularly-updated knowledge of whether a paired Apple Watch is connected and reachable for interactive messaging - ideally without requiring a watchOS companion app to be in the foreground?
Are there any system-level APIs or entitlements (perhaps requiring special approval) that expose watch pairing/connectivity events to iOS apps?
Is there any watchOS background execution mechanism I've missed that could keep code running reliably when the app isn't in the foreground?
Has anyone solved a similar "detect wearable connectivity loss in real-time" problem on the Apple platform?
I understand Apple designed watchOS with aggressive power management for good reasons. If continuous connectivity monitoring truly isn't possible, I'd appreciate confirmation so I can set appropriate user expectations. But given this is a safety-critical use case, I'm hoping there's an approach I've overlooked.
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
Tags:
Watch Connectivity
WatchKit
watchOS
Apple Watch
Hello,
A customer has requested the development of a home assistance app to be published on the App Store. The app will connect to a server running locally at the end user's home, for example on a Raspberry Pi. Users would enter the IP address or hostname of their personal server into the app.
A strict requirement is that, for data protection reasons, there must not be any proxy server. The app should only communicate directly with the local server (e.g., Raspberry Pi). We are able to solve technical challenges such as DNS, dynamic IP, and port forwarding, router configuration.
However, I'm concerned about Apple's requirement that the endpoint – in this case, the Raspberry Pi at the user's home – must not use self-signed SSL certificates. While it may be technically possible to secure the home server with a certificate provider like Let's Encrypt, it is unrealistic to expect a typical user with no technical training to accomplish this setup independently.
Is there a recommended solution to this problem, particularly in the context of IoT devices and apps? Any advice or experiences would be deeply appreciated.
I use Iphone 17 wifi to test the device and mobile phone communicate,but I found the wifi disconnect innormal in hign frequency. This situation is only appears in iphone 17 series, iphone 14 and 15 is ok, so I think iphone 17 wifi chip or software has bugs. the local network disconnect in hign frequency.
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
Hi everyone,
I’m running into an issue with IP over Thunderbolt connectivity between my Mac and Windows PC after updating to macOS 26.2.
Previously, this setup worked fine on macOS 15. However, since the update, I haven't been able to establish a connection.
Here is what I have tested so far:
Mac M1 and Mac M3 (Updated to macOS 26.2):
Both are unable to connect to Windows.
Mac M2 (Running macOS 15.4):
This device still connects to Windows without any issues.
macOS 26.2 (Mac M1) <-> macOS 26.2 (Mac M3):
Connection successful.
Since my M3 Mac worked correctly before the update (when it was on macOS 15), and Mac-to-Mac connection still works on the new OS, I have a few questions:
Is there a new setting I need to configure?
Has this feature changed in macOS 26?
Could you please confirm if IP over Thunderbolt connections to Windows have been explicitly blocked or deprecated in macOS 26?
Thanks for any help!
Mac M3 macOS 26.2 FAIL
Mac M2 macOS 15.4 OK
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
I've been working through some issues here attempting to migrate away from the MultiPeer Connectivity following the guidance in here, Moving from Multipeer Connectivity to Network Framework, and implementing a home-grown solution using NWBrowser and NWListener and NWConnections.
I feel like I am 95% of the way there, but am experiencing an issue where my connection attempts seem to fail about 50% of the time.
If I have two nodes say, one a physical iPad, and one a simulator on my Mac. I can start them both up, and they are both discovered with Bounjour no problem. Sometimes the "connect" no problem. Othertimes however when I attempt to "connect" from one device to the other, I get failures. I'd say it's about 50/50 success - fail at this point.
The "dialing" device state enters "preparing" but never progesses past that, and on the "receiving end" I see
receive error: POSIXErrorCode(rawValue: 61): Connection refused
I'm at my wits end here with this, everything else in my migration I think is done...just need some insights maybe on potential causes for that error...
I added a Content Filter to my app, and when running it in Xcode (Debug/Release), I get the expected permission prompt: "Would like to filter network content (Allow / Don't Allow)".
However, when I install the app via TestFlight, this prompt doesn’t appear at all, and the feature doesn’t work.
Is there a special configuration required for TestFlight?
I already set the minimum deployment to be 17 for the extension and the app.
Thanks!
Description
Enterprise users are experiencing VPN resource access failures after upgrading to macOS Tahoe. Investigation indicates that configd (specifically IPMonitor) is incorrectly re-ranking network interfaces after a connectivity failure with probe server. This results in DNS queries routing through the physical network adapter (en0) instead of the VPN virtual adapter, even while the tunnel is active. This behaviour is not seen in previous macOS versions.
Steps to Reproduce:
Connect to an enterprise VPN (e.g., Ivanti Secure Access).
Trigger a transient network condition where the Apple probe server is unreachable. For example make the DNS server down for 30 sec.
Observe the system routing DNS queries for internal resources to the physical adapter.
Expected Results The: VPN virtual interface should maintain its primary rank for enterprise DNS queries regardless of the physical adapter's probe status.
Actual Results: IPMonitor detects an UplinkIssue, deprioritizes the VPN interface, and elevates the physical adapter to a higher priority rank.
Technical Root Cause & Logs:
The system logs show IPMonitor identifying an issue and modifying the interface priority at 16:03:54:
IPMonitor Detection: The process identifies an inability to reach the Apple probe server and marks en0 with an advisory:
Log snippet
2026-01-06 16:03:53.956399+0100 localhost configd[594]: [com.apple.SystemConfiguration:IPMonitor] configd[594] SetInterfaceAdvisory(en0) = UplinkIssue (2) reason='unable to reach probe server'
Interface Re-ranking: Immediately following, IPMonitor recalculates the rank, placing the physical service ID at a higher priority (lower numerical rank) than the VPN service ID (net.pulsesecure...):
Log snippet
2026-01-06 16:03:53.967935+0100 localhost configd[594]: [com.apple.SystemConfiguration:IPMonitor] 0. en0 serviceID=50CD9266-B097-4664-BFE6-7BAFCC5E9DC0 addr=192.168.0.128 rank=0x200000d
2026-01-06 16:03:53.967947+0100 localhost configd[594]: [com.apple.SystemConfiguration:IPMonitor] 1. en0 serviceID=net.pulsesecure.pulse.nc.main addr=192.168.0.128 rank=0x2ffffff
3.Physical adapter Is selected as Primary Interface:
2026-01-06 16:03:53.968145+0100 localhost configd[594]: [com.apple.SystemConfiguration:IPMonitor] 50CD9266-B097-4664-BFE6-7BAFCC5E9DC0 is the new primary IPv4
configd[594]: 50CD9266-B097-4664-BFE6-7BAFCC5E9DC0 is the new primary DNS
Packet Trace Evidence Wireshark confirms that DNS queries for enterprise-specific DNS servers are being originated from the physical IP (192.168.0.128) instead of the virtual adapter:
Time: 16:03:54.084
Source: 192.168.0.128 (Physical Adapter)
Destination: 172.29.155.115 (Internal VPN DNS Server)
Result: Connectivity Failure (Queries sent outside the tunnel)
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
Hello! I have read most of the "Background Tasks Resources" here https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/707503 - but still have a few questions that I need clarified.
To provide our context, our usecase is that our user wants to upload files to our servers. This is an active decision by the user to initiate the upload, but we also want make sure the files are uploaded, even if the user chooses to background our app.
If we use a URLSession.backgroundto initiate the uploadTask, I understand that we are passing it of to the urlsession deamon to handle the upload. Which is great, if the user chooses to background our app. But, what if they just stay with the app in the foreground? Will it start uploading immediately? Can we expect the same latency that a standard URLSession will provide? And the potential delay will only occur if they actually background our app.
Also, what happens if a background upload is in-progress and the user enters our app again? Will it gain priority, and run with similar latency as standard URL session?
I.e., can we just always rely on using a background session, or should we kick of a beginBackgroundTask with a standard URL session, and only trigger a background uploadTask if we do not finish the standard upload before getting told we are about to get killed?
A different question. I know there is the rate-limit delay added if we trigger multiple background URL tasks. Does that effect the following use case? We would like to send an additional HTTP request to our servers when the upload is completed, to notify it of the completion, but are we allowed to do that when the app is woken from the background? So, basically calling .dataTask from handleEventsForBackgroundURLSession for example?
Hello,
I have a few questions regarding URL Filter (iOS 26) and Content Filter Providers.
URL Filter
According to the WWDC26 video, URL Filter appears to be available for both consumer and enterprise deployments.
This seems consistent with the classic Network Extension Provider Deployment documentation (TN3134 – August 2025), where no specific deployment restriction is mentioned.
However, a more recent document (Apple Platform Deployment, September 2025) indicates the following for URL Filter:
“Requires supervision on iPhone, iPad and Mac” (with a green checkmark).
👉 My question:
Is URL Filter actually available for consumer use on non-supervised iPhones (deployed on Testflight and AppStore), or is supervision now required?
Content Filter Providers
From past experience, I remember that Content Filter Providers were only available on supervised devices.
Based on the current documentation, I am questioning their usability in a consumer context, i.e. on non-supervised iPhones.
In the Network Extension Provider Deployment documentation, it is stated that this is a Network Extension and that, since iOS 16, it is a “per-app on managed device” restriction.
In the more recent Apple Platform Deployment document, it states for iPhone and iPad:
“App needs to be installed on the user’s iOS and iPadOS device and deletion can be prevented if the device is supervised.”
👉 My understanding:
Supervised device:
The Content Filter Provider is installed via a host application that controls enabling/disabling the filter, and the host app can be prevented from being removed thanks to supervision.
Non-supervised device:
The Content Filter Provider is also installed via a host application that controls enabling/disabling the filter, but the app can be removed by the user, which would remove the filter.
👉 My question:
Can Content Filter Providers be used in a consumer context on non-supervised iPhones (deployed on Testflight and AppStore), accepting that the user can uninstall the host app (and therefore remove the filter)?
Thank you in advance for your feedback.
Sources:
TN3134 => TN3134: Network Extension provider deployment | Apple Developer Documentation
Apple Platform Deployment / Filter content for Apple devices => https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/deployment/dep1129ff8d2/1/web/1.0
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Networking
We are using Multipeer Connectivity (MCSession, MCNearbyServiceBrowser, MCNearbyServiceAdvertiser) for nearby peer discovery and communication.
**Observed behaviour: **
When Wi-Fi is ON (Not connected to any network) and Mobile Data is also ON:
Peer discovery (foundPeer) consistently succeeds
Invitation is sent using invitePeer
MCSession transitions to .connecting
The session remains indefinitely in .connecting
connected is never reached
notConnected is also not reported
When Mobile Data is turned OFF, the same flow reliably reaches .connected.
Key details:
Both devices have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled
Browsing and advertising are active on both devices
Application-level timeouts and session resets are implemented
The Issue is reproducible across multiple devices with iOS 26 versions.
Expectation / Question:
We understand that Multipeer Connectivity does not use cellular data for peer discovery or transport. However, when Wi-Fi is available and peers are discovered successfully, we would like clarification on the following:
Is it expected behavior that enabling Mobile Data can cause the invitation/connection phase to remain indefinitely in .connecting without transitioning to .notConnected?
Are there recommended best practices to avoid stalled invitation or transport negotiation in this scenario?
Is there a supported way to detect or recover from a stalled .connecting state beyond application-level timeouts and session resets?
Any guidance on expected behavior or recommended handling would be appreciated.