Hi everyone,
I'm working with Live Activities using the ActivityKit(Activity), and I'm trying to find a way to detect when a user manually dismisses a Live Activity by swiping it away — either from the Lock Screen or the Dynamic Island.
Currently, when a Live Activity ends, the activityState changes to .dismissed, which is defined as:
/// The Live Activity ended and is no longer visible because a person or the system removed it.
case dismissed
This doesn’t allow me to determine whether the dismissal was triggered by the user or by the system.
Is there any way — either through ActivityState, notifications, or another approach — to distinguish if a Live Activity was manually dismissed by the user vs. ended by the system?
Thanks in advance!
Widgets & Live Activities
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Hello,
I'm working with Live Activities and noticed that sometimes an activity transitions to .dismissed, even though the user hasn't manually swiped it away and system conditions appear to be completely normal — such as:
The activity is still within its intended 8-hour lifetime
The battery level is high
The app is active or recently active
The activity is lightweight (not using frequent updates)
According to the ActivityKit documentation:
/// The Live Activity ended and is no longer visible because a person or the system removed it.
case dismissed
This doesn’t clarify why the system would dismiss an activity when all conditions seem fine.
Additional context:
When reviewing system logs via Console.app, we’re seeing messages such as:
liveactivitiesd Removing activity from replicator: 381F3DDC-585B-4021-B075-548606F543DA for relationship IDs: [C7AB9C2A-49DD-43FC-BB58-D768ECF9D354]
This suggests that the system is actively removing the activity, but there’s no API or reason provided that helps us understand why this is happening.
Questions:
What are the system-level triggers that could cause a Live Activity to be dismissed under normal conditions?
Is there a known set of heuristics (e.g., memory pressure, resource constraints) that might apply?
Is there a way to distinguish between system-triggered dismissal and user-initiated swipe-to-dismiss?
Any best practices to reduce the likelihood of unexpected system removal?
This is especially important for our use case, where users rely on Live Activities to view real-time flight and boarding information — and losing the activity unexpectedly negatively affects user experience.
Thanks in advance for any insight!
I have an objective-c watch app and have added a swift widget style compilation to it and am having problems. The complication works fine but the name in the iPhone watch app complication picker stubbornly remains as the watchkit app name despite me trying various ways of changing it.
Here are the various CF bundle name and display name values I am using:
phone app values
CFBundleIdentifier - com.Distribution-Systems-Associates.Tennis-Watch-v1
CFBundleName - $(PRODUCT_NAME)
CFBundleDisplayName - Tennis Scorekeeper
watchkit app
CFBundleIdentifier - com.Distribution-Systems-Associates.Tennis-Watch-v1.watchkitapp
CFBundleName - Tennis Scorekeeper
CFBundleDisplayName - Tennis Scorekeeper
WatchKit extension
CFBundleIdentifier - com.Distribution-Systems-Associates.Tennis-Watch-v1.watchkitapp.watchkitextension
CFBundleName - Tennis Scorekeeper
CFBundleDisplayName - Tennis Scorekeeper
__Watchkit complication __
CFBundleIdentifier - com.Distribution-Systems-Associates.Tennis-Watch-v1.watchkitapp.watchkitextension.Tennis-Watch-V1-Complication
Changing the values in the complication doesn't seem to matter. Every other name in both my iPhone and watch apps are as expected.
ChatGPT suggested that I try adding a localized name in the watchkit app but that didn't seem to do much of anything useful. I have run this though Chat quite a bit to see if I could get any accidental insights that way and while it has been interesting, it has also been not terribly helpful.
I didn't post any of the complication code because that seems to be fine. However, I can do that if needed. The complication works as intended (starts the app). The various names everywhere else show up as intended. It's just that this one name refuses to be overridden. Thoughts?
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Widgets & Live Activities
Tags:
WatchKit
Swift
Objective-C
WidgetKit
Trying to start a live activity without showing anything, and update its UI while app is being terminated. However, we found very inconsistent behavior - sometimes it shows sometimes not - could you help figure out the cause?
Is there any way to obtain the ControlWidget installed by user, I use WidgetCenter.shared.getCurrentConfigurations cannot work
Hi, I have a class project I am working on (with a due date tomorrow, unfortunately RIP to me). But I have made my project about adding accessibility to a Unity game. I've successfully added apple unity core and accessibility plugins to my project, and my project builds. But I have simple text nodes and buttons and they aren't accessible with voiceover once I build/export my game and test. I am only building for MacOS right now (for the assignment).
I don't have too much experience with Unity, but I am relatively experienced with accessibility (even formerly an intern and contractor at Apple for accessibility). So I wonder if I am just using Unity incorrectly? Perhaps I've done something to my build process (or haven't done something I should)? I've attached a photo of what my dev environment looks like in Unity, I've focused a text node (on the left) and on the right are my AccessibilityNode settings.
Any help would be awesome, even if I don't make my deadline tomorrow... :*(
Project repo is here, if it is helpful: https://github.com/frankelavsky/PGD_final_project
Thanks!
Hello,
I am trying to get the elements from my SwiftData databse in the configuration for my widget.
The SwiftData model is the following one:
@Model
class CountdownEvent {
@Attribute(.unique) var id: UUID
var title: String
var date: Date
@Attribute(.externalStorage) var image: Data
init(id: UUID, title: String, date: Date, image: Data) {
self.id = id
self.title = title
self.date = date
self.image = image
}
}
And, so far, I have tried the following thing:
AppIntent.swift
struct ConfigurationAppIntent: WidgetConfigurationIntent {
static var title: LocalizedStringResource { "Configuration" }
static var description: IntentDescription { "This is an example widget." }
// An example configurable parameter.
@Parameter(title: "Countdown")
var countdown: CountdownEntity?
}
Countdowns.swift, this is the file with the widget view
struct Provider: AppIntentTimelineProvider {
func placeholder(in context: Context) -> SimpleEntry {
SimpleEntry(date: Date(), configuration: ConfigurationAppIntent())
}
func snapshot(for configuration: ConfigurationAppIntent, in context: Context) async -> SimpleEntry {
SimpleEntry(date: Date(), configuration: configuration)
}
func timeline(for configuration: ConfigurationAppIntent, in context: Context) async -> Timeline<SimpleEntry> {
var entries: [SimpleEntry] = []
// Generate a timeline consisting of five entries an hour apart, starting from the current date.
let currentDate = Date()
for hourOffset in 0 ..< 5 {
let entryDate = Calendar.current.date(byAdding: .hour, value: hourOffset, to: currentDate)!
let entry = SimpleEntry(date: entryDate, configuration: configuration)
entries.append(entry)
}
return Timeline(entries: entries, policy: .atEnd)
}
// func relevances() async -> WidgetRelevances<ConfigurationAppIntent> {
// // Generate a list containing the contexts this widget is relevant in.
// }
}
struct SimpleEntry: TimelineEntry {
let date: Date
let configuration: ConfigurationAppIntent
}
struct CountdownsEntryView : View {
var entry: Provider.Entry
var body: some View {
VStack {
Text("Time:")
Text(entry.date, style: .time)
Text("Title:")
Text(entry.configuration.countdown?.title ?? "Default")
}
}
}
struct Countdowns: Widget {
let kind: String = "Countdowns"
var body: some WidgetConfiguration {
AppIntentConfiguration(kind: kind, intent: ConfigurationAppIntent.self, provider: Provider()) { entry in
CountdownsEntryView(entry: entry)
.containerBackground(.fill.tertiary, for: .widget)
}
}
}
CountdownEntity.swift, the file for the AppEntity and EntityQuery structs
struct CountdownEntity: AppEntity, Identifiable {
var id: UUID
var title: String
var date: Date
var image: Data
var displayRepresentation: DisplayRepresentation {
DisplayRepresentation(title: "\(title)")
}
static var defaultQuery = CountdownQuery()
static var typeDisplayRepresentation: TypeDisplayRepresentation = "Countdown"
init(id: UUID, title: String, date: Date, image: Data) {
self.id = id
self.title = title
self.date = date
self.image = image
}
init(id: UUID, title: String, date: Date) {
self.id = id
self.title = title
self.date = date
self.image = Data()
}
init(countdown: CountdownEvent) {
self.id = countdown.id
self.title = countdown.title
self.date = countdown.date
self.image = countdown.image
}
}
struct CountdownQuery: EntityQuery {
typealias Entity = CountdownEntity
static var typeDisplayRepresentation = TypeDisplayRepresentation(name: "Countdown Event")
static var defaultQuery = CountdownQuery()
@Environment(\.modelContext) private var modelContext // Warning here: Stored property '_modelContext' of 'Sendable'-conforming struct 'CountdownQuery' has non-sendable type 'Environment<ModelContext>'; this is an error in the Swift 6 language mode
func entities(for identifiers: [UUID]) async throws -> [CountdownEntity] {
let countdownEvents = getAllEvents(modelContext: modelContext)
return countdownEvents.map { event in
return CountdownEntity(id: event.id, title: event.title, date: event.date, image: event.image)
}
}
func suggestedEntities() async throws -> [CountdownEntity] {
// Return some suggested entities or an empty array
return []
}
}
CountdownsManager.swift, this one just has the function that gets the array of countdowns
func getAllEvents(modelContext: ModelContext) -> [CountdownEvent] {
let descriptor = FetchDescriptor<CountdownEvent>()
do {
let allEvents = try modelContext.fetch(descriptor)
return allEvents
}
catch {
print("Error fetching events: \(error)")
return []
}
}
I have installed it in my phone and when I try to edit the widget, it doesn't show me any of the elements I have created in the app, just a loading dropdown for half a second:
What am I missing here?
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Widgets & Live Activities
Tags:
SwiftUI
WidgetKit
App Intents
SwiftData
I found the live activity process cannot write to the app group and FileManger, can only read the app group.
When I write using FileManager in a live activity process, the console prompts me with a permission error.
When I write using UserDefault(suit:) in the live activity process, I read a null value in the main app.
Is this the case for real-time event design? I haven’t seen any documentation mentioning this.
Does anyone know, thank you very much.
I am seeing a really weird behavior with Live Activities. The Live Activity is always appearing on the simulator. However the Live Activity is only appearing on my physical device when there is no other widget in the widget bundle shown below.
@main
struct HoerspielWidgetsBundle: WidgetBundle {
var body: some Widget {
// Uncomment the line below and the Live Activity will no longer appear
// UpNextWidget()
PlaybackLiveActivity()
}
}
Annotating that var with @WidgetBundle has no effect.
There are no logs indicating an error, the function to request a Live Activity does not throw and the status of the activity is active.
Both the widget and the Live Activity are working fine otherwise. NSSupportsLiveActivities is set to true in the correct Info.plist file. I am not running any beta software and the physical iPhone is on the newest version (iOS 18.5). Using the template when adding a new target in Xcode, I was able to set up a similar app where the Live Activity works as expected.
I am really at a loss here which additional information I should provide or how this issue can be resolved.
Thank you for your help.
I've noticed that the when starting live activities via a remote push-to-start notification, the live activity widget consistently succeeds in displaying on the lock screen. However push-to-update token is not always received by the task observing the pushTokenUpdates async-sequence.
Task {
print("listening for pushTokenUpdates")
for await pushToken in activity.pushTokenUpdates {
let token = pushToken.map {String(format: "%02x", $0)}.joined()
print("Push token: \(token)")
}
}
The log will print "listening for pushTokenUpdates" however occasionally the "Push token: ___" line will not be present even when the widget has displayed on screen. This happens even if the "allow" button has been selected on live activities for that app. The inconsistent behavior leads me to believe there is an issue at the ActivityKit level. Would appreciate any feedback in debugging this!
I tested it on the app I work with and others I use and the notification message is not appearing when using sleep mode
Iphone: 13 mini
IOS: 18.4.1
I tested it on the app I work with and others I use and the notification message is not appearing when using sleep mode.
Someone knows something about this, and if it is mapped for correction?
Iphone: 13 mini IOS: 18.4.1
I have implemented a Live Activity that includes two buttons. Currently, both buttons utilize deep links to open the main application, where I then detect the URL to perform the corresponding action.
My primary question is:
Is it possible to update a button's title and/or color within a Live Activity without requiring the main application to open?
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Widgets & Live Activities
I need to implement a VPN connection from the ios 17 widget without opening the main application. (I have seen such an implementation in other applications) How can this be implemented?
Confusion
Based on the fact that the subscription is requested on a Activity type, I assumed that the push-to-start tokens would be different. But the push-to-start token for WidgetExtensionAttributes and WidgetExtensionAttributesOther were identical. This is misleading.
The code below prints identical tokens even though the name of the token and their underlying schema are different.
Code Sample
func getTokens() {
Task {
if let data = Activity<func getTokens() {
Task {
if let data = Activity<WidgetExtensionAttributes>.pushToStartToken {
print("exists:", data.hexadecimalString)
} else {
print("requesting pushToStartToken")
for await ptsToken in Activity<WidgetExtensionAttributes>
.pushToStartTokenUpdates {
let ptsTokenString = ptsToken.hexadecimalString
print("new:", ptsTokenString)
}
}
}
Task {
if let data = Activity<WidgetExtensionAttributesOther>.pushToStartToken {
print("other exists:", data.hexadecimalString)
} else {
print("other requesting pushToStartToken")
for await ptsToken in Activity<WidgetExtensionAttributesOther>
.pushToStartTokenUpdates {
let ptsTokenString = ptsToken.hexadecimalString
print("other new:", ptsTokenString)
}
}
}
}>.pushToStartToken {
print("exists:", data.hexadecimalString)
} else {
print("requesting pushToStartToken")
for await ptsToken in Activity<WidgetExtensionAttributes>
.pushToStartTokenUpdates {
let ptsTokenString = ptsToken.hexadecimalString
print("new:", ptsTokenString)
}
}
}
Task {
if let data = Activity<WidgetExtensionAttributesOther>.pushToStartToken {
print("other exists:", data.hexadecimalString)
} else {
print("other requesting pushToStartToken")
for await ptsToken in Activity<WidgetExtensionAttributesOther>
.pushToStartTokenUpdates {
let ptsTokenString = ptsToken.hexadecimalString
print("other new:", ptsTokenString)
}
}
}
}
Activity Types
struct WidgetExtensionAttributesOther: ActivityAttributes {
public struct ContentState: Codable, Hashable {
var age: Int
}
var addresses: [String]
}
struct WidgetExtensionAttributes: ActivityAttributes {
public struct ContentState: Codable, Hashable {
var emoji: String
}
var name: String
}
Docs
After much investigation I noticed the wording of the docs kind of hint that the push-to-start token is per ActivityKit as it says:
An asynchronous sequence you use to observe changes to the token for starting a Live Activity with an ActivityKit push notification.
But docs and the API don't align well.
Questions
Is it correct that the push-to-start token is per app? If so then is there a reason that that API designers decided to still have to pass a specific type and not just make a request without passing a type?
Should I maybe file a radar?
Is it correct to say push-to-start is per app, while update tokens are per instance. i.e. if I have two soccer matches, then unless the push-to-start token was refreshed by the OS, then both would use the same push-to-start token, however each match would have a unique update token?
Does live activity require notification permission? If you need to update card data through APNS, I remember that it was required in the past, otherwise the card could not be created. This year I tried it and some apps did not have notification permission, but they could also use live activity and update data
We are developing a service that uses the “More Frequent Updates” feature of Live Activities.
I have a question regarding the push notification budget for Live Activities.
According to the documentation and the following session:
WWDC23 Session 10185 – “What’s New in ActivityKit”
https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/wwdc2023/10185/
At 11:58, it is stated that there is no limit on the number of updates when using low priority (5).
Could you confirm whether updates sent with low priority (5) are indeed not subject to the Live Activity push notification budget?
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Widgets & Live Activities
Hello,
I'm trying to create a widget using the WidgetKit framework. In this part, I'm using Intents along with a DynamicOptionsProvider. As shown in the Medium article below, I want to present multiple options when "Edit Widget" is tapped:
https://levelup.gitconnected.com/swiftui-configurable-widget-to-let-our-user-choose-4a54e398f42f
However, in this example, the options are provided statically. What I want to achieve is to display a list of devices based on the selected HomeId after the user selects a Home. I’ve set up the interface accordingly, but when I select a Home, the device list does not update.
How can I make this work? The two options should be dependent on each other.
Hello forum,
I want to keep my app running in the background after user swaps up, for the purpose of workout tracking.
start up the task and continuously receipt GPS updates
process the location data
show the data on a live activity
Two examples
Strava
paddlelogger
Question:
Does this mean, these two apps would just pause when the .backgroundTimeRemaining becomes 0?
How does a workout app "work" in background mode, do I need to handle budget running out?
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Widgets & Live Activities
Tags:
Core Location
Maps and Location
Background Tasks
See the image there the clock is stopped but on right on the top time is different
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Widgets & Live Activities