Brief & History Since iOS 17.4 and up we experience a lot of flakyness when it comes to DeviceActivity event thresholds. After a lot of testing and investigations inside system logs and filing countless bug reports we found a reproducible way why the event thresholds are not getting properly called. Findings Apparently when the device reaches near to max memory something called jetsamkills processes left and right. This means that the UsageTrackingAgent that (we think) is responsible for tracking the usage time of the device gets killed and doesn't recover until significant memory is freeing up on the device. How to test it yourself Use a slightly older device with ~ 3 or 4 GB of RAM Open a game or two that is meomry intensive (like Fishing Clash, yes..) and observe In the console logs you see something that only happens then: Process UsageTrackingAgent [39307] killed by jetsam reason highwater This happens often but recovers itself when the UsageTrackingAgent exceeds their 6MB memory limit. Yet the log looks like this: Process UsageTrackingAgent [39307] killed by jetsam reason per-process limit Once you kick the game, the memory is free and sometimes the event thresholds are calling in again. Defeating the purpose However this defeats the purpose of tracking usage time and shielding perhaps the playing app from being played after a certain amount of time! Feedback Assistant Ticket Here is the ticket with sysdiagnose, step by step and more information: FB13884981 Please fix this ASAP, this is such a pain for production users and their kids EVERY DAY.

Hello, I want to make an app purely for academia to get the app usage data which includes timestamps of app usage and I want to store this data in a MySQL database for analysis purposes. From what I have read online, I don't get access to the raw data instead I can only see the data in Views. Is there any way I can export this data outside the app? Is it even possible?

Hi, I have a released screentime app ScreenZen. The last few days I've seen a disturbing spike in bug reports coming from people with 17.4.1 and 17.5.1 phones with no update to the app itself. People reported they saw the issue immediately after updating their iOS version. Unfortunately it is not replicable on all phones with those versions, so we haven't been able to replicate it on our test phones. It appears the issue is the ApplicationToken passed into ShieldActionExtension and ShieldConfigurationExtension does not match any of the ApplicationTokens that the user selected to block through FamilyControls. (The selected ApplicationTokens are being loaded through a group UserDefaults and they are indeed being loaded in the ShieldActionExtension in the bug reports).This is preventing the app from loading the correct settings and handling the blocking accordingly. I am trying to isolate this better with a new release with better logging, but would appreciate any help on this issue.

I'm building an iOS app using Swift, designed to run on iOS 16 and later and I'm curious about accessing battery health information directly from the device. Specifically, I'm interested in retrieving details such as the maximum battery capacity and app usage statistics for my application. Is it possible to programmatically obtain this data within my app? Any guidance would be helpful. Thank you for your assistance!"

Hello, I'm working on an app that makes use of Screen Time features by leveraging the Family Controls, Device Activity and Managed Settings frameworks. The main app works fine by shielding/unshielding apps with a toggle. When it comes to monitoring the time intervals with the Device Activity Monitor (DAM) extension (e.g. lock X apps for Y minutes), I'm experiencing several issues. To shield/unshield apps and kick off the monitoring I perform the following instructions: let timeInMinutes = 15 let startDate = Date(timeIntervalSinceNow: 1.0) // padding added to avoid invalid DAM ranges < 15 mins. let endDate = startDate.addingTimeInterval(timeInMinutes * 60.0) let components: Set<Calendar.Component> = [.day, .month, .year, .hour, .minute, .second] let calendar = Calendar.current let intervalStart = calendar.dateComponents(components, from: startDate) let intervalEnd = calendar.dateComponents(components, from: endDate) let schedule = DeviceActivitySchedule(intervalStart: intervalStart, intervalEnd: intervalEnd, repeats: false) try deviceActivityCenter.startMonitoring(.definiteShield, during: schedule) let managedSettingsStore = ManagedSettingsStore() managedSettingsStore.shield.applications = selection.applicationTokens // `selection` being an instance of `FamilyActivitySelection` The main pain points are: After this code is performed, I would expect the Device Activity Monitor extension to start, or at least to start once I go to background. To check whether the DAM extension is running or not, I attach to the extension process manually (Product > Attach to Process by PID or Name). But I can see the extension correctly running only after 3-4 attempts of calling startMonitoring. Even when the DAM extension runs, intervalDidStart and intervalDidEnd methods in the extension are called quite randomly - most of the times not being called at all - thus making the extension hugely unaffordable. Please note: I already ask for Screen Time permissions during the onboarding by calling AuthorizationCenter.shared.requestAuthorization(for: .individual), so by the time the user shields the apps, these permissions are already granted. I already have Family Control entitlements for development and distribution, and for both the main target and the DAM extension target. In the intervalDidEnd method, I simply call ManagedSettingsStore().clearAllSettings() and DeviceActivityCenter().stopMonitoring(). This looks like to be enough to stay way below the 6MB memory limit. Am I doing something wrong, is there a way to fix this, or is just the Device Activity framework that is unstable?

I added debug break point to the first line of MyDeviceActivityMonitor.swift, it never got trigger. I am able to launch the app, select discouraged and encouraged app. discouraged apps are getting restricted which is expected. but device activity extension is never called. I have all the permission and certificate. I created an app group. import SwiftUI import FamilyControls import ManagedSettings @main struct GetALifeApp: App { @UIApplicationDelegateAdaptor(AppDelegate.self) private var appDelegate @StateObject var model = MyModel.shared @StateObject var store = ManagedSettingsStore() var body: some Scene { WindowGroup { ContentView() .environmentObject(model) .environmentObject(store) } } } class AppDelegate: NSObject, UIApplicationDelegate { func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplication.LaunchOptionsKey: Any]? = nil) -> Bool { initiateAsyncSetup() MySchedule.setSchedule() return true } private func initiateAsyncSetup() { Task { do { try await AuthorizationCenter.shared.requestAuthorization(for: .individual) } catch { print("Error during asynchronous setup: \(error)") } } } } import Foundation import FamilyControls import ManagedSettings private let _MyModel = MyModel() class MyModel: ObservableObject { let store = ManagedSettingsStore() @Published var selectionToDiscourage: FamilyActivitySelection @Published var selectionToEncourage: FamilyActivitySelection init() { selectionToDiscourage = FamilyActivitySelection() selectionToEncourage = FamilyActivitySelection() } class var shared: MyModel { return _MyModel } func setShieldRestrictions() { let applications = MyModel.shared.selectionToDiscourage store.shield.applications = applications.applicationTokens.isEmpty ? nil : applications.applicationTokens store.shield.applicationCategories = applications.categoryTokens.isEmpty ? nil : ShieldSettings.ActivityCategoryPolicy.specific(applications.categoryTokens) } } import Foundation import DeviceActivity extension DeviceActivityName { static let daily = Self("daily") } extension DeviceActivityEvent.Name { static let encouraged = Self("encouraged") } let schedule = DeviceActivitySchedule( intervalStart: DateComponents(hour: 0, minute: 0), intervalEnd: DateComponents(hour: 23, minute: 59), repeats: true ) class MySchedule { static public func setSchedule() { print("Setting schedule...") print("Hour is: ", Calendar.current.dateComponents([.hour, .minute], from: Date()).hour!) let events: [DeviceActivityEvent.Name: DeviceActivityEvent] = [ .encouraged: DeviceActivityEvent( applications: MyModel.shared.selectionToEncourage.applicationTokens, threshold: DateComponents(second: 2) ) ] let center = DeviceActivityCenter() do { print("Try to start monitoring...") print(events) try center.startMonitoring(.daily, during: schedule, events: events) } catch { print("Error monitoring schedule: ", error) } } } import SwiftUI struct ContentView: View { @State private var isDiscouragedPresented = false @State private var isEncouragedPresented = false @EnvironmentObject var model: MyModel var body: some View { VStack { Button("Select Apps to Discourage") { isDiscouragedPresented = true } .familyActivityPicker(isPresented: $isDiscouragedPresented, selection: $model.selectionToDiscourage) Button("Select Apps to Encourage") { isEncouragedPresented = true } .familyActivityPicker(isPresented: $isEncouragedPresented, selection: $model.selectionToEncourage) } .onChange(of: model.selectionToDiscourage) { MyModel.shared.setShieldRestrictions() } .onChange(of: model.selectionToEncourage) { MySchedule.setSchedule() } } } struct ContentView_Previews: PreviewProvider { static var previews: some View { ContentView() .environmentObject(MyModel()) } } import Foundation import DeviceActivity import ManagedSettings class MyDeviceActivityMonitor: DeviceActivityMonitor { let store = ManagedSettingsStore() override func intervalDidStart(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { print("intervalDidStart") super.intervalDidStart(for: activity) store.shield.applications = nil print("intervalDidStart") } override func intervalDidEnd(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalDidEnd(for: activity) } override func eventDidReachThreshold(_ event: DeviceActivityEvent.Name, activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.eventDidReachThreshold(event, activity: activity) print("used encouraged") store.shield.applications = nil } override func intervalWillStartWarning(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalWillStartWarning(for: activity) // Handle the warning before the interval starts. } override func intervalWillEndWarning(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalWillEndWarning(for: activity) // Handle the warning before the interval ends. } override func eventWillReachThresholdWarning(_ event: DeviceActivityEvent.Name, activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.eventWillReachThresholdWarning(event, activity: activity) // Handle the warning before the event reaches its threshold. } }

I am new to swift. This is my first app. What an i doing wrong. Device activity monitor extension is never being called. When i launch the app, I am able to pick the discouraged and encouraged apps. It immediately restrict the discouraged app which is expected. But the extension is never called. import SwiftUI import FamilyControls import ManagedSettings @main struct GetALifeApp: App { @UIApplicationDelegateAdaptor(AppDelegate.self) private var appDelegate @StateObject var model = MyModel.shared @StateObject var store = ManagedSettingsStore() var body: some Scene { WindowGroup { ContentView() .environmentObject(model) .environmentObject(store) } } } class AppDelegate: NSObject, UIApplicationDelegate { func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplication.LaunchOptionsKey: Any]? = nil) -> Bool { initiateAsyncSetup() return true } private func initiateAsyncSetup() { Task { do { try await AuthorizationCenter.shared.requestAuthorization(for: .individual) MySchedule.setSchedule() } catch { print("Error during asynchronous setup: \(error)") } } } } import Foundation import FamilyControls import ManagedSettings private let _MyModel = MyModel() class MyModel: ObservableObject { let store = ManagedSettingsStore() @Published var selectionToDiscourage: FamilyActivitySelection @Published var selectionToEncourage: FamilyActivitySelection init() { selectionToDiscourage = FamilyActivitySelection() selectionToEncourage = FamilyActivitySelection() } class var shared: MyModel { return _MyModel } func setShieldRestrictions() { let applications = MyModel.shared.selectionToDiscourage store.shield.applications = applications.applicationTokens.isEmpty ? nil : applications.applicationTokens store.shield.applicationCategories = applications.categoryTokens.isEmpty ? nil : ShieldSettings.ActivityCategoryPolicy.specific(applications.categoryTokens) } } import Foundation import DeviceActivity extension DeviceActivityName { static let daily = Self("daily") } extension DeviceActivityEvent.Name { static let encouraged = Self("encouraged") } let schedule = DeviceActivitySchedule( intervalStart: DateComponents(hour: 0, minute: 0), intervalEnd: DateComponents(hour: 23, minute: 59), repeats: true ) class MySchedule { static public func setSchedule() { print("Setting schedule...") print("Hour is: ", Calendar.current.dateComponents([.hour, .minute], from: Date()).hour!) let events: [DeviceActivityEvent.Name: DeviceActivityEvent] = [ .encouraged: DeviceActivityEvent( applications: MyModel.shared.selectionToEncourage.applicationTokens, threshold: DateComponents(second: 2) ) ] let center = DeviceActivityCenter() do { print("Try to start monitoring...") try center.startMonitoring(.daily, during: schedule, events: events) } catch { print("Error monitoring schedule: ", error) } } } import SwiftUI struct ContentView: View { @State private var isDiscouragedPresented = false @State private var isEncouragedPresented = false @EnvironmentObject var model: MyModel var body: some View { VStack { Button("Select Apps to Discourage") { isDiscouragedPresented = true } .familyActivityPicker(isPresented: $isDiscouragedPresented, selection: $model.selectionToDiscourage) Button("Select Apps to Encourage") { isEncouragedPresented = true } .familyActivityPicker(isPresented: $isEncouragedPresented, selection: $model.selectionToEncourage) } .onChange(of: model.selectionToDiscourage) { newSelection in MyModel.shared.setShieldRestrictions() } } } struct ContentView_Previews: PreviewProvider { static var previews: some View { ContentView() .environmentObject(MyModel()) } } import Foundation import DeviceActivity import ManagedSettings class MyDeviceActivityMonitor: DeviceActivityMonitor { let store = ManagedSettingsStore() override func intervalDidStart(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { print("intervalDidStart") super.intervalDidStart(for: activity) store.shield.applications = nil print("intervalDidStart") } override func intervalDidEnd(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalDidEnd(for: activity) } override func eventDidReachThreshold(_ event: DeviceActivityEvent.Name, activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.eventDidReachThreshold(event, activity: activity) print("used encouraged") store.shield.applications = nil } override func intervalWillStartWarning(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalWillStartWarning(for: activity) // Handle the warning before the interval starts. } override func intervalWillEndWarning(for activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.intervalWillEndWarning(for: activity) // Handle the warning before the interval ends. } override func eventWillReachThresholdWarning(_ event: DeviceActivityEvent.Name, activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.eventWillReachThresholdWarning(event, activity: activity) // Handle the warning before the event reaches its threshold. } }

I am using the DeviceActivityMonitor eventDidReachThreshold functionality, but it became very unreliable on the iOS 17.5 beta. Anyone experiencing similar problems? Any known workarounds?

There is an inconsistent issue when views are rendered from the Device Activity Report Extension. This issue is noticeable only on release versions and it works fine in debug mode. Around 80% of the times, the Report Views return blank screen and this is only the case when a weekly/monthly filter is used. Although, it works as expected for daily report views. My questions are: How are all the Report Activity Views working fine in debug mode but not in release mode? How the daily activity filter works fine in the release mode but the weekly/monthly filters don't work? Is this because of a memory limit issue in the extension? As of now, I have the family-controls(distribution) entitlement only for the app and for the extensions I only have family-controls(development) entitlement. Do I need to request for family-controls(Distribution) entitlement even for the extensions? I have seen threads on the forum mentioning the blank screen issue associated with the DeviceActivityReport but haven't found a solution to it. Any suggestions/feedback would be of great help, thanks.

I've been working with the Screen Time API for almost 6 months now. I found out it's completely unreliable, testing on iOS 17.4, the DeviceActivityReport is not showing, the DeviceActivityMonitor more often than not does not fire intervalDidStart. It's very frustrating. Has anyone found out a workaround? We all know there has to be something we're doing wrong, since apps like Opal and Jono does not present those types of issues. Let's please unite our forces and find a solution. How to use this API should not be a secret!

I have a request from a client that would like to create a solution where a central component is the ability to retrieve the users app usage. I can see that there are various api's todo that - one example is the Device Activity API. Another hope from the client is that this should be a web solution and not an app. I haven't quite been able to figure out if this is possible or not. I have three questions: Is it possible to retrieve app usage information through a REST api (or similar) outside an iOS app? Is it possible to use the appleId as a kind of auth solution for a web application Are there any similar APIs for older versions than iOS 15?

How can I differentiate between multiple children in order to display screentime data to the user separately for a parent with multiple children? As far as I can see, the options are .children, and .all? I understand I can retrieve some info from within the extension so I can group data separately, but is there any way to reliably filter between different children from within my app, say using a DeviceActivityFilter? Many thanks!

I am currently debugging an issue with DeviceActivityMonitor where the threshold is reached even though the target app (e.g. Instagram) is not being used actively. I noticed that the device with the unexpected behavior had the instagram.com website opened in the Safari web browser (among hundreds of other tabs). That tab was not actively used either (not in foreground, Safari app neither used). However, I was wondering if it can happen that this website is contributing towards the threshold as well even though it is in background and not used? Otherwise I cannot explain myself this strange behavior.

As per our code, we have the apps to be shielded whenever the threshold is reached. According to this use-case, our code in DeviceActivityExtension looks something like: override func eventDidReachThreshold(_ event: DeviceActivityEvent.Name, activity: DeviceActivityName) { super.eventDidReachThreshold(event, activity: activity) defaults?.setValue(event.rawValue, forKey: "appLimitEventName") defaults?.setValue(true, forKey: "appLimitReached") defaults?.synchronize() // using darwinNotificationCenter to trigger callback in the application let darwinNotificationCenter = DarwinNotificationsManager.sharedInstance() darwinNotificationCenter.postNotification(withName: "nextAppLimitInitiated") // using Notifications to debug since print doesn't work scheduleNotification(with: "interval threshold reached") } And in our application, we have the shielding logic in place, init() { let darwinNotificationCenter = DarwinNotificationsManager.sharedInstance() darwinNotificationCenter.register(forNotificationName: "nextAppLimitInitiated"){ print("callback received") let appLimitReached = self.defaults?.bool(forKey: "appLimitReached") let appLimitEventName = self.defaults?.string(forKey: "appLimitEventName") if appLimitReached ?? false, appLimitEventName != "" { // this sends the notification when callback is received self.scheduleNotification(with: "init start") self.defaults?.setValue(false, forKey: "appLimitReached") guard var dataArray = self.defaults?.array(forKey: "appLimitdataArray"), !dataArray.isEmpty else { return } let appLimitData = dataArray.first as! NSDictionary let appLimitKey = appLimitData["appLimitId"] as! String let data = self.getSchedule(key: appLimitEventName ?? "") if let appTokens = data?.applicationTokens { for token in appTokens { if !self.applicationTokens.contains(appTokens) { self.applicationTokens.insert(token) } } } self.store.shield.applications = self.applicationTokens self.store.shield.applicationCategories = ShieldSettings.ActivityCategoryPolicy.specific(self.categoryTokens, except: Set()) dataArray.removeFirst() //dataArray.append(appLimitData) self.defaults?.set(dataArray, forKey: "appLimitdataArray") self.initiateMonitoring(initiateAgain: true) self.scheduleNotification(with: "init end") } } } This works as expected for multiple App Limits but only when the device is connected to the Xcode. If we disconnect the device from Xcode/ stop application from Xcode/ try in release mode, the callback is not received from extension to the app/init block. When the device is connected to Xcode, if the apps hit the threshold, they are shielded automatically. But if the device is disconnected/ app is in release mode, the apps are not shielded automatically even after the threshold is reached. It is shielded later only after opening our app once. Please let me know if I'm doing anything wrong in receiving callback or in my shielding logic. If I need to place the shielding logic in the extension, please tell me how I can handle multiple appTokens.

I have two repeating DeviceActivitySchedules running in my app and noticed a super strange behavior: whenever I modify Screen Time API permission settings (granting an additional app permission, or removing permission for a different app (completely different unrelated screen time apps from App Store)) all my DeviceActivitySchedules are cancelled and the intervalDidEnd callbacks are called my permission is not modified in this scenario this is a super strange and unexpected behavior is anyone able to reproduce this? for me this happens 100% of the times I do this any known workarounds?

How can I count the number of pickups for a certain application? The docs say that there is a struct ApplicationActivity within the DeviceActivityData: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/deviceactivity/deviceactivitydata Using this code I receive a warning in XCode: Value of type 'DeviceActivityData' has no member 'applicationActivity' struct ApplicationPickupCountReport: DeviceActivityReportScene { // Define which context your scene will represent. let context: DeviceActivityReport.Context = .applicationPickupCount // Define the custom configuration and the resulting view for this report. let content: (String) -> ApplicationPickupCountView func makeConfiguration(representing data: DeviceActivityResults<DeviceActivityData>) async -> String { var totalPickups = 0 let totalPickups = await data.flatMap { $0.applicationActivity }.reduce(0, { $0 + $1.numberOfPickups }) return "\(totalPickups)" } }

Hello, I am using a DeviceActivityEvent to limit access to an app after the user has spent x minutes on it. Sometimes it can happen that a DeviceActivitySchedule spans from 11:55pm - 12:25am (just an example). In these cases, I have noticed, the DeviceActivityMonitorExtension’s eventDidReachThreshold is not called after the user has reached the threshold time interval in the observed app. I assume this is because we have transitioned over midnight and something weird happens to the DeviceActivitySchedule. I’ve tried adding the day components to the DeviceActivitySchedule as well, but then it fails completely. Any advice how to handle this? I could, of course, create two separate DeviceActivitySchedules: one for before midnight, and one for after. But depending on the user’s real app usage that could lead to slightly different (and unexpected) behavior.

Hello! I am using the eventDidReachThreshold callback in the DeviceActivityMonitor in order to shield a target app after the user has spend x amount of time on it (e.g. x = 5 minutes). Many times this works fine, and I can trigger my shield after the specified threshold has been met. However sometimes, when they leave the target app before the threshold has been reached, the eventDidReachThreshold callback gets called randomly while they are doing something else on their phone (e.g. using a different app, on the Home Screen, phone locked…). From my perspective this does not make sense, since they are not actively spending time on the target app, and that time should not be counted towards the target app’s threshold. And it is also very confusing for the users because they will then find a blocked target app even though they haven’t used their time budget completely. This is not related to the intervalDidStart / intervalDidEnd callbacks, because they are not correlating with the timing of when the eventDidReachThreshold callback is called unexpectedly. Any ideas what this could be related to?

There is a way to allow DeviceActivityMonitor to make UI changes? Currently I have some code in the intervalDidStart and intervalDidEnd that updates Core Data entities, and it works correctly. However, the changes are only reflected if the app is terminated and opened again. Thus, if the app is opened and one of the methods inside the DeviceActivityMonitor is being called, the UI won't be updated. PS: I am using @FetchRequest to retrieve the core data entities called BlockEntity, and I have a little circle in the UI which should indicate the status of the block: active/inactive, so it would be nice to update the color in real time when intervalDidStart or intervalDidEnd are called.

I am trying to understand how to approach 'x minute' pauses for a DeviceActivitySchedule. For instance, I would like to let the user pause for 5 minutes from an active schedule (meaning un-shielding the apps and re-applying the shield after the 5 min has passed). The only way that came to my mind was calling the following: Calling .startMonitoring to start monitoring a new event with the same apps starting .now and ending .now + 5 minutes; Calling in the intervalDidStart, store.shield.applications.subtract(apps) so that the apps are removed from the shield. Calling in the intervalDidEnd, store.shield.applications = apps so that the apps are now shielded again. The problem is that, from the Apple Developer Documentation: The minimum interval length for monitoring device activity is fifteen minutes. So the minimum pause I could offer to the user would be 15 minutes. And that tells me this approach is most likely wrong, because all other Screen Time apps, like Opal, Jomo, AppBlock offer also 5 min pause. Does anyone know / can think of a different and better approach?