Xcode Project Setup

Receiving push notifications in your iOS app requires making some changes in the project setup. The instructions below will walk you through the required setup.

Open a Terminal window and change the current directory to the project root.

• If Podfile does not exist, run the following command: pod init
  Open the created Podfile and add a reference to the BackendlessSwift pod. The file should look as shown below:

  # Uncomment the next line to define a global platform for your project
  # platform :ios, '9.0'
  
  target 'YOUR-PROJECT-NAME' do
    # Comment the next line if you don't want to use dynamic frameworks
    use_frameworks!
  
    # Pods for PushNotificationsApp
    pod 'BackendlessSwift'
  end
  

• If Podfile exists, make sure it references the BackendlessSwift pod as shown above.

Run the following command to install the pod(s):

pod install

Open .xcworkspace file to launch your project.

Make sure your application responds to your push notification certificate:

The next step is to add the User Notifications Framework to the project. Select Project > Target > Build Phases > Link Binary with Libraries:

Switch to the Signing & Capabilities section (Project > Target > Signing & Capabilities > Push Notifications) and enable Push Notifications

Further configuration steps will vary between Objective-C and Swift, use the corresponding tab below:

Objective-C Projects

Add UserNotifications in AppDelegate.h:

#import <UIKit/UIKit.h>
#import <UserNotifications/UserNotifications.h>

@interface AppDelegate : UIResponder <UIApplicationDelegate, UNUserNotificationCenterDelegate>
@property (strong, nonatomic) UIWindow *window;
@end

Register device for push notifications in AppDelegate.m:

#import "AppDelegate.h"
#import <Backendless-Swift.h>

@implementation AppDelegate

- (BOOL)application:(UIApplication *)application didFinishLaunchingWithOptions:(NSDictionary *)launchOptions {
    // init Backendless
    [Backendless.shared initAppWithApplicationId:APPLICATION_ID apiKey:API_KEY];

    UNUserNotificationCenter *center = [UNUserNotificationCenter currentNotificationCenter];
    center.delegate = self;
    [center requestAuthorizationWithOptions:(UNAuthorizationOptionAlert + UNAuthorizationOptionBadge + UNAuthorizationOptionSound) completionHandler:^(BOOL granted, NSError * _Nullable error) {
        [[UIApplication sharedApplication] registerForRemoteNotifications];
    }];
    return YES;
}

- (void)application:(UIApplication *)application didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken:(NSData *)deviceToken {
    [Backendless.shared.messaging registerDeviceWithDeviceToken:deviceToken responseHandler:^(NSString *registrationId) {
        NSLog(@"Device has been registered in Backendless");
    } errorHandler:^(Fault *fault) {
        NSLog(@"Error: %@", fault.message);
    }];
}

- (void)application:(UIApplication *)application didFailToRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithError:(NSError *)error {
    NSLog(@"Device registration failed: %@", error.description);
}

@end

Create Notification Service Extension named "NotificationService" ( File > New > Target > Notification Service Extension ):

Activate the created service extension:

Open Podfile and modify it so that the Backendless pod is installed for the added notification service. Notice the sample Podfile below uses the `    NotificationService`     name, which is the same name shown in the **    Choose options for your new target**     window above:


```
    # Uncomment the next line to define a global platform for your project  
    # platform :ios, '9.0'  

    target 'YOUR-PROJECT-NAME' do  
      # Uncomment the next line if you're using Swift or would like to use dynamic frameworks  
      use_frameworks!  

      # Pods for YOUR-PROJECT-NAME  
    pod 'BackendlessSwift'  

    end  

    target 'NotificationService' do  
      # Uncomment the next line if you're using Swift or would like to use dynamic frameworks  
      use_frameworks!  

      # Pods for NotificationService  
    pod 'BackendlessSwift'  

    end
```


Close the Xcode project as you will need to re-run pod installation. Open a Terminal window and change the current directory to the project's root. Run the following command:


```
    pod install
```


Reopen the Xcode project after the command above completes its execution.



Modify the `    NotificationService.m`     class so it looks as shown below:


``` objc
#import "NotificationService.h"
#import #import <Backendless-Swift.h>

@interface NotificationService ()

@property (nonatomic, strong) void (^contentHandler)(UNNotificationContent *contentToDeliver);
@property (nonatomic, strong) UNMutableNotificationContent *bestAttemptContent;

@end

@implementation NotificationService

- (void)didReceiveNotificationRequest:(UNNotificationRequest *)request withContentHandler:(void (^)(UNNotificationContent * _Nonnull))contentHandler {
    [BackendlessPushHelper.shared processMutableContentWithRequest:request contentHandler:contentHandler];
}

- (void)serviceExtensionTimeWillExpire {
    self.contentHandler(self.bestAttemptContent);
}

@end
```


Open **    Info.plist**    , in both `    NotificationService`     and your target and make sure both of them contain **    App Transport Security Settings**     with the following configuration:

Since both the app and the notification service extension use the same storage, it is important to add an App Group (see the [    Apple Developer documentation](https://developer.apple.com/library/content/documentation/General/Conceptual/ExtensibilityPG/ExtensionScenarios.html)     for details about sharing data between service extension and the containing app). To create an app group navigate to **    Project**     > **    Target**     > **    Capabilities**     > **    App Groups**    . Select your app target and add an app group. The name of the group should contain `    BackendlessPushTemplates `    and its name should be unique. E.g. it could be `    group.TeamID.BackendlessPushTemplates`    .

In addition to the app target, the group must also be added for the notification service extension:

After the group is added to your targets, it is necessary to add an entitlements file in the **    Copy Bundle Resources**     section on the **    Build Phases**     tab. It is important that this step is done for both app target as well as the NotificationService target. Note that the name of the entitelements file matches the name of the target:

Adding entitlements for the NotificationService target:

Swift Projects

Add UserNotifications and register device for push notifications in AppDelegate.swift :

import UIKit
import UserNotifications
import Backendless

@UIApplicationMain
class AppDelegate: UIResponder, UIApplicationDelegate, UNUserNotificationCenterDelegate {

   var window: UIWindow?

   func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplicationLaunchOptionsKey: Any]?) -> Bool {
      // init Backendless
      Backendless.shared.initApp(applicationId: APPLICATION_ID, apiKey: API_KEY)

      let center = UNUserNotificationCenter.current()
      center.delegate = self
      center.requestAuthorization(options: [.alert, .badge, .sound]) { (granted, error) in
         UIApplication.shared.registerForRemoteNotifications()
      }
      return true
   }

   func application(_ application: UIApplication, didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken deviceToken: Data) {
      // register device in Backendless
      Backendless.shared.messaging.registerDevice(deviceToken: deviceToken, responseHandler: { registrationId in
         print("Device has been registered in Backendless")
      }, errorHandler: { fault in
         print("Error: \(fault.message ?? "")")
      })
   }

   func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFailToRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithError error: Error) {
      print("Device registration failed: \(error.localizedDescription)")
   }
}

Create Notification Service Extension named "NotificationService" ( File > New > Target > Notification Service Extension ):

Activate the created service extension:

Open Podfile and modify it so that the Backendless pod is installed for the added notification service. Notice the sample `    Podfile`     below uses the `    NotificationService`     name, which is the same name shown in the **    Choose options for your new target**     window above:


```
    # Uncomment the next line to define a global platform for your project  
    # platform :ios, '9.0'  

    target 'YOUR-PROJECT-NAME' do  
      # Uncomment the next line if you're using Swift or would like to use dynamic frameworks  
      use_frameworks!  

      # Pods for YOUR-PROJECT-NAME  
    pod 'Backendless'  

    end  

    target 'NotificationService' do  
      # Uncomment the next line if you're using Swift or would like to use dynamic frameworks  
      use_frameworks!  

      # Pods for NotificationService  
    pod 'Backendless'  

    end
```


Open a Terminal window and change the current directory to the project's root. Run the following command:


```
    pod install
```


Modify the `    NotificationService.swift`     class so it looks as shown below:


``` swift
import UserNotifications
import Backendless

class NotificationService: UNNotificationServiceExtension {

   var contentHandler: ((UNNotificationContent) -> Void)?
   var bestAttemptContent: UNMutableNotificationContent?

   override func didReceive(_ request: UNNotificationRequest, withContentHandler contentHandler: @escaping (UNNotificationContent) -> Void) {
      BackendlessPushHelper.shared.processMutableContent(request: request, contentHandler: contentHandler)
   }

   override func serviceExtensionTimeWillExpire() {
      if let contentHandler = contentHandler, let bestAttemptContent =  bestAttemptContent {
         contentHandler(bestAttemptContent)
      }
   }
}
```


Open **    Info.plist**    , in both `    NotificationService`     and your target and make sure both of them contain **    App Transport Security Settings**     with the following configuration:

Since both the app and the notification service extension use the same storage, it is important to add an App Group (see the [    Apple Developer documentation](https://developer.apple.com/library/content/documentation/General/Conceptual/ExtensibilityPG/ExtensionScenarios.html)     for details about sharing data between service extension and the containing app). To create an app group navigate to **    Project**     > **    Target**     > **    Capabilities**     > **    App Groups**    . Select your app target and add an app group. The name of the group should contain `    BackendlessPushTemplates `    and its name should be unique. E.g. it could be `    group.TeamID.BackendlessPushTemplates.`

In addition to the app target, the group must also be added for the notification service extension:

After the group is added to your targets, it is necessary to add an entitlements file in the **    Copy Bundle Resources**     section on the **    Build Phases**     tab. It is important that this step is done for both app target as well as the NotificationService target. Note that the name of the entitelements file matches the name of the target:

Adding entitlements for the NotificationService target: