Local Notifications

To a user, a local notification looks the same as a push notification. However, the notifications are generated from the app, not a server. They are typically used for scheduled events, like an alarm clock or a to do item reminder.

Step 1: Request Permissions

Add the code below to request permission to send the user notifications. For testing, you can add it in the AppDelegate.swift in the application:didFinishLaunchingWithOptions: function. This will cause the permissions alert to display as soon as the user launches the app. Be careful though: if a user denies the permission, the app will never show the alert again even if you request the permission again.

UIApplication.sharedApplication().registerUserNotificationSettings(UIUserNotificationSettings(forTypes: [.Alert, .Badge, .Sound], categories: nil))

The code above will display an alert like this:

Step 2: Schedule a Notification

Create a UILocalNotification object that configures your notification. A key parameter is the fireDate property which determines when the alert will be shown. Configure the fireDate by creating an NSDate object that has the date/time you want the notification to be shown.

// Create a date 10 seconds from the current time
let fireDate = NSDate(timeIntervalSinceNow: 10)

let notification = UILocalNotification()
notification.alertBody = "This is a notification!"

// text that is displayed after "slide to..." on the lock screen - defaults to "slide to view"
notification.alertAction = "open"

notification.fireDate = fireDate
notification.soundName = UILocalNotificationDefaultSoundName

UIApplication.sharedApplication().scheduleLocalNotification(notification)

Step 3: Close the App

Notifications are not shown if the application is active. After scheduling the notification, in the simulator, press Command-Shift-H to return to the Home screen.