When application in iOS goes in background (Say, Home button is pressed) then application will not run. In iOS, only specific application types are allowed to run in the background. http://blogs.innovationm.com/support-for-applications-running-in-background-ios/

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Support for Applications running in
background in iOS
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Support for applications running in background in iOS
When application in iOS goes in background (Say, Home button is pressed) then
application will not run. In iOS, only specific application types are allowed to run in the
background. Let us see them in more detail.
Application Types Support for Background in iOS
There are 7 types of such applications. See the details below:
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1.


The app plays audible content to the user while in the background. (This content
includes streaming audio or video content using AirPlay)

There should be entry for “audio” in application plist file.

Application has to start audio session to execute in background.
Scenario - User starts listening to the Audio and then presses the Home button.
Application will go in background but audio will still be played. If this application is not
specified as Audio type application then audio will stop when the user presses Home
button.
2.


The app keeps users informed of their location, even while it is running in the
background.

There should be entry for “location” in application plist file.

Application has to register itself for receiving location event.
Scenario - Application wants to track the user location and registers for receiving
location specifying the distance and accuracy. User presses the Home button and
application goes in background and then to Suspended state. When there is a change
in the location then OS will wake the application. Application will get the location data
and can then process it, say sending this location data to the server.
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3.

The app provides the ability for the user to make phone calls using an Internet
connection.

There should be entry for “voip” in application plist file.

Application has to implement APNS (Apple Push Notification Service).

Application should include audio for background mode.
Scenario – Application makes a socket connection with the server to communicate.
When the user presses Home button then application will go in the background state
and then to Suspended state. OS then takes over and keeps this Socket connection
alive. When server communicates on this connection then OS wakes up the application
and hands over the connection to the app.
4.


There should be entry for “newsstand-content” in application plist file.

Application has to implement APNS (Apple Push Notification Service).

Application downloads and processes magazine or newspaper content in the
background.
Scenario - Application goes in Background. There is some content on the server that
has to be notified to the app. Server sends push notification to the app and wakes the
app in the background. Now, app can process the notification, say getting the content
from the server and storing it locally. Next time, when the user launches the app, will
see an updated content.
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5.


The app works with a hardware accessory that needs to deliver updates on a
regular schedule through the External Accessory framework.

There should be entry for “external-accessory” in application plist file.

Application must provide an interface that allows the user to start and stop the
delivery of accessory update events. That interface should then open or close the
accessory session as appropriate (such as heart-rate monitors).
Scenario - The user launches application which opens an NSStream to the external accessories such as heart monitoring accessory. While running user switches to the
application which causes our app to enter into a background state. The application
continues to collect the data stream from the accessory. The app works with a hardware
accessory that needs to deliver updates on a regular schedule through the External
Accessory framework.
6.


The app works with a Bluetooth accessory that needs to deliver updates on a
regular schedule through the Core Bluetooth framework.

There should be entry for “bluetooth-central” in application plist file.
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
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Application must provide an interface that allows the user to start and stop the
delivery of accessory update events. That interface should then open or close the
accessory session as appropriate (such as a Bluetooth heart rate belt).
Scenario - This type is for apps implementing the central role. The system wakes it up
from a suspended state to allow it to handle Bluetooth related events. While your app is
in the background you can still discover and connect to peripherals, and explore and
interact with peripheral data.
7.

The app supports Bluetooth communication in peripheral mode through the Core
Bluetooth framework.

There should be entry for “bluetooth-peripheral” in application plist file.

Application must provide an interface that allows the user to start and stop the
delivery of accessory update events. That interface should then open or close the
accessory session as appropriate.
Scenario - This type is for apps implementing the peripheral role. The system wakes it
up from a suspended state to allow it to handle Bluetooth- related events. The Core
Bluetooth framework allows your app to advertise while in the background state.
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E-3 (Ground Floor), Sector-3, Noida 201301 (India)
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