Background App Refresh in iOS 7 reportedly causing login issues for some apps

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
An apparent bug in iOS 7's Background App Refresh implementation is causing users of certain third-party apps to be kicked out of login sessions, forcing them to reenter their credentials every few hours.

Background App Refresh


It is unknown at this time what exactly is causing the seemingly random logouts, though The Verge reports that app makers have narrowed down the culprit to a mechanism in Background App Refresh.

Of the more popular apps affected, Mailbox was "in crisis mode" to find a solution, but was unable to rectify the situation, saying Apple's Background App Refresh is the root cause of the issue. Consequently, an updated version of the app disabling access to the feature was submitted to the App Store on Friday.

AppleInsider can confirm that certain apps do require repeated log-ins when Background App Refresh is activated, including the aforementioned Mailbox, PayPal and Snapchat. Curiously, other titles like Facebook seem unaffected by the purported bug.

One of the highlights of Apple's iOS 7, Background App Refresh allows apps to receive dynamic updates without running in the foreground. The feature is extremely useful when using time-sensitive apps like Mailbox, or those that do not support push notifications.

Users experiencing continuous logouts can simply turn off global Background App Refresh in Settings or, if certain apps appear to be working, toggle the feature on a per-app basis.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 17
    jd_in_sbjd_in_sb Posts: 1,600member
    A Gold release of an OS is really just the last Beta.
  • Reply 2 of 17
    So it seems we have the Verge scouring the Apple discussion boards for iOS bugs to make up headline articles. Not a surprise considering one of their main advertisers is Samsung.
  • Reply 3 of 17
    froodfrood Posts: 771member

    Bugs are an inevitable reality with new software, especially something with the scope of iOS7.  Apple will fix it quickly I'm sure, no big deal.

  • Reply 4 of 17
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Ok, I admit that I'm not entirely sure what they mean by repeated logins. Do they mean that when you're using the app you have to repeatedly log back in as the app throws you out? I'm assuming that that's what it means. The only app on that list I have is Paypal, and I haven't used it since I updated the OS.
  • Reply 5 of 17
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    So I just played with PayPal for about 5 minutes and didn't see a problem. That may be too short a time, but without anything that I had to do, it was getting pretty boring.
  • Reply 6 of 17

    Well, Facebook isn't affected because it doesn't use background refresh (even the new, iOS7-ified version).

     

    What will happen is randomly when you switch to an affected app, it will be like you're using it for the first time. You'll have to re-enter all your account credentials and go through any initial configuration all over again (in the case of Mailbox, a lengthy unskippable tutorial). If it's an app you're using frequently (like Mailbox), it renders it pretty much unusable.

     

    It's weird to me that no one noticed this with the iOS 7 versions of their apps prior to public release…

  • Reply 7 of 17
    gordon1420 wrote: »
    It's weird to me that no one noticed this with the iOS 7 versions of their apps prior to public release…

    Well, the only people who would have been able to catch it are the developers of the affected app. Even with the GM of iOS, unless you had access to the as yet released Mailbox update, you would have had no problems.

    That said, perhaps Facebook knew of this, kept that part of the update out of their release, knowing that (1) Facebook would face the complaints (at least initially), (2) notified Apple, who is at work on a fix (7.0.2 has already hit some server logs) and (3) Apple held the iOS 7 ified release of Podcasts (assuming it gets this functionality) and perhaps iWork.
  • Reply 8 of 17
    Once again the upside of sticking with stock apps is demonstrated. They may not be all that, but they work.
  • Reply 9 of 17
    PayPal just released an update to address this issue
  • Reply 10 of 17
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by markbyrn View Post



    So it seems we have the Verge scouring the Apple discussion boards for iOS bugs to make up headline articles. Not a surprise considering one of their main advertisers is Samsung.

     

    jc man they're reporting an actual problem- one which ive been experiencing since the update an im glad to know its source has been found so that apple can patch it. 

  • Reply 11 of 17
    k so I'm a die hard apple fan for about 23 years now which makes me feel old...anyway I hate the look and overall feel of ios7 and I thinks it's way too buggy and the interface is slow and delayed with practically everything ... when my basement flooded from Sandy I saved my iMac from college and 2 other items .. don't wanna be accused of bashing Apple or hating etc etc ...this is my honest opinion... I think Steve jobs would've hated this garbage too...
  • Reply 12 of 17
    Originally Posted by Wolfies167 
    [post]

     

    k so why should we believe you or think your opinion is valid?

  • Reply 13 of 17

    I use Mailbox and have done so on all the betas. I was never asked to login so I suspect that the app was reauthenticating to the Mailbox servers in the background, unbeknownst to the end user. I.E. the crisis may have only been at the head office?

  • Reply 14 of 17
    jccjcc Posts: 326member
    Mailbox and those other big developer companies are idiots. They had months to test their app on iOS7 and they're only NOW complaining about this bug?! This is a pretty big bug to only test it now. Perhaps if they had spent more time on these background operational code instead of the UI, they would have reported in time for the mainstream release.
  • Reply 15 of 17
    @Wolifes 167
    There's a zillion trolls flooding this forum using this same old tactic to do some Apple bashing.
    Now THIS is what makes you look so terribly old.
  • Reply 16 of 17
    somewhat off topic: i have discovered that on iPhone 4, turning off App Refresh completely makes iOS 7 almost as fast and responsive as iOS 6.
  • Reply 17 of 17
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by JCC View Post



    Mailbox and those other big developer companies are idiots. They had months to test their app on iOS7 and they're only NOW complaining about this bug?! This is a pretty big bug to only test it now. Perhaps if they had spent more time on these background operational code instead of the UI, they would have reported in time for the mainstream release.

    Irony overload.

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