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Background Location

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Some use cases require location access when the app is in the background. To enable this, configure both iOS and Android platforms with the appropriate permissions and services.

Tip

Enable background location support for features like recording, navigation, or content download (maps can be large and take time to fetch).

Configure iOS​

Update your Info.plist to request permission for background location access:

<key>NSLocationAlwaysAndWhenInUseUsageDescription</key>
<string>Location is needed for map localization and navigation.</string>

<key>UIBackgroundModes</key>
<array>
    <!-- Include other modes as needed -->
    <string>location</string>
    <string>processing</string>
</array>

Configure Android​

Declare permissions in your manifest and implement a foreground service to keep location updates alive.

Add required permissions​

Include the necessary permissions and service declarations in your AndroidManifest.xml:

<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_BACKGROUND_LOCATION" />
<!-- Needed for foreground service -->
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE_LOCATION" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.POST_NOTIFICATIONS" />
Tip

On Android 10+ (API level 29+), request ACCESS_BACKGROUND_LOCATION explicitly at runtime in your app's permission request flow.

Implement a foreground service​

Android requires a foreground service to run background location tracking. Without it, the operating system may terminate your app's background processes, leading to loss of location updates.

danger

Create a foreground service on Android to ensure location updates continue when the app is in the background.

Learn more about foreground services: Background Location Example.

Find a sample implementation in the Recorder in Background example.

Configure sensor settings​

Enable background location in the SDK by initializing the sensor configuration in your Flutter code:

final dataSource = DataSource.createLiveDataSource();

if (dataSource == null) {
    throw "Error creating data source";
}

final config = dataSource.getConfiguration(DataType.position);

config.allowsBackgroundLocationUpdates = true;

final err = dataSource.setConfiguration(type: DataType.position, config: config);

if (err != GemError.success) {
    throw "Error setting data source configuration: ${err.toString()}";
}
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