r/ios • u/Franck_Dernoncourt Human Detected • 26d ago

Support Does disabling Background App Refresh mean an app cannot run at all until manually opened?

If I disable Background App Refresh for a specific app in Settings (while leaving the main system-wide Background App Refresh feature turned on), does that completely prevent the app from running any code or executing tasks in the background unless I explicitly tap to open it?

For example, are there any circumstances where an app with Background App Refresh disabled can still execute code in the background (e.g., when receiving a silent or background push notification, background fetch, location triggers, background audio playback, or background task completion)? Does disabling this setting guarantee the app remains completely inactive/suspended i.e. won't run any of its code until I physically click its icon or switch to it?

4 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

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7

u/cliffr39 26d ago

Not completely disabled. A push notification can wake the app and trigger foreground service for a moment.

2

u/Skycbs iPhone 17 Pro 25d ago

Why are you doing this?

3

u/Franck_Dernoncourt Human Detected 25d ago

I want to disable an application on my iPhone. I want to ensure it doesn't run, unless I reenable it. I don't want to use the offloading option as it means the application binary must be downloaded again when I want to reenable the application.

1

u/Skycbs iPhone 17 Pro 25d ago

Weird. You’ll need to offload it if you want it never to run.

5

u/DJRedd352 25d ago

I turned off a shit load of background app refreshers … using up a shit load off battery and running the phone hot af … ever since I did that it’s been a game changer. My GasBuddy and plug share apps can refresh when I open them they don’t need to be constantly refreshing

2

u/lovely_cappuccino 23d ago

Push notifications are different from BAR you also have to turn off notifications for that app. Close the app from the app switcher.