Get a screenshot while the app is in the background? (Permitted to use private APIs)

Question

I am developing a monitoring application for the iPad. It already uses private frameworks to send artificial events and simulate user input, while my application is in the background and another application in the foreground.

Now my problem is: I need to take a screenshot of the iPad as an image programmatically. I know the UIGetScreenImage method, as well as each view on the screen, to get an image. However, UIGetScreenImage cannot be called from the background. (I get an error when I try to do this from the background) And I cannot display the views from another application, since I only know my applications.

OPTION 1 I can simulate a click on the house and lock the keys so that the iPad can create a screenshot. Subsequently, I use private APIs to access this image from my photo album using [PLPhotoLibrary] (https://github.com/nst/iOS-Runtime-Headers/blob/3686717e107fa36a990fac20c30da2da9a25b698/PrivateFrameworks/PhotoLibhotolibrary.frameP workbook and PLPhoto .

id lib = [PLPhotoLibrary sharedPhotoLibrary]; id allPhotosAlbum = [lib allPhotosAlbum]; id contents = [lib albumContents]; id lastPhoto = [contents objectAtIndex:[contents count] -1]; UIImage *screenshot = [lastPhoto newFullSizeImage]; 

The only problem with this approach is that the screenshots will be stacked on the album, filling the memory of the iPad. So I need another way, or I need a way to delete these photos. But when I call the delete methods in the photo album and photo library, I get a "SQLITE 8 error [attempt to write to the read-only database]

Any suggestions on how to achieve this screen shot better would be appreciated.

I will not upload this application to the application store. This is for private use.

Answer 1

After massive tests and attempts, I came to the conclusion that even with private APIs that erase photos from a photo album, there are too many problems, maybe even impossible. I ended up writing a script that simulates user inputs and erases photos.

Answer 2

It used to be that you could capture a screen shot of the entire device, from the foreground or background, using IOSurface. Apple blocked this API in iOS 9. It became impossible without hacking your device, private API or not.

Answer 3

Jailbreaking your device is probably the only protection, but I do not recommend it.

However, Apple was never intended for people, developers or not, to use their iPad in the form that you describe.

Answer 4

You can use the following private API: [[UIWindow class] executeSelector: @selector (createScreenIOSurface)];