alarmkit_skill

Overview

This skill integrates AlarmKit for scheduling alarms and countdown timers with custom UI, Live Activities, and snooze support. It helps implement reliable alarm/timer behavior on iOS 18+, avoiding common integration mistakes. Use it to add system-aware alarms that can override Focus/silent mode and surface on the Dynamic Island or Lock Screen.

How this skill works

It wires AlarmManager, Alarm, and AlarmPresentation APIs to schedule one-time, repeating, or countdown alarms, handle authorization, and persist alarm IDs. The skill ensures the correct Info.plist key (NSAlarmKitUsageDescription) is present, observes alarmUpdates for state sync, and configures a widget extension with AlarmAttributes for Live Activities. It also exposes UI customization points (alert, countdown, paused) and button behaviors (stop, snooze, pause, resume).

When to use it

• Adding or reviewing alarm or timer features in an iOS 18+ app
• Scheduling one-time, repeating, or countdown timers
• Showing alarm state on Dynamic Island or Lock Screen via Live Activities
• Implementing snooze, stop, pause, or resume controls on alarms
• Handling authorization, Info.plist setup, and Focus/silent-mode override

Best practices

• Include NSAlarmKitUsageDescription in Info.plist before requesting authorization
• Use AlarmManager.shared.authorizationState (not authorizationStatus) and handle denied states gracefully
• Persist Alarm.id (UUID) so alarms can be paused, resumed, or canceled later
• Observe the alarmUpdates async sequence to keep app UI in sync with system state
• Provide a widget extension with ActivityConfiguration(for: AlarmAttributes.self) for countdown/paused presentations
• Handle errors from schedule(), pause(), resume(), and cancel() and account for system limits on active alarms

Example use cases

• Schedule a daily wake-up alarm with repeats and a snooze button on the alert UI
• Create a cooking countdown timer that shows remaining time on the Lock Screen via Live Activities
• Pause and resume a long timer from a widget or in-app UI while persisting the alarm UUID
• Override Focus/silent mode for critical alarms while still respecting user settings and authorization
• Add custom alarm buttons and metadata to show contextual actions in the alarm alert