ReceivingVoiceAndTextCommunicationsOnALocalNetwork

Receiving Voice and Text Communications on a Local Network

Provide voice and text communication on a local network isolated from Apple Push Notification service by adopting Local Push Connectivity.

Overview

• Note: This sample code project is associated with WWDC 2020 session 10113: Build Local Push Connectivity for Constrained Networks.

This sample app shows how to implement and use Local Push Connectivity within a messaging app. The sample workspace contains two app components:

• SimplePush — An iOS app that uses Local Push Connectivity to provide text messaging and VoIP services.
• SimplePushServer — A lightweight Swift server that simulates the functions of a messaging server by routing messages and calls between clients.

The SimplePush app maintains two connections to the server:

• Notification Channel — A TCP connection maintained by the NEAppPushProvider that provides functionality similar to Apple Push Notification service (APNs) when on a local Wi-Fi network.
• Control Channel — A TCP connection maintained by the iOS app and used to send app control data to the server.

To run the sample, you will need a macOS device to operate as the server, and two iOS devices to communicate with each other, all on the same Wi-Fi network.

Configure the Sample Code Project

Apps using Local Push Connectivity require the App Push Provider entitlement entitlement.

After receiving the entitlement:

1. Log in to your account on the Apple Developer website and create a new provisioning profile that includes the App Push Provider entitlement.
2. Import the newly created provisioning profile into Xcode.
3. Update the pushProviderBundleIdentifier of the NEAppPushManager in PushConfigurationManager.swift.
4. In the Xcode projects for the SimplePushKit and SimplePushServer apps, set your Apple Development Team targets.

Build and Run the Sample Server

Select the SimplePushServer build scheme and select your macOS machine as the run destination. After starting the server, the console displays the ports used by the server.

Build, Run, and Configure the Sample App

With the server running, select the SimplePush iOS build scheme and run the project on your iOS device. When SimplePush starts, update the app’s settings to connect to the server.

1. Tap the Settings button and enter the following information:
2. Enter the Server Address, which is the IP address or hostname of the macOS computer where you’re running the SimplePushServer.
3. Enter the App Push Provider SSID, which is the SSID of your local Wi-Fi network, on which the NEAppPushProvider runs.

After configuring those settings, the “App Push Provider - Active” setting displays “Yes” when NEAppPushProvider is running. You should perform the steps above on at least two iOS devices so you can test and observe message exchanges between clients.