What is a JobService in Android

android android-service android-5.0-lollipop jobservice
IgorGanapolsky picture IgorGanapolsky · Jul 7, 2014 · Viewed 11.7k times · Source

I am inspecting the latest samples in Android-L developer SDK. There is a sample class in android-L/ui/views/Clipping/ClippingBasic called TestJobService. It extends from JobService, which in turn extends from Service. I see that JobService is a class in android.jar, but I cannot find any information on it in the dev guides, nor in the Android sourcecode www.androidxref.com. Has anybody seen this class or know what it's purpose is?

Answer

matiash picture matiash · Jul 7, 2014

It's a new type of service, that is invoked for tasks that are scheduled to be run depending on system conditions (e.g. idle, plugged in).

Entry point for the callback from the JobScheduler.

This is the base class that handles asynchronous requests that were previously scheduled. You are responsible for overriding onStartJob(JobParameters), which is where you will implement your job logic.

You basically create a JobInfo object that describes these conditions (with JobInfo.Builder) and set the component name of the service that must be executed.

To schedule them, you need the JobScheduler, which you can access with Context.getSystemService(Context.JOB_SCHEDULER_SERVICE).

By the way, L Preview Documentation is here, in case you didn't know about it.

UPDATE: Here is the doc about JobService: https://developer.android.com/reference/android/app/job/JobService.html

Related questions

How to perform notification-action (click) on lock-screen?

TL;DR How can I make a notification that does some work from the lock-screen without unlocking? After clicking an action, a button on the notification or just the complete notification, I want to do an API call (without typing …

Read More
How to check if a service is running on Android?

How do I check if a background service is running? I want an Android activity that toggles the state of the service -- it lets me turn it on if it is off and off if it is on.

Read More
getApplication() vs. getApplicationContext()

I couldn't find a satisfying answer to this, so here we go: what's the deal with Activity/Service.getApplication() and Context.getApplicationContext()? In our application, both return the same object. In an ActivityTestCase however, mocking the application will make getApplication() …

Read More