Hide status bar but not custom UIWindow

Question

I have a custom UIWindow that is my own status bar, so I want to hide the status bar and show mine instead. I have

override var prefersStatusBarHidden: Bool {
    return true
}

In both my UIWindow's rootViewController and the main ViewController. This hides the status bar, but it also hides my UIWindow. My UIWindow's windowLevel is UIWindowLevelStatusBar + 1, but I tested other windowLevels and it was hidden regardless of the level.

Setting an opaque background for my custom UIWindow is not an option.

How can I hide the status bar but not my custom UIWindow?

is it an option for you to hide it only in specific view controllers? — Marcio Romero Patrnogic, Aug 14 '17 at 22:23
@MarcioRomeroPatrnogic, I can either hide on all or specific ones: It doesn't matter — IHaveAQuestion, Aug 14 '17 at 22:24
@MarcioRomeroPatrnogic, might it be a problem with the Simulator? I can't test on my device now. — IHaveAQuestion, Aug 15 '17 at 10:53
@MarcioRomeroPatrnogic, I just tried it, and it does not work on a device either :( Any ideas? Is it possible to see what the system does when it reads `prefersStatusBarHidden` on the code level? — IHaveAQuestion, Aug 15 '17 at 21:12
*"and show mine instead."* Not sure App Review team will like this bit. — Andrii Chernenko, Aug 15 '17 at 21:51

Daniel · Accepted Answer · 2017-08-15T21:58:49.620

Edit: better solution

The same still holds true as before/below, but the actual code is shorter, simpler, and more Swifty.

In your AppDelegate, have

func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplicationLaunchOptionsKey: Any]?) -> Bool {
    // Override point for customization after application launch.
    myStatusBarWindow.isHidden = false
    return true
}

And, of course, hide the system status bar. Either do this in the build settings or info.plist, or in your view controller, say

override var prefersStatusBarHidden: Bool {
    return true
}

Much better :)

Old solution

Unfortunately, I cannot find what is probably the best answer, but I have a workaround:

First show your window. Only after that should you hide the status bar. I am not sure why this works, but it does. You can do that like this:

// Class var 
var statusBarHidden = false

// For example in viewDidLoad but only the order matters
override func viewDidLoad() {
    myWindow.isHidden = false
    statusBarHidden = true
    setNeedsStatusBarAppearanceUpdate()
}

override var prefersStatusBarHidden: Bool {
    return statusBarHidden
}

Through my experimentation I discovered that prefersStatusBarHidden is checked before viewDidLoad. Thus, we need to tell the view controller to check again once the window is shown. Again, I don't know why this works, but it does. If anyone can explain this phenomenon (why this order matters), that would be an excellent supplement to this solution.

Hide status bar but not custom UIWindow

1 Answers1

Edit: better solution