Android APIs
public final class

PendingIntent

extends Object
implements Parcelable
java.lang.Object
   ↳ android.app.PendingIntent

Class Overview

A description of an Intent and target action to perform with it. Instances of this class are created with getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getActivities(Context, int, Intent[], int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), and getService(Context, int, Intent, int); the returned object can be handed to other applications so that they can perform the action you described on your behalf at a later time.

By giving a PendingIntent to another application, you are granting it the right to perform the operation you have specified as if the other application was yourself (with the same permissions and identity). As such, you should be careful about how you build the PendingIntent: almost always, for example, the base Intent you supply should have the component name explicitly set to one of your own components, to ensure it is ultimately sent there and nowhere else.

A PendingIntent itself is simply a reference to a token maintained by the system describing the original data used to retrieve it. This means that, even if its owning application's process is killed, the PendingIntent itself will remain usable from other processes that have been given it. If the creating application later re-retrieves the same kind of PendingIntent (same operation, same Intent action, data, categories, and components, and same flags), it will receive a PendingIntent representing the same token if that is still valid, and can thus call cancel() to remove it.

Because of this behavior, it is important to know when two Intents are considered to be the same for purposes of retrieving a PendingIntent. A common mistake people make is to create multiple PendingIntent objects with Intents that only vary in their "extra" contents, expecting to get a different PendingIntent each time. This does not happen. The parts of the Intent that are used for matching are the same ones defined by Intent.filterEquals. If you use two Intent objects that are equivalent as per Intent.filterEquals, then you will get the same PendingIntent for both of them.

There are two typical ways to deal with this.

If you truly need multiple distinct PendingIntent objects active at the same time (such as to use as two notifications that are both shown at the same time), then you will need to ensure there is something that is different about them to associate them with different PendingIntents. This may be any of the Intent attributes considered by Intent.filterEquals, or different request code integers supplied to getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getActivities(Context, int, Intent[], int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), or getService(Context, int, Intent, int).

If you only need one PendingIntent active at a time for any of the Intents you will use, then you can alternatively use the flags FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT or FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT to either cancel or modify whatever current PendingIntent is associated with the Intent you are supplying.

Summary

Nested Classes
class PendingIntent.CanceledException Exception thrown when trying to send through a PendingIntent that has been canceled or is otherwise no longer able to execute the request. 
interface PendingIntent.OnFinished Callback interface for discovering when a send operation has completed. 
Constants
int FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT Flag indicating that if the described PendingIntent already exists, the current one should be canceled before generating a new one.
int FLAG_NO_CREATE Flag indicating that if the described PendingIntent does not already exist, then simply return null instead of creating it.
int FLAG_ONE_SHOT Flag indicating that this PendingIntent can be used only once.
int FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT Flag indicating that if the described PendingIntent already exists, then keep it but replace its extra data with what is in this new Intent.
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Inherited Constants
From interface android.os.Parcelable
Fields
public static final Creator<PendingIntent> CREATOR
Public Methods
void cancel()
Cancel a currently active PendingIntent.
int describeContents()
Describe the kinds of special objects contained in this Parcelable's marshalled representation.
boolean equals(Object otherObj)
Comparison operator on two PendingIntent objects, such that true is returned then they both represent the same operation from the same package.
static PendingIntent getActivities(Context context, int requestCode, Intent[] intents, int flags)
Like getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), but allows an array of Intents to be supplied.
static PendingIntent getActivities(Context context, int requestCode, Intent[] intents, int flags, Bundle options)
Like getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), but allows an array of Intents to be supplied.
static PendingIntent getActivity(Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags)
Retrieve a PendingIntent that will start a new activity, like calling Context.startActivity(Intent).
static PendingIntent getActivity(Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags, Bundle options)
Retrieve a PendingIntent that will start a new activity, like calling Context.startActivity(Intent).
static PendingIntent getBroadcast(Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags)
Retrieve a PendingIntent that will perform a broadcast, like calling Context.sendBroadcast().
String getCreatorPackage()
Return the package name of the application that created this PendingIntent, that is the identity under which you will actually be sending the Intent.
int getCreatorUid()
Return the uid of the application that created this PendingIntent, that is the identity under which you will actually be sending the Intent.
UserHandle getCreatorUserHandle()
Return the user handle of the application that created this PendingIntent, that is the user under which you will actually be sending the Intent.
IntentSender getIntentSender()
Retrieve a IntentSender object that wraps the existing sender of the PendingIntent
static PendingIntent getService(Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags)
Retrieve a PendingIntent that will start a service, like calling Context.startService().
String getTargetPackage()
This method was deprecated in API level 17. Renamed to getCreatorPackage().
int hashCode()
Returns an integer hash code for this object.
static PendingIntent readPendingIntentOrNullFromParcel(Parcel in)
Convenience function for reading either a Messenger or null pointer from a Parcel.
void send(int code)
Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent.
void send(Context context, int code, Intent intent, PendingIntent.OnFinished onFinished, Handler handler, String requiredPermission)
Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to specify information about the Intent to use and be notified when the send has completed.
void send()
Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent.
void send(Context context, int code, Intent intent)
Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to specify information about the Intent to use.
void send(int code, PendingIntent.OnFinished onFinished, Handler handler)
Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to be notified when the send has completed.
void send(Context context, int code, Intent intent, PendingIntent.OnFinished onFinished, Handler handler)
Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to specify information about the Intent to use and be notified when the send has completed.
String toString()
Returns a string containing a concise, human-readable description of this object.
static void writePendingIntentOrNullToParcel(PendingIntent sender, Parcel out)
Convenience function for writing either a PendingIntent or null pointer to a Parcel.
void writeToParcel(Parcel out, int flags)
Flatten this object in to a Parcel.
[Expand]
Inherited Methods
From class java.lang.Object
From interface android.os.Parcelable

Constants

public static final int FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT

Added in API level 1

Flag indicating that if the described PendingIntent already exists, the current one should be canceled before generating a new one. For use with getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), and getService(Context, int, Intent, int).

You can use this to retrieve a new PendingIntent when you are only changing the extra data in the Intent; by canceling the previous pending intent, this ensures that only entities given the new data will be able to launch it. If this assurance is not an issue, consider FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT.

Constant Value: 268435456 (0x10000000)

public static final int FLAG_NO_CREATE

Added in API level 1

Flag indicating that if the described PendingIntent does not already exist, then simply return null instead of creating it. For use with getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), and getService(Context, int, Intent, int).

Constant Value: 536870912 (0x20000000)

public static final int FLAG_ONE_SHOT

Added in API level 1

Flag indicating that this PendingIntent can be used only once. For use with getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), and getService(Context, int, Intent, int).

If set, after send() is called on it, it will be automatically canceled for you and any future attempt to send through it will fail.

Constant Value: 1073741824 (0x40000000)

public static final int FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT

Added in API level 3

Flag indicating that if the described PendingIntent already exists, then keep it but replace its extra data with what is in this new Intent. For use with getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), and getService(Context, int, Intent, int).

This can be used if you are creating intents where only the extras change, and don't care that any entities that received your previous PendingIntent will be able to launch it with your new extras even if they are not explicitly given to it.

Constant Value: 134217728 (0x08000000)

Fields

public static final Creator<PendingIntent> CREATOR

Added in API level 1

Public Methods

public void cancel ()

Added in API level 1

Cancel a currently active PendingIntent. Only the original application owning a PendingIntent can cancel it.

public int describeContents ()

Added in API level 1

Describe the kinds of special objects contained in this Parcelable's marshalled representation.

Returns
  • a bitmask indicating the set of special object types marshalled by the Parcelable.

public boolean equals (Object otherObj)

Added in API level 1

Comparison operator on two PendingIntent objects, such that true is returned then they both represent the same operation from the same package. This allows you to use getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), or getService(Context, int, Intent, int) multiple times (even across a process being killed), resulting in different PendingIntent objects but whose equals() method identifies them as being the same operation.

Parameters
otherObj the object to compare this instance with.
Returns
  • true if the specified object is equal to this Object; false otherwise.

public static PendingIntent getActivities (Context context, int requestCode, Intent[] intents, int flags)

Added in API level 11

Like getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), but allows an array of Intents to be supplied. The last Intent in the array is taken as the primary key for the PendingIntent, like the single Intent given to getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int). Upon sending the resulting PendingIntent, all of the Intents are started in the same way as they would be by passing them to startActivities(Intent[]).

The first intent in the array will be started outside of the context of an existing activity, so you must use the Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK launch flag in the Intent. (Activities after the first in the array are started in the context of the previous activity in the array, so FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK is not needed nor desired for them.)

The last intent in the array represents the key for the PendingIntent. In other words, it is the significant element for matching (as done with the single intent given to getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), its content will be the subject of replacement by send(Context, int, Intent) and FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, etc. This is because it is the most specific of the supplied intents, and the UI the user actually sees when the intents are started.

For security reasons, the Intent objects you supply here should almost always be explicit intents, that is specify an explicit component to be delivered to through Intent.setClass

Parameters
context The Context in which this PendingIntent should start the activity.
requestCode Private request code for the sender
intents Array of Intents of the activities to be launched.
flags May be FLAG_ONE_SHOT, FLAG_NO_CREATE, FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT, FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, or any of the flags as supported by Intent.fillIn() to control which unspecified parts of the intent that can be supplied when the actual send happens.
Returns
  • Returns an existing or new PendingIntent matching the given parameters. May return null only if FLAG_NO_CREATE has been supplied.

public static PendingIntent getActivities (Context context, int requestCode, Intent[] intents, int flags, Bundle options)

Added in API level 16

Like getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), but allows an array of Intents to be supplied. The last Intent in the array is taken as the primary key for the PendingIntent, like the single Intent given to getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int). Upon sending the resulting PendingIntent, all of the Intents are started in the same way as they would be by passing them to startActivities(Intent[]).

The first intent in the array will be started outside of the context of an existing activity, so you must use the Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK launch flag in the Intent. (Activities after the first in the array are started in the context of the previous activity in the array, so FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK is not needed nor desired for them.)

The last intent in the array represents the key for the PendingIntent. In other words, it is the significant element for matching (as done with the single intent given to getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), its content will be the subject of replacement by send(Context, int, Intent) and FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, etc. This is because it is the most specific of the supplied intents, and the UI the user actually sees when the intents are started.

For security reasons, the Intent objects you supply here should almost always be explicit intents, that is specify an explicit component to be delivered to through Intent.setClass

Parameters
context The Context in which this PendingIntent should start the activity.
requestCode Private request code for the sender
intents Array of Intents of the activities to be launched.
flags May be FLAG_ONE_SHOT, FLAG_NO_CREATE, FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT, FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, or any of the flags as supported by Intent.fillIn() to control which unspecified parts of the intent that can be supplied when the actual send happens.
Returns
  • Returns an existing or new PendingIntent matching the given parameters. May return null only if FLAG_NO_CREATE has been supplied.

public static PendingIntent getActivity (Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags)

Added in API level 1

Retrieve a PendingIntent that will start a new activity, like calling Context.startActivity(Intent). Note that the activity will be started outside of the context of an existing activity, so you must use the Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK launch flag in the Intent.

For security reasons, the Intent you supply here should almost always be an explicit intent, that is specify an explicit component to be delivered to through Intent.setClass

Parameters
context The Context in which this PendingIntent should start the activity.
requestCode Private request code for the sender
intent Intent of the activity to be launched.
flags May be FLAG_ONE_SHOT, FLAG_NO_CREATE, FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT, FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, or any of the flags as supported by Intent.fillIn() to control which unspecified parts of the intent that can be supplied when the actual send happens.
Returns
  • Returns an existing or new PendingIntent matching the given parameters. May return null only if FLAG_NO_CREATE has been supplied.

public static PendingIntent getActivity (Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags, Bundle options)

Added in API level 16

Retrieve a PendingIntent that will start a new activity, like calling Context.startActivity(Intent). Note that the activity will be started outside of the context of an existing activity, so you must use the Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK launch flag in the Intent.

For security reasons, the Intent you supply here should almost always be an explicit intent, that is specify an explicit component to be delivered to through Intent.setClass

Parameters
context The Context in which this PendingIntent should start the activity.
requestCode Private request code for the sender
intent Intent of the activity to be launched.
flags May be FLAG_ONE_SHOT, FLAG_NO_CREATE, FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT, FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, or any of the flags as supported by Intent.fillIn() to control which unspecified parts of the intent that can be supplied when the actual send happens.
options Additional options for how the Activity should be started. May be null if there are no options.
Returns
  • Returns an existing or new PendingIntent matching the given parameters. May return null only if FLAG_NO_CREATE has been supplied.

public static PendingIntent getBroadcast (Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags)

Added in API level 1

Retrieve a PendingIntent that will perform a broadcast, like calling Context.sendBroadcast().

For security reasons, the Intent you supply here should almost always be an explicit intent, that is specify an explicit component to be delivered to through Intent.setClass

Parameters
context The Context in which this PendingIntent should perform the broadcast.
requestCode Private request code for the sender
intent The Intent to be broadcast.
flags May be FLAG_ONE_SHOT, FLAG_NO_CREATE, FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT, FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, or any of the flags as supported by Intent.fillIn() to control which unspecified parts of the intent that can be supplied when the actual send happens.
Returns
  • Returns an existing or new PendingIntent matching the given parameters. May return null only if FLAG_NO_CREATE has been supplied.

public String getCreatorPackage ()

Added in API level 17

Return the package name of the application that created this PendingIntent, that is the identity under which you will actually be sending the Intent. The returned string is supplied by the system, so that an application can not spoof its package.

Be careful about how you use this. All this tells you is who created the PendingIntent. It does not tell you who handed the PendingIntent to you: that is, PendingIntent objects are intended to be passed between applications, so the PendingIntent you receive from an application could actually be one it received from another application, meaning the result you get here will identify the original application. Because of this, you should only use this information to identify who you expect to be interacting with through a send() call, not who gave you the PendingIntent.

Returns
  • The package name of the PendingIntent, or null if there is none associated with it.

public int getCreatorUid ()

Added in API level 17

Return the uid of the application that created this PendingIntent, that is the identity under which you will actually be sending the Intent. The returned integer is supplied by the system, so that an application can not spoof its uid.

Be careful about how you use this. All this tells you is who created the PendingIntent. It does not tell you who handed the PendingIntent to you: that is, PendingIntent objects are intended to be passed between applications, so the PendingIntent you receive from an application could actually be one it received from another application, meaning the result you get here will identify the original application. Because of this, you should only use this information to identify who you expect to be interacting with through a send() call, not who gave you the PendingIntent.

Returns
  • The uid of the PendingIntent, or -1 if there is none associated with it.

public UserHandle getCreatorUserHandle ()

Added in API level 17

Return the user handle of the application that created this PendingIntent, that is the user under which you will actually be sending the Intent. The returned UserHandle is supplied by the system, so that an application can not spoof its user. See Process.myUserHandle() for more explanation of user handles.

Be careful about how you use this. All this tells you is who created the PendingIntent. It does not tell you who handed the PendingIntent to you: that is, PendingIntent objects are intended to be passed between applications, so the PendingIntent you receive from an application could actually be one it received from another application, meaning the result you get here will identify the original application. Because of this, you should only use this information to identify who you expect to be interacting with through a send() call, not who gave you the PendingIntent.

Returns
  • The user handle of the PendingIntent, or null if there is none associated with it.

public IntentSender getIntentSender ()

Added in API level 4

Retrieve a IntentSender object that wraps the existing sender of the PendingIntent

Returns
  • Returns a IntentSender object that wraps the sender of PendingIntent

public static PendingIntent getService (Context context, int requestCode, Intent intent, int flags)

Added in API level 1

Retrieve a PendingIntent that will start a service, like calling Context.startService(). The start arguments given to the service will come from the extras of the Intent.

For security reasons, the Intent you supply here should almost always be an explicit intent, that is specify an explicit component to be delivered to through Intent.setClass

Parameters
context The Context in which this PendingIntent should start the service.
requestCode Private request code for the sender
intent An Intent describing the service to be started.
flags May be FLAG_ONE_SHOT, FLAG_NO_CREATE, FLAG_CANCEL_CURRENT, FLAG_UPDATE_CURRENT, or any of the flags as supported by Intent.fillIn() to control which unspecified parts of the intent that can be supplied when the actual send happens.
Returns
  • Returns an existing or new PendingIntent matching the given parameters. May return null only if FLAG_NO_CREATE has been supplied.

public String getTargetPackage ()

Added in API level 1

This method was deprecated in API level 17.
Renamed to getCreatorPackage().

public int hashCode ()

Added in API level 1

Returns an integer hash code for this object. By contract, any two objects for which equals(Object) returns true must return the same hash code value. This means that subclasses of Object usually override both methods or neither method.

Note that hash values must not change over time unless information used in equals comparisons also changes.

See Writing a correct hashCode method if you intend implementing your own hashCode method.

Returns
  • this object's hash code.

public static PendingIntent readPendingIntentOrNullFromParcel (Parcel in)

Added in API level 1

Convenience function for reading either a Messenger or null pointer from a Parcel. You must have previously written the Messenger with writePendingIntentOrNullToParcel(PendingIntent, Parcel).

Parameters
in The Parcel containing the written Messenger.
Returns
  • Returns the Messenger read from the Parcel, or null if null had been written.

public void send (int code)

Added in API level 1

Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent.

Parameters
code Result code to supply back to the PendingIntent's target.
Throws
PendingIntent.CanceledException Throws CanceledException if the PendingIntent is no longer allowing more intents to be sent through it.

public void send (Context context, int code, Intent intent, PendingIntent.OnFinished onFinished, Handler handler, String requiredPermission)

Added in API level 14

Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to specify information about the Intent to use and be notified when the send has completed.

For the intent parameter, a PendingIntent often has restrictions on which fields can be supplied here, based on how the PendingIntent was retrieved in getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), or getService(Context, int, Intent, int).

Parameters
context The Context of the caller. This may be null if intent is also null.
code Result code to supply back to the PendingIntent's target.
intent Additional Intent data. See Intent.fillIn() for information on how this is applied to the original Intent. Use null to not modify the original Intent.
onFinished The object to call back on when the send has completed, or null for no callback.
handler Handler identifying the thread on which the callback should happen. If null, the callback will happen from the thread pool of the process.
requiredPermission Name of permission that a recipient of the PendingIntent is required to hold. This is only valid for broadcast intents, and corresponds to the permission argument in Context.sendOrderedBroadcast(Intent, String). If null, no permission is required.
Throws
PendingIntent.CanceledException Throws CanceledException if the PendingIntent is no longer allowing more intents to be sent through it.

public void send ()

Added in API level 1

Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent.

Throws
PendingIntent.CanceledException Throws CanceledException if the PendingIntent is no longer allowing more intents to be sent through it.

public void send (Context context, int code, Intent intent)

Added in API level 1

Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to specify information about the Intent to use.

Parameters
context The Context of the caller.
code Result code to supply back to the PendingIntent's target.
intent Additional Intent data. See Intent.fillIn() for information on how this is applied to the original Intent.
Throws
PendingIntent.CanceledException Throws CanceledException if the PendingIntent is no longer allowing more intents to be sent through it.

public void send (int code, PendingIntent.OnFinished onFinished, Handler handler)

Added in API level 1

Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to be notified when the send has completed.

Parameters
code Result code to supply back to the PendingIntent's target.
onFinished The object to call back on when the send has completed, or null for no callback.
handler Handler identifying the thread on which the callback should happen. If null, the callback will happen from the thread pool of the process.
Throws
PendingIntent.CanceledException Throws CanceledException if the PendingIntent is no longer allowing more intents to be sent through it.

public void send (Context context, int code, Intent intent, PendingIntent.OnFinished onFinished, Handler handler)

Added in API level 1

Perform the operation associated with this PendingIntent, allowing the caller to specify information about the Intent to use and be notified when the send has completed.

For the intent parameter, a PendingIntent often has restrictions on which fields can be supplied here, based on how the PendingIntent was retrieved in getActivity(Context, int, Intent, int), getBroadcast(Context, int, Intent, int), or getService(Context, int, Intent, int).

Parameters
context The Context of the caller. This may be null if intent is also null.
code Result code to supply back to the PendingIntent's target.
intent Additional Intent data. See Intent.fillIn() for information on how this is applied to the original Intent. Use null to not modify the original Intent.
onFinished The object to call back on when the send has completed, or null for no callback.
handler Handler identifying the thread on which the callback should happen. If null, the callback will happen from the thread pool of the process.
Throws
PendingIntent.CanceledException Throws CanceledException if the PendingIntent is no longer allowing more intents to be sent through it.

public String toString ()

Added in API level 1

Returns a string containing a concise, human-readable description of this object. Subclasses are encouraged to override this method and provide an implementation that takes into account the object's type and data. The default implementation is equivalent to the following expression:

   getClass().getName() + '@' + Integer.toHexString(hashCode())

See Writing a useful toString method if you intend implementing your own toString method.

Returns
  • a printable representation of this object.

public static void writePendingIntentOrNullToParcel (PendingIntent sender, Parcel out)

Added in API level 1

Convenience function for writing either a PendingIntent or null pointer to a Parcel. You must use this with readPendingIntentOrNullFromParcel(Parcel) for later reading it.

Parameters
sender The PendingIntent to write, or null.
out Where to write the PendingIntent.

public void writeToParcel (Parcel out, int flags)

Added in API level 1

Flatten this object in to a Parcel.

Parameters
out The Parcel in which the object should be written.
flags Additional flags about how the object should be written. May be 0 or PARCELABLE_WRITE_RETURN_VALUE.