Develop Reference

Android: Task every 10 seconds (exactly)

We have an app who should process a task every 10 seconds. This should be more or less exact, which means that a difference of 1 or 2 seconds is OK, but not gaps of 20 seconds or more.
This should work regardless if the app is open, in foreground or in background.
We implement this via AlarmManager, but it is not working properly. If the smartphone is not plugged in and it is running in background, there are gaps in the execution.
With Android 4.3., we have gaps (about 30 seconds) from time to time, with Android 5.x we have fewer gaps, but gaps about 5 or 10 minutes long!
I think there must be a way to implement this, an alarm clock is also possible and is exact.
More about the app: It works in a service and a broadcast receiver is implemented. This means the service is restarted if I wipe away the app or restart the handy. This works correctly. The only problem is the 10 second task.
Any hints? How is an alarm clock implemented? Which calls, API?
I tried different ways until now without success.
Thanks
Hans

public void callAsynchronousTask() {
final Handler handler = new Handler();
Timer timer = new Timer();
TimerTask doAsynchronousTask = new TimerTask() {
#Override
public void run() {
handler.post(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
try {
PerformBackgroundTask performBackgroundTask = new PerformBackgroundTask();
// PerformBackgroundTask this class is the class that extends AsynchTask
performBackgroundTask.execute();
} catch (Exception e) {
// TODO Auto-generated catch block
}
}
});
}
};
timer.schedule(doAsynchronousTask, 0, 10000); //execute in every 10000 ms
}

You can do it with handler and runnable, which I think is preferred by Android..
public class ActivityMain extends Activity
{
private Handler mainHandler = new Handler();
private Runnable backgroundTask = new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
//do your background task
mainHandler.postDelayed(this, 10000);
}
};
#Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
mainHandler.postDelayed(backgroundTask, 10000);
}
}

Use of "AlarmManager" with "broadcast Receiver" and "service". These 3 component will make your requirement fulfill.
Using Alarm Manager to generate a Broadcast Receiver, and from BroadcastReceiver start a Service where you can put your desired code of logic to get your task done in every 10 Seconds.

call network periodically for any updates only in foreground

I would like to periodically check for updates doing network call every 30 sec and update listview accordingly, only if my screen is in foreground (thus not from service). What I am doing for that is -
private void refreshPeriodically()
{
final Handler handler = new Handler();
Timer timer = new Timer();
TimerTask doAsynchronousTask = new TimerTask() {
#Override
public void run() {
handler.post(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
try {
new callToMyAsyncTask().execute(context);
} catch (Exception e) {
// TODO Auto-generated catch block
}
}
});
}
};
timer.schedule(doAsynchronousTask, 0, 30*1000); //execute in every 30 sec
}
but, that hangs my list while scrolling.
What should I do for that?

You shouldn't use handler. When you call handler.post() it will run on UI thread so your list will freeze. Start a new callToMyAsyncTask in run method in TimerTask without using handler and you can call timer.cancel() when your activity is not in foreground.
Also I think you should use scheduleAtFixedRate instead of schedule.
However I think you may have some problems without service. When you cancel timer it will not cancel current callToMyAsyncTask and when it call onPostExecute activity is no longer available. But I don't know it will crash or not.

schedule an asynctask after a variable time duration every time in android?

I am using a timeschedular in android to schedule an AsyncTask in my app.I was able to work it out well,now i want every time the duration after which the task runs to be changed i am using this code
ip=3000;
final Handler handler = new Handler();
Timer timer = new Timer();
TimerTask doAsynchronousTask = new TimerTask() {
#Override
public void run() {
handler.post(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
try {
play_duration=durat.get(vn);
ip=Integer.valueOf(play_duration);
ip=ShowImages.ip*1000;
Showtime s1 = new Showtime();
s1.execute(what,f12,transi,play_duration);
} catch (Exception e) {
// TODO Auto-generated catch block
}
}
});
}
};
timer.schedule(doAsynchronousTask, 0,ip);
i am trying to change the value of ip variable every time in the thread but it do not change and i do not know why my thread always run after the initial value of ip that is 3000 miliseconds, can someone suggest a way to do it..thanks

to change component on the UI use the runOnUiThread,
see here, here and here to do that thing on the background you can use something like -
while(true)
{
runOnUiThread() {
do some stuf here;
}
Thread.Sleep(300); //<--- that should be nothing for the user and enough for the cpu
}
if you need more accurate answer post your code and ill guide you through

How to use scheduleAtFixedRate for executing in each second

in the below code send() function is executing many times in a second,i want to execute send() once in a second,how i change the code
timer.scheduleAtFixedRate(
new TimerTask() {
public void run() {
try {
send();
} catch (Exception e) {
// TODO Auto-generated catch block
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
},
1000,
1000);
send function is given below
void send() throws Exception, IOException
{
s=new Socket("10.0.2.2",4200);
r=new PrintWriter(s.getOutputStream());
while(true)
{
Log.e("msg","hi send\n");
r.print("hai");
}
}
Logcat output is given below

I replaced timers with Runnables/Handlers recently, it's much easier
//declare at top of your activity
private Handler h = new Handler();
private Runnable myRunnable = new Runnable() {
public void run() {
//do stuff
//run again in one second
h.postDelayed(myRunnable, 1000);
}
};
//trigger the runnable somewhere in your code e.g. onClickHander or onCreate etc
h.postDelayed(myRunnable, 1000);

It happened for me when I used a TaskTimer and the phone got into sleep mode. I think it is related to TimerTask using Thread.sleep() to provide the timing. This relies on uptimeMillis() which according to documentation - 'is counted in milliseconds since the system was booted. This clock stops when the system enters deep sleep (CPU off, display dark, device waiting for external input), but is not affected by clock scaling, idle, or other power saving mechanisms. This is the basis for most interval timing such as Thread.sleep(millls)'
Solution would be either to use AlarmManager or WakeLocks.

an easier approach would look like this:
new Thread() {
public void run() {
while(true) {
send();
try{
Thread.sleep(1000); // pauses for 1 second
catch(Exception e) {}
}
}
}.start();

How to run an async task for every x mins in android?

how to run the async task at specific time? (I want to run it every 2 mins)
I tried using post delayed but it's not working?
tvData.postDelayed(new Runnable(){
#Override
public void run() {
readWebpage();
}}, 100);
In the above code readwebpage is function which calls the async task for me..
Right now below is the method which I am using
public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
readwebapage();
}
public void readWebpage() {
DownloadWebPageTask task = new DownloadWebPageTask();
task.execute("http://www.google.com");
}
private class DownloadWebPageTask extends AsyncTask<String, Void, String> {
#Override
protected String doInBackground(String... urls) {
String response1 = "";
response1=read();
//read is my another function which does the real work
response1=read();
super.onPostExecute(response1);
return response1;
}
protected void onPostExecute(String result) {
try {
Thread.sleep(100);
} catch (InterruptedException e) {
// TODO Auto-generated catch block
e.printStackTrace();
}
TextView tvData = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.TextView01);
tvData.setText(result);
DownloadWebPageTask task = new DownloadWebPageTask();
task.execute(new String[] { "http://www.google.com" });
}
}
This is what I my code is and it works perfectly fine but the big problem I drains my battery?

You can use handler if you want to initiate something every X seconds. Handler is good because you don't need extra thread to keep tracking when firing the event. Here is a short snippet:
private final static int INTERVAL = 1000 * 60 * 2; //2 minutes
Handler mHandler = new Handler();
Runnable mHandlerTask = new Runnable()
{
#Override
public void run() {
doSomething();
mHandler.postDelayed(mHandlerTask, INTERVAL);
}
};
void startRepeatingTask()
{
mHandlerTask.run();
}
void stopRepeatingTask()
{
mHandler.removeCallbacks(mHandlerTask);
}
Note that doSomething should not take long (something like update position of audio playback in UI). If it can potentially take some time (like downloading or uploading to the web), then you should use ScheduledExecutorService's scheduleWithFixedDelay function instead.

Use Handler and PostDelayed:
final Handler handler = new Handler();
handler.postDelayed(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
readWebpage();
handler.postDelayed(this, 120000); //now is every 2 minutes
}
}, 120000); //Every 120000 ms (2 minutes)

you can use TimerTask instead of AsyncTask.
ex:
Timer myTimer = new Timer("MyTimer", true);
myTimer.scheduleAtFixedRate(new MyTask(), ASAP, TWO_MINUTES);
private class MyTask extends TimerTask {
public void run(){
readWebPage();
}
}

When phone goes to sleep mode, to save battery, and it is quite possible to happen within 2 mins interval, Handler.postDelayed() may miss scheduled time. For such activities you should use AlarmManager, get a lock with PowerManager to prevent going to sleep back while you're running the AsyncTask.
See my post with code sample here
Also you may want to read Scheduling Repeating Alarms

I suggest to go with Handler#postDelayed(Runnable). Keep in mind that this method will work only when your app is running (may be in background) but if user closes it manually or simply Android runs out of memory it'll stop working and won't be restarted again later - for that you need to use services.
final Handler handler = new Handler();
handler.postDelayed(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
handler.postDelayed(this, 2 * 60 * 1000); // every 2 minutes
/* your code here */
}
}, 2 * 60 * 1000); // first run after 2 minutes
This code will wait 2 minutes, execute your code, and then keep doing that every 2 minutes. But if you want it to run instantly for the first time - and then start the wait-do loop, instead use:
final Handler handler = new Handler();
/* your code here */
new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
handler.postDelayed(this, 2 * 60 * 1000); // every 2 minutes
/* and also here - your code */
}
}.run();
or, if your code is longer than just one method (readWebsite() in this case), and you don't want that to be duplicated:
final Handler handler = new Handler();
handler.postDelayed(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
handler.postDelayed(this, 2 * 60 * 1000); // every 2 minutes
/* your longer code here */
}
}, 0); // first run instantly
(^ this one is just like the first example but has a 0ms delay before first run instead of 2 minutes)
(This answer is based on #Devashish Mamgain's one but I added too much details for an edit so I had to add a new one)

Try extending the Thread class, set a sleep time of 2000 millis and place your call into the run method. That should do it.

Execute multiple messages(Runnables) then he should use the Looper class which is responsible for creating a queue in the thread. For example, while writing an application that downloads files from the internet, we can use Looper class to put files to be downloaded in the queue. This will help you to perform async task in android...
HandlerThread hThread = new HandlerThread("HandlerThread");
hThread.start();
Handler handler = new Handler(hThread.getLooper());
final Handler handler1 = new Handler(hThread.getLooper());
final long oneMinuteMs = 60 * 1000;
Runnable eachMinute = new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
Log.d(TAG, "Each minute task executing");
handler1.postDelayed(this, oneMinuteMs);
sendPostRequest();
}
};
// sendPostRequest();
// Schedule the first execution
handler1.postDelayed(eachMinute, oneMinuteMs);

You can use Time with Handler and TimerTask
final Handler handler = new Handler();
Timer timer = new Timer();
TimerTask backtask = new TimerTask() {
#Override
public void run() {
handler.post(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
try {
//To task in this. Can do network operation Also
Log.d("check","Check Run" );
} catch (Exception e) {
// TODO Auto-generated catch block
}
}
});
}
};
timer.schedule(backtask , 0, 20000); //execute in every 20000 ms*/
You can check logcat to verify whether is running or not using 'check' tag name

You could run a loop within the AsyncTask that sleeps for two seconds between doing the tasks. Something like this:
protected Result doInBackground (Params... params) {
while (!interrupted) {
doWork();
Thread.sleep(2000);
}
}