training/permissions/requesting.jd

page.title=Requesting Permissions at Run Time
page.tags="runtime permissions",androidm,marshmallow
page.image=images/permissions_check.png
page.metaDescription=Learn about runtime permissions and how they make it easier for users to install and upgrade your apps.
@jd:body

<div id="tb-wrapper">
  <div id="tb">
  <h2>This lesson teaches you to</h2>

  <ul>
    <li>
      <a href="#perm-check">Check For Permissions</a>
    </li>
    <li>
      <a href="#perm-request">Request Permissions</a>
    </li>
  </ul>

  <h2>Dependencies and Prerequisites</h2>

  <ul>
    <li>Android 6.0 (API level 23)
    </li>
  </ul>

  <h2>You should also read</h2>

  <ul>
    <li>
      <a href=
      "{@docRoot}guide/topics/security/permissions.html#normal-dangerous">Normal
      and Dangerous Permissions</a>
    </li>
  </ul>
</div>
</div>

<p>
  Beginning in Android 6.0 (API level 23), users grant
  permissions to apps while the app is running, not when they install the app.
  This approach streamlines the app
  install process, since the user does not need to grant permissions when they
  install or update the app. It also gives the user more control over the app's
  functionality; for example, a user could choose to give a camera app access
  to the camera but not to the device location. The user can revoke the
  permissions at any time, by going to the app's Settings screen.
</p>

<p>
  System permissions are divided into two categories, <em>normal</em> and
  <em>dangerous:</em>
</p>

<ul>
  <li>Normal permissions do not directly risk the user's privacy. If your app
  lists a normal permission in its manifest, the system grants the permission
  automatically.
  </li>

  <li>Dangerous permissions can give the app access to the user's confidential
  data. If your app lists a normal permission in its manifest, the system
  grants the permission automatically. If you list a dangerous permission, the
  user has to explicitly give approval to your app.
  </li>
</ul>

<p>
  For more information, see <a href=
  "{@docRoot}guide/topics/security/permissions.html#normal-dangerous">Normal
  and Dangerous Permissions</a>.
</p>

<p>
  On all versions of Android, your app needs to declare both the normal and the
  dangerous permissions it needs in its app manifest, as described in <a href=
  "declaring.html">Declaring Permissions</a>. However, the <em>effect</em> of
  that declaration is different depending on the system version and your
  app's target SDK level:
</p>

<ul>
  <li>If the device is running Android 5.1 or lower, <strong>or</strong> your app's target SDK
  is 22 or lower: If you list a dangerous permission in your manifest, the user
  has to grant the permission when they install the app; if they do not grant
  the permission, the system does not install the app at all.
  </li>

  <li>If the device is running Android 6.0 or higher, <strong>and</strong> your app's target SDK
  is 23 or higher: The app has to list the permissions in the manifest,
  <em>and</em> it must request each dangerous permission it needs while the app
  is running. The user can grant or deny each permission, and the app can
  continue to run with limited capabilities even if the user denies a
  permission request.
  </li>
</ul>

<p class="note">
  <strong>Note:</strong> Beginning with Android 6.0 (API level 23), users can
  revoke permissions from any app at any time, even if the app targets a lower
  API level. You should test your app to verify that it behaves properly when
  it's missing a needed permission, regardless of what API level your app
  targets.
</p>

<p>
  This lesson describes how to use the Android <a href=
  "{@docRoot}tools/support-library/index.html">Support Library</a> to check
  for, and request, permissions. The Android framework provides similar methods
  as of Android 6.0 (API level 23). However, using the support library is
  simpler, since your app doesn't need to check which version of Android it's
  running on before calling the methods.
</p>

<h2 id="perm-check">Check For Permissions</h2>

<p>
  If your app needs a dangerous permission, you must check whether you have
  that permission every time you perform an operation that requires that
  permission. The user is always free to revoke the permission, so even if the
  app used the camera yesterday, it can't assume it still has that permission
  today.
</p>

<p>
  To check if you have a permission, call the {@link
  android.support.v4.content.ContextCompat#checkSelfPermission
  ContextCompat.checkSelfPermission()} method. For example, this snippet shows how to
  check if the activity has permission to write to the calendar:
</p>

<pre>// Assume thisActivity is the current activity
int permissionCheck = ContextCompat.checkSelfPermission(thisActivity,
        Manifest.permission.WRITE_CALENDAR);</pre>

<p>
  If the app has the permission, the method returns {@link
  android.content.pm.PackageManager#PERMISSION_GRANTED
  PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED}, and the app can proceed with the
  operation. If the app does not have the permission, the method returns {@link
  android.content.pm.PackageManager#PERMISSION_DENIED PERMISSION_DENIED}, and
  the app has to explicitly ask the user for permission.
</p>

<h2 id="perm-request">Request Permissions</h2>

<p>
  If your app needs a dangerous permission that was listed in the app manifest,
  it must ask the user to grant the permission. Android provides several
  methods you can use to request a permission. Calling these methods brings up a
  standard Android dialog, which you cannot customize.
</p>
<h3 id="explain">Explain why the app needs permissions</h3>

<div class="figure" style="width:220px" id="fig-perms-dialog">
  <img src="{@docRoot}images/training/permissions/request_permission_dialog.png"
      srcset="{@docRoot}images/training/permissions/request_permission_dialog.png 1x,
      {@docRoot}images/training/permissions/request_permission_dialog_2x.png 2x"
      alt="" width="220" />
  <p class="img-caption">
    <strong>Figure 1.</strong> System dialog prompting the user to grant or deny
    a permission.
  </p>
</div>

<p>
  In some circumstances, you might want to help the user understand why your
  app needs a permission. For example, if a user launches a photography app,
  the user probably won't be surprised that the app asks for permission to use
  the camera, but the user might not understand why the app wants access to the
  user's location or contacts. Before you request a permission, you should
  consider providing an explanation to the user. Keep in mind that you don't
  want to overwhelm the user with explanations; if you provide too many
  explanations, the user might find the app frustrating and remove it.
</p>

<p>
  One approach you might use is to provide an explanation only if the user has
  already turned down that permission request. If a user keeps trying to use
  functionality that requires a permission, but keeps turning down the
  permission request, that probably shows that the user doesn't understand why
  the app needs the permission to provide that functionality. In a situation
  like that, it's probably a good idea to show an explanation.
</p>

<p>
  To help find situations where the user might need an explanation, Android
  provides a utiltity method, {@link
  android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#shouldShowRequestPermissionRationale
  shouldShowRequestPermissionRationale()}. This method returns <code>true</code> if the app
  has requested this permission previously and the user denied the request.
</p>

<p class="note">
  <strong>Note:</strong> If the user turned down the permission request in the
  past and chose the <strong>Don't ask again</strong> option in the permission
  request system dialog, this method returns <code>false</code>. The method
  also returns <code>false</code> if a device policy prohibits the app from
  having that permission.
</p>

<h3 id="make-the-request">Request the permissions you need</h3>

<p>
  If your app doesn't already have the permission it needs, the app must call
  one of the {@link android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#requestPermissions
  requestPermissions()} methods to request the appropriate
  permissions. Your app passes the permissions it wants, and also
  an integer <em>request code</em> that you specify to identify this permission
  request. This method functions asynchronously: it
  returns right away, and after the user responds to the dialog box, the system
  calls the app's callback method with the results, passing the same request
  code that the app passed to
  {@link android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#requestPermissions
  requestPermissions()}.
</p>

<p>
  The following code checks if the app has permission to read the user's
  contacts, and requests the permission if necessary:
</p>

<pre>// Here, thisActivity is the current activity
if (ContextCompat.checkSelfPermission(thisActivity,
                Manifest.permission.READ_CONTACTS)
        != PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {

    // Should we show an explanation?
    if (ActivityCompat.shouldShowRequestPermissionRationale(thisActivity,
            Manifest.permission.READ_CONTACTS)) {

        // Show an expanation to the user *asynchronously* -- don't block
        // this thread waiting for the user's response! After the user
        // sees the explanation, try again to request the permission.

    } else {

        // No explanation needed, we can request the permission.

        ActivityCompat.requestPermissions(thisActivity,
                new String[]{Manifest.permission.READ_CONTACTS},
                MY_PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_CONTACTS);

        // MY_PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_CONTACTS is an
        // app-defined int constant. The callback method gets the
        // result of the request.
    }
}</pre>

<p class="note">
  <strong>Note:</strong> When your app calls {@link
  android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#requestPermissions
  requestPermissions()}, the system shows a standard dialog box to the user.
  Your app <em>cannot</em> configure or alter that dialog box. If you need to
  provide any information or explanation to the user, you should do that before
  you call {@link android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#requestPermissions
  requestPermissions()}, as described in <a href="#explain">Explain why the app
  needs permissions</a>.
</p>

<h3 id="handle-response">Handle the permissions request response
</h3>

<p>
  When your app requests permissions, the system presents a dialog box to the
  user. When the user responds, the system invokes your app's {@link
  android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat.OnRequestPermissionsResultCallback#onRequestPermissionsResult
  onRequestPermissionsResult()} method, passing it the user response. Your app
  has to override that method to find out whether the permission was granted.
  The callback is passed the same request code you passed to
  {@link android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#requestPermissions
  requestPermissions()}. For example, if an app requests {@link
  android.Manifest.permission#READ_CONTACTS READ_CONTACTS} access it might have
  the following callback method:
</p>

<pre>&#64;Override
public void onRequestPermissionsResult(int requestCode,
        String permissions[], int[] grantResults) {
    switch (requestCode) {
        case MY_PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_CONTACTS: {
            // If request is cancelled, the result arrays are empty.
            if (grantResults.length > 0
                &amp;&amp; grantResults[0] == PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {

                // permission was granted, yay! Do the
                // contacts-related task you need to do.

            } else {

                // permission denied, boo! Disable the
                // functionality that depends on this permission.
            }
            return;
        }

        // other 'case' lines to check for other
        // permissions this app might request
    }
}</pre>

<p>
  The dialog box shown by the system describes the <a href=
  "{@docRoot}guide/topics/security/permissions.html#perm-groups">permission
  group</a> your app needs access to; it does not list the specific permission.
  For example, if you request the {@link
  android.Manifest.permission#READ_CONTACTS READ_CONTACTS} permission, the
  system dialog box just says your app needs access to the device's contacts.
  The user only needs to grant permission once for each permission group. If
  your app requests any other permissions in that group (that are listed in
  your app manifest), the system automatically grants them. When you request
  the permission, the system calls your {@link
  android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat.OnRequestPermissionsResultCallback#onRequestPermissionsResult
  onRequestPermissionsResult()} callback method and passes {@link
  android.content.pm.PackageManager#PERMISSION_GRANTED PERMISSION_GRANTED}, the
  same way it would if the user had explicitly granted your request through the
  system dialog box.
</p>

<p class="note">
  <strong>Note:</strong> Your app still needs to explicitly request every
  permission it needs, even if the user has already granted another permission
  in the same group. In addition, the grouping of permissions into groups may
  change in future Android releases. Your code should not rely
  on the assumption that particular permissions are or are not in the
  same group.
</p>

<p>
  For example, suppose you list both {@link
  android.Manifest.permission#READ_CONTACTS READ_CONTACTS} and {@link
  android.Manifest.permission#WRITE_CONTACTS WRITE_CONTACTS} in your app
  manifest. If you request
  {@link android.Manifest.permission#READ_CONTACTS READ_CONTACTS} and the user
  grants the permission, and you then request {@link
  android.Manifest.permission#WRITE_CONTACTS WRITE_CONTACTS}, the system
  immediately grants you that permission without interacting with the user.
</p>

<p>
  If the user denies a permission request, your app should take appropriate
  action. For example, your app might show a dialog explaining why it could not
  perform the user's requested action that needs that permission.
</p>

<p>
  When the system asks the user to grant a permission, the user has the option
  of telling the system not to ask for that permission again. In that case, any
  time an app uses {@link
  android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#requestPermissions
  requestPermissions()} to ask for that permission again, the system
  immediately denies the request. The system calls your {@link
  android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat.OnRequestPermissionsResultCallback#onRequestPermissionsResult
  onRequestPermissionsResult()} callback method and passes {@link
  android.content.pm.PackageManager#PERMISSION_DENIED PERMISSION_DENIED}, the
  same way it would if the user had explicitly rejected your request again.
  This means that when you call {@link
  android.support.v4.app.ActivityCompat#requestPermissions
  requestPermissions()}, you cannot assume that any direct interaction with the
  user has taken place.
</p>