Notification Status bar issues

[bondfast]

Hi - I'm using an Honor 9 running Android 7. 0. I'm trying to use a couple of apps which rely on the notification panel to run properly, namely Clipper + and Notification Toggle. They are both excellent apps which I've used successfully on other devices.

The problem on my new Honor 9 is that when I swipe either app away in Task Manager, their notifications in the status bar disappear too, which really defeats their purpose.

I have my notifications permissions set properly. I had the same problem on my Honor 8 (also running Android 7) but I fixed it through a battery optimization setting. I thought I found it by going to "special access" then "ignore battery optimization", then allowing both apps to ignore optimization. But that didn't work.

Any ideas? I'm stuck here.

Thanks a lot - Richard

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! Moved from the AC Lounge to the Honor 9 forum.

When you swipe away an app in the Task Manager, that effectively closes it from RAM, thereby eliminating the notification as well. Is there any reason why you're swiping the app away? In Android, it's best to let the system manage RAM.

 

[bondfast]

Hi, thanks a lot for replying.

Yes there are quite a few apps that I have used or tried to use that rely on being permanently "pinned" in the notification status bar.

Notification Toggle is the obvious one but also Clipper+, Wave Launcher, Switchr & a whole bunch of other launchers on the Play Store. Their functionality depends on being pinned there in a semi-active state. If you have to launch them & keep them open then their usability becomes kinda questionable.

The developer of Notification Toggle did respond to me this morning saying that it's usually a task killer or battery optimization issue and I actually already knew that because on my last device, an Honor 8. I solved that issue by finding a setting I Android where you can exclude apps from being shut down by power drawing issues. Unfortunately he hasn't got back to me after my plea for more help.

Well my Honor 8 got soaked in a rainstorm & sadly it's dead. I had that thing tuned just how I wanted it but I can't seem to get this notification status thing solved on the Honor 9 (they both use Android 7). Like I said I thought I figured it out through "special settings" then "exclude battery optimization" but nope.

Sorry to be longwinded but it's kind of got me flummoxed.

Thanks again - Richard

 

[B. Diddy]

Huawei tends to be aggressive with their RAM management. On my Honor 5X, there's an option to "protect" apps from the system's RAM management (which will aggressively close apps out of RAM if they haven't been actively in use for a little while). Is there something like that for the Honor 9?

 

[bondfast]

Yeah, I've been looking all day for something like that & the closest I've found is making apps exempt from battery optimization which I've already tried.

Strangely the one app that does seem to work like I expect is Wave Launcher (I seem to have closed the app down but a pinned notification still remains), a really great launcher inspired by the great webOS wave launcher. I've reproduced its notification settings with the misbehaving apps settings but still no luck. So I guess I'll populate a couple of wave placeholders with the misbehaving apps & hope Wave Launcher continues to work (pretty sure it hasn't been actively supported for at least 5 years.

Thanks again - Richard

 

[bondfast]

Whoops, I spoke too hastily. Seems Wave Launcher needs to be locked to the task manager too...

 

[B. Diddy]

Sorry, I'm still a little unclear on one thing -- are you swiping away these apps in the Task Manager because you're concerned that they'll use too much battery if they remain "open"? An app like Notification Toggle (which I use as well) is designed to be kept open in the background, and I would guess that while it's in the background and not being actively used in the foreground, it won't use any significant battery. Indeed, when I check my battery stats after a full day, Notification Toggle doesn't show up as a significant battery user.

 

[bondfast]

Hi. No, just out of convenience & not wanting to swipe away something that I'm actively using by mistake. I guess Android & manufacturers have become more aggressive in Ram management as you say, but I have used these apps as I described on past devices with no problem. I use an LG G3 as a backup and use Notification Toggles, Clipper + and Wave Launcher on that phone regularly all with no active apps in the task manager and with their notification placeholders sitting in the status bar & working well. I'm fairly sure that's how they were designed to be used (as I say, the Notification Toggle developer did contact me suggesting I look in to task killers and/or power management as the culprit). Also I was able to get those apps working well on the Honor 8 by excluding them from battery optimization.

All that being said, maybe ram management is the issue & as you say modern devices are taking control away from the user in that regard.

Cheers - Richard