launch - iPhone App can autolaunch after device boot?

Question

Saw an app called PhoneRecover on the AppStore.

They advertise the following:

• PhoneRecover will automatically restart after a reboot on the iPhone 3GS and the iPhone 4 running iOS4.

How is this possible? What APIs are used to auto-launch an app after a boot?

Answer 1

It's built into multi-tasking. "Backgrounded" apps are still in background after a reboot. Presumably the app does some work to re-instantiate itself and get its state going again the first time Core Location hits it in the background, but there's no other magic happening here. Any background-aware app will survive a reboot in a backgrounded state.