Get Application's main window

Question

UIApplication has a method keyWindow, however if an alert view is showing then this returns the window of the alert view and not the main window of the application.

How can I get the app's main window?

Solution 1

The UIApplicationDelegate usually has a reference to the "main window":

[[[UIApplication sharedApplication] delegate] window];

Furthermore, UIApplication has an array of windows [[UIApplication sharedApplication] windows].

See the UIApplication Class Reference.

Solution 2

I'm not 100% sure this works in every case but this should work:

UIWindow *mainWindow = [UIApplication sharedApplication].windows[0];

The windows are ordered back to front so the main window should always be at index 0.

Solution 3

Swift 3.0 version of rmaddy's answer:

let window = UIApplication.shared.windows.first

I also should add that since iOS 8.0 UIAlertController has replaced UIAlertView and being a view controller you may no longer face the issue of new windows being created.

Solution 4

UIApplication *application = [UIApplication sharedInstance];
NSarray *appWindows = [NSArray arrayWithArray:application.windows];
UIWindow *mainWindow = [appWindows objectAtIndex:0];

I am not sure but this might help.

Solution 5

In Swift:

UIApplication.sharedApplication().delegate?.window

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Comments

[Jonathan.]

This is optional for the delegate isn't it? I'm hoping for a more "concrete" way

[Basem Saadawy]

[[[UIApplication shareApplication] delegate] window] -- works fine.

[michaellindahl]

You should call [[[UIApplication sharedApplication] windows] firstObject] to avoid an out of bounds exception if there are no windows (not like there would never be any windows, but it's a good habit to avoid those

[fpg1503]

He said UIApplication not NSApplication, it's tagged as iOS

[Clifton Labrum]

If I had a dollar for every time this has happened in reverse (people answering Cocoa questions with Cocoa Touch answers), I'd be a wealthy man. :) Cut Ted some slack. :)