How to Protect User Data When Updating Apps with Flutter

Flutter Simple State Restoration Tutorial

Okay, let's begin. However, before we proceed, it's necessary to disable app restoration from the developer options. This action simulates a scenario where the device lacks sufficient memory, leading to the termination of the app.

Before we dive into implementing state restoration, we need to set up the RestorationScope for our Flutter application. The RestorationScope serves as the container for managing the restoration state of widgets within the app.

Firstly, we define the restorationScopeId for our app, which is a unique identifier used by the operating system to identify and manage the restoration state. For simplicity, we'll set it to 'root', indicating that our restoration scope spans the entire application.

Now, let's proceed with implementing our pages. For testing purposes, we'll ensure they remain as simple as possible.

Here's what the Login page contains:

Here, there's nothing particularly noteworthy – just two input fields. When tapped, we'll navigate to the Sign-Up page, where the real action begins.

Here's what the Sign Up page contains:

To utilize state restoration, we first need to ensure that our stateful widget class includes the RestorationMixin. This mixin provides the necessary methods and properties to manage the restoration of stateful widgets.

Once we've incorporated the RestorationMixin, we replace the conventional TextEditingController with the RestorableTextEditingController for managing text input fields. Similarly, for boolean values, we utilize the RestorableBool class to ensure that their state can be restored.

Now, for the restoration process to work seamlessly, we need to override the restorationId property within our stateful widget class. This property serves as a unique identifier for the restoration process. Each stateful widget that requires restoration should have a distinct restorationId to differentiate it from others.

Additionally, we need to implement the restoreState method. This method is called during the restoration process and is responsible for registering the stateful widget's variables for restoration. Within the restoreState method, we use the registerForRestoration function to register each state variable that needs to be restored.

Lastly, lets make some modification to our Login page particularly  to facilitate navigation to the Sign Up page.

Within onTap callback, we use Navigator.restorablePush instead of the conventional Navigator.push method. The restorablePush method is specifically designed for use with restoration and ensures that the navigation state is properly restored when the app is terminated or restarted.

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And here is the result of our efforts, showcasing the complete project.

As a bonus, let's explore other restorable types and additional features.

Flutter's restoration framework offers various types of restorable objects beyond RestorableTextEditingController and RestorableBool. You can utilize RestorableInt, RestorableDouble, RestorableString, and even RestorableDateTime to persist and restore different data types in your app.

Furthermore, you can extend restoration capabilities beyond simple form fields. For instance, you can restore the scroll position of a ListView or ScrollView using RestorableScrollController, ensuring that users can seamlessly continue from where they left off, even after app termination.

Additionally, Flutter provides mechanisms for managing the restoration of complex UI states and navigation stacks. You can leverage RestorableRouteFuture to restore the state of asynchronously loaded routes, such as dialogs or bottom sheets, enhancing the overall user experience.

In addition to the built-in restorable types provided by Flutter, you can create custom restorable types tailored to your application's specific needs. To create a custom restorable type, you typically subclass RestorableProperty<T> and implement the necessary methods.

Discover the ultimate guide to hiring Flutter developers.

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Boost User Satisfaction: Flutter's Seamless State Restoration

Flutter's restoration framework empowers developers to create apps that persist and restore user state seamlessly, enhancing the overall user experience. By leveraging built-in restorable types and mechanisms for managing complex UI states and navigation stacks, developers can ensure that their apps remain resilient across device restarts and app terminations. Through careful implementation of restoration functionality, developers can provide users with a consistent and uninterrupted experience, ultimately increasing user satisfaction and app reliability.

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