---
title: AppIntentTimelineProvider
framework: widgetkit
role: symbol
role_heading: Protocol
path: widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider
---

# AppIntentTimelineProvider

A type that advises WidgetKit when to update a user-configurable widget’s display.

## Declaration

```swift
protocol AppIntentTimelineProvider
```

## Mentioned in

Increasing the visibility of widgets in Smart Stacks Migrating ClockKit complications to WidgetKit Making a configurable widget

## Overview

Overview An App Intent timeline provider performs the same function as TimelineProvider, but it also incorporates user-configured details into timeline entries. For example, in a widget that displays the health status of a game character the user has chosen, the provider receives a custom intent specifying the character to display. In your app code, you then define a custom App Intent. The intent can include the character’s details such as its name, avatar, strategic alliances, and so on. struct CharacterConfiguration: WidgetConfigurationIntent {     static var title: LocalizedStringResource = "Character"

@Parameter(title: "Name")     var name: String

@Parameter(title: "Avatar", default: "Player 1")     var avatar: String

@Parameter(title: "Alliances", default: [])     var alliances: [String]

@Parameter(title: "Health", default: 100.0)     var healthLevel: Double } Because users can add multiple instances of a particular widget, your provider needs a way to differentiate which instance WidgetKit is asking about. When WidgetKit calls snapshot(for:in:) or timeline(for:in:), it passes an instance of your configuration intent, configured with the user-selected details. The game widget provider accesses the properties of the intent and includes them in the TimelineEntry. WidgetKit then invokes the widget configuration’s content closure, passing the timeline entry to allow the views to access the user-configured properties. For example, the provider might implement a TimelineEntry with properties corresponding to those in the custom intent: struct CharacterDetailEntry: TimelineEntry {     var date: Date     var name: String     var avatar: String     var alliances: [String]     var healthLevel: Double } To generate a snapshot, the game widget provider initializes the character detail entry using the properties from the intent. struct CharacterDetailProvider: AppIntentTimelineProvider {     func snapshot(for configuration: CharacterConfiguration, in context: Context) async -> CharacterDetailEntry {         return CharacterDetailEntry(             date: Date(),             name: configuration.characterName,             avatar: configuration.avatar,             alliances: configuration.alliances,             healthLevel: configuration.healthLevel?.doubleValue         )     } }

## Topics

### Generating timelines

- [placeholder(in:)](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/placeholder(in:).md)
- [recommendations()](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/recommendations().md)
- [relevance()](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/relevance().md)
- [snapshot(for:in:)](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/snapshot(for:in:).md)
- [timeline(for:in:)](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/timeline(for:in:).md)
- [AppIntentTimelineProvider.Context](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/context.md)
- [Entry](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/entry.md)
- [Intent](widgetkit/appintenttimelineprovider/intent.md)

## See Also

### Timeline updates

- [Keeping a widget up to date](widgetkit/keeping-a-widget-up-to-date.md)
- [TimelineProvider](widgetkit/timelineprovider.md)
- [IntentTimelineProvider](widgetkit/intenttimelineprovider.md)
- [TimelineProviderContext](widgetkit/timelineprovidercontext.md)
- [TimelineEntry](widgetkit/timelineentry.md)
- [Timeline](widgetkit/timeline.md)
- [WidgetCenter](widgetkit/widgetcenter.md)