Screen Lock Plugin

A Flutter plugin that allows you to programmatically lock the Android device screen.

Features

• Lock the device screen programmatically
• Check device admin permission status
• Request device admin permissions
• Check current screen state (isScreenOn)
• Stream screen on/off events (onScreenStateChanged) from a dedicated foreground service so events keep firing while the app is backgrounded
• Multi-source screen-state detection (broadcast + DisplayManager + PowerManager polling fallback), de-duplicated into a single stream
• Adaptive foreground service type: systemExempted for device-owner kiosks, specialUse otherwise
• Simple and easy-to-use API

Platform Support

Platform	Supported
Android	✅
iOS	❌
Web	❌
Windows	❌
macOS	❌
Linux	❌

Android Setup

No additional manifest setup is required. The plugin automatically configures the necessary permissions, the device admin receiver, and the ScreenEventService foreground service used to deliver screen on/off events.

Notification permission (Android 13+)

While onScreenStateChanged() has an active listener, the plugin starts a foreground service that posts a persistent low-importance notification ("Screen monitor active"). The service still runs if the user denies POST_NOTIFICATIONS, but the notification will be suppressed. To make the service visible and to match user expectations, request the notification permission from your app before subscribing, for example with permission_handler:

import 'package:permission_handler/permission_handler.dart';

await Permission.notification.request();

Usage

Import the package

import 'package:screen_lock_plugin/screen_lock_plugin.dart';

Create an instance

final screenLockPlugin = ScreenLockPlugin();

Check if device admin is enabled

bool? isEnabled = await screenLockPlugin.isDeviceAdminEnabled();
if (isEnabled == true) {
  print('Device admin is enabled');
} else {
  print('Device admin is not enabled');
}

Request device admin permissions

await screenLockPlugin.requestDeviceAdmin();

This will show a system dialog asking the user to grant device admin permissions to your app.

Lock the screen

bool? result = await screenLockPlugin.lockScreen();
if (result == true) {
  print('Screen locked successfully');
} else {
  print('Failed to lock screen. Device admin may not be enabled.');
}

Check the current screen state

bool? isOn = await screenLockPlugin.isScreenOn();
print('Screen is currently ${isOn == true ? "ON" : "OFF"}');

Listen for screen on/off events

final subscription = screenLockPlugin.onScreenStateChanged().listen(
  (event) {
    // event is either 'SCREEN_ON' or 'SCREEN_OFF'
    print('Screen event: $event');
  },
  onError: (Object error) {
    // e.g. 'FGS_START_FAILED' if the foreground service could not start
    print('Screen event error: $error');
  },
);

// Later, when you no longer need events:
await subscription.cancel();

The first active listener starts ScreenEventService as a foreground service and shows an ongoing notification. When the last listener is cancelled, the service is stopped.

How It Works

This plugin uses Android's DevicePolicyManager API to lock the screen and a dedicated foreground service to monitor the display state. Here's what happens:

1. Device Admin Permissions: The app must be registered as a device administrator to lock the screen. This is a security requirement by Android.

2. User Consent: Users must explicitly grant device admin permissions through a system dialog. This cannot be done automatically.

3. Screen Lock: Once permissions are granted, the plugin can lock the screen immediately using DevicePolicyManager.lockNow().

4. Screen Event Monitoring: While a Dart listener is attached to onScreenStateChanged(), the plugin runs ScreenEventService as a foreground service. It combines three independent signals and emits only real transitions:

   • ACTION_SCREEN_ON / ACTION_SCREEN_OFF broadcasts
   • DisplayManager.DisplayListener state changes (catches AOD / doze transitions that do not broadcast on some OEMs)
   • A periodic PowerManager.isInteractive poll as a safety net against broadcast throttling

5. Adaptive Foreground Service Type (Android 14+): If the app is provisioned as the device owner, the service starts with FOREGROUND_SERVICE_TYPE_SYSTEM_EXEMPTED for the broadest kiosk exemption. Otherwise it uses FOREGROUND_SERVICE_TYPE_SPECIAL_USE, backed by the PROPERTY_SPECIAL_USE_FGS_SUBTYPE declared in the manifest.

Important Notes

• User Permission Required: Users must manually grant device admin permissions. This is a security feature and cannot be bypassed.

• Revoking Permissions: Users can revoke device admin permissions at any time through:

  • Settings → Security → Device administrators

• Uninstalling: If users want to uninstall your app, they must first disable device admin permissions in Settings.

• Best Practices:

  • Always check if device admin is enabled before attempting to lock the screen
  • Provide clear UI feedback about permission status
  • Explain why your app needs this permission

Permissions

The plugin automatically adds the following permissions to your AndroidManifest.xml:

<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BIND_DEVICE_ADMIN" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE_SPECIAL_USE" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE_SYSTEM_EXEMPTED" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.POST_NOTIFICATIONS" />

• BIND_DEVICE_ADMIN — required to lock the screen via DevicePolicyManager.
• FOREGROUND_SERVICE (+ the SPECIAL_USE / SYSTEM_EXEMPTED subtypes) — required to run ScreenEventService so screen events are delivered reliably in the background.
• POST_NOTIFICATIONS — runtime permission on Android 13+ for the service's ongoing notification. The service still runs if denied, but the notification is suppressed.

Troubleshooting

Screen doesn't lock when button is pressed

• Verify device admin is enabled by checking isDeviceAdminEnabled()
• If not enabled, call requestDeviceAdmin() to prompt the user

App won't uninstall

• Users must disable device admin permissions before uninstalling
• Go to Settings → Security → Device administrators → Disable your app

onScreenStateChanged() never emits events

• Make sure a listener is attached — the foreground service only starts while a subscription is active.
• Check the system logs for ScreenLockPlugin / ScreenEventService tags. Startup failures are logged there and are also surfaced on the stream as an error with code FGS_START_FAILED.
• On Android 13+, grant POST_NOTIFICATIONS so you can see the "Screen monitor active" notification and confirm the service is running.
• Some OEMs aggressively restrict background execution. Provisioning the app as a device owner (kiosk) lets the service use FOREGROUND_SERVICE_TYPE_SYSTEM_EXEMPTED and bypass most of those restrictions.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Support

If you encounter any issues or have questions, please file an issue on the GitHub repository.

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for a list of changes in each version.