Automatic app events

What the iOS and Android SDKs send on their own, what you send yourself, and what is not tracked

On this page

Sent automatically
Added to every event
Custom events
Purchases
Not tracked

Sent automatically#

Both SDKs send these events with no code beyond setup. They use the same names on iOS and Android, so one query covers both platforms.

Event	When it is sent	Properties
`app_installed`	The first launch after the app is installed	none beyond the context below
`app_opened`	A cold start, and each return to the foreground	`from_background`: `true` when the app came back from the background
`app_updated`	The first launch of a new app version	`previous_version`, `previous_build`
`app_backgrounded`	The app goes to the background. Queued events are uploaded at this point.	none beyond the context below
`session_started`	The first event of each session. A session ends after 30 minutes without activity.	none beyond the context below
`deep_link_opened`	A link opens the app	`url`, `referring_application`

To turn off the lifecycle events, set trackLifecycleEvents to false. To turn off deep_link_opened, set trackDeepLinks to false. Change the session length with sessionTimeoutMinutes. See the options on the iOS and Android pages.

Added to every event#

Every event, automatic or your own, carries:

Field	What it holds
`context.app`	App name, version and build
`context.device`, `context.os`, `context.screen`, `context.network`	Device model, operating system, screen size and connection type
`context.session.id`	The current session
`context.traits`	The customer’s traits from the last `identify`, until `reset`
`context.consent`	Consent categories, when you have set them
`context.clientIds`, `context.campaign`	Ad click IDs and UTM values from the link that opened the app, for the rest of the session
`context.library`	The SDK name and version

Custom events#

Send any event your app needs with track. Use snake_case names, and the GA4 ecommerce names where one fits, such as view_item, add_to_cart or begin_checkout.

Swift

Sfere.shared.track("wishlist_shared", properties: ["item_id": "sku_221", "channel": "whatsapp"])
Sfere.shared.screen("Product", properties: ["item_id": "sku_221"])

Kotlin

Sfere.shared.track("wishlist_shared", mapOf("item_id" to "sku_221", "channel" to "whatsapp"))
Sfere.shared.screen("Product", mapOf("item_id" to "sku_221"))

Properties can be strings, numbers, booleans, lists and nested objects. Every distinct property name becomes a column in your warehouse, so keep names consistent across platforms.

Purchases#

Use the purchase call for completed orders. It sends a purchase event with transaction_id, currency, value and items, and a deduplication ID so the same order reported by your server is counted once. See the examples on the iOS and Android pages.

Not tracked#

Event	Status
App uninstalled	Not tracked. Detecting uninstalls needs push notifications, which the SDKs do not handle.
Push notification sent, delivered, opened or dismissed	Not tracked. The SDKs do not register for push notifications.
Session ended	No separate event. Each event carries `context.session.id`, so session length can be worked out in the warehouse.
Screen views	Not automatic. Call `screen` when a screen appears.