How can I redirect from native iOS app back to original webpage that used a deeplink/uni link to launch my app?

Question

My app gets launched from a webpage either with a deeplink or a universal link. I have a requirement to return to the same page which launched my app without opening a new browser tab or navigating to a new URL.

Is it possible to return to the original webpage in the same state it was left on (essentially invoking the app back button from the status bar programmatically - to return to the launching application)?

If not it sounds like my only option is to open a new tab in safari and pass query parameters to the page to retrieve its state back.

Answer 1

Unfortunately, no. Url schemes are the only way you can open Safari from your app, and all of Safari's public url schemes open new tabs.

Your suggestion of using query parameters in a new tab is probably your best bet.

Safari Url schemes:

1. x-web-search://
2. ftp://
3. http://
4. https://