WKWebView function for detecting if the URL has changed

Question

Is there a function for the WKWebView class that allows you to detect whenever the URL of that WebView has changed?

The didCommit and didStartProvisionalNavigation functions don't always seem to fire when working with certain elements within the WebView.

EDIT: Attempted adding a Notification observer. Here's what I have thus far:

extension Notification.Name {
    static let checkURL = Notification.Name("checkURL")
}

NotificationCenter.default.post(name: .checkURL, object: nil)
NotificationCenter.default.addObserver(self, selector: #selector(getter: webView.url), name: .checkURL, object: webView.url)

Answer 1

What do you mean they don't always seem to fire? What kind of elements? They have to in order for the WkWebView to work.

Your first indication that the URL is trying to change is in: decidePolicyForNavigationAction

- (void) webView: (WKWebView *) webView decidePolicyForNavigationAction: (WKNavigationAction *) navigationAction decisionHandler: (void (^)(WKNavigationActionPolicy)) decisionHandler {
    NSLog(@"%s", __PRETTY_FUNCTION__);
    decisionHandler(WKNavigationActionPolicyAllow); //Always allow
    NSURL *u1 = webView.URL;
    NSURL *u2 = navigationAction.request.URL; //If changing URLs this one will be different
}

By the time you get to: didStartProvisionalNavigation It has changed.

- (void) webView: (WKWebView *) webView didStartProvisionalNavigation: (WKNavigation *) navigation {
    NSLog(@"%s", __PRETTY_FUNCTION__);
    NSURL *u1 = webView.URL;  //By this time it's changed
}

All you'd have to do is implement these delegate methods (in Swift) and do what you want when you see it change.

Answer 2

You may add an observer:

[webView_ addObserver:self forKeyPath:@"URL" options:NSKeyValueObservingOptionNew context:NULL];

and the corresponding method that gets called when the URL changes:

-(void)observeValueForKeyPath:(NSString *)keyPath ofObject:(id)object change:(NSDictionary<NSKeyValueChangeKey,id> *)change context:(void *)context

Answer 3

Swift Version

// Add observer
webView.addObserver(self, forKeyPath: "URL", options: .new, context: nil)

// Observe value
override func observeValue(forKeyPath keyPath: String?, of object: Any?, change: [NSKeyValueChangeKey : Any]?, context: UnsafeMutableRawPointer?) {
    if let key = change?[NSKeyValueChangeKey.newKey] {
        print("observeValue \(key)") // url value
    }
}