The latest articles on DEV Community by Rahul Saliya (@rahul_saliya). https://dev.to/rahul_saliya https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3986571%2F5b9d986b-1f42-49a5-a7f4-b19f7bcd4982.png https://dev.to/rahul_saliya en Rahul Saliya Tue, 16 Jun 2026 04:29:58 +0000 https://dev.to/rahul_saliya/i-built-an-android-app-that-recovers-deleted-notifications-heres-how-show-dev-1ccp https://dev.to/rahul_saliya/i-built-an-android-app-that-recovers-deleted-notifications-heres-how-show-dev-1ccp <p>Have you ever dismissed a notification, then immediately regretted it because it had an OTP or an important message?</p> <p>That's exactly why I built <strong>Notification Box</strong>.</p> <h2> The Problem </h2> <p>Android notifications are ephemeral by design — once they're gone, they're gone. WhatsApp previews, OTP codes, delivery alerts, deleted messages — all vanish the moment you swipe them away or the app withdraws them.</p> <p>I found myself constantly missing OTPs that expired before I could use them, or losing track of messages from apps that don't keep a proper history.</p> <h2> What Notification Box Does </h2> <p>Notification Box runs a lightweight background service that <strong>archives every notification before it disappears</strong>. Think of it as a notification DVR.</p> <p>Key features:</p> <ul> <li>📦 <strong>Automatic archiving</strong> — captures notifications from all apps silently in the background</li> <li>🔍 <strong>Searchable history</strong> — find any past notification instantly</li> <li>🔑 <strong>OTP auto-extraction</strong> — detects and copies OTP codes automatically</li> <li>🗑️ <strong>Recover deleted messages</strong> — retrieve messages from apps that delete previews</li> <li>🔒 <strong>Privacy-first</strong> — everything stays on your device, no cloud sync</li> </ul> <h2> The Technical Side </h2> <p>Built with:</p> <ul> <li> <strong>Kotlin</strong> + Android SDK</li> <li> <code>NotificationListenerService</code> for capturing notifications</li> <li>Room database for local storage</li> <li>Jetpack Compose for the UI</li> <li>No root required — uses standard Android accessibility APIs</li> </ul> <p>The trickiest part was handling the <code>NotificationListenerService</code> lifecycle correctly across different OEM battery optimizations. Samsung and Xiaomi devices in particular aggressively kill background services — I ended up using a foreground service with a minimal notification to keep it alive reliably.</p> <h2> Try It </h2> <p>Available on Google Play:<br> 👉 <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rhs.notificationbox" rel="noopener noreferrer">Notification Box on Google Play</a></p> <p>Also launching on Product Hunt on <strong>June 17</strong> — would love your support!</p> <p>I'm Rahul, a full-stack Android &amp; web engineer. Happy to answer any questions about the implementation or the challenges of building a reliable notification listener service on modern Android.</p> <p>What notification-related pain points have you run into? Drop them in the comments 👇</p> android productivity showdev playstore