Prevent memory leak in Flutter - flutter

Question

I was trying to make my function works with a Timer to fetch a list of actions from Database and display them without leaving the screen and re-enter again.
I tried the following :
void initState() {
super.initState();
Timer.periodic(timeDelay, (Timer t) => fetchFournisseurs());
}
It's working now , but my debug console is showing some infos :
State.setState.<anonymous closure> (package:flutter/src/widgets/fr<…>
[VERBOSE-2:ui_dart_state.cc(209)] Unhandled Exception: setState() called after dispose(): _listeDocumentState#c0f9f(lifecycle state: defunct, not mounted)
This error happens if you call setState() on a State object for a widget that no longer appears in the widget tree (e.g., whose parent widget no longer includes the widget in its build). This error can occur when code calls setState() from a timer or an animation callback.
The preferred solution is to cancel the timer or stop listening to the animation in the dispose() callback. Another solution is to check the "mounted" property of this object before calling setState() to ensure the object is still in the tree.
This error might indicate a memory leak if setState() is being called because another object is retaining a reference to this State object after it has been removed from the tree. To avoid memory leaks, consider breaking the reference to this object during dispose().
Is there a better way to make it and prevent memory leak or anything bad ?
Thank you.

Answer 1

All of the information is in the error message itself.
This error happens if you call setState() on a State object for a widget that no longer appears in the widget tree (e.g., whose parent widget no longer includes the widget in its build).
For example if you navigate to a page containing this widget, and then close that page, the widget would no longer be in the widget tree, but the Timer you created is still running periodically.
This error can occur when code calls setState() from a timer or an animation callback.
Presumably fetchFournisseurs is calling setState.
The preferred solution is to cancel the timer or stop listening to the animation in the dispose() callback.
In other words your state class should do something along these lines.
class _ExampleState extends State<Example> {
final Duration timeDelay = ...;
// Create a variable to hold the timer.
Timer? _timer;
#override
void initState() {
super.initState();
// Assign timer to the variable.
_timer = Timer.periodic(timeDelay, (Timer t) => fetchFournisseurs());
}
#override
void dispose() {
// Cancel the timer in the dispose() callback.
_timer?.cancel();
super.dispose();
}
void fetchFournisseurs() {
// presumably fetchFournisseurs calls setState at some point.
setState(() {
...
});
}
#override
Widget build(BuildContext context) {
return ...;
}
}
Another solution is to check the "mounted" property of this object before calling setState() to ensure the object is still in the tree.
Which means to do the following.
void fetchFournisseurs() {
// check if the widget is mounted before proceeding
if (!mounted) return;
setState(() {
...
});
}
This error might indicate a memory leak if setState() is being called because another object is retaining a reference to this State object after it has been removed from the tree. To avoid memory leaks, consider breaking the reference to this object during dispose().
Another reminder to cancel the Timer in dispose to avoid memory leaks.