Search Bar always visible - swift

Question

Hello I want the searchBar always visible, that is what I have:
searchController = UISearchController(searchResultsController: nil)
tableView.tableHeaderView = searchController.searchBar
searchController.searchResultsUpdater = self
searchController.dimsBackgroundDuringPresentation = false
Is there way to accomplish this?
Thanks in advance

Answer 1

What about
override func viewDidAppear(_ animated: Bool) {
super.viewDidAppear(animated)
searchController.searchBar.becomeFirstResponder()
}
?
Have a look at Apple's example (source code): https://developer.apple.com/library/content/samplecode/TableSearch_UISearchController/Introduction/Intro.html
NB - from iOS 11 onwards you should use UINavigationController instead of the table header view:
if #available(iOS 11.0, *) {
// For iOS 11 and later, we place the search bar in the navigation bar.
navigationController?.navigationBar.prefersLargeTitles = true
navigationItem.searchController = searchController
// We want the search bar visible all the time.
navigationItem.hidesSearchBarWhenScrolling = false
} else {
// For iOS 10 and earlier, we place the search bar in the table view's header.
tableView.tableHeaderView = searchController.searchBar
}

Answer 2

In viewDidLoad where you have your UISearchController setup:
navigationItem.hidesSearchBarWhenScrolling = false

Answer 3

You could try to put it in the header for the first section like this:
func tableView(tableView: UITableView, viewForHeaderInSection section: Int) -> UIView? {
return self.searchController.searchBar
}
I had to solve a very similar situation, and this is what I ended up with:
searchController = UISearchController(searchResultsController: nil)
searchController.searchResultsUpdater = self
searchController.dimsBackgroundDuringPresentation = false
searchController.searchBar.delegate = self
searchController.searchBar.sizeToFit()
searchController.searchBar.tintColor = CARBONCOLOR
searchController.hidesNavigationBarDuringPresentation = false
self.definesPresentationContext = true
let search = UIBarButtonItem(barButtonSystemItem: UIBarButtonSystemItem.Search, target: self, action: "presentSearch")
self.navigationItem.setRightBarButtonItem(search, animated: true)
With this code to present the searchController
func presentSearch()
{
self.navigationController!.presentViewController(searchController, animated: true, completion: nil)
}
This would put a barbutton in the navbar which would present the searchController over the navbar. This is not exactly what I wanted, but turned out to be the simplest way to allow search from any point in the tableview. It also saves a bit of space, which is better. If you don't have a navbar, you can present from self.

Answer 4

The UISearchController class is supposed to be hidden when not in use (i.e. when no search is performed), so I would suggest to either use it in a way it was designed for or go another way.
In your case it might be more appropriate to implement a UISearchBar and e.g. configure it as an item within an (existing) UINavigationBar. That way, the search bar will be always visible.
Do you already have a view controller which holds a navigation bar in your view hierarchy? If so, try to set the search bar as an item and implement display of search results in another way as intended with the UISearchController pattern.

Answer 5

You're setting your searchBar in the tableHeaderView of your UITableView, the default behaviour is that the searchBar scroll with the UITableView, I'm afraid that you cannot change this in the way you did it.
But you can change the way you did it, you can use the UISearchDisplayController and manage the view yourself adn put it above your UITableViewin your hierarchy view, these two tutorials can help you a lot about how to achieve it and understand how it works:
Tableview Search in Swift
UISearchController Tutorial: Getting Started
I hope this help you.