Occasionally, an Android application may encounter a problem and need to be shut down. Usually, when this is done, the configured widget will continue to work.

As discovered by Android Police, Google has posted an update on its developer website explaining how Android 15 will change app forced shutdown.

Currently, when an app is forced to stop, connected widgets are temporarily disabled and grayed out. The reason for this is that if an app is causing a problem, simply closing the app itself may not solve the problem, especially if the widget is causing the app to behave incorrectly.

Temporary disabling occurs when Android stops the app's pending intent. During this time, the widget will not work until the connected app is restarted. Restarting the widget can be done by tapping directly on the widget's icon or indirectly from the Share menu within another app.

For most Android users, this only affects when the app is forced to stop. On a more critical level, this is for developers to help them find where the problem arises when the app's code stops working.

An update from Google posted on the developer site lists several other behavior changes that will come with Android 15. These include an updated app for Private Space, which allows users to hide files and folders as they wish for privacy, and an updated system UI.

Google has not officially announced a release date for the Android 15 software. However, Google usually starts updating Android in early fall, around September, while Android 14 came out in October, close to the launch of the Pixel phones.

This is our best guess. Meanwhile, the Android 15 beta program will be available in various forms throughout the summer.