Root Difference between flashing and rooting

[therompalace]

I'm a newbie at all this, and I've read a lot of posts here but they all say how to root or flash. Pardon my simple question, but I just wanted to know what the difference between rooting and flashing is and at what level (hardware/os etc) do each of these take effect.

Also, which method will directly affect what I see/feel from a user's perspective as opposed to underlying OS changes.

Thanks

 

[sado1]

Rooting - process that enables superuser account (root) on your Android device, which gives you more control over the system. It's a bit similar to jailbreaking: you get write access to all of the system files.

Flashing - it could refer to flashing your phone with firmware - then it means that you install another (usually newer) version of software provided by producer for your phone.

Flashing could also mean flashing a non-official/custom ROM - then it means installing non-official ROM (modified system files package) to achieve better performance, more features etc.

When you flash your phone with custom ROM you usually get root automatically. Flashing with custom ROM will affect directly what you see/feel from a user's perspective. Root is about underlying system changes.

 

[Watchd]

Hi,


This is a really interesting topic. However, there are not many sites that explain in a simple way what these two software procedures mean.


Personally I found the explanation above much more helpful that others available because it is more direct and less confusing.


Thanks