Is it possible to modify Android internals and reinstall the operating system on a phone?

Question

I have an android phone and am thinking of a project in which I will need to modify the operating system and reinstall it to the phone. Is this possible to do so? Can i be sure my phone is not gonna give up on me?

Thanks.

Answer 1

If by internals, you mean changing even at the kernel level, then I think you can. There is this source page for Android and tutorial there.

http://source.android.com/download

Answer 2

I have an android phone and am thinking of a project in which I will need to modify the operating system and reinstall it to the phone. Is this possible to do so?

That depends on the phone. The ADP1, ADP2, and Nexus One require little magic to install custom Android firmware. Most other phones require more elaborate work. Motorola phones -- other than the DROID -- block replacing firmware.

Then, there's the issue of getting all of the drivers, built-in applications, and the like back into your firmware. That is not necessarily easy, particularly since a lot of that is not open source. It certainly can be done, as Cyanogen and OpenEclair demonstrate (though the latter is down for maintenance, apparently).

Can i be sure my phone is not gonna give up on me?

No.