Why is it easier to update an app to a newer version on Android, but reverting it to a previous version is a hassle and even requires root?
In: 20
We programmers design updates to go only one way intentionally.
To get from version A to version B, you press update. This downloads the new application that replaces the original executable, keeping all of its data intact. When you open the application, it knows that it needs to transform the version A data into version B (otherwise, we can’t read it!)
So, we (programmers) write some unique code just to handle going from A to B on first run. It only needs to run once, but it needs to be run before we can use our data. An updated application might use newer features, have a modified database structures, or include resource/permission changes – all of these require special handling.
The reason you can’t go backwards is because we didn’t write the unique code required to go from version B to A. And, if you think about it, there is *no way* we could have. How does version A know how to transform from version B, if version B didn’t exist for another 6 months?
The only way to go backwards, is to delete the application completely and install fresh. Although more complex, this is true for operating systems on mobile/pc/mac too.
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