# ReFirmLabs/binwalk

Firmware Analysis Tool

Repository: https://github.com/ReFirmLabs/binwalk
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/binwalk
Language: Rust
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Last push: 2026-08-11T15:27:34+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 66/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 97, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4674, "days_push": 22, "days_rel": 671, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 1}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 14276, forks 1828 (observed 2026-08-28T04:11:06.646638+00:00)

## What it is
Binwalk is a fast firmware analysis tool rewritten in Rust that identifies and optionally extracts files and data embedded inside other files. It supports a wide variety of file signatures and includes entropy analysis to detect unknown compression or encryption.

## Use cases
- analyze firmware images for embedded files
- extract filesystems from router firmware binaries
- find hidden data inside binary files
- detect compression or encryption via entropy analysis
- identify file signatures in unknown binaries
- integrate binary signature scanning into Rust projects

## When to choose
- you need to reverse-engineer or analyze firmware or binary blobs
- you want fast, Rust-based signature scanning and extraction
- you need entropy analysis to spot encrypted or compressed regions
- you want a library you can embed in Rust tooling

## When to avoid
- you need a general-purpose disassembler or decompiler
- you only need simple archive extraction without signature analysis
- you require a pure-Python workflow (v3 is Rust-based)

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: active
- function: security, reverse-engineering, parser, file-system, cli
- domain: security, reverse-engineering, developer-tools, embedded-systems
- platform: windows, cli, rust
- tags: firmware-analysis, signature-scanning, entropy-analysis, binary-analysis, iot-security, command-line, linux, macos, docker

## Member repositories
- ReFirmLabs/binwalk (main) score 66

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:11:06.646638+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T17:12:41.045464+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/ReFirmLabs/binwalk (fetched 2026-08-28T04:11:06.646638+00:00, sha 87b8277efbbb)
  - registry_crates: https://crates.io/api/v1/crates/binwalk (fetched 2026-08-29T08:06:12.540213+00:00, sha a1c3ef45c4b9)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.