Reverse Engineering Skill

Binary analysis and reverse engineering via MCP servers for Ghidra, IDA Pro, radare2, and angr.

Trigger Conditions

User asks to analyze binaries, disassemble code, decompile functions
Questions about malware analysis, vulnerability research, CTF challenges
Binary diffing, patch analysis, firmware extraction
Symbol recovery, function identification, control flow analysis

MCP Servers

1. GhidrAssistMCP (Ghidra - Free)

Repository: https://github.com/jtang613/GhidrAssistMCP
Stars: High activity
Transport: HTTP/SSE on port 8080

Installation:

# Download from releases page
# In Ghidra: File → Install Extensions → Add Extension
# Enable: File → Configure → Configure Plugins → GhidrAssistMCP

31 Built-in Tools:

Category	Tools
Program Analysis	`get_program_info`, `list_functions`, `list_data`, `list_strings`, `list_imports`, `list_exports`, `list_segments`
Function Analysis	`get_function_info`, `decompile_function`, `disassemble_function`, `function_xrefs`, `search_functions`
Navigation	`get_current_address`, `xrefs_to`, `xrefs_from`, `get_current_function`
Modification	`rename_function`, `rename_variable`, `set_function_prototype`, `set_local_variable_type`, `set_disassembly_comment`
Advanced	`auto_create_struct`

2. LaurieWired/GhidraMCP (Popular Alternative)

Repository: https://github.com/LaurieWired/GhidraMCP
Transport: Python bridge to Ghidra

3. IDA Pro MCP Servers

mrexodia/ida-pro-mcp (Most active):

git clone https://github.com/mrexodia/ida-pro-mcp
cd ida-pro-mcp
pip install -e .

MxIris-Reverse-Engineering/ida-mcp-server (473 stars):

git clone https://github.com/MxIris-Reverse-Engineering/ida-mcp-server

fdrechsler/mcp-server-idapro:

git clone https://github.com/fdrechsler/mcp-server-idapro

4. radare2-mcp (Official)

Repository: https://github.com/radareorg/radare2-mcp
Transport: stdio

# Install radare2 first
brew install radare2  # macOS
# or: apt install radare2  # Linux

git clone https://github.com/radareorg/radare2-mcp
cd radare2-mcp
pip install -e .

MCP Config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "radare2": {
      "command": "r2-mcp",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

5. rand-tech/pcm (Multi-tool)

Repository: https://github.com/rand-tech/pcm
MCP for reverse engineering combining multiple backends.

Workflows

Basic Binary Analysis

1. Load binary into Ghidra/IDA
2. Start MCP server
3. Query: "List all functions" → list_functions
4. Query: "Decompile main" → decompile_function
5. Query: "Find xrefs to this address" → xrefs_to

Malware Analysis Pattern

1. get_program_info → Architecture, compiler, entry point
2. list_imports → Suspicious API calls (CreateRemoteThread, VirtualAlloc)
3. list_strings → C2 URLs, encryption keys, debug strings
4. search_functions "crypt" → Find encryption routines
5. decompile_function → Understand algorithm
6. auto_create_struct → Recover data structures

Vulnerability Research

1. list_functions → Function list with sizes
2. search_functions "parse|read|copy" → Input handlers
3. decompile_function → Find buffer operations
4. xrefs_to → Trace data flow
5. set_decompiler_comment → Annotate findings

CTF Binary Exploitation

1. get_program_info → Check protections (PIE, RELRO, canary)
2. list_functions → Find win/flag functions
3. decompile_function → Understand vulnerability
4. xrefs_from → Control flow analysis
5. list_segments → Memory layout for ROP

CLI Quick Reference

radare2 Commands

r2 binary                    # Open binary
aaa                          # Analyze all
afl                          # List functions
pdf @ main                   # Disassemble function
pdc @ main                   # Decompile (r2ghidra)
axt @ addr                   # Xrefs to
axf @ addr                   # Xrefs from
iz                           # List strings
ii                           # List imports

Ghidra Headless

analyzeHeadless /tmp/project ProjectName \
  -import binary.exe \
  -postScript ExportDecompilation.java \
  -deleteProject

Resources

r2con Speaker Repositories

Key repositories from r2con 2016-2025 speakers for process tree and binary analysis:

Core radare2 Team

Speaker	Handle	Repository	Specialty
Sergi Alvarez	pancake	github.com/trufae	radare2 creator, r2pipe
Anton Kochkov	xvilka	github.com/XVilka	UEFI, radeco decompiler
Florian Märkl	thestr4ng3r	github.com/thestr4ng3r	Cutter/Rizin founder
condret	condret	github.com/condret	ESIL core, SIOL I/O
wargio	wargio	github.com/wargio	GSoC mentor
maijin	maijin	github.com/maijin	r2 book maintainer

ESIL & Symbolic Execution

Speaker	Handle	Repository	Specialty
Chase Kanipe	alkalinesec	github.com/alkalinesec	ESILSolve symbolic exec
Sylvain Pelissier	Pelissier_S	N/A	ESIL side-channel simulation
Abel Valero	skuater	github.com/skuater	r2wars, ESIL plugins
Gerardo García	killabytenow	github.com/killabytenow	ESIL limits

Frida Integration (r2frida)

Speaker	Handle	Repository	Specialty
Ole André Ravnås	oleavr	github.com/oleavr	Frida creator, NowSecure
Giovanni Rocca	iGio90	github.com/iGio90	Dwarf debugger
Grant Douglas	hexploitable	github.com/hexploitable	r2frida mobile
Alex Soler	as0ler	N/A	r2frida Kung Fu, r2env

Malware & Security Analysis

Speaker	Handle	Repository	Specialty
Axelle Apvrille	cryptax	github.com/cryptax	Malware, r2ai, droidlysis
Tim Blazytko	mr_phrazer	github.com/mrphrazer	MBA deobfuscation, msynth
Julien Voisin	jvoisin	github.com/jvoisin	Security tooling
cmatthewbrooks	cmatthewbrooks	N/A	Windows malware

Signatures & Similarity

Speaker	Handle	Repository	Specialty
Barton Rhodes	bmorphism	github.com/bmorphism	r2 Zignatures (2020)
swoops	swoops	github.com/swoops	libc_zignatures, dr_pebber
Fernando Dominguez	FernandoDoming	github.com/FernandoDoming	diaphora similarity

Mobile Security (OWASP MSTG)

Speaker	Handle	Repository	Specialty
Carlos Holguera	cpholguera	github.com/cpholguera	OWASP MSTG co-author
Eduardo Novella	enovella	github.com/enovella	NowSecure, r2frida
Francesco Tamagni	mrmacete	github.com/mrmacete	NowSecure iOS

Decompilation & Analysis

Speaker	Handle	Repository	Specialty
Ahmed Abd El Mawgood	oddcoder	github.com/oddcoder	RAIR (Radare In Rust)
Antide Petit	xarkes	github.com/xarkes	Cutter development
Arnau Gamez	arnaugamez	github.com/arnaugamez	Side-channel attacks

Key Tool Repositories

# radare2 ecosystem
git clone https://github.com/radareorg/radare2      # Core framework
git clone https://github.com/radareorg/r2ghidra     # Ghidra decompiler
git clone https://github.com/radareorg/radare2-mcp  # MCP server
git clone https://github.com/radareorg/esil-rs      # ESIL in Rust

# Rizin fork (Cutter backend)
git clone https://github.com/rizinorg/rizin         # Rizin framework
git clone https://github.com/rizinorg/cutter        # GUI
git clone https://github.com/rizinorg/rz-ghidra     # Ghidra integration

# Frida ecosystem
git clone https://github.com/frida/frida-core       # Core library
git clone https://github.com/frida/frida-gum        # Instrumentation
git clone https://github.com/frida/cryptoshark      # Code tracer

# Speaker tools
git clone https://github.com/swoops/libc_zignatures # libc signatures
git clone https://github.com/swoops/dr_pebber       # Fake TEB/PEB for ESIL
git clone https://github.com/mrphrazer/msynth       # MBA simplification
git clone https://github.com/cryptax/droidlysis     # Android analysis
git clone https://github.com/iGio90/Dwarf           # Frida debugger
git clone https://github.com/condret/r2premium      # r2 premium features

Process Tree Analysis Perspectives

Each speaker brings unique analysis perspective:

Speaker	Focus	Process Tree Approach
pancake	Core r2	`r2 -d pid://PID` attach, sandbox escape surfaces
xvilka	UEFI/radeco	Chromium shmem handles, decompile GPU process
condret	ESIL	Each PID as ESIL context, trace IPC parsing
Pelissier_S	Side-channel	Timing oracles in `--time-ticks-*` params
alkalinesec	ESILSolve	Symbolic exec on sandbox constraints
iGio90	r2frida	`frida -U -n 'process'` + r2 integration
thestr4ng3r	Cutter	GUI attach, graph shader pipeline
cryptax	Malware	Persistence via flox-watchdog, LOLbins
bmorphism	Zignatures	`zg` signature generation across renderer variants
swoops	dr_pebber	Fake PEB structures for Windows emulation
mr_phrazer	Deobfuscation	MBA expressions in obfuscated binaries

Example Session

User: Analyze this binary for buffer overflow vulnerabilities

Agent:
1. Starting GhidraMCP server...
2. Loading binary and auto-analyzing...
3. [list_functions] Found 47 functions
4. [search_functions "strcpy|sprintf|gets"] Found 3 dangerous calls:
   - sub_401234: uses strcpy with stack buffer
   - sub_401456: sprintf without bounds
5. [decompile_function "sub_401234"] 
   
   void vuln_func(char *input) {
       char buffer[64];
       strcpy(buffer, input);  // VULNERABLE: no bounds check
       ...
   }

6. [xrefs_to "sub_401234"] Called from main+0x45
7. Vulnerability confirmed: Stack buffer overflow in sub_401234

End-of-Skill Interface

Integration with Gay.jl Colors

Assign deterministic colors to binary analysis domains:

using Gay

# Trit classification for RE tools
GHIDRA_TRIT = 0      # ZERO - foundational analysis
IDA_TRIT = 1         # PLUS - commercial/advanced  
RADARE2_TRIT = -1    # MINUS - lightweight/CLI

# Color functions by complexity
function color_function(cyclomatic_complexity::Int, seed::UInt64)
    Gay.color_at(cyclomatic_complexity, seed)
end

# Color control flow graph nodes
function color_cfg_node(block_id::Int, func_seed::UInt64)
    Gay.color_at(block_id, func_seed)
end

Related Skills

effective-topos: radare2 integration
mcp-tripartite: Binary analysis trit (-1 MINUS)
binsec: Symbolic execution tutorials
gay-mcp: Deterministic coloring for CFG visualization

SDF Interleaving

This skill connects to Software Design for Flexibility (Hanson & Sussman, 2021):

Primary Chapter: 3. Variations on an Arithmetic Theme

Concepts: generic arithmetic, coercion, symbolic, numeric

GF(3) Balanced Triad

reverse-engineering (−) + SDF.Ch3 (○) + [balancer] (+) = 0

Skill Trit: -1 (MINUS - verification)

Secondary Chapters

Ch10: Adventure Game Example
Ch4: Pattern Matching
Ch7: Propagators

Connection Pattern

Generic arithmetic crosses type boundaries. This skill handles heterogeneous data.

reverse-engineering