PEHint

A Portable Executable Hint that was created for study purposes.
Feel free to use it and help improve. ;)

Here, I'm documenting my plans and the process of developing the tool.

PE Hint Software Development Plan

1. Planning and Design Phase

• Define Key Features:
  • Parsing and displaying PE file structure (headers, sections, imports, exports, etc.).
  • Highlighting suspicious PE anomalies (like strange sections, invalid headers).
  • Integration with other tools or libraries (e.g., VirusTotal API for quick OSINT).
  • Optional: Provide an option to generate reports based on the PE analysis.
• Select Technology Stack:
  • C++ as the programming language.
  • Use Qt as the GUI framework.
  • Select or implement libraries for PE file parsing (consider LIEF or pe-parse, or write your own parser in C++).
• Design User Interface (UI):
  • Sketch the UI with essential features like file loading, structure display, and report generation.
  • Plan for advanced features like binary search, section extraction, and export list filtering.

2. Implementation Phase

• Set Up Development Environment:
  • Initialize the project using CMake for build management.
  • Configure Qt for UI design and PE parsing.
• Core PE Parser Development in C++:
  • Implement DOS Header parsing.
  • Implement NT Headers parsing (File Header, Optional Header).
  • Parse Section Headers and display section attributes.
  • Parse Import Table and Export Table.
  • Implement parsing for Data Directories (Resources, Debug, etc.).
• PE Anomalies Detection:
  • Implement checks for suspicious anomalies like unusual section sizes, missing headers, or obfuscated imports.
• UI Integration:
  • Build basic UI in Qt to load and display PE structure.
  • Add interactive features: click on sections to expand details.
  • Provide file saving/export functionality for analysis reports.

3. Advanced Features and Integration

• Implement Hex Viewer:
  • Add a hex view of the PE file to inspect raw data.
• Malware Analysis Focus:
  • Add an option to flag common PE tricks used in malware (e.g., suspicious imports, packed sections).
  • Provide OSINT integration (like fetching details from online databases or VT).
• Plugin Support (Optional):
  • Create a plugin system that allows for additional analyzers (e.g., CAPA plugin for function identification).

4. Testing and Debugging

• Unit Testing:
  • Test individual components like PE parsing and anomaly detection.
• UI Testing:
  • Test file loading, interactions, and exporting functionality.
• Performance Optimization:
  • Ensure the software handles large PE files efficiently without freezing.
• Cross-Platform Compatibility:
  • Test the software on different Windows versions and ensure compatibility with various PE file versions.

5. Documentation and Teaching Materials

• Document PE Hint Software:
  • Write detailed documentation on how to use the software.
  • Provide code comments to help others understand the codebase.
• Create Teaching Materials:
  • Prepare slides or notes explaining the PE structure and the tool’s usage.
  • Create guided exercises or labs where students can use the tool to analyze PE files.

6. Release

• Prepare Beta Release:
  • Share the first version with a selected group of users for feedback.
• Collect Feedback:
  • Implement improvements based on the feedback from users.
• Final Release:
  • Release the stable version along with documentation and teaching materials.

References

• https://0xrick.github.io/win-internals/pe1/
• https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/winnt/
• https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/dbghelp/