RecuperaBit – Forensic File System Reconstruction & Recover Files

RecuperaBit, is a open source software which attempts to reconstruct file system structures and recover files. Currently it supports only NTFS format.

It attempts reconstruction of the directory structure regardless of:

  • missing partition table
  • unknown partition boundaries
  • partially-overwritten metadata
  • quick format

The tool automatically determines the sectors from which partitions start. It does not modify the disk image, however it does read some parts of it multiple times through the execution. It should also work on real devices, such as /dev/sda but this is not advised.

Files can be saved with -s and overwrite the saved files with -w. RecuperaBit includes a small command line that allows the user to recover files and export the contents of a partition in CSV or body file format. The export directory can be specified by -o.

For more information about the reconstruction algorithms and the architecture used in RecuperaBit by reading my MSc thesis or checking out the slides.

 

Pypy:

RecuperaBit can be run with the standard cPython implementation, however speed can be increased by using it with the Pypy interpreter and JIT compiler:

pypy main.py /path/to/disk.img

 

Recovery of File Contents:

Files can be restored one at a time or recursively, starting from a directory. After the scanning process has completed, you can check the list of partitions that can be recovered by issuing the following command at the prompt:

recoverable

 

RecuperaBit

 

Related posts

How to Improve Your Cyber Resilience by Strengthening User Privileges

The Dark Side of Viral Content: How Negative Reviews Can Snowball

Testing Gaming Monetization: Walking the Line Between Profit and Player Experience