Unified Digital Forensics & Incident Response Operations Console
Installation β’ Features β’ Quick Start β’ Documentation β’ Contributing
DFIRVault is a comprehensive, all-in-one console application designed for Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR) professionals. It consolidates multiple essential DFIR tools into a single, unified interface, streamlining your investigative workflow and eliminating the need to juggle between different applications.
Developed by a DFIR practitioner for DFIR practitioners, DFIRVault integrates case management, threat scanning, log analysis, data ingestion, and synchronization capabilities into one powerful platform.
- π Unified Workflow: No more switching between multiple tools - everything you need in one place
- π Forensic Soundness: Built with forensic best practices and chain-of-custody considerations
- π Comprehensive Reporting: Generate detailed HTML, CSV, and JSON reports for documentation
- β‘ Performance Optimized: Multi-threaded scanning and efficient data processing
- π§ Enterprise Ready: Integrates with Splunk, Elasticsearch, and scheduled task automation
- Create structured case folders with pre-defined evidence directory hierarchy
- Archive cases with optional AES-256 encryption (7-Zip integration)
- Case metadata tracking and keyword management
- One-click folder access and backup location management
- EVTX log scanning with Sigma rule detection
- CSV timeline generation with ISO-8601 timestamps
- HTML report creation for easy sharing and documentation
- Recursive folder scanning for mounted images and drive collections
- Sigma rule-based hunting across EVTX files
- Event log correlation and pattern detection
- CSV output for further analysis in Splunk/ELK
- Custom rule support for organization-specific threats
- Filesystem IOC scanning across multiple drives
- MD5 hash extraction for threat intelligence matching
- Multi-threaded scanning for maximum performance
- HTML and CSV reports with detailed findings
- Create/delete Splunk indexes programmatically
- Monitor folders and automatically ingest logs
- Backup/restore indexes with password protection
- Web interface launcher for quick access
- Bulk CSV upload to Elasticsearch clusters
- Automatic index creation with date-based naming
- Timestamp detection and field mapping
- Chunked uploads with progress tracking
- Bidirectional sync between local and remote folders
- Real-time file monitoring with Watchdog
- Remote folder browser with GUI selection
- Comprehensive logging for audit trails
- Safe scheduled synchronization using Windows Task Scheduler
- Graceful deletion handling with 30-day recovery window
- Bi-directional sync option for mirroring
- Deleted file vault with automatic purging
- Enhance your logs before they go into your SIEM or log analysis engine.
- Enrich with the latest IOCs Query IP2Proxy database, OTX, and AbuseIPDB
- Find threats faster Enrich your logs before processing, saving time and effort and unnecessary overhead doing post-ingestion lookups.
- Convert bodyfile to csv in preparation for super timelining and importing into your local log analysis platform (Splunk, Elastic, Opensearch)
- Additional HTML report with interactive filters for fast timelining triage and analysis
- Operating System: Windows 10/11, Windows Server 2016+
- Python: 3.8 or higher (if running from source)
- Disk Space: 500MB for application + variable for evidence
- RAM: 4GB minimum, 8GB+ recommended
- Admin Rights: Required for Thor Scanner and VaultMirror
- 7-Zip: For encrypted case archives (https://www.7-zip.org/)
- Hayabusa: For EVTX scanning (https://github.com/Yamato-Security/hayabusa)
- Chainsaw: For Sigma rule hunting (https://github.com/WithSecureLabs/chainsaw)
- Thor Lite: For IOC scanning (https://www.nextron-systems.com/thor-lite/)
- Splunk: For log management (https://www.splunk.com/)
- Elasticsearch: For CSV ingestion (https://www.elastic.co/)
- Download the latest
DFIRVault.exefrom the Releases page - Place the executable in your preferred tools directory (e.g.,
C:\Tools\DFIRVault\) - Double-click to run - no installation required!
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/dfirvault/DFIRVault.git
cd DFIRVault
# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt
# Run the application
python dfirvault.py- Run
DFIRVault.exeas Administrator (for full functionality) - The main menu will display all available modules
- Configure tool paths when prompted (Hayabusa, Chainsaw, Thor, etc.)
- Set your case folder and backup locations in the Case Manager
- Start a New Case: Use the Case Manager to create a structured case folder
- Collect Evidence: Copy disk images, EVTX files, and other evidence to the case folder
- Scan for Threats: Run Hayabusa, Chainsaw, and Thor scanners against evidence
- Analyze Results: Review HTML/CSV reports generated by the scanners
- Ingest Data: Upload CSV reports to Splunk or Elasticsearch for deeper analysis
- Archive Case: Password-protect and archive completed cases to cold storage
- Sync to Backup: Use VaultMirror to maintain off-site backups
The Case Manager creates a standardized folder structure for each investigation:
[Case Name]/
βββ 01 - Evidence/ # Raw evidence, disk images, memory dumps
βββ 02 - Case/ # Case notes, interview transcripts, legal docs
βββ 03 - Malware/ # Captured malware samples (password protected)
βββ 04 - Extracted Evidence/
βββ 01 - Axiom/ # Magnet Axiom exports
βββ 02 - XWays/ # X-Ways Forensics exports
βββ 03 - Thor/ # Thor scanner results
βββ 04 - Hayabusa/ # Hayabusa CSV/HTML reports
βββ 05 - Chainsaw/ # Chainsaw detection results
Pro Tip: Store Keywords.txt in the case root for investigator notes and search terms.
- Download Hayabusa from GitHub
- Extract to
C:\Tools\Hayabusa\ - First scan will prompt for executable location
- Configuration saved to Windows Registry:
HKCU\Software\DFIRVault\Hayabusa
- Download Chainsaw from GitHub
- Extract to
C:\Tools\Chainsaw\ - Ensure Sigma rules are in the
rules/subdirectory - Configuration saved to Windows Registry
- Download Thor Lite from Nextron Systems
- Place
thor64-lite.exeinC:\Tools\Thor\ - Run signature updates via the tool menu
- Requires Administrator privileges
Initial Setup:
- Ensure Splunk is installed and running locally
- Navigate to
Settings > Tokensin Splunk Web - Generate an authentication token
- Enter credentials when prompted by DFIRVault
Common Operations:
- Create indexes with automatic folder monitoring
- Backup indexes before deletion (with password protection)
- Restore indexes from backup ZIP files
- Launch Splunk Web directly from the console
Supported Formats:
- Standard CSV with header row
- UTF-8 encoding (recommended)
- Any delimiter (auto-detected)
- Large files (automatic chunking)
Timestamp Handling:
- Automatic detection of timestamp columns
- Support for Unix epoch (seconds/milliseconds)
- ISO-8601 date string conversion
- Custom timestamp field selection
How Safe Delete Works:
- Files are NEVER permanently deleted immediately
- Deleted files moved to
[Drive]:\VaultMirror_Deleted\[CaseName]\ - Files retained for 30 days (configurable)
- Automatic purging after grace period
- Metadata JSON files track deletion history
Sync Modes:
- One-Way: Source β Destination (files only added/updated)
- Bi-Directional: Full synchronization with conflict resolution based on timestamps
DFIRVault stores all configurations in the Windows Registry under:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\DFIRVault\
DFIRVault/
βββ CaseManager/
β βββ case_folder (REG_SZ)
β βββ backup_location (REG_SZ)
βββ Hayabusa/
β βββ executable_path (REG_SZ)
βββ Chainsaw/
β βββ executable_path (REG_SZ)
βββ Thor/
β βββ executable_path (REG_SZ)
βββ LogEnhancer/
β βββ executable_path (REG_SZ)
βββ Splunk/
β βββ splunk_path (REG_SZ)
β βββ username (REG_SZ)
β βββ password (REG_SZ)
βββ Elasticsearch/
βββ url (REG_SZ)
βββ username (REG_SZ)
βββ password (REG_SZ)
Backup Registry Settings:
reg export "HKCU\Software\DFIRVault" DFIRVault_backup.regRestore Registry Settings:
reg import DFIRVault_backup.reg| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| Hayabusa/Chainsaw not found | Download the tool and set path when prompted |
| Thor Scanner fails | Run DFIRVault as Administrator |
| Splunk connection refused | Ensure Splunk is running on port 8089 |
| CSV upload fails | Check Elasticsearch cluster health and credentials |
| VaultMirror task not created | Run as Administrator and check Task Scheduler service |
| Registry access denied | Ensure you have write permissions to HKCU |
- Case Manager:
[CaseFolder]/case_manager.log - Hayabusa:
[ReportPath]/[case]-log.txt - Thor Scanner:
[ReportPath]/[case]_thor_log.txt - SFTP Monitor:
[LocalFolder]/logs/sftp_monitor_*.log - VaultMirror:
%APPDATA%\VaultMirror\logs\
- Use SSDs for evidence storage when possible
- Limit concurrent scanners to avoid I/O bottlenecks
- Use multi-threading option in Thor Scanner for large drives
- Adjust chunk size in CSV2ELK for network conditions
We welcome contributions from the DFIR community!
- Report Bugs: Open an issue with detailed reproduction steps
- Suggest Features: Submit feature requests via GitHub Issues
- Code Contributions: Fork the repo and submit pull requests
- Documentation: Help improve this README or add wiki articles
- Tool Integrations: Add support for new DFIR tools
# Clone your fork
git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/DFIRVault.git
cd DFIRVault
# Create virtual environment
python -m venv venv
venv\Scripts\activate # Windows
# Install dev dependencies
pip install -r requirements-dev.txt
# Run tests
pytest tests/- Follow PEP 8 guidelines
- Include docstrings for all functions
- Add type hints where possible
- Test on Windows 10/11 before submitting
This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.
- Yamato Security for Hayabusa
- WithSecure Labs for Chainsaw
- Nextron Systems for Thor Lite
- Splunk and Elastic communities
- All DFIR practitioners who provided feedback and testing
- Developer: Jacob Wilson
- Email: dfirvault@gmail.com
- GitHub: https://github.com/dfirvault
- Issues: GitHub Issues Page
If you find DFIRVault useful, please consider starring the repository on GitHub!
