tools.htm , THE tools page at fravia's!

Updated June 1999

I'm restructuring this, bear with the 404s

There is not a single cracked or pirated copy of software on this or any other page of my site. There are not even links to pirated or cracked copies. There is no need, since you will learn not only how to understand, reverse and modify any software you fancy but also how to find on the web everything you want (BTW, if you do not know how to search the web, leave this cracking stuff alone for a while, go learn "searching" and come back only when you are done

You'll therefore find here only shareware (uncracked) or our own programs, or programs so old and obsolete that nobody cares for them (but us).

OK, now listen carefully: the main tools you need to reverse engineer like a glove any software application that crosses your path are mainly the following ones:

Official +HCU tool 1) Softice THE debugger! Fetch it already cracked from everywhere (but my site), or get it ftpmailed in one of its complete versions, or download a trial (or complete) version from numega's own site (search the ftp) and crack the time limit of its trial versions using +HCU's project2, or either buy it: it's an INCREDIBLY good tool, it deserves to be paid for. Softice for DOS, Windoze95 and NT in its various versions is the OFFICIAL +HCU debugger since 1997. Btw, there is NO NEED to have always the absolute last version of any program, even if the last version 4 promises some inetersting web-debugging possibilities, you'll still go quite a long way with good old (and stable) sice 3.25!

Hope it's not necessary to recall you that you can make MACROs with Softice, here a nice couple by Incubus++:

macro PARAMS = "dd ss:esp+4" and then bpx GetDlgItemTextA DO "PARAMS"

or else

macro GETTEXT = "db (ss:esp+4)->8" and then bpx GetDlgItemTextA DO "GETTEXT"

Official +HCU tool2) BRW, Borland resource Workshop version 4.5, fetch it from the web, get it from a "real" programmer or buy it, as you like. (Well, you won't need to buy it... a lot of magazine's cover CD have carried for next to free the COMPLETE copy of Borland C++ version 4.5 -see my blackboard- and you'll get this phantastic tool there!). BRW beats SRS and beats WRE (the resource editors of the concurrence) and therefore is the OFFICIAL +HCU resource editor 1997.

Official +HCU tool3) IDA (Interactive disassembler, by Master Ilfak Guilfanov) version 3.7 is THE tool you need to work. Quine's essays have underlined its incredible performance capacities. This IS the OFFICIAL +HCU disassembler 1997. Crack the demo version using Quine's essays, fetch a regged version from the web or buy a copy of it, Guilfanov deserves it, he's a great programmer!

Official +HCU tool4) Wdasm (version 8.9), fetch a demo versions from the web and crack it using the students' essays that you'll find it inside +HCU's Project 0, or fetch a real complete version from the web, or buy it (it's a good tool, it deserves it :-)

Hope it is not necessary to recall you that wdasm (8.9) is also a good debugger, not only a disassembler...
If you use it as a debugger (as you should at times :-) just load the process, then use the "goto code location" option in the MAIN top window to go to the part of code you want to breakpoint into, then use F2 to breakpoint there (see the yellow box), then, in the smaller "right" debugging window, DO NOT FORGET to checkmark the first four boxes:

 Enable Documented API Details  (default)
 Eable Undocumented API Details
 Enable Local Function Details (VERY IMPORTANT!)
 Stop Auto on API

And now you'r set for some wonderful debugging sections with wdasm. Watch the "left" debugging window and the API calls while you just "step over" on the 'right' debugging window... and you'll see!

5) An Hexeditor, we use mostly PSEDIT (DOS, powerful) or Hexworkshop (Windoze), you'll find hexeditors everywhere and you'll crack all sorts of hexeditors.
Many crackers find hiew a very useful hexeditor.

6) Filemon & Regmon & Vxdmon... shareware (with source code!). You'll find them for download on my own site too, see below. Once you use and understand the utility of filemon you may also want to check my essay about filemon reverse engineering too!

7) A good wordprocessor (MS-Word 97 won't do for huge files, I use old powerful Wordperfect version 4.2 (DOS) or Ultraedit (Windoze)

8) A brain, see if you manage to find one somewhere
All other tools on this page may be very useful as well at times... download what you fancy and enjoy!

Forgotten realms

Tools to catch a window (or box) through its DIMENSIONS
Hey! I almost forgot... actually when you'll have to crack windows that have a predefinite width and height you could need ruler as well

Well, actually, even better... when you'll have to crack windows that have a predefinite width and height you could use winshow utility as well, the original module has been ameliorated by Frog's Print, porting it to hexvalues inter alia, and you'll find his version inside this zip as well

Tools to fish strings
Hey! I almost forgot... actually when you'll have to find and extract strings in unicode from your targets you could need peek utility as well