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Binary Ninja Decision Summary - WolfGuard Project

Date: 2025-10-30 Status: Final Recommendation TL;DR: Binary Ninja Free is NOT sufficient. Purchase Commercial ($299/year per engineer).

Quick Decision​

Can We Use Binary Ninja Free?​

❌ NO - Not Sufficient

3 Critical Blockers:

  1. ARM64 Not Supported: 91 binaries (46%) cannot be analyzed (Free only supports ARMv7, not ARM64)
  2. No Automation: 197 binaries require Python API (Free has no API access)
  3. License Violation: WolfGuard is work project (Free is non-commercial only)

✅ Purchase Binary Ninja Commercial

Tier: Commercial ($299/year per user) Cost: $598/year (2 engineers) ROI: 19.5x per year (5 analysis cycles)

Why Commercial?:

  • Unlocks ARM64 support (all 197 binaries)
  • Full Python API (automation enabled)
  • Commercial use rights (legal compliance)
  • Time savings: 20-30 hours per analysis cycle

Binary Analysis Facts​

Total Binaries: 197 (from Cisco Secure Client v5.1.12.146)

Architecture Breakdown:

  • 97 x86_64 binaries (49.2%) - Free version ✅ CAN analyze
  • 91 ARM64 binaries (46.2%) - Free version ❌ CANNOT analyze (critical gap)
  • 9 Windows MSI (4.6%) - Free version ✅ CAN analyze (once extracted)

Critical Binaries Affected by ARM64 Gap:

  • vpnagentd (main VPN daemon) - ARM64 version blocked
  • libvpnapi.so (VPN API library) - ARM64 version blocked
  • libacciscossl.so (Cisco SSL library) - ARM64 version blocked
  • libacciscocrypto.so (Cisco crypto library) - ARM64 version blocked

Limitation Analysis​

Free Version Limitations​

LimitationImpactSeverity
No ARM64 support91 binaries blocked (46%)🔴 CRITICAL
No Python APICannot automate 197 binaries🔴 CRITICAL
Non-commercial onlyLicense violation risk🔴 CRITICAL
No MLIL/LLILHarder to automate patterns🟡 MEDIUM
No SCCLess advanced control flow🟢 LOW
No Objective-CNot needed (C/C++ only)🟢 NO IMPACT

Cost-Benefit Comparison​

Scenario 1: Free Version Only ❌​

  • Cost: $0
  • Coverage: 49% (x86_64 only)
  • Time: 48.5 hours (manual analysis)
  • Verdict: NOT VIABLE (ARM64 blocked, no automation)

Scenario 2: IDA Pro + Free Binary Ninja ✅​

  • Cost: $0 (IDA Pro already owned)
  • Coverage: 100% (IDA Pro handles ARM64)
  • Time: 19.7 hours (IDA Pro automation)
  • Verdict: VIABLE (baseline if no budget)

Scenario 3: Commercial Binary Ninja ✅​

  • Cost: $598/year (2 engineers)
  • Coverage: 100% (ARM64 unlocked)
  • Time: 11.6 hours (full automation)
  • ROI: 1.35x per cycle, 6.8x per year (5 cycles)
  • Verdict: RECOMMENDED (good ROI)

Scenario 4: Commercial BN + IDA Pro ✅✅ (BEST)​

  • Cost: $598/year (BN only; IDA Pro already owned)
  • Coverage: 100% (best of both worlds)
  • Time: 36.6 hours (BN for speed, IDA for quality)
  • ROI: 3.9x per cycle, 19.5x per year (5 cycles)
  • Verdict: BEST OPTION (highest efficiency)

Scenario 5: Ghidra + Free BN ✅​

  • Cost: $0 (both free)
  • Coverage: 100% (Ghidra handles ARM64)
  • Time: 42.8 hours (Ghidra is slower)
  • Verdict: VIABLE (budget-constrained option)

ROI Calculation​

Commercial Binary Ninja Investment:

  • Cost: $299/year per engineer × 2 = $598/year

Time Savings (per analysis cycle):

  • Without BN: 60 hours (IDA Pro only, manual review)
  • With BN: 36.6 hours (BN + IDA Pro workflow)
  • Savings: 23.4 hours per cycle

Value (per year):

  • 5 analysis cycles/year × 23.4 hours × $100/hour = $11,700
  • Investment: $598/year
  • ROI: $11,700 / $598 = 19.5x (1,850% return)

Minimum Required Tier​

For WolfGuard (Work Project):

✅ Commercial ($299/year) - Minimum Required

Unlocks:

  • ARM64/AArch64 support (all architectures)
  • Python API (full automation)
  • MLIL/LLIL (all intermediate languages)
  • Commercial use rights (legal compliance)

❌ Personal ($149/year) - Not Sufficient

  • Reason: Non-commercial only (WolfGuard is work project)

❌ Free ($0) - Not Sufficient

  • Reason: No ARM64, no API, non-commercial only

❌ Enterprise ($1,299/year) - Not Needed

  • Reason: SCC and Sidekick AI not critical (too expensive)

Critical Features Needed​

Must-Have (Available in Commercial $299/year):​

  1. ARM64/AArch64 Support 🔴 CRITICAL

    • Why: 91 ARM64 binaries (46% of dataset)
    • Benefit: Analyze vpnagentd, libvpnapi.so ARM64 versions
    • Alternative: Ghidra (free), IDA Pro (already owned)

  2. Python API 🔴 CRITICAL

    • Why: Batch processing 197 binaries
    • Benefit: Automate extraction, analysis, export
    • Alternative: IDAPython (IDA Pro), Ghidra Python

  3. Commercial Use Rights 🔴 CRITICAL

    • Why: WolfGuard is work project
    • Benefit: Legal compliance
    • Alternative: Personal ($149) if genuinely non-commercial

  4. MLIL/LLIL 🟡 IMPORTANT

    • Why: Better automation for pattern matching
    • Benefit: Find all HMAC ops, trace data flow
    • Alternative: IDA Pro microcode, Ghidra p-code

Not Needed:​

  1. SCC Support (Enterprise only) 🟢 LOW

    • Why: Advanced control flow analysis
    • Verdict: Not critical for protocol analysis

  2. Sidekick AI (Enterprise only) 🟢 LOW

    • Why: AI-assisted reverse engineering
    • Verdict: Nice but not essential (we have Claude Code)

What NOT to Do​

❌ DO NOT use Binary Ninja Free for WolfGuard

Reasons:

  1. Cannot analyze ARM64 (46% of binaries blocked)
  2. Cannot automate (no API access)
  3. License violation risk (commercial use restriction)
  4. Wastes time working around limitations

Better alternative: Use Ghidra (free, full-featured) instead of Binary Ninja Free

Action Items​

If Budget Approved ($598/year):​

  • Purchase: 2 Binary Ninja Commercial licenses
  • Link: https://binary.ninja/purchase/ (Commercial tier)
  • Training: 2 senior engineers (1-2 weeks)
  • Develop: Custom plugins for Cisco analysis
  • Integrate: Add to WolfGuard CI/CD pipeline

If No Budget:​

  • Use: IDA Pro (x86_64) + Ghidra (ARM64)
  • Document: Ghidra workflow for ARM64 analysis
  • Accept: Slower analysis speed (40-60 hours vs. 10-20 hours)
  • Skip: Binary Ninja Free (not worth limitations)

Final Recommendation​

VERDICT: ✅ Purchase Binary Ninja Commercial ($299/year per user)

Why?:

  1. $598/year investment is negligible for professional RE work
  2. ROI is 19.5x per year (5 analysis cycles)
  3. Time savings: 20-30 hours per cycle
  4. Modern tooling = better results
  5. Legal compliance (commercial license)

If No Budget: Use IDA Pro + Ghidra (skip Binary Ninja Free)

Full Documentation​

📄 Detailed Analysis: Binary Ninja Free vs Commercial Analysis

📄 Tool Assessment: Binary Ninja Assessment

📄 IDA Pro Setup: IDA Pro Setup Guide

Document Status: Final Recommendation Decision Required: Purchase approval for $598/year (2 Commercial licenses) Next Steps: Await budget approval, then purchase and train

END OF SUMMARY