https://github.com/droe/binja-blocks

Apple Blocks Plugin for Binary Ninja
https://github.com/droe/binja-blocks

Last synced: over 1 year ago
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Apple Blocks Plugin for Binary Ninja

• Host: GitHub
• URL: https://github.com/droe/binja-blocks
• Owner: droe
• License: mit
• Created: 2024-11-23T21:15:44.000Z (over 1 year ago)
• Default Branch: main
• Last Pushed: 2024-12-28T13:57:53.000Z (over 1 year ago)
• Last Synced: 2024-12-28T14:29:14.904Z (over 1 year ago)
• Language: Python
• Size: 1.95 MB
• Stars: 26
• Watchers: 2
• Forks: 3
• Open Issues: 5
• Metadata Files:
  • Readme: README.md
  • License: LICENSE

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README

          
# Apple Blocks Plugin

Author: Daniel Roethlisberger

Annotation of Apple [libclosure](https://github.com/apple-oss-distributions/libclosure) [blocks](https://clang.llvm.org/docs/BlockLanguageSpec.html).

## Description

Type annotation of stack and global blocks, block descriptors, variables closed

over and related function signatures in [Binary Ninja](https://binary.ninja/).

Blocks are an implementation of closures often found in C, C++, ObjC and ObjC++

code for Apple platforms.  Blocks are not the same as C++ lambdas.

![Screenshot comparing before and after annotation](https://github.com/droe/binja-blocks/blob/0.4.0/.github/img/showcase.png?raw=true)

Commands:

-   Annotate all blocks

-   Annotate all global blocks

-   Annotate all stack blocks

-   Annotate global block here

-   Annotate stack block here

-   Annotate stack byref here

-   Remove plugin comment here (deprecated)

Features:

-   Find and annotate global and stack blocks

-   Annotate block imported variables based on inline or out-of-line

    generic helper info or extended layout

-   Annotate block invoke function type based on encoded block ObjC type

    signature

-   Annotate block descriptors, copy/dispose functions, generic helper info

    and out-of-line extended layout bytecode

-   Annotate stack byrefs (`__block` variables) based on non-extended

    layout or inline or out-of-line extended layout, including keep and

    destroy functions

-   Define per-block and per-byref named structs to allow for manual fixups

-   Define structs for fully manual annotation: `Block_literal`,

    `Block_descriptor_1`, `Block_descriptor_2`, `Block_descriptor_3`,

    `Block_byref_1`, `Block_byref_2`, `Block_byref_3`.

Known limitations:

-   Automatic discovery of blocks and byrefs on the stack is unreliable by

    nature and depends on Binary Ninja's ability to lift into clean HLIL

-   No support for "small descriptors"

-   No support for 32-bit architectures

-   No support for "old GC layout"

-   No support for older block layout from before the introduction of block descriptors

-   Byrefs passed as function arguments are not automatically discovered

## References

Blocks language docs:

-   [Blocks Programming Topics](https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/documentation/Cocoa/Conceptual/Blocks/), Apple Documentation Archive

-   [LLVM Block Language Spec](https://clang.llvm.org/docs/BlockLanguageSpec.html)

Blocks implementation details:

-   [libclosure](https://github.com/apple-oss-distributions/libclosure), source code and two spec documents

-   [LLVM Block ABI](https://clang.llvm.org/docs/Block-ABI-Apple.html)

Objective-C Type Encodings:

-   [Type Encodings](https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/documentation/Cocoa/Conceptual/ObjCRuntimeGuide/Articles/ocrtTypeEncodings.html), Objective-C Runtime Programming Guide, Apple Documentation Archive

-   [LLVM code emitting type encodings](https://github.com/llvm-mirror/clang/blob/master/lib/AST/ASTContext.cpp)

## License

This plugin is released under an [MIT license](./license).