Included Tools

RF Swift Tool Collection

RF Swift provides a comprehensive suite of specialized tools for radio frequency and hardware security work. This page catalogs the tools available in each pre-built image.

Image Hierarchy

Each RF Swift image builds upon a foundation of tools, with specialized images adding domain-specific capabilities. Understanding this hierarchy helps you choose the most appropriate image for your needs:

graph TD;
    A[corebuild]-->B[sdrsa_devices];
    A-->C[rfid];
    A-->D[automotive];
    A-->E[reversing];
    A-->F[sdrsa_devices_antsdr];
    A-->G[sdrsa_devices_rtlsdrv4];
    B[sdrsa_devices]-->H[sdr_light];
    B[sdrsa_devices]-->I[bluetooth];
    B[sdrsa_devices]-->J[wifi];
    B[sdrsa_devices]-->L[telecom_utils];
    B[sdrsa_devices]-->R[hardware];
    B[sdrsa_devices]-->S[network];
    L-->M[telecom_2Gto3G];
    L-->N[telecom_4G_5GNSA];
    L-->O[telecom_5G];
    H-->K[sdr_full]

Tool Categories

Core SDR Devices Support

The sdrsa_devices image serves as the foundation for many RF Swift images, providing essential drivers and utilities for software-defined radio hardware.

Common Device Troubleshooting

RTL-SDR Kernel Module Conflicts

If your RTL-SDR device is unavailable when using tools like nfc-spy, the DVB-T kernel module may have claimed it. Blacklist the module with:

echo "blacklist dvb_usb_rtl28xxu" | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-dvb_usb_rtl28xxu.conf

You’ll need to restart your host system after adding this blacklist entry.

PlutoSDR Connection Issues

If the PlutoSDR doesn’t appear with iio_info -s and you see errors like:

with backends: local xml ip usb
Unable to create Local IIO context : No such file or directory (2)
ERROR: Unable to create Avahi DNS-SD client :Daemon not running
Scanning for IIO contexts failed: Text file busy (26)

This can be resolved in two ways:

1. On Linux hosts: Ensure avahi-daemon is running on your host system
2. Inside the container: Run the Avahi daemon with:

   avahi-daemon --no-drop-root --no-rlimits

SDR Light Tools

The sdr_light image includes essential software-defined radio tools for signal capture, analysis, and basic decoding.

SDR Full Environment

The sdr_full image builds on sdr_light to provide a comprehensive SDR development and analysis environment, including GNU Radio and specialized plugins.

GNU Radio Out-Of-Tree Modules

These modules extend GNU Radio’s capabilities for specific protocols and signal types:

Additional SDR Software

RFID Tools

The rfid image focuses on radio-frequency identification analysis and exploitation:

# When creating a new container
rfswift run -i rfid -n rfid_tools -s /dev/ttyACM0:/dev/ttyACM0

# Or with an existing container
rfswift bindings add -c rfid_tools -d -t /dev/ttyACM0

Bluetooth Analysis

The bluetooth image contains specialized tools for Bluetooth protocol analysis and security testing:

rfswift run -i bluetooth -n bt_tools -a NET_ADMIN

Wi-Fi Security

The wifi image provides tools for Wi-Fi network analysis, packet capture, and security assessment:

rfswift run -i wifi -n wifi_tools -a NET_ADMIN

Telecommunications

The telecommunications images are divided into several categories based on mobile network generations:

Telecom Utilities

Foundation tools for cellular network analysis:

2G/3G Analysis Tools

Tools for GSM, UMTS, and related technologies:

4G/5G Analysis Tools

Tools for LTE, 5G-NSA, and 5G technologies:

Automotive Security

The automotive image contains tools for vehicle network analysis and communication:

Hardware Reverse Engineering

The reversing image provides tools for firmware analysis and hardware reverse engineering:

Network Analysis

The network image contains general network analysis and security tools:

Hardware Security

The hardware image focuses on general hardware security testing and analysis:

Tool Usage Tips

Tool Directory Organization

RF Swift organizes tools in specialized directories for easier discovery:

• /rftools - Contains radio frequency analysis tools
• /hardware - Hardware security and testing tools
• /automotive - Vehicle communication and analysis tools
• /reverse - Reverse engineering and firmware analysis tools

These directories complement the standard system paths (/usr/bin, /usr/local/bin) and contain specialized tools, scripts, and resources.

Finding Available Tools

To discover which tools are available in your current container:

# List all executable commands in standard paths
find /usr/bin /usr/local/bin -type f -executable | sort

# List RF tools in the dedicated directory
ls -la /rftools

# List tools in other specialized directories
ls -la /hardware
ls -la /automotive
ls -la /reverse
// and more

# Search for a specific tool across all locations
find /usr/bin /usr/local/bin /rftools /hardware /automotive /reverse -name "*sdr*" -type f -executable

Tool Documentation

Most tools include built-in help available through the -h or --help flags:

tool_name --help

For more detailed documentation, many tools include man pages:

man tool_name

Creating Tool Aliases

For frequently used tools with complex options, consider creating aliases in your container:

echo 'alias rtlpower-optimized="rtl_power -f 88M:108M:25k -g 50 -i 10 -e 1h power.csv"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Next Steps

Continue to the Configurations page to learn how to customize your RF Swift environment: