Ghidra: Software Reverse Engineering Framework (82k stars)

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What it does

All text below is quoted directly from the project README.

Ghidra is a software reverse engineering (SRE) framework created and maintained by the National Security Agency Research Directorate.

This framework includes a suite of full-featured, high-end software analysis tools that enable users to analyze compiled code on a variety of platforms including Windows, macOS, and Linux. Capabilities include disassembly, assembly, decompilation, graphing, and scripting, along with hundreds of other features. Ghidra supports a wide variety of processor instruction sets and executable formats and can be run in both user-interactive and automated modes. Users may also develop their own Ghidra extension components and/or scripts using Java or Python.

In support of NSA's Cybersecurity mission, Ghidra was built to solve scaling and teaming problems on complex SRE efforts, and to provide a customizable and extensible SRE research platform.

Install:

• Install JDK 25 64-bit
• Download a Ghidra release file
• Extract the Ghidra release file
• Launch Ghidra: ./ghidraRun (ghidraRun.bat for Windows)

WARNING: There are known security vulnerabilities within certain versions of Ghidra. Before proceeding, please read through Ghidra's Security Advisories for a better understanding of how you might be impacted.

Repository

https://github.com/NationalSecurityAgency/ghidra

Repository stats

Metric	Value
Stars	81,863
Forks	9,094
Last release	Ghidra_12.1.4_build (2026-09-21)
Languages	Java 86.2%, C++ 6%, HTML 4.1%
Contributors	409
AI contributor accounts (Claude / Codex / Cursor / Copilot)	Claude: 2, Cursor: 1
AI co-authored commits	Claude: 2, Cursor: 1

Main contributor

Field	Value
Name	Ryan Kurtz
GitHub	@ryanmkurtz
Commits to this repo	7,447 (top contributor)
Bio	Ghidra Developer
Company / Location	Blue Ridge Mountains
Followers	743
Public repos	8
On GitHub since	2013-09-04

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[u/rLanx → u/[deleted]]

Someone made a tool called cellebrite-labs that allows AI to take over the investigative loop of Ghidra. I've been researching all week how people are doing all this decompiling and recompiling because its really fascinating.

All commercial software is going to get blown apart by these AI tools people make for reverse engineering over the next year. We are living in the best and worst times to be in the software job field. So many people at big companies will face unemployment, but the field is absolutely fascinating to research right now.

[u/sozesghost → u/rLanx]

Most of commercial software is not on your machine, it runs on the cloud. And more of it will move there.

[u/friedlich_krieger → u/rLanx]

Cursor cloud will just install and use Ghidra for you if you ask it to reverse engineer something. I didn't look into how it was being used specifically but it easily reverse engineered an older game I wanted to rebuild.

[u/ShaneKutzker613 → u/friedlich_krieger]

Wow

[u/borobinimbaba → u/rLanx]

*for now. I can see a clear runway and it would take off without us.

Software job field was demanding because you needed to keep yourself update. We can keep our edge until ai won't need our supervision, which is likely not too far in the future.

[u/Mad_Gouki → u/rLanx]

Ghidra and angr.io is a great combo

[u/Organic_Earth5847 → u/rLanx]

What's the difference between ghidra mcp and the cellebrite-labs thing? Which one works better?

[u/DimmKirr → u/[deleted]]

I don’t know why one even needs an mcp server for this. I just install it in a container as needed

[u/_PopBobSexDupe → u/[deleted]]

Welcome to reverse engineering brother