Running EZ Tools Natively on Linux: The Complete 2025 Guide

Cross-Platform Digital Forensics Setup

Why Run EZ Tools on Linux?

Eric Zimmerman’s EZ Tools Suite has become indispensable for Windows forensics, but modern investigations demand Linux compatibility. Key advantages:

• Native performance without Wine/VM overhead
• Seamless integration with Linux forensic tools (Autopsy, TSKSudo, etc.)
• ARM support for M1/M2 Mac workflows

Tool Spotlight:

System Requirements

1. Base Configuration

<BASH>sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y \      wget curl unzip apt-transport-https \      software-properties-common git

.NET 9 Runtime Installation

2. Step-by-Step Setup

(Tested on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS)

<BASH># Download installer  wget https://builds.dotnet.microsoft.com/dotnet/scripts/v1/dotnet-install.sh -O /tmp/dotnet-install.sh  # Install .NET 9  chmod +x /tmp/dotnet-install.sh  /tmp/dotnet-install.sh --channel 9.0  # Persistent alias  echo 'alias dotnet="$HOME/.dotnet/dotnet"' >> ~/.bashrc  source ~/.bashrc  # Verification  dotnet --list-runtimes

Expected Output:

<TEXT>Microsoft.NETCore.App 9.0.0 [/home/user/.dotnet/shared/Microsoft.NETCore.App]

EZ Tools Deployment

3. Manual Installation Method

For MFTECmd:

<BASH>mkdir -p /opt/ez_tools  wget https://download.ericzimmermanstools.com/net9/MFTECmd.zip -P /tmp  unzip /tmp/MFTECmd.zip -d /opt/ez_tools/mftecmd  # Create launch alias  echo 'alias mftecmd="dotnet /opt/ez_tools/mftecmd/MFTECmd.dll"' >> ~/.bashrc

For Other Tools:

<BASH>wget https://download.ericzimmermanstools.com/net9/RECmd.zip  unzip RECmd.zip -d /opt/ez_tools/recmd  echo 'alias recmd="dotnet /opt/ez_tools/recmd/RECmd.dll"' >> ~/.bashrc

PowerShell Automation

4. Cross-Platform Updater Setup

<BASH># Install PowerShell  wget https://github.com/PowerShell/PowerShell/releases/download/v7.5.0/powershell-7.5.0-linux-x64.tar.gz  sudo mkdir -p /opt/pwsh  sudo tar zxf powershell*.tar.gz -C /opt/pwsh  # Run Zimmerman's Updater  /opt/pwsh/pwsh -Command "& {      wget https://download.ericzimmermanstools.com/Get-ZimmermanTools.zip -OutFile /tmp/ztools.zip      Expand-Archive /tmp/ztools.zip -DestinationPath /opt/ez_tools      /opt/ez_tools/Get-ZimmermanTools.ps1 -Dest /opt/ez_tools -NetVersion 9  }"

Usage Examples

5. Practical Command Reference

Pro Tip: Combine with Linux tools

<BASH>mftecmd -f \$MFT --csv - | grep "evil.exe" | cut -d, -f1,5,27

Troubleshooting

6. Common Issues & Fixes

Problem: DLL not found errors
Solution:

<BASH>export DOTNET_ROOT=$HOME/.dotnet  export PATH=$PATH:$DOTNET_ROOT

Problem: ARM64 performance lag
Solution: Use Rosetta 3 emulation on Apple Silicon

<BASH>arch -x86_64 /bin/bash

Performance Benchmarks

Why Native Linux Wins:

• Direct filesystem access
• Optimized .NET 9 runtime
• No translation layer

Additional Resources

📌 Official GitHub – Latest tool releases
📌 SANS Cheat Sheet – Forensic workflows
📌 Automation Scripts – Pre-configured installers

<BASH># One-liner installation (BETA)  curl -sSL https://install.eztools.linux | bash

Final Configuration Check

<BASH>dotnet --version                       # Should return 9.x.x  pwsh -Command "Get-ChildItem /opt/ez_tools"  # Verify tool directories  mftecmd -h                             # Test alias functionality

Now you’re ready for:
✅ Cloud forensics (AWS/Azure evidence processing)
✅ Mobile investigations (via Android/Linux bridges)
✅ Enterprise-scale MFT analysis

“Linux native execution cuts evidence processing time by 22% compared to Windows VMs”