Frida vs Rizin

Frida is a dynamic instrumentation toolkit for developers, reverse-engineers, and security researchers. It lets users place scripts in running processes to hook functions, inspect APIs, and trace application code without source code. Documented uses include API tracing, diagnostics, encrypted-protocol analysis, and black-box testing.

Frida supports injected, embedded, and preloaded instrumentation. When injection is unavailable, Frida Gadget can be embedded in a program, including on jailed iOS and Android systems. Supported targets include Windows, macOS, GNU/Linux, iOS, watchOS, tvOS, Android, FreeBSD, and QNX. Language bindings include Node.js, Python, Swift, .NET, Qt/Qml, and Go, alongside a C API. The CLI tools require Python and run on Windows, macOS, or GNU/Linux; the documented installation command is `pip install frida-tools`.

Rizin is a free, open-source framework for reverse engineering and binary analysis. Its tools include a disassembler, hexadecimal editor, debugger, binary inspection, emulation, and binary diffing. Command-line utilities support analyzing, disassembling, patching, comparing, searching, replacing, and visualizing data. Users can write scripts in languages including Python, Haskell, OCaml, and JavaScript. Cutter is Rizin’s official graphical interface and uses Rizin as its backend. The framework supports plugins, which rz-pm can compile and install; the package manager is described as early in development. Rizin can match unnamed functions against FLIRT signatures from sigdb to help identify common code in stripped binaries. The project also lists decompilation, firmware analysis, hybrid analysis, and a plugin API. Installation routes are provided for Linux, Windows, macOS, OpenBSD, and Android. The project says its work is currently in beta, and community discussion and support are available through Mattermost, Telegram, and IRC.