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Please note that the documentation and the API for angr management are highly in-flux. You will need to spend time reading the source code. Grep is your friend. If you have questions, please ask in the angr Discord server.If you build something which uses an API and you want to make sure it doesn’t break, you can contribute a testcase for the API!

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Core Components

angr Management’s architecture is built around three primary components that work together to provide a complete binary analysis environment:

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MainWindow

The MainWindow is the QMainWindow instance for the application. It serves as the top-level container and provides basic functions that correspond to top-level UI interactions. Key Responsibilities:
  • Loading binaries (both local files and URLs)
  • Managing menus (File, View, Analyze, AI, Help, Plugin)
  • Coordinating toolbars and status bar
  • Handling welcome and preference dialogs
  • Managing the dock system via Qt Advanced Docking System
Location: angrmanagement/ui/main_window.py Example - Creating a MainWindow: 
from angrmanagement.ui.main_window import MainWindow
from PySide6.QtWidgets import QApplication

app = QApplication([])
main_window = MainWindow(app=app, show=False)  # show=False for headless mode

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Workspace

The Workspace is a lightweight object that coordinates UI elements and manages the tabbed environment. It provides access to all analysis-related GUI components. Key Responsibilities:
  • Managing views (Disassembly, Decompilation, Hex, Functions, etc.)
  • Coordinating job execution via JobManager
  • Managing plugins via PluginManager
  • Handling analysis operations via AnalysisManager
  • Providing command registration via CommandManager
Location: angrmanagement/ui/workspace.py Default Views: 
default_tabs = [
    DisassemblyView,
    HexView,
    CodeView,
    FunctionsView,
    ConsoleView,
    LogView,
    JobsView,
]
Example - Accessing the Workspace: 
# workspace is available as an attribute on main_window
workspace = main_window.workspace

# Access the view manager
view_manager = workspace.view_manager

# Access the main instance
instance = workspace.main_instance

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Instance

The Instance is angr Management’s data model. It contains mechanisms for synchronizing components on shared data sources and manages long-running jobs. Key Responsibilities:
  • Storing the angr Project, CFG, and other analyses
  • Managing ObjectContainers for reactive data updates
  • Coordinating breakpoints via BreakpointManager
  • Managing debuggers via DebuggerManager
  • Handling FLIRT signatures via SignatureManager
  • Logging application events
Location: angrmanagement/data/instance.py Core Containers: 
instance.project       # The current angr.Project
instance.cfg           # The current CFG model
instance.cfb           # The current CFBlanket
instance.simgrs        # Global simulation managers list
instance.states        # Global states list
instance.patches       # Patches update notifier
instance.log           # Saved log messages
instance.traces        # Global traces list
instance.current_trace # Currently selected trace
Example - Accessing Instance Data: 
# Get the current project
project = instance.project.am_obj

# Get the knowledge base
kb = instance.kb

# Access the CFG
if not instance.cfg.am_none:
    cfg = instance.cfg.am_obj

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Component Relationships

The three core components form a hierarchy: 
MainWindow
└── workspace (attribute)
    └── main_instance (attribute)

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Accessing Components

workspace = main_window.workspace
instance = main_window.workspace.main_instance

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ObjectContainer Pattern

angr Management uses an ObjectContainer pattern for reactive data management. Containers emit events when their values change, allowing UI components to stay synchronized. Location: angrmanagement/data/object_container.py Usage: 
# Subscribe to container changes
instance.project.am_subscribe(callback_function)

# Set a new value (triggers callbacks)
instance.project.am_obj = new_project

# Manually trigger event
instance.project.am_event()

# Check if container is empty
if instance.project.am_none:
    print("No project loaded")

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Manager Components

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JobManager

Manages background jobs and long-running analyses. Location: angrmanagement/logic/jobmanager.py 
# Add a job
workspace.job_manager.add_job(job)

# Wait for all jobs to complete
workspace.job_manager.join_all_jobs()

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ViewManager

Manages all views and their dock widgets. Location: angrmanagement/ui/view_manager.py 
# Access all views
for view in workspace.view_manager.views:
    print(view.__class__.__name__)

# Get view to dock mapping
dock = workspace.view_manager.view_to_dock.get(view)

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AnalysisManager

Coordinates analysis operations like CFG generation, variable recovery, and decompilation. Location: angrmanagement/logic/analysis_manager.py

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CommandManager

Manages registered commands for the command palette. Location: angrmanagement/logic/commands.py

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PluginManager

Handles plugin loading and lifecycle. Location: angrmanagement/plugins/plugin_manager.py

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Boot Process

The application boot process is defined in angrmanagement/__init__.py:17: 
from angrmanagement import boot

# Boot with optional project
workspace = boot(project=None, block=False)

# Boot and block (for standalone usage)
boot(project=angr_project, block=True)
Boot Sequence:
  1. Initialize Qt Application
  2. Load configuration from Conf.attempt_importing_initial_config()
  3. Set up fonts and theme
  4. Create MainWindow instance
  5. Initialize GlobalInfo references
  6. Load project if provided
  7. Show welcome dialog or start event loop

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Key Paths

ComponentPath
MainWindowangrmanagement/ui/main_window.py
Workspaceangrmanagement/ui/workspace.py
Instanceangrmanagement/data/instance.py
GlobalInfoangrmanagement/logic/__init__.py
ObjectContainerangrmanagement/data/object_container.py
Boot functionangrmanagement/__init__.py

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Next Steps

Setup Development Environment

Get your development environment ready

Contributing Guidelines

Learn how to contribute to angr Management

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