BinExport build script for Binary Ninja (macOS + Linux Only)

binexport_binja.zsh

#!/usr/bin/env zsh

# Note:
# CMake, Clang, clang-format, Ninja, git and sed are required to build
#
# Note that currently there is a bug (https://github.com/google/binexport/issues/117)
# that requires applying this patch, remove when resolved
#

if [[ "$OSTYPE" == "darwin"* ]]; then
    SED_CMD="sed -i '' -E -e"
else
    SED_CMD="sed -i  -E -e"
fi

if [ -d ~/Downloads ]
then
  DOWNLOADS=~/Downloads
else
  mdir ~/downloads
  DOWNLOAD=~/downloads
fi
BE_PATH=$DOWNLOADS/binexport
if [ -d ~/.binaryninja ] && [ -f ~/.binaryninja/lastrun ]
then
  BN_USER=~/.binaryninja
  BN_PATH=`cat ~/.binaryninja/lastrun`
  BINARY_HASH=$(sed 's/^.*\///' < $BN_PATH/api_REVISION.txt 2>/dev/null)
  CORES=$(nproc --all)
  PLUGIN_DEST=~/.binaryninja/plugins/binexport12_binaryninja.so
  PLUGIN_SRC=~/Downloads/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.so
elif [ -d ~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja ] && [ -f ~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja/lastrun ]
then
  BN_USER=~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja
  BN_PATH=`cat ~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja/lastrun`
  BINARY_HASH=$(sed 's/^.*\///' < $BN_PATH/../Resources/api_REVISION.txt 2>/dev/null)
  CORES=$(sysctl -n hw.logicalcpu)
  PLUGIN_DEST=~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja/plugins/binexport12_binaryninja.dylib
  PLUGIN_SRC=~/Downloads/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.dylib
else
  echo "Failed to find appropriate Binary Ninja user directory."
  exit 1
fi
BN_API_PATH=$DOWNLOADS/binaryninja-api

echo "Configuration:"
echo "  DOWNLOADS: $DOWNLOADS"
echo "  BE_PATH: $BE_PATH"
echo "  BN_API_PATH: $BN_API_PATH"
echo "  BN_PATH: $BN_PATH"
echo "  BINARY_HASH: $BINARY_HASH"

if [ -z "$BINARY_HASH" ]
then
  echo "Failed to find appropriate hash for Binary Ninja"
  exit 1
fi

echo "\u001b[36m[+] Cloning BinExport & Binary Ninja API..."
echo "\u001b[0m"
if [ -d $BE_PATH ]
then
  pushd $BE_PATH
  if git fetch --all
  then
    git reset --hard origin/main # Because previous runs of this script will dirty the repo
    echo "BinExport exists, repo updated"
  else
    echo Not a repo, remove $BE_PATH to continue
    exit
  fi
  popd
else
  git clone https://github.com/google/binexport.git $BE_PATH
fi

if [ ! -d $BN_API_PATH ]
then
  git clone --recursive --branch dev https://github.com/Vector35/binaryninja-api.git $BN_API_PATH
fi

pushd $BN_API_PATH
if git fetch --all
then
  if git checkout "$BINARY_HASH"
  then
    git pull
    echo "Binary Ninja API exists, repo updated"
  else
    echo Not a repo or could not match binary hash
    exit
  fi
fi
popd

echo "\u001b[36m[+] Updating the git hash..."
echo "\u001b[0m"
$SED_CMD "s/(1bd42a73e612f50c68d802acda674c21a30e980c|6e2b374dece03f6fb48a1615fa2bfee809ec2157)/$BINARY_HASH/g" $BE_PATH/cmake/BinExportDeps.cmake
$SED_CMD "s/2023-05-18/2023-09-24/g" $BE_PATH/cmake/BinExportDeps.cmake

echo "\u001b[36m[+] Running regenerate-api-stubs..."
echo "\u001b[0m"
pushd $BE_PATH/binaryninja/stubs/
./regenerate-api-stubs.sh $BN_API_PATH
popd

pushd $BE_PATH

echo "\u001b[36m[+] Building BinExport..."
echo "\u001b[0m"
rm -rf build && mkdir build && cd build
cmake .. -G Ninja -DCMAKE_CXX_FLAGS="-D_LIBCPP_ENABLE_CXX17_REMOVED_UNARY_BINARY_FUNCTION" -DBINEXPORT_BINARYNINJA_CHANNEL=DEV -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release "-DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=$PWD" -DBINEXPORT_ENABLE_IDAPRO=OFF -DBINEXPORT_ENABLE_BINARYNINJA=ON
cmake --build . --config Release -- "-j$CORES"

popd

if [ -f $PLUGIN_DEST ]
then
  echo "\u001b[36m[+] Not linking the plugin, file already exists\u001b[0m"
else
  echo "\u001b[36m[+] Linking BinExport plugin to Binary Ninja plugin folder\u001b[0m"
  ln -sf $PLUGIN_SRC $PLUGIN_DEST
fi

echo "\u001b[32;1m[+] Done!"
echo "\u001b[0m"

In my case, BINARY_HASH is derived from /Applications/Binary\ Ninja.app/..., not /Applications/Binary\ Ninja-dev.app/...

Thanks -- I forgot to update my local paths for the public one. I've updated the gist.

Haven't actually tested it yet, but just updated it so it should work on linux as well as macos for folks that want to more easily track dev releases with binexport. Feedback welcome.

@psifertex the script works great for macOS!

Consider

--- binexport_binja_original.sh	2023-05-08 04:04:31
+++ binexport_binja.sh	2023-05-08 04:06:13
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
   DOWNLOADS=~/Downloads
 else
   mdir ~/downloads
-  DOWNLOAD=~/downloads
+  DOWNLOADS=~/downloads
 fi
 BE_PATH=$DOWNLOADS/binexport
 if [ -d ~/.binaryninja ] && [ -f ~/.binaryninja/lastrun ]
@@ -103,14 +103,14 @@
 then
   echo "\u001b[36m[+] Linking BinExport plugin to Binary Ninja plugin folder"
   echo "\u001b[0m"
-  ln -sf ~/Downloads/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.so ~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja/plugins
+  ln -sf "$DOWNLOADS/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.so" ~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja/plugins
 fi

-if [ ! -L ~/Downloads/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.dylib ]
+if [ ! -L "$DOWNLOADS/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.dylib" ]
 then
   echo "\u001b[36m[+] Linking BinExport plugin to Binary Ninja plugin folder"
   echo "\u001b[0m"
-  ln -sf ~/Downloads/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.dylib ~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja/plugins
+  ln -sf "$DOWNLOADS/binexport/build/binaryninja/binexport12_binaryninja.dylib" ~/Library/Application\ Support/Binary\ Ninja/plugins
 fi

 echo "\u001b[32;1m[+] Done!"

Thanks I also was symlinking the so into the wrong user folder but I fixed that too. I'll try to give it a go on linux soon.

The commits you relied on have changed in the binexport repo. To save you some sed usage I'll see if they'll take a change to just specify a tag directly in their CMAKE files.

Thanks. I noticed it wasn't working this week but hadn't had any time to investigate.

Updated for the latest hash in the meantime and also made a few other fixes in particular around the sym linking.

Thank you so much! Finally managed to get the plugin compiled 👍

Btw, I also had to install clang-format after I was getting weird symbol errors

Yup, see the note at the top of the script, it's "documented" there.

Oops didn’t see that 😅

Just updated to include the latest binexport release for those running the latest dev. Hopefully in the future I can make it more robust but that requires some small tweaks to binexport's cmake configs that I've asked Christian to take a look at when he gets a chance.

FYI: your sed line is missing a parenthesis. I think we should also probably get Christian to pull the fmtlib submodule, too?

Actually, I think that line had an extra one. The previous line is matching multiple but that should just be matching the date. Good point though on it being a bug (though a cosmetic one since it just will fail to match).

What's fmtlib needed for?

Binary Ninja needs it: https://github.com/Vector35/binaryninja-api/tree/dev/vendor

Any script for WIndows?

Unfortunately, not right now. I'll try to take a look at it when I have some time but it will be at least a week.

The current script will fail at the last ln command. The fix is to remove the quotes from https://gist.github.com/psifertex/31d9bc3167eca91e466ebaae4382521c#file-binexport_binja-zsh-L32-L33 (and above as well)

Done, mind checking to see if it works for you now?

Done, mind checking to see if it works for you now?

It now works perfectly for me!

On Linux, due to implementation differenced in sed, L92f should be:

sed -i -E -e "s/(1bd42a73e612f50c68d802acda674c21a30e980c|6e2b374dece03f6fb48a1615fa2bfee809ec2157)/$BINARY_HASH/g" $BE_PATH/cmake/BinExportDeps.cmake
sed -i  -E -e "s/2023-05-18/2023-09-24/g" $BE_PATH/cmake/BinExportDeps.cmake

(that is, remove the single quotes after -i)

Unfortunately the macOS sed requires that or it won't do the in-place replacement so I'll need to build some OS detection in as well. Just made that change but don't have time to test it right now so caveat emptor.