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sharphound

v2.17.1 open-source

SharpHound is a data collector for BloodHound CE that enumerates Active DirectoryActive DirectoryMicrosoft's directory service for Windows networks that centralises authentication and authorisation; cyber tools target or integrate with it because it controls identity and access across most enterprise environments. environments to gather relationship and permission data.

Summary

SharpHound is an open-source command-line collector that enumerates Active Directory environments and feeds the resulting data to BloodHound so attack pathsattack pathsA possible sequence of steps an attacker could take to reach a valuable target. It connects weaknesses, permissions and reachable systems rather than treating each finding separately. through a domain can be graphed. It runs as a standalone binary or compiled from source, gathering objects, sessions, ACLsACLsAn access control list, a set of rules allowing or denying operations for particular users, services or network addresses. It decides who can use a resource., and relationships like AdminSDHolder membership, SID-history-based group privileges, and AD CS certificate abuse data. It is built for red teamers and penetration testers mapping privilege escalationprivilege escalationGaining permissions beyond those an account or process initially had. It can turn limited access into administrator control or access to another user's resources. paths, though defenders auditing domain exposure use it the same way. It has no independent identity apart from BloodHound, whose Community Edition and Enterprise product it exists to supply with data, making it complementary to that platform rather than a competitor to anything else. Maintained by SpecterOps since 2021, with 41 contributors and a release 28 days ago, it remains actively developed.

SharpHound is a data collector for BloodHound CE that enumerates Active Directory environments to gather relationship and permission data.

How sharphound helps

Which accounts and groups in this domain sit on a path to Domain Admin?

walks the objects, sessions, ACLs, and group memberships it collects and hands the relationships to BloodHound, where the graph traces the shortest routes to high-privilege groups

Which computers have a session from a privileged user I could hop through?

records active sessions gathered from each reachable host, so BloodHound can graph which logged-on accounts touch which machines

Which objects have permissions nobody would expect, like ACLs granting control over a group or user?

enumerates ACL relationships on AD objects and feeds them into the graph so unexpected grants of control surface as edges

Is AdminSDHolder being used to grant standing privilege outside the normal group structure?

collects AdminSDHolder relationship data specifically so protected-object privilege paths show up as their own edges in the graph

Can an account with SID history reach privileges through a group it isn't formally a member of?

collects SID-history-based relationships on group objects so BloodHound can surface the privilege a foreign SID inherits through the group

Does this domain's certificate authority setup let someone escalate through AD CS misconfiguration?

gathers certificate-abuse data including role-separation and status details from the CA, giving BloodHound the edges needed to graph certificate-based escalation paths

all 16 features, with the evidence for each →

Languages

Not documented

Features

16 capabilities

Built from sharphound's releases, docs, README and our own runs. “Seen” marks the month we first spotted a release the vendor didn't date. Group names and tags are our labels.

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  • sharphound covers 1 of the 13 network discovery and scanning capabilities we track.

What sharphound offers you

  • Command-line interface2
  • GraphQL API support1
  • REST API1
Attack surface inventory 4 features Network discovery and scanning since 2022
Registry Data Collection shipped Expands enumeration capabilities by collecting specific registry keys and configuration data from domain-joined hosts. 4 releases · 1 other source · first seen Mar 2025

Shared capability: Attack surface inventory

release

  • OpenGraph data payloads format changed for BloodHound Enterprise; existing ingestion scripts may fail unless updated to the new payload structure. 2026-03-23 · Mar 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds valid_edges.json schema to define valid source-target node relationships and supported edge types. 2026-03-04 · Mar 2026 · source · release history
  • Collects the netlogon registry key during enumeration, expanding registry-based attack path data. v2.8.0 · Oct 2025 · source · release history
  • New Registry collection capability expands the data SharpHound can gather from domain-joined hosts. v2.6.0 · Mar 2025 · source · release history

example

  • Ingest nodes and edges separately in BHE without losing disconnected nodes curl -X POST https://bhe.example.com/api/v1/ingest/nodes -H 'Authorization: Bearer <token>' -d @nodes.json; curl -X POST https://bhe.example.com/api/v1/ingest/edges -H 'Authorization: Bearer <token>'… 2026-03-23 · Mar 2026 · source
Active Directory Certificate Services (AD CS) Enumeration shipped Gathers data related to Active Directory Certificate Services, including certificate templates and Role Separation configurations. 4 releases · first seen Dec 2023

Shared capability: Attack surface inventory

release

  • Improves NTLM collection logging to provide better visibility into NTLM-based enumeration activity. v2.11.0 · Mar 2026 · source · release history
  • Collects ECA RoleSeparation data, expanding AD CS enumeration coverage. v2.5.1 · Jul 2024 · source · release history
  • Adds collection of unresolved published certificate templates to the data gathered during an enumeration v2.4.1 · May 2024 · source · release history
  • Adds ADCSESC1 early access support for Active Directory Certificate Services enumeration v2.3.0 · Dec 2023 · source · release history
Computer Enumeration Optimization shipped Provides options to skip password age validation during computer enumeration to reduce latency in time-sensitive engagements. 3 releases · 1 other source · first seen Jun 2022

Shared capability: Attack surface inventory

release

  • Adds GET /api/.../count-by-kind API endpoint to retrieve member counts by primary kind for zone/tag selectors 2026-01-22 · Jan 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds filtering options (primary kind, name, or object ID) to the Filter Asset Group Tag Members API 2026-01-22 · Jan 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --SkipPasswordCheck flag to ignore PwdLastSet age during computer enumeration v1.0.4 · Jun 2022 · source · release history

example

  • Skip password age checks when enumerating computers to speed up collection in time-sensitive engagements. SharpHound.exe --Loop --CollectionMethods All --ZipFileName result.zip --SkipPasswordCheck v1.0.4 · Jun 2022 · source
Azure VM Data Collection shipped Collects Azure virtual machine identifiers from Windows computers during enumeration to enable correlation between on-premises Active Directory objects and Azure infrastructure. 1 release · first seen Oct 2026

Shared capability: Attack surface inventory

release

  • Collects Azure VM IDs from Windows computers during enumeration, enabling BloodHound to correlate on-premises AD objects with Azure infrastructure.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ v2.17.1 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
Other / not yet classified 12 features Features we have not matched to a capability yet. A suggested match is marked.
Active Directory Sites Enumeration shipped suggested Collects Active Directory Sites data and ACLs to support site-level attack path mapping in BloodHound. 4 releases · 2 other sources · first seen Mar 2026

Suggested capability: Attack surface inventory. This is our guess, not confirmed.

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Adds sites-acl as a new collection mode to collect Active Directory Sites ACLs and associated data v2.17.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds collection of Active Directory Sites ACLs and site data, accessible via the Site collection method (e.g.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ -c Site or combined with Default). v2.17.0 · Oct 2026 · source · release history
  • Speeds up graph data deletion from PostgreSQL-backed environments via Database Management 2026-08-18 · Aug 2026 · source · release history
  • OpenGraph data payloads format changed for BloodHound Enterprise; existing ingestion scripts may fail unless updated to the new payload structure. 2026-03-23 · Mar 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Collect AD Sites ACLs and data alongside the default collection to map site-level attack paths in BloodHound. SharpHound.exe -c Default,Site -d corp.local --outputdirectory C:\Temp\ v2.17.0 · Oct 2026 · source
  • Ingest nodes and edges separately in BHE without losing disconnected nodes curl -X POST https://bhe.example.com/api/v1/ingest/nodes -H 'Authorization: Bearer <token>' -d @nodes.json; curl -X POST https://bhe.example.com/api/v1/ingest/edges -H 'Authorization: Bearer <token>'… 2026-03-23 · Mar 2026 · source
Azure Entra ID Integration shipped Enables tracking of user activity via last successful sign-in timestamp from Entra ID in collected data and customizes the HTTP user agent string used during collection. 4 releases · 1 other source · first seen Feb 2026

release

  • Adds optional Okta collection performance telemetry for diagnosing and tuning collections while preserving tenant isolation. 2026-09-17 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds Collector Support Bundles management (request, download, delete) on the Manage Clients page 2026-09-08 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds signed Collector Offline webhook alerts for monitoring collector availability 2026-09-08 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Enables tracking of user activity via last successful sign-in timestamp from Entra ID in collected data 2026-02-11 · Feb 2026 · source · release history

example

  • Customize the HTTP user agent string used by AzureHound when collecting data from Entra ID AzureHound --user-agent "MyCyberTool/1.0" 2026-02-11 · Feb 2026 · source
OpenGraph Schema and Extension Management shipped Provides mechanisms to define valid node relationships, manage custom extensions, and handle distinct object IDs within the graph data model. 5 releases · first seen Apr 2026

release

  • Adds collector compatibility with case-sensitive OpenGraph Object IDs 2026-08-18 · Aug 2026 · source · release history
  • Enables OpenGraph Extension Management by default, removing manual feature enablement 2026-08-18 · Aug 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds node and relationship kind metadata via API endpoints for OpenGraph automation 2026-08-18 · Aug 2026 · source · release history
  • Allows reordering and pinning columns via drag-and-drop in Explore Table View 2026-04-13 · Apr 2026 · source · release history
  • Enables analyzing custom graph findings in Attack Paths and Posture using extension-specific schemas 2026-04-13 · Apr 2026 · source · release history
Cypher Query Enhancements shipped Extends Cypher query capabilities with list expansion, sorting, pagination, and PostgreSQL-specific node relationship support. 3 releases · first seen May 2026

release

  • Adds Multi-Destination Pathfinding to build routes through up to three destination nodes in a single query 2026-09-08 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds UNWIND clause to expand list values into rows in Cypher queries 2026-05-28 · May 2026 · source · release history
  • Enables result sorting in RETURN and WITH clauses in ascending or descending order 2026-05-28 · May 2026 · source · release history
LDAPS Certificate Validation Control shipped Allows the cyber tool to bypass LDAP Secure (LDAPS) certificate validation checks when connecting to directory servers. 2 releases · 1 other source · first seen Jun 2022

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Zone Builder Revoke button renamed to Reject 2026-02-11 · Feb 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds --DisableCertVerification flag to ignore LDAPS certificate validation v1.0.4 · Jun 2022 · source · release history

example

  • Disable LDAPS certificate validation to connect to servers with self-signed or untrusted certificates. SharpHound.exe --Loop --CollectionMethods All --ZipFileName result.zip --DisableCertVerification v1.0.4 · Jun 2022 · source
System Managed Account (sMSA) Password Collection shipped Enables the collection and dumping of sMSA passwords from computer objects during domain enumeration. 2 releases · 1 other source · first seen May 2023

release

  • Zone Builder Revoke button renamed to Reject 2026-02-11 · Feb 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds sMSA to CollectionMethod for dumping sMSA passwords on computer objects. v1.1.1 · May 2023 · source · release history

example

  • Collect sMSA passwords during a standard domain enumeration run. .\SharpHound.exe -c Container,Group,LocalAdmin,RDP -m 'sMSA' v1.1.1 · May 2023 · source
Attack Path Finding Optimization shipped Optimizes database operations and query capabilities for graph exploration and path analysis. 2 releases · first seen Aug 2026

release

  • Adds OpenHound configuration keys in config.toml to keep destination URLs and in secrets.toml for sensitive credentials for extension asset uploads 2026-09-08 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Implements storage optimization in PostgreSQL that runs after ingest and analysis 2026-08-18 · Aug 2026 · source · release history
Collector Lifecycle Monitoring shipped Enhances observability and operational management of the cyber toolchain through logging, webhooks, and telemetry. 2 releases · first seen Sep 2026

release

  • Adds identification of collector name, version, OpenHound version, and job ID in collector lifecycle logs 2026-09-08 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds Multi-Destination Pathfinding to build routes through up to three destination nodes in a single query 2026-09-08 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
OpenHound Data Collector Framework shipped Introduces a modular framework for collecting data from external identity and IT management providers such as GitHub, Jamf, and Okta. 2 releases · first seen Apr 2026

release

  • OpenHound Okta Collector improves analysis of Okta environments with reworked role assignments, resource sets, hybrid auth, and normalized SAML modeling. 2026-08-04 · Aug 2026 · source · release history
  • Introduces OpenHound data collector framework with initial collectors for GitHub, Jamf, and Okta 2026-04-13 · Apr 2026 · source · release history
Graph Exploration Interface Improvements shipped Enhances the Explore view with node type filtering, entity panel details, and improved graph rendering for clearer visualization. 2 releases · first seen Mar 2026

release

  • Adds OpenGraph Node Type Filtering in Explore Search to filter results by node type 2026-04-13 · Apr 2026 · source · release history
  • Displays Meta node details in the Entity Panel without errors. 2026-03-04 · Mar 2026 · source · release history
OpenHound Management API Support shipped Provides programmatic interfaces for managing clients, configuration, and monitoring status within the cyber tooling. 1 release · first seen Sep 2026

Also counts toward: GraphQL API support, REST API

release

  • Adds GitHub Enterprise Server Endpoint Support to configure separate REST and GraphQL endpoints for GitHub Enterprise collection 2026-09-08 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
Enumeration Metrics Collection shipped Provides operational visibility by collecting metrics and logging details during the enumeration process. 1 release · first seen Apr 2026

release

  • Adds metrics collection to SharpHound enumeration runs for operational visibility. v2.12.0 · Apr 2026 · source · release history

Lines in monospace are the tool's own words: help text parsed from its source, or an endpoint from its API document. Under release, a line is our summary of a dated release. Under docs, it is quoted from the tool's own documentation or website. Each links back to the source it came from.

Score card

  1. Shipping velocity releases a month, last 12 months
  2. Documentation quality release-notes rubric, 0–100
  3. Breaking-change discipline how rarely a release breaks users, and notice given
  4. Maintenance risk quiet time against its own cadence, maintainers
  5. Innovation & surface new capabilities, API and MCP surface
  6. Community health
  7. Contributor trend distinct committers, this year against last
  8. Maintainer concentration bus factor now against a year ago
  9. Issue backlog trend issues closed per issue opened, 12 months
  10. Responsiveness median time to a maintainer’s first reply

Nine scores for sharphound, each built from the releases, notes and API history this site tracks — and, on Researcher and Business, where it stands among every measured tool in its category and how that has moved.

Score cards are part of every paid plan.

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Each score is 0–100 on a published rubric, derived from data this site already shows. A dimension we cannot measure says so — it is never scored 0 and never enters a rank.

How this is scored
  • Shipping velocity — releases a month over the last 12 months, on a log scale where 16 a month scores 100. Needs 3 releases in the window.
  • Documentation quality — the release-notes rubric published on the analytics page, unchanged.
  • Breaking-change discipline — the share of releases carrying a breaking change (none scores 100, half or more scores 0). Only projects that label breaking changes are measured: a clean record cannot be told from an unlabelled one.
  • Maintenance risk — quiet time measured against the tool's own release cadence (quiet longer than 90 days and three typical gaps scores 0), plus the number of active maintainers and whether contributors are growing, where known. Higher is lower risk.
  • Innovation & surface — new capabilities in the feature ledger this year, API and MCP operations added, and the share of commits that are features: the mean of whichever we hold.
  • Community health (open-source tools only) — each is a direction, not a size: contributors this year against last, the bus factor now against a year ago, and issues closed per issue opened, where steady scores 50, doubled 100 and halved 0; plus the median time to a maintainer's first reply (an hour scores about 100, a month or more 0). A commercial card has no repository and carries none of the four.
  • Documented delivery (commercial tools) — when a vendor's documented new capabilities have slowed against its own baseline, that counts against the overall standing as heavily as two low dimensions. Steady delivery, or too little history to judge, leaves the standing alone; it is never a sixth score.
  • Open-source tools are scored on repository signals; commercial tools on their published changelog. Ranks compare tools within one category and one profile and need at least five measured peers; the overall standing needs three ranked dimensions. Best-in-breed or consolidator is a shape, not a quality, and is never scored.

Release-note detail over time

See how much detail sharphound puts in its release notes, quarter by quarter, and compare it with tracked tools in the same category. This history uses up to ten retained, reviewed notes per tool; sparse or blank older quarters may reflect that limit.

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Website history

specterops.io, every change

SpecterOps's home page and 33 more pages as they looked each month from September 2021 to October 2026: 45 renders, 3 changes of tagline or palette. Step through them, play them, or put any two months side by side.

Website history is included with Researcher and Business.

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Coverage

Missing something? Tell us

What sharphound connects to, runs on and detects, read from its release notes and docs. So far: 1 new detection.

Show

1 change, tracked since Oct 1, 2026.

  • Oct 12026

    new Active Directory Sites ACL collection

    Feature: Add collection of Active Directory Sites ACLs and data by @q-roland in https://github.com/SpecterOps/SharpHound/pull/186

    v2.17.0 Source ↗

How we count

Read from 2 of 28 release notes and docs updates we hold for sharphound. "First seen" is the earliest note that names something; "last" is the latest. Our history may start partway through sharphound's life, so an old integration can show a recent first-seen date.

Each change counts once: "added 40 checks" is one line, so the numbers measure how often coverage moves, not how big the catalogue is or how well it detects.

Releases

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Coverage in all entries

28 entries

  1. October 20262
  2. September 20262
  3. August 20262
  4. July 20262
  5. June 20261
  6. May 20262
  7. April 20262
  8. March 20263
  9. February 20261
  10. January 20262
  11. October 20251
  12. July 20251
  13. March 20251
  14. July 20241
  15. May 20241
  16. December 20232
  17. May 20231
  18. June 20221
    Show
    Coverage in all entries

    28 entries

    Project health

    Issue, contributor and maintainer activity in SpecterOps/SharpHound, 2023-10 – 2026-09, as of 2026-09-25. Twelve-month figures first; the trend lines run the whole window.

    1. Contributors 10 +1 vs prior 12 months
    2. Maintainers 3 +5 joined · −5 left, last 12 months
    3. Bus factor 2 committers behind half the commits
    4. Community-filed 100% of issues opened, last 12 months
    5. Median time to close 267 days first maintainer reply 267 days
    6. Open backlog 23 of 69 issues ever filed
    1. Issues opened / month 0 · 0 communitymaintainers
    2. Open backlog 23
    3. Contributors / month 3
    4. Commits / month 4
    5. Stars 1,344
    Issue themes, last 12 months
    • other 100%

    Counts from the project's public repository and git history; no individuals are identified. Maintainers are the committers covering 80% of the last year's commits. how we measure this

    Articles

    8 articles · updated Nov 4, 2026

    Where sharphound turns up in what others publish: how-tos, attack reports that name it, and incident write-ups. A row says why it is here and quotes where the article names it; the link goes to the publisher.

    Libraries its release ships

    What its latest release locks, checked against known advisories.

    None of its release's images build from a lockfile we can read.

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