53
358 | Page
Ap p e n d i x 6 - D e f i n i t i o n s
Copyright GetData Forensics Pty Ltd 2010 - 2015, All rights reserved.
Forensic Tool Kit ® (www.accessdata.com).
).
Forensic Explorer enables files in a case to be exported to a logical
evidence file (LEF) in .L01 format (see 9.6.2 for more information).
Logical file space
The actual amount of space occupied by a file on a hard drive. It may
differ from the physical file size, because the file may not completely fill
the total number of clusters allocated for its storage. The part of the last
cluster which is not completely filled is called the file slack.
Lost OS Clusters
Clusters in a volume that have no file data. For NTFS this is calculated
from accumulating all clusters associated with all the files in the MFT
(including the Unallocated clusters as that was derived from the $BITMAP
record), then working out the space left over. For NTFS this is space that
the OS might not be able to allocate without a check disk or
equivalent. For normal uncorrupted NTFS this would be non-existent or
small. For FAT typically this is non-existent, as the FAT table is used both in
cluster allocation of files and the working out of Unallocated clusters on X
volume.
Master boot record (MBR,
Boot Sector)
The very first sector on a hard drive. It contains the startup information
for the computer and the partition table, detailing how the computer is
organized.
Master File Table (MFT)
͞On an NTFS volume, the MFT is a relational database that consists of
rows of file records and columns of file attributes. It contains at least one
entry for every file on an NTFS volume, including the MFT itself. The MFT
stores the information required to retrieve files from the NTFS partition͟.
(24))
Metadata
Metadata is often referred to as ͞data about data͟. Windows metadata
can include a files create, last accessed and modified dates, as shown in
File List view of Forensic Explorer. File metadata includes information such
as camera make and model in a JPEG, or author name in Microsoft Word.
The File Metadata view in Forensic Explorer is used to show the metadata
in a file. Metadata can also be extracted by a script and added to a
column. See 8.11.1 for more information.
Module
Refers to the horizontal tabs (Evidence, File System, Keyword Search,
Index Search, Bookmarks, Reports, Scripts, Email, and Registry) at the top
of the Forensic Explorer main program window. Each module tab is used
to access a particular function of the program, for example, the Registry
module enables the investigator add and browse registry files.
Mount Image Pro (MIP)
A computer forensics software tool written and sold by GetData
(www.mountimage.com) which enable the mounting of forensic image
files as a drive letter on a Windows computer system. MIP is sold with
Forensic Explorer. It is installed as a separate program but can be run from
a shortcut in the Forensic Explorer toolbar.