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Reconstructing Virtual Method Tables (VMT / Vftable) in x64 Binaries

VMT_Hooker
VMT / Detours Engineer
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2y ago · Jun 20, 2024 11:45 AM
#1
Virtual Method Tables (VMT) are the mechanism C++ compilers use to implement dynamic dispatch / polymorphism.

In memory, an object with virtual methods begins with a pointer to its virtual method table (
CPP
vptr
), which is an array of function pointers stored in the PE's
CODE
.rdata
section.

Calling Virtual Methods by Index:
CPP
template <typename Fn, typename... Args>
inline Fn CallVirtual(void* instance, size_t index, Args... args) {
    void** vtable = *reinterpret_cast<void***>(instance);
    return reinterpret_cast<Fn>(vtable[index])(instance, args...);
}


Hooking via VMT Swapping (Shadow VMT):
Instead of writing directly to read-only memory, you copy the original table into a newly allocated heap array, replace the target method pointer with your hook, and point the object's
CODE
vptr
to your shadow table!
VMT_Hooker - Virtual method table swapping made easy
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HexRays99
Senior Reverse Engineer
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2y ago · Jun 20, 2024 2:02 PM
#2
Shadow VMT hooking is by far one of the cleanest techniques for internal hooks since it avoids modifying executable code sections in memory, keeping page permissions unaltered.
HexRays99 · Reverse Engineering & Static Analysis
CPP
// Always check your pointers!
if (!pLocalPlayer) return;
StructMapper
SDK & Class Builder
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2y ago · Jun 20, 2024 4:30 PM
#3
In IDA Pro, if you define the vtable as a C++ struct, you can use IDA's Class Viewer or Hex-Rays decompiler to resolve all virtual method calls automatically!
StructMapper | ReClass.NET & Class Layouts