mstr-unpacker

Unpack and decode MicroStrategy .mstr files to extract visualizations, metrics, attributes, and metadata for analysis or migration. A utility toolkit for inspecting and reverse-engineering dashboards using semantic parsing, identifier mapping, and visual inference.

Overview

The mstr-unpacker is a Python utility designed to extract and analyze MicroStrategy dashboard files (.mstr). It provides functionality to:

• Extract ZIP-based .mstr file contents
• Parse and decode embedded metadata
• Extract readable ASCII strings from binary components
• Analyze dashboard structure and components
• Support reverse engineering of MicroStrategy dashboards

Features

• File Extraction: Automatically extracts .mstr ZIP archives
• String Parsing: Extracts readable ASCII strings from binary files
• Metadata Analysis: Parses dashboard components and structure
• Error Handling: Robust error handling for corrupted or invalid files
• Batch Processing: Process multiple files and components

Installation

Prerequisites

• Python 3.6 or higher
• Required Python packages:
  • zipfile (built-in)
  • os (built-in)
  • html (built-in)
  • json (built-in)
  • re (built-in)

Setup

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/yourusername/mstr-unpacker.git
   cd mstr-unpacker

2. Create the required directories:

   mkdir mstr_files

3. Place your .mstr files in the mstr_files directory

Usage

Basic Usage

from mstr_unpacker import extract_strings_from_file

# Extract a .mstr file
mstr_zip_path = "mstr_files/your_dashboard.mstr"
extracted_dir = "mstr_files/extracted_output"

# The script will automatically extract and analyze the file

Running the Main Script

python mstr_unpacker.py

Key Functions

extract_strings_from_file(file_path, min_length=3)

Extracts readable ASCII strings from binary files.

Parameters:

• file_path (str): Path to the file to analyze
• min_length (int): Minimum length of strings to extract (default: 3)

Returns:

• list: List of extracted ASCII strings

Example:

strings = extract_strings_from_file("path/to/file.bin", min_length=5)
for string in strings:
    print(string)

Project Structure

mstr-unpacker/
├── mstr_unpacker.py          # Main extraction and parsing script
├── mstr_files/               # Directory for .mstr files
│   ├── Call Center Insights.mstr  # Example dashboard file
│   └── call_center_insights_extracted/  # Extracted contents
├── README.md                 # This file
└── requirements.txt          # Python dependencies (if any)

Technical Details

File Format

MicroStrategy .mstr files are ZIP archives containing:

• Binary metadata files
• Configuration data
• Dashboard layout information
• Visualization definitions
• Data source connections

String Extraction Algorithm

The tool uses a binary scanning approach to extract ASCII strings:

• Scans byte-by-byte for printable ASCII characters (32-126)
• Includes whitespace characters (tab, newline, carriage return)
• Filters strings by minimum length to reduce noise
• Handles encoding errors gracefully

Supported ASCII Range

• Printable ASCII: 32-126 (space through tilde)
• Whitespace: 9 (tab), 10 (newline), 13 (carriage return)

Example Output

When processing a .mstr file, the tool will:

1. Extract the ZIP archive to a specified directory
2. Recursively process all contained files
3. Generate a dictionary mapping file paths to extracted strings
4. Handle errors for corrupted or unreadable files

# Example output structure
{
    "path/to/file1.bin": ["extracted", "string", "content"],
    "path/to/file2.xml": ["xml", "tags", "and", "content"],
    "path/to/corrupted.bin": ["Error reading file: permission denied"]
}

Error Handling

The tool includes comprehensive error handling:

• File access errors
• Encoding issues
• Corrupted ZIP archives
• Binary parsing failures

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Add tests if applicable
5. Submit a pull request

License

This project is open source. Please check the LICENSE file for details.

Disclaimer

This tool is for educational and analysis purposes. Ensure you have proper authorization before analyzing MicroStrategy dashboard files. Respect intellectual property and licensing agreements.

Support

For issues, questions, or contributions, please open an issue on the GitHub repository.