BloodHound
BloodHound maps relationships in Active Directory and Azure/Entra ID as a graph so defenders and testers can find privilege-escalation paths.
Legal & ethical use. Collect data only from environments you are authorised to assess. Use this tool only on systems, networks and data that you own or have explicit written permission to test. Unauthorised access or scanning can break computer-misuse laws (for example Pakistan's Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, and equivalents elsewhere). Practise in your own lab or in authorised environments such as CTFs.
What it is used for
- Find and fix risky privilege paths in your own directory
- Visualise group membership and delegation relationships
Key features
- Graph database of identity relationships
- Pre-built analysis queries
- Collectors for data gathering
Installation
Follow the installation guide in the BloodHound documentation (Community Edition runs with Docker).
Beginner usage guide
Defenders should collect data from their own environment, import it, and review the built-in "shortest path to Domain Admins" style queries to prioritise fixes.
Example commands
Run these only against your own lab or authorised targets. Placeholder addresses such as 192.0.2.x are documentation ranges.
Concept (UI)
Pathfinding: start node → target nodeSelect two objects to see the chain of relationships between them.
Keep learning
🎓 Learning path: Active Directory
References
Source verification
Last reviewed: 2026-10-27
Links checked over HTTP: 2026-10-27 07:51 UTC — official: 200, docs: 200, repo: 200
Commands were written from the official documentation and have not been executed on this site; test them in your lab.