What are the Steps to View X-ways E01 Files?

E01 files are the file format that is used in digital forensic investigations to investigate the evidence data. These files are used to create a copy of the original digital evidence. For example, if you are an investigator and you have a hard drive that has important information the first thing you do is create an exact copy of that device. So you can easily perform any test on that copy without damaging the original data. This copy is saved in E01 file extension format and this is also used in backup purposes of the information.

What are the Types of E01 files?

1. Single E01 File: Single E01 files store the complete image of the digital storage devices. It is majorly used in smaller storage devices or when the whole image is fit into that file.
2. Fragmented E01 Files: Fragmented E01 files are created when your E01 file size is too large so that it can be divided into parts these parts are known as E01, E02, E03, and E04.

How to view an E01 file in X-ways?

X-Ways Forensic is a program that is designed for digital forensics, data recovery, and IT security. This tool is very useful for forensic purposes when investigating digital data as evidence. Here are the steps to view an X-ways E01 file.

1. First, download and Open the X-Ways Forensics tool on your computer.
2. Then tap on the “Open Disk” button on the toolbar, or press function F9.
3. In the “View Disk” dialog, browse to the location of your E01 file.
4. Last, choose the E01 file and tap the “Open” button.

After processing the E01 file, X-Ways will show the disk image’s contents. Within the image, you may view individual files and navigate the directory structure.

Here are a few more things to remember About X-ways:

• For best results, X-Ways suggests adopting its image format, CTR. Processing times for E01 files made with other tools may be longer.
• The majority of widely used algorithms can handle E01 files compressed by X-Ways, however, using strong compression can slow down the process.

The best way to build a forensic disk image is to use the imaging functionality provided in X-Ways, which generates CTR files.

Read more: How to Investigate Email in Outlook.

Limitations of using X-ways to view E01 File

Although X-Ways Forensics is a strong program that is frequently used in digital forensics for generating and examining E01 files, there are a few disadvantages and limitations of X-ways to view E01 files.

1. Compatibility Issues: While X-Ways Forensics generally supports E01 files well, there can be compatibility issues with E01 files created by other forensic tools or versions.
2. Limited Platform Support: X-Ways is designed for Windows operating systems. It can also analyze evidence from the Linux and Mac operating systems. Its features and support are not the same as in the Windows operating system.
3. Complex User Interface: The user interface is very and requires special training and experience to run this tool.
4. Resource Intensive: analyzing a large file or multiple files at the same time can be resource-intensive. This includes the RAM, CPU, And the storage space for disk. Users require powerful hardware to run this tool.
5. Cost: X-Ways is a commercial tool, which means you have to purchase a license which is quite expensive, especially for a small organization or a particular user.
6. Dependency on Updates: like the other software, X-Ways Forensics depends on timely updates and support from the developer team to fix the bugs and security vulnerabilities with new operating systems.
7. Legal and Licensing Considerations: Using an X-Way is a legal proceeding, users have to ensure compliance and regulatory requirements to handle the digital evidence.
8. Single Tool Dependency: If all forensic tasks are completed using only X-Ways Forensics, the forensic examiner may not be able to cross-validate results using other tools and methodologies.

These are the limitations of using an X-Ways forensics tool to investigate and analyze the evidence. Instead of the expensive and complex tool, you can go for the below-mentioned solution.

Method 1. View X-Ways E01 File Using Professional Tool

Preview and download your E01 files by using the SysTools E01 Viewer Tool. Now view all file formats in the uploaded E01 file and filter your files according to their extensions. E01 files can be easily scanned and their contents previewed, regardless of where they were created whether they were made by X-ways Forensics, Encase Tableau TD3, TX1, FTK Imager, Disk Imager, and Magnet Axiom.

If you want to download your E01 file data to your computer use SysTools E01 Viewer Pro to save and extract your E01 file to the local computer.

Key Features of Professional Tool

• A filter option is available to filter the data according to their file extensions.
• The software supports 20 languages so that you can easily access tools from almost every language.
• Easily preview the data of PST, OST, and EDB formats.
• An in-built viewer is available to view the supported file formats.
• View the content of all file formats which is available in the E01 file.
• Sort and Search E01 data by Last Accessed, Created, and Modified dates.
• Easily download and save E01 files on your local computer.

Steps To View The X-ways E01 File Using a Professional Tool

1. First, download and install the software into your system.
2. Then select a filter according to your need whether All files or a specific file.
3. Now choose the browse selection mode like a file or a folder and press ok.
4. Click on the folder to view the files. A folder view pane will be displayed on the left side.
5. Use the filter option to view all files directly based on their formats.
6. Use the software’s built-in search feature to look up files or directories.
7. Last, Select the file double tap to preview the file and click save from the right corner above to save the file on a local device.

Conclusion:

In this blog, we have discussed how to view an X-Ways E01 file. For that, we have mentioned two methods first is using the X-Way forensic tool which is quite complicated and expensive software. Then we discussed about the professional tool which is very easy to use and very affordable to view your X-Ways E01 file.