S.A.K. Utility

Swiss Army Knife Utility - Professional Windows toolkit for PC technicians: system migration, user profile management, and advanced file operations.

🎯 Overview

S.A.K. Utility is a modern C++23 desktop application designed for PC technicians who perform system migrations, user profile management, and file operations during repairs, upgrades, and replacements. Built with Qt6 and following modern C++ best practices, it delivers enterprise-grade reliability with a technician-friendly interface.

Why S.A.K. Utility?

✅ Zero-Install Deployment - Portable executable with embedded dependencies
✅ Production-Ready - FIPS 140-2 encryption, OWASP-compliant validation, comprehensive error handling
✅ Performance-Optimized - Multi-threaded operations, streaming decompression, efficient memory management
✅ Technician-Focused - Designed for real-world PC repair workflows
✅ Open Source - Fully auditable, transparent automated builds

Target Users: PC technicians, computer repair shops, IT support specialists, system administrators
Version: 0.5.0
Platform: Windows 10/11 (x64 only)
Package Size: ~21.5 MB compressed | ~95 MB extracted

⚡ Quick Start

Installation

Download the latest release from Releases
Extract to your preferred location (e.g., C:\Tools\SAK-Utility\)
Run sak_utility.exe - no installation required!
(Optional) Create empty portable.ini file for portable mode

First Launch

# Add Windows Defender exclusion (recommended for first-time users)
Add-MpPreference -ExclusionPath "C:\Tools\SAK-Utility"

# Or bypass SmartScreen warning: "More info" → "Run anyway"

Why the warning? Not code-signed (certificates cost $300+/year). All builds are automated via GitHub Actions - fully transparent and auditable.

🛠️ Core Features

1. 🚀 Application Migration

Automate software installation on new/refreshed Windows systems using embedded Chocolatey.

Key Capabilities:

Intelligent Scanning - Windows Registry (32/64-bit) + AppX packages via PowerShell
Smart Matching - 42 pre-defined mappings + fuzzy algorithms (Levenshtein, Jaro-Winkler)
Confidence Scoring - High/Medium/Low/Manual ratings for match quality
Version Control - Pin specific versions for reproducible deployments
Batch Installation - Install 50+ apps with one click
Zero System Chocolatey - Fully embedded (67 MB) in tools/chocolatey/

Real-World Use Case:
Migrate a user from Windows 10 to Windows 11 - scan old PC, export app list, import on new PC, install all apps automatically.

2. 📦 User Profile Backup & Restore

Enterprise-grade user profile management with 6-page wizards and military-grade encryption.

Backup Wizard (6 Pages)

Page 1: Welcome - Process overview, safety warnings
Page 2: User Selection - Scan local users (NetUserEnum API), multi-select with size estimates
Page 3: Data Customization - 11 folder types per user (Documents, Desktop, Pictures, Videos, Music, Downloads, AppData, Favorites, Start Menu, Custom)
Page 4: Smart Filters - Auto-exclude temp files, caches, thumbnails, dangerous system files
Page 5: Security Settings - AES-256-CBC encryption (FIPS 140-2), ZIP compression, SHA-256 verification
Page 6: Execution - Real-time progress, MB/s speed, estimated time, detailed logging

Restore Wizard (6 Pages)

Page 1: Select Backup - Browse backups, read manifests
Page 2: User Mapping - Map backup users → current users (3 merge modes: Replace, Merge, Create New)
Page 3: Conflict Resolution - Skip, Overwrite, or Rename duplicates
Page 4: Folder Selection - Choose which folders to restore
Page 5: Permissions - ACL preservation settings
Page 6: Execution - Decrypt, decompress, restore with progress tracking

Security Highlights:

AES-256-CBC via Windows BCrypt API (FIPS 140-2 compliant)
PBKDF2 key derivation (100,000 iterations)
Random salt (32 bytes) + random IV (16 bytes) per backup
SHA-256 integrity verification for all files

3. 🗂️ Directory Organizer

Automatically organize chaotic directories by file extension.

Features:

6 Default Categories - Images, Documents, Videos, Audio, Archives, Executables
Custom Rules - Add your own categories and extension mappings
Collision Handling - Rename (add suffix), Skip, or Overwrite
Recursive Processing - Scan subdirectories
Preview Mode - Dry run before committing changes
Detailed Logging - Action-by-action report

4. 🔍 Duplicate File Finder

Eliminate duplicate files using cryptographic hashing.

Capabilities:

MD5 Hashing - True byte-level duplicate detection (not filename-based)
Streaming Algorithm - Memory-efficient for large files (1 MB chunks)
Multi-Threaded - Parallel hashing with QtConcurrent
Size Filter - Skip tiny files (configurable threshold)
3 Actions - Delete, Move to folder, or Report only

5. 🔑 License Key Scanner

Best-effort tool to locate software license keys in Windows Registry.

Features:

Registry Scanning - Pattern matching for "key", "serial", "license", "product", "activation"
Filesystem Scanning - Finds .lic, .key, .license, .reg files
Multi-Threaded - Fast registry traversal
UAC Elevation - Auto-prompt when admin access needed
Export Results - CSV/TXT format

Important Limitations:

❌ Cannot decrypt encrypted keys
❌ Many modern apps use cloud licensing or hardware tokens
❌ Best-effort only - no guarantees

6. 💾 Image Flasher

Create bootable USB drives with 4-page wizard and streaming decompression.

4-Page Wizard

Page 1: Image Source - Local file (ISO/IMG/WIC/ZIP/GZ/BZ2/XZ) or download Windows ISO
Page 2: Target Drives - Multi-select USB drives (system drive protection, cannot select boot drive)
Page 3: Flash Progress - 5 states (Validate → Unmount → Decompress → Flash → Verify), MB/s speed, per-drive status
Page 4: Completion - Success/failure summary, SHA-512 verification results

Supported Formats:

Format	Extension	Decompression
ISO	`.iso`	Direct write
IMG	`.img`	Direct write
WIC	`.wic`	Direct write
ZIP	`.zip`	Qt built-in
GZIP	`.gz`	zlib streaming
BZIP2	`.bz2`	libbz2 streaming
XZ	`.xz`	liblzma streaming
DMG	`.dmg`	Read-only
DSK	`.dsk`	Direct write

Key Features:

Streaming Decompression - NO temporary files (decompresses on-the-fly)
Parallel Writing - Flash to multiple drives simultaneously
64 MB Buffer - 16-buffer pipeline (1 GB total for read-ahead)
SHA-512 Verification - Optional post-write checksum
System Protection - Cannot select boot/system drives

Windows ISO Downloader:

Download official Windows 10/11 ISOs directly from Microsoft
Language and edition selection (Home, Pro, Education)
Architecture choice (x64, ARM64)

2. User Profile Backup & Restore

Comprehensive Windows user profile backup with intelligent 6-page wizards and enterprise-grade encryption.

User Profile Backup Wizard - 6 Pages

Page 1: Welcome & Instructions

Introduction to backup process, safety warnings, documentation links

Page 2: Scan & Select Users

Windows User Detection: Uses NetUserEnum API to enumerate all local users
Displayed Info: Username, SID (Security Identifier), Profile Path (C:\Users\Username), Estimated Size, Current User indicator
Actions: Scan Users, Select All, Select None, real-time progress bar
Summary: X users selected, Y GB total

Page 3: Customize Per-User Data

Per-User Customization Dialog: per_user_customization_dialog.cpp/h
11 Folder Types Supported:
- Documents, Desktop, Pictures, Videos, Music, Downloads
- AppData\Roaming, AppData\Local
- Favorites, Start Menu, Custom paths
Folder Options: Enable/disable each folder, include patterns (["*"] or specific files), exclude patterns, calculated size and file count per folder

Page 4: Smart Filter Configuration

Size Limits (Optional): Max single file size (2 GB default), Max folder size (50 GB warning threshold)
Dangerous Files Excluded: NTUSER.DAT, UsrClass.dat, NTUSER.DAT.LOG*, *.lock, hiberfil.sys, pagefile.sys
Excluded Folders: AppData\Local\Temp, browser caches (INetCache, Temporary Internet Files)
Pattern Exclusions: *.tmp, *.temp, *.cache, thumbs.db, desktop.ini
Actions: Reset to Defaults, View Dangerous Files List
Implementation: smart_file_filter.cpp - OWASP-compliant path validation

Page 5: Backup Settings

Compression: 4 levels (None, Fast, Balanced, Maximum) using PowerShell Compress-Archive → ZIP format
Encryption: AES-256-CBC via Windows BCrypt API (FIPS 140-2 compliant)
- Key Derivation: PBKDF2 with 100,000 iterations
- Salt: 32 bytes (random per backup)
- IV: 16 bytes (random per backup)
- Format: [Salt(32)][IV(16)][EncryptedData]
- Password confirmation with strength validation
Verification: SHA256 checksum for integrity (stored in manifest file)
Destination: Browse for backup location, automatic manifest generation

Page 6: Execution & Progress

Progress Tracking: Overall progress bar (%), current file progress, current operation label, speed (MB/s), elapsed time

3. Directory Organizer

Automatically organize messy directories by file extension with intelligent categorization.

Features:

Extension-Based Sorting: Moves files into category folders
6 Default Categories:
- Images: .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif, .bmp, .svg
- Documents: .pdf, .doc, .docx, .txt, .odt
- Videos: .mp4, .avi, .mkv, .mov, .wmv
- Audio: .mp3, .wav, .flac, .m4a, .ogg
- Archives: .zip, .rar, .7z, .tar, .gz
- Executables: .exe, .msi, .bat, .sh
Customization: Add/remove categories, custom extension mappings
Collision Handling: Rename (add suffix), Skip (leave existing), Overwrite (replace)
Recursive Processing: Scan subdirectories option
Preview Mode: Dry run before committing changes
Detailed Logging: Action-by-action report

Technical Components:

organizer_panel.cpp/h - GUI panel
organizer_worker.cpp/h - Background thread for file operationsource machine, backup date, users in backup, total size, encryption status

Page 2: User Mapping

Auto-Detect Destination Users: Scans local users via NetUserEnum API
3 Merge Modes:
- ReplaceDestination: Overwrite destination user's files
- MergeIntoDestination: Combine files with conflict resolution
- CreateNewUser: Create new user profile
Mapping Table: Source Username → Destination Username (dropdown), Source/Dest SID, Merge Mode dropdown
Actions: Auto-Map (matches by username), Manual mapping per row

Page 3: Merge Configuration

6. Image Flasher

Create bootable USB drives with 4-page wizard, supporting multiple image formats and streaming decompression.

4-Page Wizard Interface

Page 1: Select Image

Image Sources:
- Local file: ISO, IMG, WIC, ZIP, GZIP (.gz), BZIP2 (.bz2), XZ (.xz), DMG (read-only), DSK
- Download Windows ISO: Opens windows_iso_download_dialog.cpp
Image Info Display: Path, Size, Format, Compression type (if applicable)

Page 2: Select Target Drives

Drive List: Name, Size, Bus Type (USB, SATA, NVMe, SD), Mount Points
Multi-Select: Flash to multiple drives simultaneously (parallel writing)
System Drive Protection: System/boot drives grayed out, cannot select
Safety Options: "Show All Drives" checkbox (includes non-removable when enabled)
Summary: "X drives selected"

Page 3: Flash Progress

Overall Progress Bar: 0-100%
State Label: "Validating → Unmounting → Decompressing → Flashing → Verifying"
Details: "Writing to \.\PhysicalDrive1 (SanDisk Ultra)"
Speed: Current write speed (MB/s)
Per-Drive Status: Active drives count, failed drives count, completed drives count
Cancel Button: Graceful abort with cleanup

Page 4: Completion

Success Message: "Successfully flashed X drives"
Failed Drives List: Error details for each failure
Verification Results: SHA-512 checksums (if verification enabled)
Actions: "Flash Another" (restart wizard), "Done" (close panel)

Supported Image Formats

Format	Extension	Description	Decompression
ISO	`.iso`	ISO 9660 CD/DVD image	None (direct write)
IMG	`.img`	Raw disk image	None (direct write)
WIC	`.wic`	Windows Imaging Format	None (direct write)
ZIP	`.zip`	ZIP archive containing image	Built-in Qt
GZIP	`.gz`	GZIP compressed	zlib (streaming)
BZIP2	`.bz2`	BZIP2 compressed	libbz2 (streaming)
XZ	`.xz`	XZ/LZMA compressed	liblzma (streaming)
DMG	`.dmg`	Apple Disk Image	Read-only support
DSK	`.dsk`	Generic disk image	None (direct write)

Windows ISO Downloader

4. Duplicate File Finder

Find and manage duplicate files using cryptographic hashing.

Capabilities:

MD5-Based Detection: True byte-level duplicate detection (not just filename matching)
Streaming Hashing: Memory-efficient for large files (1 MB chunks via file_hash.cpp)
Multi-Threaded Scanning: Parallel hashing for large directories using QtConcurrent
Minimum Size Filter: Skip tiny files (configurable threshold in KB)
Recursive Scanning: Option to scan subdirectories
3 Actions: Delete duplicates (keeps one copy), Move to folder, Report only (export list)

5. License Key Scanner

Attempt to locate software license keys stored in Windows Registry (best-effort tool).

Features:

Registry Scanning: Searches HKLM and HKCU with pattern matching (keywords: "key", "serial", "license", "product", "activation")
Filesystem Scanning: Detects license files (.lic, .key, .license, .reg)
Multi-Threaded: Parallel registry traversal for performance
UAC Elevation: Automatic elevation prompt when registry access requires admin
Export: Save findings to CSV/TXT file
Additional Paths: Add custom directories to scan

Scan Options:

Scan Registry (HKLM, HKCU)
Scan Filesystem (Program Files, ProgramData, etc.)
Scan system licenses (Windows activation, Office)
Custom paths (line edit)

Limitations:

Only finds registry-stored keys - Many modern apps use:
- Cloud-based licensing (keys stored on vendor servers)
- Hardware tokens or dongles
- Encrypted credential storage (Windows Credential Manager, KeyChain)
Cannot decrypt protected keys - Encrypted keys cannot be recovered
False Positives: May find unrelated registry values
Best-effort basis only - No guarantees

Technical Components:

license_scanner_panel.cpp/h - GUI panel with result table
license_scanner_worker.cpp/h - Background registry/filesystem scanning thread
elevation_manager.cpp/h - UAC integration for admin accesses, QueryDosDevice API, GetDriveType, DeviceIoControl for geometry
Drive Information Collected:
- Device path (\\.\PhysicalDrive1)
- Name, Size (bytes), Block Size (512 or 4096)
- System drive flag, Removable flag, Read-only flag
- Bus type (USB, SATA, NVMe, SD)
- Mount points (e.g., ["E:\", "F:\"]), Volume label
Continuous Monitoring: DriveScanner runs in background thread, emits drivesUpdated signal on drive insertion/removal

Safety Features:

System Drive Protection: Prevents selecting boot drive (grayed out in UI)
Write-Protection Detection: Warns if drive is read-only
Size Validation: Ensures target drive is large enough for image
Confirmation Dialog: Shows all drives that will be erased, requires explicit confirmation

Flash Operation Workflow

Flash Coordinator (flash_coordinator.cpp - 249 lines):

5 Flash States:

Validating: Check image file exists, validate drives, verify size compatibility
Unmounting: Unmount all volumes on target drives (drive_unmounter.cpp)
Decompressing: Stream decompress (if needed) - NO TEMPORARY FILES (key feature)
Flashing: Parallel writes to multiple drives
- Buffer: 64 MB per buffer
- Pipeline: 16 buffers for read-ahead (1 GB total pipeline)
- Parallelism: Writes to all selected drives simultaneously
Verifying: SHA-512 checksum per drive (optional, can be disabled in settings)

Progress Tracking:

State enum, Percentage (0-100), Bytes written (total across all drives)
Total bytes, Speed (MB/s), Active/failed/completed drive counts

Streaming Decompression (NO TEMP FILES):

Key Feature: Decompresses on-the-fly without creating temporary files
Libraries: zlib (gzip), libbz2 (bzip2), liblzma (xz)
Buffer Management: 64 MB chunks, 16-buffer pipeline for continuous streaming
Memory-Efficient: Only buffers in RAM, never writes full decompressed file to disk
Implementation: streaming_decompressor.cpp/h (base), gzip_decompressor.cpp, bzip2_decompressor.cpp, xz_decompressor.cpp

Use Case: Create bootable Windows installation USB drives for PC repairs and fresh installations, flash Raspberry Pi images, create Linux live USBs.

🏗️ Technical Architecture

Technology Stack

Component	Version	Purpose
Language	C++23	Modern features: `std::expected`, `std::format`, `std::source_location`
GUI Framework	Qt 6.5.3	Cross-platform library (Windows deployment)
Build System	CMake 3.28+	Project configuration and orchestration
Compiler	MSVC 19.44+	Visual Studio 2022 with C++23 compliance
Threading	QtConcurrent + `std::stop_token`	Parallel operations with modern cancellation
Cryptography	Windows BCrypt + QCryptographicHash	AES-256-CBC, MD5/SHA-256/SHA-512 hashing
Compression	zlib, bzip2, liblzma	Streaming decompression (no temp files)
Package Manager	Chocolatey (embedded)	67 MB in `tools/chocolatey/`
Error Handling	`std::expected<T, E>`	Modern C++23 error propagation (100+ codes)
Validation	OWASP-compliant	Path traversal prevention (`input_validator.cpp`)
Logging	Async file logging	Thread-safe, ISO 8601, auto-rotation
CI/CD	GitHub Actions	Automated builds, vcpkg caching (2-4 min builds)

Code Structure

S.A.K.-Utility/
├── src/
│   ├── core/                          # Business logic (35+ files, ~8,000 lines)
│   │   ├── app_scanner.cpp             # Registry + AppX detection
│   │   ├── chocolatey_manager.cpp      # Embedded Chocolatey integration
│   │   ├── package_matcher.cpp         # Fuzzy matching algorithms
│   │   ├── user_data_manager.cpp       # Backup/restore orchestration
│   │   ├── encryption.cpp              # AES-256-CBC (339 lines)
│   │   ├── file_hash.cpp               # MD5/SHA-256/SHA-512 streaming
│   │   ├── drive_scanner.cpp           # USB drive detection
│   │   ├── flash_coordinator.cpp       # Flash operation state machine
│   │   ├── streaming_decompressor.cpp  # Base decompression interface
│   │   ├── gzip_decompressor.cpp       # zlib wrapper
│   │   ├── bzip2_decompressor.cpp      # libbz2 wrapper
│   │   ├── xz_decompressor.cpp         # liblzma wrapper
│   │   ├── logger.cpp                  # Async logging (286 lines)
│   │   └── input_validator.cpp         # OWASP path validation
│   │
│   ├── gui/                            # Qt interface (21+ files, ~7,000 lines)
│   │   ├── main_window.cpp             # 5-tab main window (180 lines)
│   │   ├── user_profile_backup_wizard.cpp    # 6 pages (1090+ lines)
│   │   ├── user_profile_restore_wizard.cpp   # 6 pages (1081 lines)
│   │   ├── app_migration_panel.cpp     # Migration GUI (921 lines)
│   │   ├── image_flasher_panel.cpp     # Flash GUI (600+ lines)
│   │   └── settings_dialog.cpp         # Multi-tab settings
│   │
│   ├── threading/                      # Background workers
│   │   ├── organizer_worker.cpp        # File organization thread
│   │   ├── duplicate_finder_worker.cpp # Hashing thread
│   │   └── flash_worker.cpp            # USB flash thread
│   │
│   └── main.cpp                        # Entry point
│
├── include/sak/                        # Public headers (50+ files)
├── tests/                              # 11 test executables
├── tools/chocolatey/                   # Embedded Chocolatey (67 MB)
├── resources/                          # Icons, Qt resources
└── CMakeLists.txt                      # Build configuration

Compiler Flags & Quality

# MSVC (Visual Studio 2022)
/W4                     # Warning level 4 (highest)
/WX                     # Treat warnings as errors
/permissive-            # Strict C++ conformance
/Zc:__cplusplus         # Correct __cplusplus macro
/sdl                    # Security Development Lifecycle
/MP                     # Multi-processor compilation
/guard:cf               # Control Flow Guard
/O2 /LTCG               # Maximum optimization + Link-Time Codegen

# Code Standards
✓ Zero warnings (all treated as errors)
✓ RAII everywhere (no manual memory management)
✓ Qt QT_NO_KEYWORDS mode (Q_EMIT, Q_SIGNALS, Q_SLOTS)
✓ Modern error handling (std::expected)
✓ Type safety (no C-style casts)

📊 Testing & Quality Assurance

Test Suite (11 Executables)

Test	Purpose	Lines
`test_app_scanner`	Registry + AppX detection	~200
`test_chocolatey_manager`	Embedded Chocolatey	~300
`test_package_matcher`	Fuzzy matching algorithms	~400
`test_user_data_manager`	Backup/restore core	~500
`test_migration_report`	Report generation (JSON/CSV/HTML)	~300
`test_app_migration_worker`	Background installer	~350
`test_app_migration_panel`	GUI integration	~450
`test_backup_wizard`	Backup wizard GUI	~400
`test_restore_wizard`	Restore wizard GUI	~400
`test_integration_phase1_2`	Full workflow tests	~600
`test_choco_install`	Real package installation	~250

CI/CD Pipeline (GitHub Actions)

✅ Automated Builds - Every push to main branch
✅ vcpkg Caching - installed/, packages/, buildtrees/
✅ CMake Caching - build/ directory (excludes artifacts)
✅ Build Time - 2-4 minutes (down from 7+ without caching)
✅ SHA-256 Hashes - Generated for all release assets
✅ Automatic Releases - On v* tags (e.g., v0.5.0)

🚀 Performance Optimizations

Recent Improvements (v0.5.0)

Optimization	Impact	Files Affected
Loop Size Caching	5-15% faster iterations	5 core files
Vector Pre-Allocation	30-50% fewer allocations	4 core files
String Operation Caching	20-40% faster	2 core files
Overall Throughput	10-25% improvement	Production codebase

Technical Details:

Cached size() calls before loops (eliminates repeated function calls)
Pre-reserved vector capacity with reasonable estimates
Cached expensive string operations (toLower())
Used const references in range-based for loops

🔒 Security Features

Encryption (FIPS 140-2 Compliant)

Algorithm: AES-256-CBC via Windows BCrypt API

Key Derivation: PBKDF2-SHA-256

100,000 iterations (OWASP recommended minimum)
32-byte key (256-bit)
16-byte IV (128-bit AES block size)
32-byte salt (random per encryption)

Format: [Salt(32)][IV(16)][EncryptedData]

Security Benefits:

✅ Random salt prevents rainbow table attacks
✅ Random IV prevents pattern analysis
✅ PBKDF2 slows brute-force attacks
✅ FIPS 140-2 certified cryptography

Input Validation (OWASP-Compliant)

Path Traversal Prevention (input_validator.cpp - 345 lines):

Rejects .., ..\, ../ patterns
Blocks absolute paths (C:\, \\server\)
Sanitizes directory separators
Validates against allowed paths

Injection Attack Prevention:

Command injection detection
SQL injection patterns
Script injection patterns

📦 Package Contents

Core Application

sak_utility.exe - Main application (1.5 MB)
portable.ini - Enables portable mode (create empty file)

Qt 6.5.3 Runtime (~15 MB)

Qt6Core.dll, Qt6Gui.dll, Qt6Widgets.dll, Qt6Network.dll, Qt6Concurrent.dll, Qt6Svg.dll
Platform plugins: platforms/qwindows.dll
Style plugins: styles/qwindowsvistastyle.dll
Image plugins: imageformats/ (PNG, JPEG, SVG, ICO, GIF)
TLS plugins: tls/ (HTTPS support)

Compression Libraries (~2 MB)

zlib1.dll - gzip compression/decompression
bz2.dll - bzip2 compression/decompression
liblzma.dll - xz/lzma compression/decompression

Embedded Chocolatey (67 MB)

tools/chocolatey/choco.exe - Main executable
tools/chocolatey/bin/ - Helper tools (7z, wget, shimgen, checksum)
tools/chocolatey/helpers/ - PowerShell modules
tools/chocolatey/lib/ - Package cache (initially empty)
No system installation required - completely self-contained

Total: ~95 MB extracted | ~21.5 MB compressed

📝 Usage Guide

Application Migration Workflow

# 1. Scan installed applications
Click "Scan Applications" → Administrator prompt → Wait for completion

# 2. Match to Chocolatey packages
Click "Match Packages" → View confidence scores (High/Medium/Low)

# 3. Select apps to install
Check boxes in "Select" column → Optional: Check "Lock Version" for pinning

# 4. Install on target system
Click "Install Selected" → Administrator prompt → Monitor progress

# 5. Export/Import migration plans
File → Generate Report (JSON/CSV/HTML)
File → Import (load previously exported plans)

Pro Tips:

Use High confidence matches for automatic installation
Review Medium/Low matches manually before installing
Lock versions for reproducible deployments across multiple PCs
Save migration plans as templates for common configurations

User Profile Backup/Restore Workflow

Backup Process

Backup → Backup User Profiles...
├─ Page 1: Read overview, click Next
├─ Page 2: Scan Users → Check users to backup
├─ Page 3: Click "Customize" → Select folders per user
├─ Page 4: Review exclusion rules (temp files, caches)
├─ Page 5: Choose destination → Enable encryption (recommended)
└─ Page 6: Monitor progress → Finish

Backup Best Practices:

✅ Always enable encryption for sensitive data
✅ Enable compression to save space (ZIP format)
✅ Enable verification for integrity checks (SHA-256)
✅ Store backups on external drive (not same disk)
✅ Test restores periodically to verify backup integrity

Restore Process

Backup → Restore User Profiles...
├─ Page 1: Read overview, click Next
├─ Page 2: Browse backup folder → Reads manifest.json
├─ Page 3: Map users (Source → Destination) → Choose merge mode
├─ Page 4: Select merge behavior (Skip/Overwrite/Rename conflicts)
├─ Page 5: Choose folders to restore
└─ Page 6: Monitor progress → Finish

Restore Best Practices:

✅ Use "Replace" mode for clean installs
✅ Use "Merge" mode when combining profiles
✅ Use "Skip" conflict mode to preserve existing files
✅ Verify ACL preservation if moving between Windows versions

Image Flasher Workflow

Image Flasher Tab
├─ Page 1: Select Image
│  ├─ Local file (ISO/IMG/WIC/ZIP/GZ/BZ2/XZ)
│  └─ Download Windows ISO (opens downloader dialog)
│
├─ Page 2: Select Target Drives
│  ├─ Multi-select USB drives
│  └─ System drive protection (cannot select boot drive)
│
├─ Page 3: Flash Progress
│  ├─ Validating → Unmounting → Decompressing → Flashing → Verifying
│  └─ Real-time speed (MB/s), per-drive status
│
└─ Page 4: Completion
   ├─ Success/failure summary
   └─ SHA-512 verification results

Safety Tips:

⚠️ Double-check drive selection - flashing erases ALL data
⚠️ Backup important data before flashing
✅ System drives are grayed out and cannot be selected
✅ Enable verification to ensure successful write

⚙️ Advanced Features

Portable Mode

Create an empty portable.ini file in the same directory as sak_utility.exe:

# Enable portable mode
New-Item -Path "portable.ini" -ItemType File

Benefits:

✅ Settings stored in settings.ini (same directory) instead of Windows Registry
✅ No registry access - truly portable
✅ Copy entire folder to USB/network - works instantly
✅ Chocolatey packages cache in tools/chocolatey/lib/

Logging System

Log Location: %LOCALAPPDATA%\SAK\Utility\logs\sak_utility.log

Features:

Thread-safe multi-threaded writes
ISO 8601 timestamps: 2025-12-13T14:32:15.123Z
5 severity levels: Debug, Info, Warning, Error, Critical
Automatic log rotation when exceeds size threshold
Async file writing for performance

View Logs:

# Open log directory
explorer "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\SAK\Utility\logs"

# Tail log file (PowerShell)
Get-Content -Path "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\SAK\Utility\logs\sak_utility.log" -Tail 50 -Wait

Settings Configuration

Settings Dialog: Edit → Settings

Tabs:

General - Window geometry, theme
Backup - Thread count, MD5 verification, default location
Organizer - Preview mode, default categories
Duplicate Finder - Minimum file size, keep strategy
License Scanner - Registry/filesystem scan options
Image Flasher - Validation mode, buffer size, notifications

🔧 Building from Source

Prerequisites

Windows 10/11 x64
Visual Studio 2022 (Community Edition is free)
- Workload: "Desktop development with C++"
- C++23 support required
CMake 3.28+
Qt 6.5.3 (msvc2019_64 kit)
Git

Build Commands

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/RandyNorthrup/S.A.K.-Utility.git
cd S.A.K.-Utility

# Configure with CMake
cmake -B build -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64 `
  -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="C:/Qt/6.5.3/msvc2019_64" `
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release

# Build Release
cmake --build build --config Release --parallel

# Executable location
# build\Release\sak_utility.exe

Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
Qt not found	Verify `-DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH` points to Qt installation
Missing DLLs at runtime	Run `windeployqt build\Release\sak_utility.exe` manually
C++23 errors	Ensure Visual Studio 2022 17.4+ with latest C++ tools
vcpkg errors	Delete `build/` and reconfigure

⚠️ Limitations & Known Issues

Platform Support

✅ Windows 10/11 x64 - Fully supported and tested
❌ macOS - Not supported (code stubs exist but non-functional)
❌ Linux - Not supported (code stubs exist but non-functional)

Why Windows-Only?

Chocolatey is Windows-exclusive
Windows Registry scanning (License Scanner, App Scanner)
NetUserEnum API for user detection
Windows ACL/permissions handling
NTFS filesystem features

Feature Limitations

License Scanner:

❌ Only finds registry-stored keys
❌ Cannot decrypt encrypted keys
❌ Many modern apps use cloud licensing or hardware tokens
✅ Best-effort basis only

User Profile Backup:

❌ Not a full system image backup
❌ No incremental backup support (full backup only)
❌ No automatic scheduling (manual execution only)

Keep-Awake:

✅ Backend exists (keep_awake.cpp)
❌ No GUI checkbox yet (planned for v0.6)

🗺️ Roadmap

Version 0.6 (Q1 2026)

✅ Keep-Awake GUI checkbox
✅ Incremental backup support
✅ Dark mode theme
✅ Enhanced log viewer with filtering
✅ CTest integration

Version 0.7 (Q2 2026)

✅ Backup scheduling via Windows Task Scheduler
✅ Network backup capabilities
✅ Settings sync across multiple PCs
✅ Plugin system for extensibility

Version 1.0 (Q3 2026 - Stable)

✅ Full ACL backup/restore verification
✅ Code signing certificate
✅ MSI installer package
✅ Comprehensive user documentation

Future Considerations

Cloud backup integration (OneDrive, Google Drive)
macOS support (requires significant development)
Linux support (requires significant development)

🐛 Troubleshooting

Windows Defender / SmartScreen Warnings

Why does this happen?

Application is not code-signed (certificates cost $300+/year for hobbyists)
Windows SmartScreen flags new executables without established reputation
This is a false positive - source code is fully open and auditable

Solutions:

# Option 1: Add Windows Defender exclusion (recommended)
Add-MpPreference -ExclusionPath "C:\Tools\SAK-Utility"

# Option 2: Add firewall exception for network operations
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "SAK Utility" `
  -Direction Inbound -Program "C:\Tools\SAK-Utility\sak_utility.exe" `
  -Action Allow

SmartScreen Bypass:

Click "More info" → "Run anyway"
Warning disappears as app builds reputation

Verify Download Integrity:

# Verify SHA-256 hash matches release notes
Get-FileHash -Algorithm SHA256 sak_utility.exe

Common Issues

Issue	Cause	Solution
UAC prompts repeatedly	Chocolatey operations require admin	Run as administrator once
Qt DLLs missing	windeployqt didn't run	Re-extract release package
Backup fails with "Access Denied"	NTFS permissions	Run as administrator
Flash fails on system drive	Safety protection active	Use external USB drive
Settings not persisting	No write permissions	Check folder permissions or enable portable mode

📄 License

GNU General Public License v2.0

This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

See LICENSE file for full text.

Third-Party Licenses

Qt Framework 6.5.3 - LGPL v3 | https://www.qt.io/
Chocolatey - Apache 2.0 | https://chocolatey.org/
zlib - zlib License | https://zlib.net/
bzip2 - bzip2 License | https://sourceware.org/bzip2/
liblzma - Public Domain | https://tukaani.org/xz/

🤝 Contributing

Want to help? We welcome contributions!

📝 Issues - GitHub Issues
💬 Discussions - GitHub Discussions
🔧 Pull Requests - See CONTRIBUTING.md

Areas Needing Help:

🌍 macOS/Linux implementations (significant effort)
📦 Additional Chocolatey package mappings
🎨 UI/UX improvements and dark mode
📖 Documentation and tutorials
🧪 Testing on various Windows configurations

📞 Support

Getting Help

📚 Documentation - This README + CONTRIBUTING.md
🐛 Bug Reports - Open an Issue
💡 Feature Requests - Start a Discussion
💬 Community Chat - GitHub Discussions

Credits

Development:

Lead Developer - Randy Northrup
Original Concept - Python proof-of-concept (archived in python_archive/)

Third-Party Components:

Qt Framework - Cross-platform GUI and cryptography
Chocolatey - Windows package manager (embedded)
Microsoft Windows API - User enumeration, Registry, ACLs

Special Thanks:

C++ and Qt communities for support
Microsoft for Windows API documentation
Chocolatey community for package database
GitHub Actions for CI/CD platform

Built with ❤️ using C++23 and Qt6

Windows 10/11 (x64) | Open Source | No Telemetry | Fully Offline Capable

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 98 Commits
.github/workflows		.github/workflows
cmake		cmake
docs		docs
include		include
resources		resources
scripts		scripts
src		src
tests		tests
tools/chocolatey		tools/chocolatey
.gitignore		.gitignore
.vsignore		.vsignore
BUILD.md		BUILD.md
CMakeLists.txt		CMakeLists.txt
CONTRIBUTING.md		CONTRIBUTING.md
ENTERPRISE_ENHANCEMENT_TRACKING.md		ENTERPRISE_ENHANCEMENT_TRACKING.md
LICENSE		LICENSE
NETWORK_TRANSFER_PLAN.md		NETWORK_TRANSFER_PLAN.md
PXE_BOOT_PANEL_PLAN.md		PXE_BOOT_PANEL_PLAN.md
QUICK_ACTIONS_PANEL_PLAN.md		QUICK_ACTIONS_PANEL_PLAN.md
README.md		README.md
VERSION		VERSION
VERSION_MANAGEMENT.md		VERSION_MANAGEMENT.md
WINPE_BOOTABLE_PLAN.md		WINPE_BOOTABLE_PLAN.md
package_mappings.json		package_mappings.json
portable.ini		portable.ini

License

RandyNorthrup/S.A.K.-Utility

Folders and files

Latest commit

History

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S.A.K. Utility

🎯 Overview

Why S.A.K. Utility?

⚡ Quick Start

Installation

First Launch

🛠️ Core Features

🛠️ Core Features

1. 🚀 Application Migration

2. 📦 User Profile Backup & Restore

Backup Wizard (6 Pages)

Restore Wizard (6 Pages)

3. 🗂️ Directory Organizer

4. 🔍 Duplicate File Finder

5. 🔑 License Key Scanner

6. 💾 Image Flasher

4-Page Wizard

2. User Profile Backup & Restore

User Profile Backup Wizard - 6 Pages

3. Directory Organizer

6. Image Flasher

4-Page Wizard Interface

Supported Image Formats

Windows ISO Downloader

4. Duplicate File Finder

5. License Key Scanner

Flash Operation Workflow

🏗️ Technical Architecture

Technology Stack

Code Structure

Compiler Flags & Quality

📊 Testing & Quality Assurance

Test Suite (11 Executables)

CI/CD Pipeline (GitHub Actions)

🚀 Performance Optimizations

Recent Improvements (v0.5.0)

🔒 Security Features

Encryption (FIPS 140-2 Compliant)

Input Validation (OWASP-Compliant)

📦 Package Contents

📦 Package Contents

Core Application

Qt 6.5.3 Runtime (~15 MB)

Compression Libraries (~2 MB)

Embedded Chocolatey (67 MB)

📝 Usage Guide

Application Migration Workflow

User Profile Backup/Restore Workflow

Backup Process

Restore Process

Image Flasher Workflow

⚙️ Advanced Features

Portable Mode

Logging System

Settings Configuration

🔧 Building from Source

Prerequisites

Build Commands

Troubleshooting

⚠️ Limitations & Known Issues

Platform Support

Feature Limitations

🗺️ Roadmap

Version 0.6 (Q1 2026)

Version 0.7 (Q2 2026)

Version 1.0 (Q3 2026 - Stable)

Future Considerations

🐛 Troubleshooting

Windows Defender / SmartScreen Warnings

Common Issues

📄 License

Third-Party Licenses

🤝 Contributing

📞 Support

Packages