Radare2 Disassembler How Do You Organize Visual Panels (V!)?

Question

I would like to use Radare2 to learn about how C is assembled into assembly but I am having trouble with the layout. I think the V! mode would be very handy as you can watch the registers update as the instruction pointer moves through the program, but I don't understand the layout.

This is an example of they layout I would like:

It seems when I add a window (like Stack or Registers in this photo) it appears offscreen and I have to try closing different and splitting windows until the layout kind of falls into place. Is there an easy way to change exactly what is in each window?

I know "X" closes a window, "z" switches the current window to the front, and "-" / "|" split a window.

I have tried looking at the help but can't seem to figure out any other commands related to this issue.

Answer 1

ENVIRONMENT

• radare2: 4.2.0-git 23712 @ linux-x86-64 git.4.1.1-97-g5a48a4017 commit: 5a48a401787c0eab31ecfb48bebf7cdfccb66e9b build: 2020-01-09__21:44:51
• system: Ubuntu 18.04.3 LTS

SOLUTION

• This problem can be solved in a variety of ways and this is just one example.

• To create the layout you have described change the commands shown in the default layout by:

  1. Clicking inside/selecting the panel you wish to change.
  2. Right clicking in the panel and select new command or
  3. Enter "e" then type the new command. (Ex: Registers = dr)

• The further documentation shown below can be found here: https://radare.gitbooks.io/radare2book/visual_mode/visual_panels.html

|Visual Ascii Art Panels:
| |      split the current panel vertically
| -      split the current panel horizontally
| :      run r2 command in prompt
| _      start the hud input mode
| ?      show this help
| ??     show the user-friendly hud
| !      run r2048 game
| .      seek to PC or entrypoint
| *      show pseudo code/r2dec in the current panel
| /      highlight the keyword
| (      toggle snow
| &      toggle cache
| [1-9]  follow jmp/call identified by shortcut (like ;[1])
| ' '    (space) toggle graph / panels
| tab    go to the next panel
| a      toggle auto update for decompiler
| b      browse symbols, flags, configurations, classes, ...
| c      toggle cursor
| C      toggle color
| d      define in the current address. Same as Vd
| D      show disassembly in the current panel
| e      change title and command of current panel
| g      go/seek to given offset
| G      show graph in the current panel
| i      insert hex
| hjkl   move around (left-down-up-right)
| J      scroll panels down by page
| K      scroll panels up by page
| H      scroll panels left by page
| L      scroll panels right by page
| m      select the menu panel
| M      open new custom frame
| nN     create new panel with given command
| pP     seek to next or previous scr.nkey
| q      quit, back to visual mode
| r      toggle jmphints/leahints
| sS     step in / step over
| t      rotate related commands in a panel
| uU     undo / redo seek
| w      start Window mode
| V      go to the graph mode
| X      close current panel
| z      swap current panel with the first one

EXAMPLE

Open visual panels

user@host:~$ r2 /bin/ls
[0x00005850]> aaaa
...
[0x00005850]> s main
[0x00003e90]> V!

Default view after opening visual panels

Select top right panel then right click and select registers

Select lower right panel then right click and select stack

Final view