Analysis of mshwnclx.sys: clean verdict, risk score 10/100. 0 YARA matches. SHA256 69714a8b74eb0228. Kernel imports, IOCTL codes, MITRE ATT&CK, and code-signing details.
DriverShield analyzed the Windows kernel driver mshwnclx.sys and assigned a verdict of Clean with a composite risk score of 10/100, indicating no notable risk signals (0-29 band).
| Verdict | Clean (10/100) |
| YARA matches | 0 |
| File size | 30208 bytes |
| Analyzed | 2026-03-22 |
| SHA256 | 69714a8b74eb02282572b34e156051ffc10693b816905ce18a8c6c8ccb95b846 |
| SHA1 | 8f0f36867243652ec1ed501b583927f9d8144a41 |
| MD5 | 5dc7dfed5fedd923b874b51d0c6752bb |
Version resource data embedded in the mshwnclx.sys PE header, as extracted by the analysis engine.
| File description | Hardware Notification Class Extension Driver |
|---|---|
| Product | Microsoft® Windows® Operating System |
| Company | Microsoft Corporation |
| Original filename | mshwnclx.sys |
| Internal name | mshwnclx.sys |
| File version | 10.0.19041.1 (WinBuild.160101.0800) |
| Copyright | © Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. |
Each component is scored 0-100 and then weighted into the composite. See the analysis methodology for the exact formula.
| Component | Sub-score |
|---|---|
| Multi-engine consensus | 0 / 100 |
| YARA signature matches | 0 / 100 |
| Dangerous kernel imports | 30 / 100 |
| IOCTL dispatch surface | 18 / 100 |
| Known-vulnerable corpus | 0 / 100 |
| Code-signing state | 50 / 100 |
| Packing and entropy | 0 / 100 |
| Dynamic behaviour | 0 / 100 |
| CVE cross-reference | 0 / 100 |
Kernel-mode APIs resolved from the Import Address Table of mshwnclx.sys, ranked by exploitation relevance.
| API | Risk | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| MmGetSystemRoutineAddress | high | Potentially dangerous - could be used for privilege escalation or security bypass |
| ObOpenObjectByPointer | medium | Moderate risk - system modification capability |
| ZwClose | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| ExAllocatePoolWithTag | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| RtlInitUnicodeString | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| KeInitializeEvent | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| DbgPrintEx | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
Control codes reachable through the driver dispatch routine. Codes tied to published exploit code are flagged, since they are the primary Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver (BYOVD) entry points.
| Code | Severity | Transfer | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0x002200F0 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_UNKNOWN Function #60 |
| 0x00808D8D | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #867 |
| 0x0022C004 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_UNKNOWN Function #1 |
| 0x00342464 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_DISK Function #2329 |
| 0x00808F8D | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #995 |
| 0x003403C0 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_DISK Function #240 |
Section layout and Shannon entropy. High entropy in a code section is a packing or encryption indicator.
| Section | Virtual size | Raw size | Entropy | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| .text | 0x1629 | 0x1800 | 5.81 | CODE, EXEC, READ |
| .rdata | 0x0F40 | 0x1000 | 5.19 | IDATA, READ |
| .data | 0x04B0 | 0x0200 | 1.26 | IDATA, READ, WRITE |
| .pdata | 0x0300 | 0x0400 | 3.39 | IDATA, READ |
| .idata | 0x0462 | 0x0600 | 3.36 | IDATA, READ |
| PAGE | 0x2FD7 | 0x3000 | 6.11 | CODE, EXEC, READ |
| INIT | 0x01B6 | 0x0200 | 5.22 | CODE, EXEC, READ, DISCARD |
| GFIDS | 0x005C | 0x0200 | 0.81 | IDATA, READ, DISCARD |
| .rsrc | 0x0430 | 0x0600 | 2.51 | IDATA, READ, DISCARD |
| .reloc | 0x0298 | 0x0400 | 4.03 | IDATA, READ, DISCARD |
| Control Flow Guard | Enabled |
|---|---|
| ASLR | Enabled |
| DEP | Enabled |
| Integrity check | Not enforced |
| Mitigation score | 80 / 100 |
Techniques this driver could enable if loaded by an adversary.
| ID | Technique | Tactic |
|---|---|---|
| T1112 | Modify Registry | Defense Evasion |
| T1211 | Exploitation for Defense Evasion | Defense Evasion |
| T1543.003 | Windows Service | Persistence |
| T1547.001 | Registry Run Keys | Persistence |
| T1553.002 | Subvert Trust Controls: Code Signing | Defense Evasion |
| T1553.006 | Code Signing Policy Modification | Defense Evasion |
| T1569.002 | Service Execution | Execution |
| T1652 | Device Driver Discovery | Discovery |
Engine angr, status no_findings, 0 paths explored at a maximum depth of 0. Vulnerability classes reached: 0. Exploitable paths: 0.
Based on DriverShield static and dynamic analysis, mshwnclx.sys is assessed as clean, with no notable risk signals. Its composite risk score is 10/100 (verdict: clean). Always validate findings independently before acting.
mshwnclx.sys has a DriverShield composite risk score of 10/100, placing it in the clean verdict band. SHA256: 69714a8b74eb02282572b34e156051ffc10693b816905ce18a8c6c8ccb95b846.
mshwnclx.sys is a Windows kernel-mode driver (.sys) analyzed by DriverShield for vulnerabilities, BYOVD abuse potential, and malware indicators.
Related: What an IOCTL dispatch code is · BYOVD research index · full driver database · CVE library · code signing atlas