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Quick Start

What is ESP32 Bus Pirate?

ESP32 Bus Pirate is a multi-protocol exploration and debugging tool for hardware hacking.

It allows you to:

• Explore electronic buses (I2C, SPI, UART, 1-Wire, JTAG, SWD, CAN, etc.)
• Explore radio protocols (RFID, RF, Bluetooth, WiFi)
• Reverse engineer unknown devices
• Send raw transactions
• Read / write memories (EEPROM, Flash, Smartcards)
• Automate tests and scripts

Think of it as a modern, scriptable toolbox running on ESP32, with a large range of supported protocols.

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What You Need

To get started with ESP32 Bus Pirate, you only need a few basic components.

• An ESP32-S3 board

  • Recommended: at least 8MB Flash, no PSRAM required

• Wiring:

  • Dupont jumper wires (male/female)
  • Or Grove → Dupont / Qwiic → Dupont cables
  • Test hooks / grabbers

Optional accessories

Additional protocol support can be enabled by connecting external modules:

• You can also reuse accessories from the original Bus Pirate ecosystem (probes, cables, adapters, etc.)

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Most core features (I2C, SPI, UART, 1-Wire, etc.) work with just the ESP32 and wires. Advanced features require external modules. Always check voltage levels when connecting hardware.

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Basic Concept

Everything is done using commands. Don’t worry though, most commands are intentionally kept very simple.

In many cases, you only need to type a single word with no arguments or flags at all, such as read, receive, or scan. Some commands do accept arguments, but they follow straightforward and intuitive formats.

General form:

command [arg1] [arg2] ...

Examples:

scan
monitor 0x13
wizard 1
sniff
logic 1
jam
read 0x13 6

• Arguments are space-separated
• Arguments in < > are required
• Arguments in [ ] are optionnal
• Numbers can be decimal or hex:

255
0xFF

You can chain multiple commands, repeat commands, and insert delays between actions.
This makes it possible to build simple scripts directly from the command line interface.

Exemples:

m dio || read 1 || set 1 LOW || delayms 1 || set 1 HIGH
repeat 5 scan
repeat 10 set 1 LOW || delayus 100 || set 1 HIGH || delayus 100

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Switching Protocol Modes

You usually start by selecting a protocol:

Type m, mode or m uart, m i2c.

m         (prompt for mode)
mode      (prompt for mode)
mode uart (direct mode access)
m dio     (direct mode access)

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Example 1 – Some I2C operations

Example 2 – Some UART operations

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Bytecode Instructions

ESP32 Bus Pirate also supports instruction-based execution(similar to bytecode). See Instruction Syntax.

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Python Scripting

You can control ESP32 Bus Pirate from Python over Serial. See Python Automation

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ESP32 Bus Pirate is designed to be explored. Type commands, experiment, break things, learn.