Getting Started with PCB-RE

If you're like me, most likely you're self-taught in the PCB-RE skillset out of necessity. Maybe you've developed your own methodology and even have the luxury of automated equipment to help cut down the time and effort in doing those menial tasks of connectivity probing. Well, good for you!

For the majority of PCB-RE engineers, however, it is the manual route using the digital multimeter (DMM). Whether you've come out with a streamlined process of doing it, that varies from one person to another and also the kind of resources and drafting tools you use. 

What about budding enthusiasts who've never done it before and decided to give it a try? Or perhaps some had already done so but quit halfway due to lack of know-how. Until four years ago, the only way to get a good peek of this coveted art was via online articles and postings by engineers who've 'been there, done that' and were kind enough to share their experiences and advice. But these gems are usually scattered and at best bits and pieces that require much time to search and sift out from the tons of jumbled information.

The good news is, there is currently three books published that allow a beginner to be properly introduced to this niche topic, namely, The Art of PCB Reverse Engineering, PCB-RE: Tools & Techniques, and PCB-RE: Real World Examples. So which book should you read first? This post will hopefully answer that question and point you in the right direction.

The Art of PCB Reverse Engineering covers the basics of doing manual PCB-RE and employs Microsoft Visio as the tool of choice for drafting schematic diagrams. It has six chapters and five appendices that guides the reader through a systematic process of doing preparation work in analyzing the PCB for accessibility, creating a bill of materials, determining the type of conformal coating to be removed, if present, and extracting the right information from datasheets.

A large part of the book goes into the details of helping the reader develop good schematic drawing habits for consistency of style and good readability. A real-world example using a SCSI host adapter card is provided with a step-by-step guide. For those familiar with Microsoft Visio, there is even a chapter on advanced techniques that will further sharpen your skill with this versatile drafting tool.

The appendices contain many useful references and charts that will cut down time and effort in looking up for the needed information while engaging in PCB-RE work.There are also freebies such as Visio templates and drawings, SMD and IC Master references, IC packaging and dimensions, etc to get you up to speed. Additional bonuses are also available for readers who leave a positive review on Amazon.

Click on the photo to order on Amazon.

PCB-RE: Tools & Techniques is a sequel book which showcases the works of several renown industrial experts such as Joe Grand (aka Kingpin), Bill Loving and Jeff Rupert of ScanCAD International, Bob Elder of TEEL Technologies, and Dr Sergei Skorobogatov of Cambridge University, etc.

This book is aimed at readers who want to have a better overall understanding of the equipment and methodologies used in the PCB-RE industry. Both automated and semi-automated processes are discussed, from the amazing flying probe tester (FPT) to the compact Clip-N-Learn benchtop workstation, from brute force deconstruction techniques to the elusive X-ray de-layering, and from board-level boundary scan to the microscopic chip-level and chip-off forensic. You name it, the book has it!

Besides the usual useful appendices, there is a separate section on PCB-RE resources that you can either buy or build on your own, as well as a rich list of freeware and online resources which you can refer to build up your own library of knowledge and know-how.

If you're not ready to take on the PCB-RE challenge just yet, perhaps this is the place to start your journey and get a peek into the fascinating world of hardware reverse engineering.

Click on the photo to order on Amazon.

PCB-R: Real-World Examples is the trilogy to the PCB-RE collection and like the sequel book, it also has several contributing authors who shared their invaluable insights and experiences. What better way to learn PCB-RE than to learn it from real-world engineers?

In this book, I show readers how the manual PCB-RE approach is done with a complex board, detailing the steps to divide-and-conquer a hybrid PCB. You will see first hand the process and methodology that I developed and used in my 15 years of reverse engineering work.

Readers will also be treated to some behind-the-scene information used by one of the most successful PCB-RE service providers, ENA Electronics Inc., in their industry practices and processes. Game for a round of firmware hacking? Then let our hacker specialist, Juan Carlos, take you for a spin inside a Huawei wireless router! And if that does not whet your PCB-RE appetite, how about X-ray on an Arduino UNO, breakdown on a quadcopter drone, and come face to face with the innards of a Rigol digital oscilloscope?

Of course, there's still the ever informative appendices, reviews on essential tools you can add to your PCB-RE arsenal, and additional case studies to pore over.

Click on the photo to order on Amazon.


Latest Update!

The fourth and final book on the PCB-RE subject is now available. It covers primarily on the Manual PCB-RE methodology and demonstrates how to reverse engineer a Gigabyte GeForce 8600GT graphics card. You can click on this link to go to the post for more details.

All my books are written in an engaging style to afford readers an enjoyable reading experience, complete with plenty of informative footnotes and humorous personal anecdotes. Need I say more?

Personal Contemplation on My Writing Journey

Back in 2013 when I started out to write my first engineering book, The Art of PCB Reverse Engineering, while working part time, I had only one thing in mind—to document my own experience in this niche skillset which I've developed over the span of 15 years. After two years of grit and sweat, the book finally went online in all Amazon bookstores.

Little did I realize that it not only created a stir in the PCB-RE community because no one had ever attempted putting this much coveted topic into print, it launched me further into deep waters as readers prodded me on to give the PCB-RE subject a more thorough treatment. Of course, besides being delighted, I was painfully aware of my own inadequacy since my expertise lies mainly in the manual method, although I had limited exposure to semi-automated approach using the clip-and-learn equipment in my workplace, and explored with industrial equipment provider on the flying probe platform as a plausible alternative which, unfortunately did not materialize due to cost justification.

After few months of extensive research and intensive read-ups, I was convinced that if I were to have any success in writing a sequel book addressing other PCB-RE techniques, I would need the help of engineers with the relevant experience and knowledge. One of the first person I looked up was none other than Joe Grand aka 'Kingpin', the legendary hardware hacker of the Boston-based hacker group L0pht Heavy Industries who achieved mainstream popularity at the age of 33 after appearing on a Discovery Channel series Prototype This! In all honesty, I was just trying my luck but never in the world did I imagine that Joe not only responded to my email and request, but heartily endorsed the book in his own website! So two years after 'The Art' book was published, PCB-RE: Tools & Techniques was released with much anticipation, albeit without any fanfare. But it made big waves with the PCB-RE community, thanks to the many well-known contributors who supported my daring endeavor.

I would have easily called it a day after the dust settled over the initial excitement but somehow the nagging feeling that a third book—a trilogy, would be fitting to complete the PCB-RE reading experience, something of a practical nature to show those picking up this skillset how it's really done in the real-world. And so, PCB-RE: Real-World Examples came into being a year later.

With three PCB-RE books now available to any aspiring PCB-RE engineer wannabe, perhaps one question remains to be answered—which book should I start first? Well, I'll leave that to another post for now...

ScanCAD News Update

Readers who bought my sequel book, PCB-RE: Tools & Techniques, will be familiar with the ScanCAD product featured in one of the chapters, The Art of Perfect PCB-RE. The contributors, Bill Loving (CEO) and Jeff Rupert, presented many aspects of this niche skillset and weighted the pros and cons of the various industry practices. It's a comprehensive eye-opener for those beginning on this engineering endeavor and provides a concise summary for amateurs and professionals alike.

Recently, I was alerted to a new update on ScanCAD's core software release version 8.80 which spots a much improved interface that promises a far better user experience and workflow.

I believe the basic process involved using different tool or equipment with this software should still be similar, but with a more simple, intuitive and streamlined workspace as stated. Readers interested to find out more can visit their web page here.

Have a great weekend!

Fifth in Top 20

Blogger has this neat feature which informs me where the traffic to my blog comes from, though I seldom take note of it. Today, out of curiosity, I clicked on one of the links and discovered to my surprise that my blog came in fifth in the top 20 PCB blogs and websites in 2019:

Pretty cool, huh?

100 Countries and Counting...

As of today, my blog has hit over 14,700 views with visitors from over 100 countries. Not surprising most are from the USA, and Singapore coming in second followed by France, UK and India. Based on sales of the trilogy books, again Amazon US comes in first, followed by UK and then the EU.

Without the help of readers with good engineering community spirit, this blog would not have achieved such success in less than two years. But I'm sure more can be done to get engineers interested in PCB-RE aware of these resources, if readers can help spread the word in forums and discussion groups.

If you have found my works to be beneficial, all I ask is that you recommend my books or this blog to your friends, colleagues or the engineering community which you belong. It would encourage me to blog more often and even write about my other engineering experience in PCB testing, automated test platforms, diagnostics skills, etc.

Thanks much!

Excerpts from the Trilogy

Below is a short quip from Chapter 3 of the trilogy:

The layout diagram for the control logic card is drawn with the help of Microsoft Visio, a versatile 2D technical drafting tool. The whole illustration may look rather complex but if you break it down, each component is really made up of a group of basic shapes (circle, line, rectangle, triangle, etc.) that can be arrayed or aligned easily with Visio's shape manipulation functions. In fact, you can use layering technique to place a photo of the control logic card on one layer and then superimpose the component layout symbols you created on top, taking reference from the photo for quick placement.

You'll notice that there are plenty of footnotes provided to give greater details and interesting notes or observations for an enriching read, without burdening the main text for those who just want a quick first-read-through experience, and then savoring the additional information later.

This feature is found in all my three books on the coveted subject on PCB Reverse Engineering (PCB-RE) which till date, is available only in printed form with treatment on its fundamentals, tools & techniques, and real-world examples, with contributions from various experienced industry experts.

Freebies are available for download to those who purchase 'The Art of PCB-RE' and bonuses are given out to readers who leave their reviews on Amazon. Get your copies today!