CipherSwarm V2 Upgrade Overview#
- CipherSwarm V2 Upgrade Overview
- Introduction
- Upgrade Philosophy
- Target Users & Personas
- Core Requirements
- 1. Enhanced Authentication & Project Context Management
- 2. Real-Time Operations Dashboard
- 3. Enhanced Campaign Management with DAG Support
- 4. Advanced Agent Management & Task Distribution
- 5. Comprehensive Reporting & Analytics
- 6. Enhanced Collaboration Features
- 7. Production-Ready Deployment & Operations
- 8. API Compatibility & Extension
- Technology Stack Enhancements
- Implementation Approach
- Implementation Timeline
- Success Metrics
- Migration Strategy
- Conclusion
Introduction#
CipherSwarm V2 represents a comprehensive upgrade that transforms the platform from a functional tool into a modern, user-friendly distributed password cracking platform. The upgrade maintains the existing Ruby on Rails + Hotwire technology stack while delivering enhanced user experiences, improved real-time capabilities, and better operational management.
Upgrade Philosophy#
The V2 upgrade embodies a fundamental shift in approach:
- From Tool to Platform: Evolving from basic functionality to comprehensive workflow management
- From Manual to Guided: Replacing complex forms with intuitive wizards and workflows
- From Static to Real-time: Implementing live monitoring and instant feedback
- From Single-user to Collaborative: Adding multi-user coordination and team features
- From Basic to Enterprise: Scaling to production-ready deployment and operations
Target Users & Personas#
Red Team Operators#
- Primary Need: Efficient campaign creation and attack orchestration
- Key Features: Campaign wizard, DAG-based attack dependencies, real-time progress monitoring
- Pain Points Addressed: Complex attack configuration, poor campaign visibility
Blue Team Analysts#
- Primary Need: Comprehensive reporting and password pattern analysis
- Key Features: Advanced analytics, trend visualization, automated reporting
- Pain Points Addressed: Limited analysis capabilities, manual report generation
Infrastructure Administrators#
- Primary Need: Intelligent resource management and system monitoring
- Key Features: Agent capability detection, task distribution optimization, system metrics
- Pain Points Addressed: Manual task assignment, poor resource utilization
Project Managers#
- Primary Need: Team coordination and project oversight
- Key Features: Activity feeds, collaboration tools, project context management
- Pain Points Addressed: Limited visibility into team activities, poor coordination tools
Core Requirements#
1. Enhanced Authentication & Project Context Management#
Objective: Seamless project switching with role-based access controls
Key Capabilities:
- Project selector interface with session persistence
- Persona-specific permissions (Red Team, Blue Team, Infrastructure, Project Manager)
- Project-scoped data filtering throughout the application
- Real-time UI updates without page reloads
Technical Implementation:
- ProjectContextService for session-based project management
- Enhanced CanCanCan abilities with persona support
- Turbo-powered project switching interface
- Project-scoped authorization throughout controllers
2. Real-Time Operations Dashboard#
Objective: Live monitoring of agents, campaigns, and system health
Key Capabilities:
- Real-time agent health status with 5-second update frequency
- Live campaign progress with streaming crack results
- 8-hour rolling hash rate trends and performance metrics
- Personalized updates based on project context
Technical Implementation:
- ActionCable channels with Solid Cable backend
- Turbo Streams for live DOM updates
- Background jobs for metrics collection and aggregation
- Throttled updates to prevent performance degradation
3. Enhanced Campaign Management with DAG Support#
Objective: Guided campaign creation with intelligent attack orchestration
Key Capabilities:
- Multi-step campaign wizard with progress tracking
- Direct file uploads with ActiveStorage integration
- DAG-based attack dependencies with visual editor
- Drag-and-drop attack reordering and validation
Technical Implementation:
- CampaignWizardService for step-by-step workflow
- AttackDependency model for DAG relationships
- Stimulus controllers for interactive UI elements
- Comprehensive validation and error handling
4. Advanced Agent Management & Task Distribution#
Objective: Intelligent resource utilization and automated task assignment
Key Capabilities:
- Agent capability detection and hardware profiling
- Intelligent task matching based on agent capabilities
- Priority-based scheduling with automatic reassignment
- Real-time performance monitoring and optimization
Technical Implementation:
- Enhanced agent API with capability reporting
- TaskSchedulingService for intelligent distribution
- Agent performance tracking and analytics
- Automated task reassignment for failed agents
5. Comprehensive Reporting & Analytics#
Objective: Deep insights into password patterns and cracking effectiveness
Key Capabilities:
- Password pattern analysis with security insights
- Historical trend visualization with configurable time ranges
- Multi-format exports (CSV, JSON, PDF)
- Automated report generation and delivery
Technical Implementation:
- ReportingService for data analysis and aggregation
- Background jobs for scheduled report generation
- Chart.js integration for data visualization
- Role-based report access controls
6. Enhanced Collaboration Features#
Objective: Team coordination and comprehensive activity tracking
Key Capabilities:
- Real-time project activity feeds with live updates
- Campaign commenting and team notifications
- Activity filtering by user, date, and type
- Comprehensive audit reports and history export
Technical Implementation:
- ProjectActivity model for activity tracking
- ActionCable channels for real-time collaboration
- ActivityTrackingService for event logging
- Notification system with project-scoped broadcasting
7. Production-Ready Deployment & Operations#
Objective: Enterprise-scale deployment with comprehensive monitoring
Key Capabilities:
- Docker containers with health checks and scaling
- Prometheus/Grafana metrics integration
- Structured logging with alerting capabilities
- Zero-downtime deployments with rollback support
Technical Implementation:
- Kamal 2 deployment configuration
- Health check endpoints and monitoring
- Structured logging with tagged context
- Automated backup and disaster recovery
8. API Compatibility & Extension#
Objective: Backward compatibility with enhanced capabilities
Key Capabilities:
- Full v1 API backward compatibility maintenance
- Extended configuration endpoints for new features
- Capability-aware task assignment algorithms
- Comprehensive OpenAPI documentation
Technical Implementation:
- Versioned API controllers with contract testing
- Enhanced agent configuration endpoints
- Rswag integration for API documentation
- Comprehensive test coverage for compatibility
Technology Stack Enhancements#
Core Platform Upgrades#
- Rails 8.0+: Modern framework with Propshaft asset pipeline
- Ruby 3.4.5: Latest stable runtime with performance improvements
- PostgreSQL 17+: Advanced database features and JSON handling
- Bootstrap 5 with Catppuccin Macchiato theme: Dark-first theme via SCSS variable overrides with self-hosted fonts (Space Grotesk, IBM Plex Sans, JetBrains Mono)
- Hotwire (Turbo 8 + Stimulus 3.2+): Enhanced real-time capabilities
Authentication & Authorization#
- Rails 8 Authentication: Simplified session-based auth
- CanCanCan + Rolify: Enhanced persona-based permissions
- Project Context Management: Session-based active project selection
Real-time & Background Processing#
- ActionCable with Solid Cable: Scalable WebSocket connections
- Turbo Streams: Live DOM updates without JavaScript complexity
- Sidekiq 7.2+: Enhanced background job processing
- Solid Cache: High-performance caching with database backend
UI & Component Architecture#
- ViewComponent 4.0+: Reusable, testable UI components rendering plain ERB with Bootstrap classes
- Stimulus Controllers: Progressive enhancement for interactions
- Bootstrap 5 Component Patterns: Plain HTML with utility classes (Railsboot abstraction layer removed)
- Catppuccin Macchiato Theme: Production dark theme implemented via
_catppuccin.scsswith Bootstrap variable overrides- Primary accent:
$ctp-violet: #a855f7(lightened DarkViolet, distinct from Catppuccin Mauve) - Surface hierarchy: Crust (navbar) → Mantle (sidebar) → Base (body) → Surface0 (cards/inputs) for visual depth
- Self-hosted fonts via
@fontsourcefor air-gap deployment: Space Grotesk (headings), IBM Plex Sans (body), JetBrains Mono (code)
- Primary accent:
- WCAG 2.1 AA Compliance: Full accessibility support with semantic HTML and proper ARIA attributes
For design philosophy, user personas, and aesthetic direction, see DESIGN.md. For frontend development considerations and common pitfalls, see GOTCHAS.md § Frontend & Accessibility.
Implementation Approach#
Development Methodology#
- Test-Driven Development: Write tests before implementing features
- Incremental Delivery: Each milestone delivers working functionality
- Backward Compatibility: Maintain v1 agent API compatibility throughout
- Performance Focus: Monitor and optimize performance at each milestone
Quality Assurance#
- Code Coverage: Maintain 90%+ test coverage for new code
- API Contract Testing: Use Rswag for documentation and validation
- System Testing: Comprehensive end-to-end workflow validation
- Performance Testing: Load testing for real-time features
Risk Mitigation#
- Feature Flags: Gradual rollout of new functionality
- Rollback Procedures: Safe rollback capabilities for all changes
- Monitoring: Comprehensive monitoring for early issue detection
- Documentation: Up-to-date documentation throughout development
Implementation Timeline#
The V2 upgrade is organized into 6 major milestones spanning approximately 26 weeks:
-
Platform Modernization & Foundation (Weeks 1-6)
- Rails 8 & dependency upgrades
- Bootstrap 5 with Catppuccin Macchiato theme implementation
- Authentication system modernization
-
Enhanced Authentication & Project Context (Weeks 7-11)
- Project context management system
- Enhanced role-based access control
- User management enhancement
-
Real-Time Dashboard & Monitoring (Weeks 9-14)
- ActionCable infrastructure setup
- Live agent monitoring dashboard
- Campaign progress dashboard
- System metrics and performance dashboard
-
Campaign Management & Attack Editor Overhaul (Weeks 12-18)
- Campaign creation wizard
- Redesigned attack editor
- DAG-based campaign execution
- Campaign lifecycle management
-
Agent Management & Task Distribution (Weeks 16-22)
- Enhanced agent API and configuration
- Advanced agent control and monitoring
- Task management and distribution
-
Resource Management & Advanced Features (Weeks 20-26)
- Enhanced resource management system
- Template system and import/export
- Reporting and analytics system
- Production deployment and operations
- Final integration and testing
Success Metrics#
User Experience Metrics#
- Campaign Creation Time: Reduce from 30+ minutes to under 10 minutes
- Agent Monitoring Visibility: Real-time updates within 5 seconds
- Task Distribution Efficiency: 90%+ optimal agent utilization
- User Satisfaction: Positive feedback on guided workflows
Technical Performance Metrics#
- API Compatibility: 100% backward compatibility with v1 agents
- System Reliability: 99.9% uptime with zero-downtime deployments
- Real-time Performance: Sub-second UI updates for dashboard components
- Test Coverage: 90%+ code coverage for all new functionality
Operational Metrics#
- Deployment Time: Reduce deployment complexity by 80%
- Monitoring Coverage: Comprehensive metrics for all system components
- Error Resolution: Automated error detection and recovery
- Documentation Quality: Complete API documentation and user guides
Migration Strategy#
Backward Compatibility#
- Agent API v1: Full compatibility maintained throughout upgrade
- Database Schema: Incremental migrations with rollback support
- User Data: Preserve all existing user accounts and project data
- Configuration: Migrate existing settings to new format
Deployment Strategy#
- Staged Rollout: Feature flags for gradual feature activation
- Blue-Green Deployment: Zero-downtime deployment with instant rollback
- Health Monitoring: Comprehensive health checks during deployment
- Rollback Procedures: Automated rollback on failure detection
Training & Documentation#
- User Guides: Comprehensive documentation for new features
- Migration Guides: Step-by-step upgrade procedures
- API Documentation: Complete OpenAPI specifications
- Troubleshooting: Common issues and resolution procedures
Conclusion#
The CipherSwarm V2 upgrade represents a significant evolution of the platform, transforming it from a functional tool into a comprehensive, user-friendly distributed password cracking platform. By maintaining the existing Rails technology stack while implementing modern UI patterns, real-time capabilities, and enterprise-grade features, V2 delivers enhanced user experiences while preserving the stability and compatibility that users depend on.
The structured implementation approach, comprehensive testing strategy, and focus on backward compatibility ensure a smooth transition that delivers immediate value while building a foundation for future growth and enhancement.