Template Workflows Overview

Learn about template workflows in Nuclei

Workflows enable users to orchestrate a series of actions by setting a defined execution order for various templates. These templates are activated upon predetermined conditions, establishing a streamlined method to leverage the capabilities of nuclei tailored to the user’s specific requirements. Consequently, you can craft workflows that are contingent on particular technologies or targets—such as those exclusive to WordPress or Jira—triggering these sequences only when the relevant technology is identified.

Within a workflow, all templates share a unified execution environment, which means that any named extractor from one template can be seamlessly accessed in another by simply referencing its designated name.

For those with prior knowledge of the technology stack in use, we advise constructing personalized workflows for your scans. This strategic approach not only substantially reduces the duration of scans but also enhances the quality and precision of the outcomes.

Workflows can be defined with workflows attribute, following the template / subtemplates and tags to execute.

workflows:
  - template: http/technologies/template-to-execute.yaml

Type of workflows

1. Generic workflows
2. Conditional workflows

Generic Workflows

In generic workflow one can define single or multiple template to be executed from a single workflow file. It supports both files and directories as input.

A workflow that runs all config related templates on the list of give URLs.

workflows:
  - template: http/exposures/configs/git-config.yaml
  - template: http/exposures/configs/exposed-svn.yaml
  - template: http/vulnerabilities/generic/generic-env.yaml
  - template: http/exposures/backups/zip-backup-files.yaml
  - tags: xss,ssrf,cve,lfi

A workflow that runs specific list of checks defined for your project.

workflows:
  - template: http/cves/
  - template: http/exposures/
  - tags: exposures

Conditional Workflows

You can also create conditional templates which execute after matching the condition from a previous template. This is mostly useful for vulnerability detection and exploitation as well as tech based detection and exploitation. Use-cases for this kind of workflows are vast and varied.

Templates based condition check

A workflow that executes subtemplates when base template gets matched.

workflows:
  - template: http/technologies/jira-detect.yaml
    subtemplates:
      - tags: jira
      - template: exploits/jira/

Matcher Name based condition check

A workflow that executes subtemplates when a matcher of base template is found in result.

workflows:
  - template: http/technologies/tech-detect.yaml
    matchers:
      - name: vbulletin
        subtemplates:
          - template: exploits/vbulletin-exp1.yaml
          - template: exploits/vbulletin-exp2.yaml
      - name: jboss
        subtemplates:
          - template: exploits/jboss-exp1.yaml
          - template: exploits/jboss-exp2.yaml

In similar manner, one can create as many and as nested checks for workflows as needed.

Subtemplate and matcher name based multi level conditional check

A workflow showcasing chain of template executions that run only if the previous templates get matched.

workflows:
  - template: http/technologies/tech-detect.yaml
    matchers:
      - name: lotus-domino
        subtemplates:
          - template: http/technologies/lotus-domino-version.yaml
            subtemplates:
              - template: http/cves/2020/xx-yy-zz.yaml
                subtemplates:
                  - template: http/cves/2020/xx-xx-xx.yaml

Conditional workflows are great examples of performing checks and vulnerability detection in most efficient manner instead of spraying all the templates on all the targets and generally come with good ROI on your time and is gentle for the targets as well.

Shared Execution Context

Nuclei engine supports transparent workflow cookiejar and key-value sharing across templates parts of a same workflow. Here follow an example of a workflow that extract a value from the first template and use it in the second conditional one:

id: key-value-sharing-example
info:
  name: Key Value Sharing Example
  author: pdteam
  severity: info

workflows:
  - template: template-with-named-extractor.yaml
    subtemplates:
      - template: template-using-named-extractor.yaml

For example, the following templates extract href links from a target web page body and make the value available under the extracted key:

# template-with-named-extractor.yaml

id: value-sharing-template1

info:
  name: value-sharing-template1
  author: pdteam
  severity: info

http:
  - path:
      - "{{BaseURL}}/path1"
    extractors:
      - type: regex
        part: body
        name: extracted
        regex:
          - 'href="(.*)"'
        group: 1

Finally the second template in the workflow will use the obtained value by referencing the extractor name (extracted):

# template-using-named-extractor.yaml

id: value-sharing-template2

info:
  name: value-sharing-template2
  author: pdteam
  severity: info

http:
  - raw:
      - |
        GET /path2 HTTP/1.1
        Host: {{Hostname}}
        
        {{extracted}}