pka2xml

A utility to decrypt and encrypt Cisco Packet Tracer (.pka, .pkt) files. This tool allows you to extract the XML content from modern Packet Tracer files or re-encrypt XML back into a compatible format, enabling compatibility with older versions of Packet Tracer.

Features

• Decrypt: Convert modern .pka/.pkt files (using Twofish EAX) into readable XML.
• Encrypt: Convert XML back into .pka/.pkt format.
• Fix: Automatically detect the version and patch the file to a compatible version (e.g., 6.0.1.0000).
• Dockerized: Easy to run without installing Python dependencies manually.

Usage

The easiest way to use pka2xml is via Docker.

Running with Docker

Since the tool runs inside a container, you need to mount your current working directory to the container so it can access your files.

docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/app cylab/pka2xml <command> <input_path> <output_path>

1. Decrypt a file to XML

To extract the XML content from a .pka or .pkt file:

docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/app cylab/pka2xml -d /app/input.pka /app/output.xml

2. Encrypt XML back to a Packet Tracer file

To convert an XML file back into a .pka or .pkt file:

docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/app cylab/pka2xml -e /app/output.xml /app/output.pka

3. Fix a file for compatibility

To patch a file to a specific version (e.g., 6.0.1.0000) to make it readable in older versions of Packet Tracer:

docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/app cylab/pka2xml -f /app/input.pka /app/fixed_output.pka

Creating an Alias

To avoid typing the long Docker command every time, you can create an alias in your shell configuration file (e.g., ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc).

1. Open your configuration file:

   nano ~/.bashrc  # or ~/.zpass for zsh
   

2. Add the following line at the end of the file:

   alias pka2xml='docker run --user $(id -u):$(id -g) --rm -v $(pwd):/app cylab/pka2xml'
   

3. Reload your configuration:

   source ~/.bashrc  # or ~/.zshrc
   

4. Now you can use it much more simply:

   pka2xml -d input.pka output.xml
   

Requirements

• Docker
• Sufficient permissions to run Docker containers