How to learn Autopsy quickly to pass any exams

If your goal is to master 'Autopsy' quickly to pass certification exams to progress in you career path, first you need to have an overall understanding of it with less detailed info.

How Autopsy works in simple terms: It parses artifacts (Prefetch, LNK, browser data), then uses ingest modules and finally builds structured results.

Logically 'Autopsy' is about having evidence (Data source)section, Ingest, Analysis results and Timeline section to reveal the criminal actions. To explain each; Data Source where targeted files live, Ingest in fact extracts artifacts, Analysis Results section in Autopsy is where most of the time our answers could be found there and Time line section is useful to confirm the sequence of events.

Don't worry, for entry levels mostly Data Source, Views and Analysis Results are the sections you will use. I will provide you with a basic scenario to make it more clear:

You want to locate a pdf file : Go to View > File Types

You want to check what file was executed: Analysis Result section > Program Execution

You want to check what file was created: Analysis Result Section > Recently Created Files > Sort by created Time

You want to check what did the malicious file do: Views > Recently created Files > Program Execution > Timeline confirmation

In brief I am trying to show you how logical approach will help you easily to navigate through Autopsy. you do not need to learn every single detail from the beginning. First start with having an overall idea about main sections of the tool, then use them in a basic level and while practicing the detail learning will expand automatically, but smoothly. create a one page cheat sheet for yourself and expand it each time you practice by 3–5 more points in less than a week you will master it. I will provide you with a basic cheat sheet as an initial example:

To find File Go to > Views

To see execution Go to > Program Execution

To see created files Go to > Recently Created Files

To see Users Go to > OS Accounts

To see Wen related activities Go to < Web Activity

To see sequence of events Go to > Timeline

To search Go to < Keyword Search

Feel free to tailor it to your style, it was just a basic sample for you to get started.

Just remember, "Autopsy is not about knowing every feature. It is about knowing where evidence is processed and how to pivot from one artifact to another efficiently."

Let me know in comments what other topics you would like to know how to learn it faster with less effort.