SA104: Introduction to Binary Systems

SA104: Introduction to Binary Systems introduces students to the structure, behavior, and interpretation of binary data as it exists within modern digital communication systems. This course focuses on understanding how information is represented at the bit and byte level, how binary streams are formed from demodulated signals, and how meaningful structure can be extracted from raw data.
 
Building on foundational signal analysis concepts from SA103, students learn how bits are grouped, ordered, and transformed into fields, frames, and payloads. The course covers essential binary concepts such as bit ordering, byte alignment, endianess, field boundaries, synchronization patterns, and common encoding techniques. Emphasis is placed on recognizing patterns and structure within unknown or undocumented binary data.
 
Through hands-on analysis and guided exercises, learners will work directly with real binary streams to identify headers, delimiters, control fields, and payload regions. Students will practice carving binary data, validating assumptions through repetition and correlation, and developing hypotheses about data meaning and structure. The course emphasizes analytical reasoning over memorization, reinforcing a methodical approach to binary exploitation.
 
By the end of SA104, students will be able to confidently approach unfamiliar binary data, identify underlying structure, and prepare extracted fields for further protocol analysis, decoding, or reverse engineering in advanced Digital Atlas courses.