AISI DFIR vs NTFS-Linker: 2026 Comparison
AISI DFIR is a commercial digital forensics and incident response tool by AISI. NTFS-Linker is a free digital forensics and incident response tool. Compare features, ratings, integrations, and community reviews side by side to find the best digital forensics and incident response fit for your security stack.
CST VerdictBased on our analysis of NIST CSF 2.0 coverage, core features, company size fit, deployment model, here is our conclusion:
Mid-market and enterprise security teams that need to move fast on active incidents will find AISI DFIR's managed service model cuts through the hiring shortage for in-house forensics expertise. The Scout and Hunter tools automate evidence collection and persistence removal directly on affected systems, compressing response timelines that would otherwise stretch weeks. The caveat: this is a managed service first, so your team trades hands-on control for speed and specialist depth, making it less suitable for organizations that need full visibility and control over every forensic decision.
Incident responders and forensic investigators who need surgical precision on Windows timeline reconstruction should reach for NTFS-Linker; it does one thing,parsing $Logfile and $MFT artifacts,better than bloated all-in-one suites because it's built specifically for that narrow job. The tool is free and widely deployed in law enforcement and corporate IR teams because it recovers filesystem timelines that GUI-based forensic platforms often miss or misinterpret. Skip this if your team lacks filesystem-level forensic expertise or needs a point-and-click interface; NTFS-Linker requires command-line comfort and knowledge of NTFS journal semantics to avoid false conclusions.
