1. ldapdomaindump

• Purpose: Primarily a reconnaissance tool for dumping and analyzing Active Directory information.
• Functionality: It collects and dumps LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) data from Active Directory environments. This includes details about users, groups, computers, trusts, and domain information. It's mostly used for gathering AD data for further analysis, with an emphasis on mapping out the domain structure.
• Use case: Suitable for gathering raw data about an AD environment to identify potential attack vectors or for further analysis by other tools.
• Focus: Data extraction and mapping AD structure.

2. BloodHound

• Purpose: A tool designed to map and identify attack paths in Active Directory environments.
• Functionality: BloodHound takes the AD data (usually collected through tools like ldapdomaindump) and creates a graph that highlights possible attack paths based on privilege relationships. It visualizes attack chains, allowing attackers or defenders to identify privilege escalation vectors, like users who can escalate to domain admin or have excessive permissions.
• Use case: Active Directory penetration testing and red team exercises. It’s heavily used for identifying privilege escalation vectors.
• Focus: Visualizing and exploiting attack paths in AD.

3. PlumHound

• Purpose: A PowerShell-based tool for performing BloodHound enumeration.
• Functionality: PlumHound is a tool designed to gather data that is needed for BloodHound analysis. It is specifically made for performing BloodHound-like enumeration without needing BloodHound’s full setup or installation. It performs some similar functions but in a lighter and more accessible way, often with fewer dependencies.
• Use case: A lightweight alternative to BloodHound’s enumeration, mainly used for AD enumeration with a focus on finding privilege escalation opportunities.
• Focus: Data gathering and enumeration for BloodHound.

4. PingCastle

• Purpose: A security assessment tool for Active Directory.