Parse $UsnJrnl:$J (USN Journal) for file system change history. Records file creation, deletion, modification, and rename operations. Answers: What files were created/deleted/renamed? When did file changes occur?
AI agents call disk_parse_usn_journal to retrieve information from Windows Forensics MCP Server without modifying anything — typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
This tool reads and parses the USN Journal artifact from disk — a forensic read operation with no side effects. It retrieves historical file system change records but does not modify, delete, or execute anything. Severity is medium because it accesses potentially sensitive forensic data including file activity history, and could expose information about deleted or modified files on the system.
From the tool's definition Parse $UsnJrnl:$J (USN Journal) for file system change history. Records file creation, deletion, modification, and rename operations.
Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access disk_parse_usn_journal gives an agent:
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and Windows Forensics MCP Server, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for disk_parse_usn_journal:
{
"version": "1",
"default": "deny",
"tools": {
"disk_parse_usn_journal": {}
}
}disk_parse_usn_journal is read-only, so it stays allowed — but everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
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Parse $UsnJrnl:$J (USN Journal) for file system change history. Records file creation, deletion, modification, and rename operations. Answers: What files were created/deleted/renamed? When did file changes occur?. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Windows Forensics MCP Server MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Windows Forensics MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for disk_parse_usn_journal: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Windows Forensics MCP Server. Nothing to install.
disk_parse_usn_journal is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the disk_parse_usn_journal rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for disk_parse_usn_journal. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
disk_parse_usn_journal is provided by the Windows Forensics MCP Server MCP server (x746b/winforensics-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Start from Windows Forensics MCP Server, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.
Free to start. No card required.
61 Windows Forensics MCP Server tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.