↳ GitHub sourceAnalytics ruleMedium
ADFS Database Named Pipe Connection
Description
'This detection uses Sysmon telemetry to detect suspicious local connections via a named pipe to the AD FS configuration database (Windows Internal Database).
In order to use this query you need to be collecting Sysmon EventIdD 18 (Pipe Connected).
If you do not have Sysmon data in your workspace this query will raise an error stating:
Failed to resolve scalar expression named "[@Name]"'
- Rule type
- Scheduled
- Version
- 1.0.2
- Declared status
- Available
- Query frequency
- 1d
- Query period
- 1d
- Trigger
- gt 0
Declared MITRE coverage
Declared sources
Metadata from the source file. No dependencies inferred from KQL.
Connectors
Data types
KQL query
Original query, unchanged.
// Adjust this to use a longer timeframe to identify ADFS servers
//let lookback = 6d;
// Adjust this to adjust the key export detection timeframe
//let timeframe = 1d;
// Start be identifying ADFS servers to reduce FP chance
let ADFS_Servers = (
Event
//| where TimeGenerated > ago(timeframe+lookback)
| where Source == "Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon"
| where EventID == 18
| extend EventData = parse_xml(EventData).DataItem.EventData.Data
| mv-expand bagexpansion=array EventData
| evaluate bag_unpack(EventData)
| extend Key = tostring(column_ifexists('@Name', "")), Value = column_ifexists('#text', "")
| evaluate pivot(Key, any(Value), TimeGenerated, Source, EventLog, Computer, EventLevel, EventLevelName, EventID, UserName, MG, ManagementGroupName, _ResourceId)
| extend Image = column_ifexists("Image", "")
| extend process = split(Image, '\\', -1)[-1]
| where process =~ "Microsoft.IdentityServer.ServiceHost.exe"
| summarize by Computer);
// Look for ADFS servers where Named Pipes event are present
Event
//| where TimeGenerated > ago(timeframe)
| where Source == "Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon"
| where EventID == 18
| where Computer in~ (ADFS_Servers)
| extend RenderedDescription = tostring(split(RenderedDescription, ":")[0])
| extend EventData = parse_xml(EventData).DataItem.EventData.Data
| mv-expand bagexpansion=array EventData
| evaluate bag_unpack(EventData)
| extend Key = tostring(column_ifexists('@Name', "")), Value = column_ifexists('#text', "")
| evaluate pivot(Key, any(Value), TimeGenerated, Source, EventLog, Computer, EventLevel, EventLevelName, EventID, UserName, RenderedDescription, MG, ManagementGroupName, Type, _ResourceId)
| extend RuleName = column_ifexists("RuleName", ""),
TechniqueId = column_ifexists("TechniqueId", ""),
TechniqueName = column_ifexists("TechniqueName", ""),
Image = column_ifexists("Image", ""),
PipeName = column_ifexists("PipeName", ""),
EventType = column_ifexists("EventType", "")
| parse RuleName with * 'technique_id=' TechniqueId ',' * 'technique_name=' TechniqueName
// Look for Pipe related to querying the WID
| where PipeName == "\\MICROSOFT##WID\\tsql\\query"
| extend process = split(Image, '\\', -1)[-1]
// Exclude expected processes
| where process !in ("Microsoft.IdentityServer.ServiceHost.exe", "Microsoft.Identity.Health.Adfs.PshSurrogate.exe", "AzureADConnect.exe", "Microsoft.Tri.Sensor.exe", "wsmprovhost.exe","mmc.exe", "sqlservr.exe")
| extend Operation = RenderedDescription
| project-reorder TimeGenerated, EventType, Operation, process, Image, Computer, UserName
| extend HostName = tostring(split(Computer, ".")[0]), DomainIndex = toint(indexof(Computer, '.'))
| extend HostNameDomain = iff(DomainIndex != -1, substring(Computer, DomainIndex + 1), Computer)
| extend AccountName = tostring(split(UserName, @'\')[1]), AccountNTDomain = tostring(split(UserName, @'\')[0])
Declared entities
Related content
Links established from declared identifiers and solution manifests.
Source provenance
GitHubDisplayed values come from files in Azure/Azure-Sentinel. They describe the published template, not your workspace configuration.
- Commit
7ca9800↗- Source identifier
dcdf9bfc-c239-4764-a9f9-3612e6dff49c
GSTEP / CATALOG TRACKING
Added to catalog : 16 Sept 2026 · 05:49 UTC
Last change observed : 16 Sept 2026 · 05:49 UTC