Which of the following allows for agentless retrieval of the guest OS state, and is used for malware analysis, memory forensics, and process monitoring?

The correct choice, VMI, stands for Virtual Machine Introspection. This technology enables the observation and interaction with the state of a guest operating system running inside a virtual machine without needing an agent installed within that guest OS. By leveraging VMI, security analysts can retrieve critical data regarding the OS's memory, processes, and network activity. This is particularly useful for tasks like malware analysis, as it allows the investigation of malicious behavior without the risk of altering the environment in which the malware operates.

VMI operates at a hypervisor level, offering visibility into the system by reading the memory of the virtual machine directly. This capability aligns perfectly with the needs for memory forensics and process monitoring, enabling comprehensive analysis while maintaining the integrity and isolation of virtual machines.

While other options like firewalls, SIEM (Security Information and Event Management), and honeypots serve important roles in security, they do not provide the ability to introspect guest OS states without agents. Firewalls primarily focus on controlling network traffic, SIEM deals with aggregating and analyzing log data, and honeypots are designed to simulate vulnerabilities to attract and analyze attackers. Hence, VMI stands out as the correct answer for agentless retrieval of the guest OS state for the purposes mentioned in