Debugging D on Windows

The Microsoft Windows debugger \windows\bin\windbg.exe can be used to symbolically debug D programs, even though it is a C++ debugger. Versions of windbg.exe other than the one supplied may not work with D. (Jascha Wetzel's Ddbg for Windows is also available.)

To prepare a program for symbolic debugging, compile with the -gc switch:

dmd myprogram -gc

To invoke the debugger on it:

windbg myprogram args...

where args... are the command line arguments to myprogram.exe.

When the debugger comes up, entering the command in the command window:

g _Dmain

will execute the program up until the entry into main(). From thence, pressing the F10 key will single step each line of code.

Basic Commands:

F5: Go until breakpoint, an exception is thrown, or the end of the program.
F7: Continue until cursor.
F8: Single step, stepping into function calls.
F10: Single step, stepping over function calls.

For more comprehensive information on windbg, consult the file \windows\bin\windbg.hlp.

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Debugging D on Windows