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Debug tool window

Last modified: 03 April 2025

Show/hide: View | Tool Windows | Debug or Alt05

Configure: Settings | Tools | Debugger

note

Debugging sessions are only supported by Oracle. For more information, refer to Debugging Oracle PL/SQL code.

When you start a debugger session, the Debug tool window opens. Use this window to go through the code line by line, step in and out of called routines, evaluate expressions, and watch variables as they change their values.

note

This is an overview of the Debug tool window. For general instructions on using tool windows, refer to Tool windows.

By default, the Debug tool window opens when your program hits a breakpoint and is not hidden when the session is terminated. To change this behavior, go to the Tools | Debugger settings page  CtrlAlt0S and clear the Show debug window on breakpoint checkbox.

Debug tool window overview

Sessions

The available debug sessions are separated into tabs in the top part of the Debug tool window.

Session tabs

If you enable the Services tool window for specific run/debug configurations, the entire view of the Debug tool window will be displayed inside the Services tool window when you debug any of these configurations.

All the information in the editor, like inline variable values and execution point, is shown for the selected session tab. This is important if you are running several debug sessions in parallel that use the same classes.

Inline variables view for the current session

When you close a tab, the corresponding debug session terminates.

Tabs

The Debug tool window shows the following tabs for each session:

  • Frames: lets you navigate in the call stacks of the threads.

  • Variables: lists the variables available in the current context and lets you analyze and modify the program state.

  • Watches: lets you manage watches. By default, watches are shown on the Variables tab for more efficient use of the screen space. If you have a lot of watches, consider viewing them in a separate tab.

  • Console: displays the program output.

    For local sessions, the tab works the same as when you just run the program without the debugger attached. The only difference is that debugger output (for example, log messages from breakpoints) is added to the console.

    When you attach to a process, the program output is not redirected and only the debugger output is shown in the debugger console.

  • Threads: displays the list of live threads, lets you switch between them, and export a thread dump.

  • Memory: provides the information on the objects that are currently on the heap for monitoring their number and lifetime.

  • Overhead: lets you monitor the resources consumed by particular debugger features and optimize the debugger performance.

Switch tabs

  • To cycle through the tool window tabs, press Alt0→ and Alt0←.

Show/hide tabs

  • Click Layout options button and select which tabs you want to see.

    Layout options menu

Move tabs

You can arrange the tabs to fit your preference. You can move a tab to another location or group a tab with another tab, so that they share the same space on the screen.

  • Drag the tab header to the desired location. The semi-transparent frame indicates the destination.

    Dragging a tab to another location

Restore default layout

If you changed the layout of the Debug tool window and don't like the new arrangement, you can revert it to the default state.

  • Click Layout options button in the top-right corner of the Debug tool window, then click Restore Default Layout.

    Restore Default Layout menu item

Toolbar

The debugger toolbar contains the most commonly used actions for controlling the debugger session and stepping.

The Debugger Toolbar

You can configure the list of actions available on the toolbar according to your preferences.

Customize the debugger's toolbar

  1. To add a debugging action, right-click the debugger toolbar, select Add to Debugger Toolbar from the context menu, and then select the required action from the list.

  2. To add an action that is not directly related to debugging, right-click the debugger toolbar, and then select Customize Toolbar from the context menu.

    The 'Customize toolbar' option in the context menu of the debugger's toolbar

    In the dialog that opens, click Add, and then select the required action.

Debug toolbar

Regardless of the selected tab, you can always use the following toolbar controls in the left part of the window:

Item

Tooltip and Shortcut

Description

Restart

Rerun

CtrlF5

Click this button to stop the current application and run it again.

Resume

Resume Program

F9

When an application is paused, click this button to resume program execution.

Pause

Pause Program

Ctrl+Pause

Click this button to pause program execution.

Stop

Stop

CtrlF2

Click this button to terminate the current process externally by means of the standard shutdown script.

View breakpoints

View Breakpoints

CtrlShiftF8

Click this button to open the Breakpoints dialog where you can configure breakpoints behavior.

Mute breakpoints

Mute Breakpoints

Use this button to toggle breakpoints status.

When the button is pressed in the toolbar of the Debug tool window, all the breakpoints in the project are muted, and their icons become grey: muted_breakpoint.png.

You can temporarily mute all breakpoints in the project to execute the program without stopping at breakpoints.

Show options menu

Debugger Settings

Opens the menu with the following options:

  • Open Files in Preview Tab: select this option to open files in a preview tab when the corresponding frame is selected.

  • Show Variable Values in Editor: select this option to enable the Inline Debugging feature that allows viewing the values of variables right next to their usage in the editor.

  • Sort Variables Alphabetically: select this option to sort the values in the Variables pane in the alphabetical order.

  • Unmute Breakpoints on Session Finish: select this option to re-enable all disabled breakpoints after the debugging session has been finished.

Pin Tab

Click this button to pin or unpin the current tab. You may need to pin a tab to prevent it from closing automatically when the maximum number of tabs is reached in this window.