Visual Studio Debugging Tools

Visual Studio provides a comprehensive suite of debugging tools to help you identify and resolve issues in your code. This documentation outlines the core features and advanced techniques for effective debugging.

Core Debugging Features

The debugger in Visual Studio allows you to pause program execution, inspect data, and step through your code line by line. Key features include:

Getting Started with Debugging

To start debugging:

  1. Set a breakpoint by clicking in the margin next to a line of code.
  2. Press F5 or select Debug > Start Debugging to run your application.
  3. When execution hits a breakpoint, the debugger will pause.
  4. Use the debugging controls (F10, F11, Shift+F11) to step through your code.
  5. Inspect variable values in the Autos, Locals, and Watch windows.
Tip: You can also set conditional breakpoints that only trigger when a specific condition is met. Right-click a breakpoint and select "Conditions...".

Advanced Debugging Techniques

Visual Studio offers powerful features for complex debugging scenarios:

Debugging Code Snippets

Here's a simple example of code you might debug:

public class Calculator
{
    public int Add(int a, int b)
    {
        // This is a simple addition function
        int result = a + b;
        return result;
    }
}

You can set a breakpoint on the line int result = a + b; to inspect the values of a and b before the addition.

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