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General Forums => The Campus => Topic started by: gabor on July 18, 2006, 07:28:51 AM

Title: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: gabor on July 18, 2006, 07:28:51 AM
Hello!


Since I fully agree with the free software concept and initiatives I try to use free and shareware softwares as tools. Now I am looking for a handy reliable and efficient and FREE debugger to be able to revise and trace my code. Is there any tool with such potential?
Please tell me about your experiences!

Thanks

Gábor
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: gwapo on July 18, 2006, 07:56:08 AM
Check Debugging Tools for Windows:
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/devtools/debugging/default.mspx

-chris
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Vortex on July 18, 2006, 08:01:18 AM
Gabor,

Have a look at OllyDbg, it's a very powerfull tool :

http://www.ollydbg.de/
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: zooba on July 18, 2006, 08:33:47 AM
I second OllyDbg.

I've tried at least 5 different debuggers and Olly is easily the best, at least for assembly programming.
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Ghirai on July 18, 2006, 08:42:55 AM
Olly :U
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: gwapo on July 18, 2006, 09:18:58 AM
Isn't OllyDBG is distributed with MASM32 package?
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Mincho Georgiev on July 18, 2006, 10:04:18 AM
For me the best windows debugger /for assebler purposes also/ is windbg and vc++ 8's debugger but they're a one and same thing except the better interface of vc's one.
The fake complexity of windbg's interface shouldn't scare the user so mutch. Soon after you getting familliar with this debugger, you realize that for source level debugging purposes nothing is competitive enough.
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Vortex on July 18, 2006, 10:46:59 AM
Quote from: gwapo on July 18, 2006, 09:18:58 AM
Isn't OllyDBG is distributed with MASM32 package?

No, it's not distributed with the Masm32 package.
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: ToutEnMasm on July 18, 2006, 01:03:58 PM

With the debugging tools , debugging is made with your own sources files.Olydbg don't make that.
What is important with a debugger is what he find,and the last version of windbg don't let many chances at the bug.
Using it also is easy.Launch your prog with windbg and use your prog normally.When you are stopped,you have got a bug.
                                             ToutEnMasm

Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Vortex on July 18, 2006, 02:59:52 PM
QuoteWith the debugging tools , debugging is made with your own sources files.Olydbg don't make that.

That's not the case. With Ollydbg, you can do source level debugging.
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Wistrik on July 18, 2006, 03:32:57 PM
I'll add my recommendation for Ollydbg. It's got a slight learning curve, but is otherwise easy to use and powerful, which are good things in a free-of-charge program.

I also have the debugger that came with VC 6 Standard, but I only see it if an application crashes and I click the Debug button on the exception dialog box.
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Mark Jones on July 18, 2006, 04:49:17 PM
Quote from: Vortex on July 18, 2006, 02:59:52 PM
QuoteWith the debugging tools, debugging is made with your own sources files. Olydbg don't make that.

That's not the case. With Ollydbg, you can do source level debugging.

Well... you need to link with the /DEBUG option to produce a .PDB file. OllyDbg can read those and show you the source in another window. Note it cannot read the concatinated debug data present in POLINK'ed executables. Hopefully OllyDbg v2.0 can do this (whenever it is released...)
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: Telefunken on July 18, 2006, 06:51:59 PM
OllyDbg = teh best  :U  :dance:
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: gwapo on July 19, 2006, 01:34:26 AM
Quote from: Vortex on July 18, 2006, 10:46:59 AM
Quote from: gwapo on July 18, 2006, 09:18:58 AM
Isn't OllyDBG is distributed with MASM32 package?

No, it's not distributed with the Masm32 package.

Thanks, I looked at my files and I found OllyDBG in my system., I guess, maybe I got the debugger from one of the free asm IDEs I downloaded. Probably it's redistributed by WinAsm.

-chris
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: gwapo on July 19, 2006, 01:41:51 AM
Quote from: Vortex on July 18, 2006, 02:59:52 PM
QuoteWith the debugging tools , debugging is made with your own sources files.Olydbg don't make that.

That's not the case. With Ollydbg, you can do source level debugging.

WinDBG can also perform source level debugging, as well as disassembling if there's no debugging information available.
In any case, there's no real point in making the two compete with each other., they are both powerful and free  :U

-chris
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: gabor on July 24, 2006, 02:06:51 PM
Thank you guys for the post!
I guess it is quite obvious which debugger I should check out.  :bg

Greets, Gábor
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: modchip on July 25, 2006, 02:55:35 AM
I personally favor OllyDbg, it is by far the easiest to use and understand. Moreover, there are a lot of texts scattered in the internet explaining its usage. There are also a lot of plugins (free) to extend its usability. You can also listen to mp3 while debugging!  :thumbu
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: gabor on July 25, 2006, 04:48:08 PM
Hello!

I've checked out this OllyDbg. It is really a powerfull tool. Although I could not find something that would be important for me:
I debugged one of my codes, which was assembled using some self made libraries. The debugger tries to locate the source files of the libraries in the program's folder. Of course they cannot be found there, since they are stored in a separate "include" directory.
I could not find any possibility to tell the debugger the correct location of those files. In the "Source list" window the files are marked as "Absent"...
Am I a lamer or blind? Or is there no opportunity to set those locations?

Greets, Gábor
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: donkey on July 25, 2006, 07:35:26 PM
Woodmann has a forum dedicated to OllyDbg, anything you want to know about it can be found there...

http://www.woodmann.com/forum/
Title: Re: Recommend a usable free debugger!
Post by: 1rDirEctoALgran0 on July 25, 2006, 08:52:40 PM
About OllyDebug : IMPORTANT NOTE TO ALL !!!

excerpts from :
- the site www.ollydbg.de : OllyDbg is a shareware, but you can download and use it for free. :naughty:
- the readme.txt file :
"This software is a shareware and Copyright (C) 2000-2004 Oleh Yuschuk.
You can use it and distribute FOR FREE, provided that OllyDbg remains
unchanged. Read license.txt for details.

To use this software on a permanent basis or for commercial purposes,
you must register OllyDbg by filling registration form and emailing it
to Ollydbg@t-online.de. The registration is free of charge and assumes
no financial or other obligations from both sides - just be fair and
let me know that you like this software"

- But what is the really meaning of the word "shareware" here ?  :dazzled:
(My native language is not the english)

- Another interesting debugger is "PEBrowse Professional browser Interactive" at http://www.smidgeonsoft.com/
  Read the home page before download at http://www.smidgeonsoft.com/download/PEBrowseDbg.zip    :cheekygreen:

- For my part I use GoBug (but it is a REAL shareware)  :U

Regards to all.

Patrick