Error: Debugging Isn't Possible Because a Kernel Debugger is Enabled on the System 

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When debugging managed code, you may get the following error message:

Debugging isn't possible because a kernel debugger is enabled on the system

This message occurs when you try to debug managed code on a system running Windows NT, Windows 2000, or Windows XP that has been started in debug mode.

Solution

To fix this problem

  • Disable kernel debugging and debug in Visual Studio.

    —or—

  • Debug using the Kernel Debugger instead of Visual Studio.

To disable kernel debugging

  1. Locate boot.ini on your System drive (usually C:\). The boot.ini file may be hidden and read-only, so you will need to use the following command to see it:

    dir /ASH

  2. Open boot.ini using Notepad and remove the following options:

    /debug
/debugport
/baudrate

  3. Reboot the machine.

  4. Restart Visual Studio and debug.

To debug with the Kernel Debugger

  1. If the Kernel Debugger is hooked up, you will see a message asking if you want to continue debugging. Click the button to continue.

  2. You may get a User break exception(Int 3) If this happens, enter the following KD command to continue debugging:

    gn

See Also

Concepts

Debugger Security

Other Resources

Debugging Managed Code