Step 4: Run code in the debugger

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Applies to: yesVisual Studio noVisual Studio for Mac

Note

This article applies to Visual Studio 2017. If you're looking for the latest Visual Studio documentation, see Visual Studio documentation. We recommend upgrading to the latest version of Visual Studio. Download it here

Previous step: Use the Interactive REPL window

Visual Studio provides capabilities to manage projects, a rich editing experience, the Interactive window, and full-featured debugging for Python code. In the debugger, you can run your code step by step, including every iteration of a loop. You can also pause the program whenever certain conditions are true. At any point when the program is paused in the debugger, you can examine the entire program state and change the value of variables. Such actions are essential for tracking down program bugs, and also provide helpful aids for following the exact program flow.

  1. Replace the code in the PythonApplication1.py file with the following code. This variation of the code expands make_dot_string so that you can examine its discrete steps in the debugger. It also places the for loop into a main function and runs it explicitly by calling that function:

    from math import cos, radians

# Create a string with spaces proportional to a cosine of x in degrees
def make_dot_string(x):
    rad = radians(x)                             # cos works with radians
    numspaces = int(20 * cos(rad) + 20)          # scale to 0-40 spaces
    st = ' ' * numspaces + 'o'                   # place 'o' after the spaces
    return st

def main():
    for i in range(0, 1800, 12):
        s = make_dot_string(i)
        print(s)

main()

  2. Check that the code works properly by pressing F5 or selecting the Debug > Start Debugging menu command. This command runs the code in the debugger. As of yet, nothing has been done to pause the program while it's running, it will just print a wave pattern for a few iterations. Press any key to close the output window.

    Tip

    To close the output window automatically when the program completes, select the Tools > Options menu command, expand the Python node, select Debugging, and then clear the option Wait for input when process exits normally:

    Python debugging option to close the output window on normal program exit

    For more information about debugging and how to set script and interpreter arguments, see Debug your Python code.

  3. Set a breakpoint on the for statement by clicking once in the gray margin by that line, or by placing the caret in that line and using the Debug > Toggle Breakpoint command (F9). A red dot appears in the gray margin to indicate the breakpoint (as noted by the arrow below):

    Setting a breakpoint

  4. Start the debugger again (F5) and see that running the code stops on the line with that breakpoint. Here you can inspect the call stack and examine variables. Variables that are in-scope appear in the Autos window when they're defined; you can also switch to the Locals view at the bottom of that window to show all variables that Visual Studio finds in the current scope (including functions), even before they're defined:

    Breakpoint UI experience for Python

  5. Observe the debugging toolbar (shown below) along the top of the Visual Studio window. This toolbar provides quick access to the most common debugging commands (which can also be found on the Debug menu):

    Essential debugging toolbar buttons

    The buttons from left to right as follows:

    Button Command
    Continue (F5) Runs the program until the next breakpoint or until program completion.
    Break All (Ctrl+Alt+Break) Pauses a long-running program.
    Stop Debugging (Shift+F5) Stops the program wherever it is, and exits the debugger.
    Restart (Ctrl+Shift+F5) Stops the program wherever it is, and restarts it from the beginning in the debugger.
    Show Next Statement (Alt+Num *) Switches to the next line of code to run. This is helpful when you navigate around within your code during a debugging session and want to quickly return to the point where the debugger is paused.
    Step Into (F11) Runs the next line of code, entering into called functions.
    Step Over (F10) Runs the next line of code without entering into called functions.
    Step Out (Shift+F11) Runs the remainder of the current function and pauses in the calling code.

  6. Step over the for statement using Step Over. Stepping means that the debugger runs the current line of code, including any function calls, and then immediately pauses again. Notice in the code, how the variable i is now defined in the Locals and Autos windows.

  7. Step over the next line of code, which calls make_dot_string and pauses. Step Over here specifically means that the debugger runs the whole of make_dot_string and pauses when it returns. The debugger doesn't stop inside that function unless a separate breakpoint exists there.

  8. Continue stepping over the code a few more times and observe how the values in the Locals or Autos window change.

  9. In the Locals or Autos window, double-click in the Value column for either the i or s variables to edit the value. Press Enter or select any area outside that value to apply any changes.

  10. Continue stepping through the code using Step Into. Step Into means that the debugger enters inside any function call for which it has debugging information, such as make_dot_string. Once inside make_dot_string you can examine its local variables and step through its code specifically.

  11. Continue stepping with Step Into and notice that when you reach the end of the make_dot_string, the next step returns to the for loop with the new return value in the s variable. As you step again to the print statement, notice that Step Into on print doesn't enter into that function. This is because print isn't written in Python but is rather native code inside the Python runtime.

  12. Continue using Step Into until you're again partway into make_dot_string. Then use Step Out and notice that you return to the for loop. With Step Out, the debugger runs the remainder of the function and then automatically pauses in the calling code. This is helpful when you've stepped through some portion of a lengthy function that you wish to debug. It will step through the rest and don't set an explicit breakpoint in the calling code.

  13. To continue running the program until the next breakpoint is reached, use Continue (F5). Because you have a breakpoint in the for loop, you break on the next iteration.

  14. Stepping through hundreds of iterations of a loop can be tedious, so Visual Studio lets you add a condition to a breakpoint. The debugger then pauses the program at the breakpoint only when the condition is met. For example, you can use a condition with the breakpoint on the for statement so that it pauses only when the value of i exceeds 1600. To set the condition, right-click the red breakpoint dot and select Conditions (Alt+F9 > C). In the Breakpoint Settings popup that appears, enter i > 1600 as the expression and select Close. Press F5 to continue and observe that the program runs many iterations before the next break.

    Setting a breakpoint condition

  15. To run the program to completion, disable the breakpoint by right-clicking the dot in the margin and selecting Disable breakpoint (Ctrl+F9). Then select Continue (or press F5) to run the program. When the program ends, Visual Studio stops its debugging session and returns to its editing mode. You can also delete the breakpoint by selecting its dot or by right-clicking the dot and selecting Delete breakpoint. It also deletes any condition you've previously set.

Tip

In some situations, such as a failure to launch the Python interpreter itself, the output window may appear only briefly and then close automatically without giving you a chance to see any errors messages. If this happens, right-click the project in Solution Explorer, select Properties, select the Debug tab, then add -i to the Interpreter Arguments field. This argument causes the interpreter to go into interactive mode after a program completes, thereby keeping the window open until you enter Ctrl+Z > Enter to exit.

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