{"id":2993,"date":"2019-06-15T04:06:43","date_gmt":"2019-06-15T11:06:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/?p=2993"},"modified":"2020-12-29T12:48:56","modified_gmt":"2020-12-29T20:48:56","slug":"how-to-debug-c-using-gd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Debug C Using GDB"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>When you\u2019re coding in C, you\u2019re bound to run up against issues that bring your program to a dead stop. That\u2019s why it\u2019s crucial to have a well-honed debugging process to ensure that you can isolate and resolve your issues and get on with your work. Once you learn how to use a debugger, your programming becomes more efficient, and you gain confidence that you can handle any problems you encounter. Gnu debugger (GDB) is one of the best ways to debug your C-based applications, and knowing how to debug C using GDB will make you a better programmer.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019re here to help! Our guide will look at the GDB debugging process and have your issues resolved in two shakes of a lamb\u2019s tail. We look at compiling with a GDB option and how to launch GDB, and we will also go over how to execute your C program within the debugger so that you can step through the application and pinpoint the issue. When you know how to use it properly, GDB will make your coding experience a more pleasant and less frustrating one, so let\u2019s get started and get you on the road to job satisfaction.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/spacex-71874-unsplash.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2994\"\/><figcaption>A little GDB will help your career lift off toward the stars!<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Compile and Launch<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To start the debugging process, you must first identify which debugger you plan to use. Once you\u2019ve targeted a debugger, you need to include it in the compile command. Then, you\u2019ll want to run the program within GDB, and to do that, you\u2019ll need to issue a launch command and associate it with the program you\u2019re debugging. For our purposes, we\u2019ll use an example program named \u201cduckfeet.c\u201d (Not for any particular reason; I just enjoy a nice duck foot, all orange and silly looking).<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You\u2019ll first issue the compile command for the program and include the -g option to activate debugging and create the \u201ca.out\u201d file, which is the log file to which your debugging information outputs:<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$ cc -g duckfoot.c<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You\u2019ll then launch the debugger to view the data:<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$ GDB a.out<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you\u2019ve issued these two commands, you\u2019re ready to move on to the application itself. Time to debug!<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Create a Breakpoint, and Execute the Program<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Okay, your program has outputted to the a.out file, and your debugger can read what has been written. Now, you get to prep and run the program within the debugger. Program prep and running is a key step in debugging; having the ability to walk through your application from a debugging perspective is invaluable in helping you isolate and resolve all sorts of issues. Program execution is a powerful debugging tool. Use it to break through any nagging problems in your code.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You\u2019ll create a breakpoint at the spot in your C program that you think contains your errors. You can use a few different bits of syntax to accomplish this. The command \u201cbreak line_number\u201d is a standard method:<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>break 20<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Breakpoint 1 at 0x804648f: file duckfoot.c, line 20.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, you can execute the program and watch it run until its designated break point:<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>run<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Starting program: \/home\/fredduckbuddy\/Debugging\/c\/a.out<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And there you have it! You\u2019ll use GDB all of the time when you\u2019re working with C, so the sooner you master it, the faster and more smoothly your projects will run. Solid debugging skills can make or break a programmer, so use our guide to get comfortable with this essential programming tool, and make your programs hum!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When you\u2019re coding in C, you\u2019re bound to run up against issues that bring your program to a dead stop. That\u2019s why it\u2019s crucial to have a well-honed debugging process to ensure that you can isolate and resolve your issues and get on with your work. Once you learn how to use a debugger, your&hellip;","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":2223,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18070],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2993","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-software-engineering-skills"},"acf":{"post_sub_title":"","sprint_id":"","query_class":"Software Engineering","school_sft":"","parent_sft":"","school_privacy_policy":"","has_review":null,"is_sponser_post":"","is_guest_post":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.0 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How to Debug C Using GDB | Career Karma<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Programming in C can be a challenge, but GDB can make your debugging easier. Our guide will show you how!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Debug C Using GDB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Programming in C can be a challenge, but GDB can make your debugging easier. Our guide will show you how!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Career Karma\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/careerkarmaapp\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-06-15T11:06:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-12-29T20:48:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/fatos-bytyqi-535528-unsplash-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Paul Larkin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@career_karma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@career_karma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Paul Larkin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Paul Larkin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1761df0013e0bbfeb16c0d4078e4685d\"},\"headline\":\"How to Debug C Using GDB\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-06-15T11:06:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-12-29T20:48:56+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/\"},\"wordCount\":610,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/fatos-bytyqi-535528-unsplash-1.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Software Engineering\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/\",\"name\":\"How to Debug C Using GDB | Career Karma\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/how-to-debug-c-using-gd\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/fatos-bytyqi-535528-unsplash-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-06-15T11:06:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-12-29T20:48:56+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1761df0013e0bbfeb16c0d4078e4685d\"},\"description\":\"Programming in C can be a challenge, but GDB can make your debugging easier. 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