firefox-devtools / firefox-devtools/vscode-firefox-debug

"Couldn't find the Firefox executable" when launching in attach mode

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#282 1 comment 1 reaction 0 assignees View on GitHub
Dominant language
TypeScript
Stars
447
Forks
76
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Description

I am getting the `Couldn't find the Firefox executable` when launching in attach mode. I am asking myself now if this is a wanted behaviour, since I wouldn't expect that the executable is needed for that.

## Background
I was following the instructions for launching in `attach` mode [in the README](https://github.com/firefox-devtools/vscode-firefox-debug#attach).
Accordingly, I have set up a `launch.json` that contained the recommended block:
``` json
{
"version": "0.2.0",
"configurations": [
{
"name": "Attach to localhost",
"type": "firefox",
"request": "attach",
"url": "http://127.0.0.1/"
}
]
}
```
My firefox had the necessary `about:config` changes and launched fine in debug mode with
``` bash
"C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" -start-debugger-server
```
When I launched the debug session in vscode with this configuration I got the `Couldn't find the Firefox executable` error.

## Cause
The `firefox.executable` config was set globally to a wrong location.

Two things that I think would have improved my situation
- the error message would point out that this is set in the global extension settings
- the error would not be thrown since (correct me if I am wrong) the executable is not called at all in `attach` mode

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Start with the attach-mode instructions in the README and reproduce the configuration using a globally incorrect firefox.executable setting. Trace how the attach launch reads that setting and produces the error; done means attach mode no longer requires an unused executable, or the message clearly identifies the global extension setting.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
typescript, vscode
Domain
developer-experience, tooling
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
3/5
Estimated time
1-2 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
45/100

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