microsoft / microsoft/vscode-cpptools

Cannot load symbols if executable's symbols are in a separate file

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debugger Feature Request
Dominant language
TypeScript
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Description

If an executable's symbols are in a separate file, there isn't a way to load those symbols beyond using customLaunchSetupCommand to override the entire launch set up.

This is because we use -file-exec-and-symbols. According to the documentation here it tells the system that the symbols for the executables and the executable are the same file.

If user specifies symbol-file <filename> for symbols in setupCommands we issue the setupCommands before we send our own commands, which overrides the values.

Alternative way to load it would be:
-file-exec-file for the file
-file-symbol-file for the symbol file.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start by tracing the launch setup that sends -file-exec-and-symbols, including how setupCommands and customLaunchSetupCommand are handled. Review the linked GDB/MI file-command documentation and verify a separate executable and symbol file can be loaded without overriding user commands; done means both files are accepted during launch.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
cpp
Domain
devtools
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
38/100

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