Debugging Features in Eclipse

The Eclipse IDE offers a number of debugging features.

Breakpoint-setting

Run > Toggle Breakpoint or double-click in the left margin.

Tip: To set or toggle a program breakpoint, double-click in the left margin next to the Procedure Division heading, or use the Breakpoints view. Program breakpoints are supported in native COBOL only, and are not supported with nested programs.

By default, a program breakpoint causes execution to stop on any entry point to the program and on return to the program from a call. To specify that a program breakpoint causes execution to stop only when the Procedure Division entry point is called, open the launch configuration of the project (click Run > Run Configurations), and check Program breakpoint on main entry point only on the General tab of the configuration.

Data item values

To display a data item's value, you can hover over it, or alternatively right-click it and click Inspect COBOL.

Debug configurations

Run > Debug Configurations. You can have multiple debug configurations and swap between them. These settings here override the project run-time settings

Main program to debug

Run > Debug. On the General tab, specify the main program file.

Reset execution

Moves the execution point to the cursor position. The shortcut key is Alt+F12, R.

Preferences

Window > Preferences > Micro Focus > COBOL > Debug. Among other things, you can choose to display hexadecimal and byte values of data items.

Run to line

You can position your cursor anywhere in your code to instruct the debugger to run from the current execution point to the line on which the cursor is positioned. The feature can save time when debugging as you do not have to use the step functions to step through individual lines of code. You can use Run to line in both the main source code and copybook code. To use, position the cursor in the code and the click Run > Run to line or use the shortcut CTRL+R.

Stop debugging

Run > Terminate. You can also click the red square at the top

Watchpoint-setting

Run > Toggle Watchpoint or double-click in the left margin.

Restriction: This feature is not supported for JVM COBOL.

Inspect COBOL variables

Allows you to inspect COBOL variables. The cursor in the editor has to be positioned on a data item, or a data item can be selected. Inspecting works like Expressions view - any text can be selected in the editor (COBOL Editor or Copy View) for evaluation.

• For native (local and remote projects): Run > Inspect COBOL item
• For JVM COBOL projects: Run > Inspect

Inspect can also be triggered from a context menu in the editor or by using the Ctrl+Shift+I shortcut.

Restriction: Only inspection of data items is supported. More complex expressions like arithmetic operations or method calls are not currently supported.