https://github.com/chatziko/visualize-c-memory

https://github.com/chatziko/visualize-c-memory

Last synced: 3 months ago
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• Host: GitHub
• URL: https://github.com/chatziko/visualize-c-memory
• Owner: chatziko
• Created: 2021-02-20T14:43:29.000Z (almost 4 years ago)
• Default Branch: master
• Last Pushed: 2021-03-30T14:31:13.000Z (almost 4 years ago)
• Last Synced: 2023-08-06T05:21:32.155Z (over 1 year ago)
• Language: Python
• Size: 87.9 KB
• Stars: 18
• Watchers: 3
• Forks: 0
• Open Issues: 0
• Metadata Files:
  • Readme: README.md

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README

        
## visualize-c-memory

Real-time visualization of the memory of a C program during debugging in VSCode,

using [vscode-debug-visualizer](https://github.com/hediet/vscode-debug-visualizer)

and [GDB's Python API](https://sourceware.org/gdb/current/onlinedocs/gdb/Python-API.html).

![](demo.png)

### To try it

- Install graphviz.

  ```

  sudo apt install graphviz

  ```

- In VSCode, install [vscode-debug-visualizer](https://github.com/hediet/vscode-debug-visualizer).

  ```

  Ctrl-P / ext install hediet.debug-visualizer

  ```

- Clone this repository, open it in VSCode and start debugging (`F5`).

  If the debugger doesn't start, make sure that `gdb`, `make` and VSCode's [ms-vscode.cpptools](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-vscode.cpptools) are installed.

- Select `F1 / Debug Visualizer : New View` and

  write `"memory"` (__including__ the quotes) in the visualization window

  that opens.

- A visualization of both the stack and the heap will appear, and it will

  update as you step through the code (`F10`, `F11`, etc).

- Modify [`examples/examples.c`](examples/examples.c) to try your own code.

Tested in Ubuntu 20.04 and Windows 10 under WSL.

macOS is not supported (it could be adapted, but Apple makes it

[particularly painful](https://dev.to/jasonelwood/setup-gdb-on-macos-in-2020-489k) to use

GDB in macOS anyway).

### To use it in your own project

- Build `visualize-c-memory.so` (by running `make` in `src`).

- Load the `.so` and the python module in GDB by adding

  the following to your `launch.json`:

  ```

	"environment": [

		{"name":"LD_PRELOAD", "value":"${workspaceFolder}//visualize-c-memory.so"},

	],

  "setupCommands": [

    {

      "text": "source ${workspaceFolder}//visualize-c-memory.py"

    }

  ],

  ```

  See [.vscode/launch.json](.vscode/launch.json) for an example.