Debugger

What Does Debugger Mean?

A debugger is a software program used to test and find bugs (errors) in other programs.

Techopedia Explains Debugger

A debugger is a computer program used by programmers to test and debug a target program. Debuggers may use instruction-set simulators, rather than running a program directly on the processor to achieve a higher level of control over its execution. This allows debuggers to stop or halt the program according to specific conditions. However, use of simulators decreases execution speed.

When a program crashes, debuggers show the position of the error in the target program. Most debuggers also are capable of running programs in a step-by-step mode, besides stopping on specific points. They also can often modify the state of programs while they are running.

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Margaret Rouse

Technology Specialist

Margaret is an award-winning writer and educator known for her ability to explain complex technical topics to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles in the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret’s idea of ??a fun day is to help IT and business professionals to learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.

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