System and method for a distributed debugger for debugging distributed application programs

A computer implemented method for producing a distributed debugger system for debugging a distributed target application system which target application system resides on a local host computer and one or more remote host computers, the computer implemented method comprising the steps of:

• providing in a local host computer a debugger-GUI and one or more debugger engines (hereinafter termed "dbx engines"), said debugger-GUI providing an interface mechanism for communicating with said dbx engines, and for communicating with a user of said debugger system;
• providing a communication mechanism for use by said dbx engines and said debugger-GUI in sending messages to and receiving messages from each other;
• and
• providing a remote dbx engine which is one of said one or more dbx engines and which is residing on a host computer remote from said local host computer, said remote dbx having capabilities equivalent to those of a SPARCworks dbx engine, said remote dbx engine connected to said debugger-GUI by means of said communication mechanism, said remote dbx engine being able, under direction from said debugger-GUI, to attach itself to a section of said distributed target application system which is residing on said remote host computer for purposes of debugging said section of said distributed target application system which is residing on said remote host computer, said remote dbx engine co-operating with said debugger-GUI while ignoring any intermediate Interface Definition Language ("IDL") generated code mechanisms which connect local and remote sections of said target application system but which are not part of said target application system itself, thereby permitting said user to debug said distributed target application system with an illusion that the user is debugging a single process application, said remote dbx engine having a remote surrogate code test mechanism for determining which intermediate IDL generated code mechanisms which connect local and remote sections of said distributed target application should be ignored.

A computer implemented method for producing a distributed debugger system for debugging a distributed target application system which resides on a local host computer and one or more remote host computers, the computer implemented method comprising the steps of:

• providing a debugger-GUI and one or more debugger engines (hereinafter termed "dbx engines"), said debugger-GUI providing an interface mechanism for communicating with said dbx engines, wherein said dbx engines may reside on said local and remote host computers, and for communicating with a user of said debugger system;
• providing a communications mechanism for use by said dbx engines and said debugger-GUI in sending messages to and receiving messages from each other;
• and
• providing a dbxWrapperFactory mechanism for use by said debugger-GUI to create a new dbx engine in a remote host computer for use in debugging a part of said target application system which resides on said remote host computer, said new dbx engine having capabilities equivalent to those of a SPARCworks dbx engine, said new dbx engine in said remote host computer co-operating with said debugger-GUI and said one or more dbx engines residing on said local host computer to debug said target application system while ignoring any intermediate Interface Definition Language ("IDL") generated code mechanisms which connect local and remote sections of said target application system but which are not part of said target application system itself, thereby permitting said user to debug said distributed target application system with an illusion that the user is debugging a single process application.

A computer implemented method for producing a distributed debugger system for debugging a distributed target application system which resides on a local host computer and one or more remote host computers, the computer implemented method comprising the steps of:

• providing a debugger-GUI and one or more debugger engines (hereinafter termed "dbx engines"), said debugger-GUI providing an interface mechanism for communicating with said dbx engines, wherein said dbx engines may reside on said local and remote host computers, and for communicating with a user of said debugger system;
• providing a communications mechanism for use by said dbx engines and said debugger-GUI in sending messages to and receiving messages from each other;
• providing a dbxWrapperFactory mechanism for use by said debugger-GUI to create a new dbx engine in a remote host computer for use in debugging a part of said target application system which resides on said remote host computer, said new dbx engine having capabilities equivalent to those of a SPARCworks dbx engine;
• providing a dstep mechanism for instructing said dbx engines to ignore (that is, "step over") any of said intermediate Interface Definition Language ("IDL") generated code mechanisms which connect local and remote sections of said target application system but which are not part of said target application system itself;
• and
• providing said new dbx engine a remote surrogate code test mechanism for determining which intermediate IDL generated code mechanisms which connect local and remote sections of said target application system should be ignored.