debugging-strategies

name	debugging-strategies
description	Debugging Strategies: Systematic approach, tools, techniques, root cause analysis.
triggers	{"keywords":["debug","error","trace","breakpoint","investigate","bug","reproduce","root cause"]}
auto_load_when	Debugging errors or investigating unexpected behavior
agent	qa-specialist
tools	["Read","Write","Bash"]

Debugging Strategies

Focus: Systematic debugging, tool selection, root cause analysis

1. The Debugging Mindset

Process:
├── Reproduce - make it consistent
├── Observe - gather data
├── Hypothesis - what's wrong
├── Test - verify theory
├── Fix - implement solution
└── Prevent - add test/check

Don't: Random changes, guess

---

2. Reproduction Strategies

Make it reproducible:
├── Write failing test
├── Simplify to minimal case
├── Check environment differences
└── Look at recent changes

Questions:
├── Does it happen locally?
├── Does it happen to others?
└── When did it start?

---

3. Tools by Scenario

Frontend:
├── Browser DevTools (network, console)
├── React DevTools
└── Console.log (temporary)

Backend:
├── Logger (structured)
├── Debugger (breakpoints)
├── Stack trace analyzer
└── Database query log

System:
├── curl / HTTP client
├── Database client
└── Message queue inspection

---

4. Technique Selection

Start with:
├── Read error message carefully
├── Check logs first
├── Simplify the problem
└── Google the error

Then:
├── Binary search (remove code)
├── Rubber duck (explain it)
└── Compare with working state

---

5. Types of Bugs

Logic errors:
├── Wrong condition
├── Wrong operator
└── Off-by-one

Data bugs:
├── Null/undefined
├── Wrong type
└── Wrong state

Environment:
├── Config mismatch
├── Missing env vars
└── Version differences

Race conditions:
├── Timing dependent
├── Async not handled
└── Shared state

---

6. Root Cause Analysis

Find the real cause:
├── 5 Whys technique
├── Look for patterns
├── Check assumptions
└── Trace back from failure

Not just: Fix symptoms
Yes: Fix underlying cause

---

7. Prevention

Prevent bugs:
├── Tests (unit, integration)
├── Type checking
├── Lint rules
├── Code review
└── Error boundaries

Pre-mortem: Think what could go wrong

---

8. When Stuck

Take a break - fresh perspective
Ask someone - rubber duck
Search - someone had same issue
Document - writing clarifies thinking

---

Key Patterns

1. Reproduce - consistent repro
2. Simplify - minimal case
3. Hypothesize - then test
4. Root cause - fix underlying
5. Prevent - add test

(End of file - 82 lines)

---

Anti-Patterns

❌ console.log debugging in production code
✅ Structured logging with log levels; remove debug logs before commit

❌ Changing multiple things at once while debugging
✅ Change one variable at a time; binary search the bug

❌ Fixing the symptom without understanding root cause
✅ Reproduce reliably → isolate → understand → fix → verify

❌ Skipping reproduction step ("I'll just fix it")
✅ Write a failing test first — it documents the bug and prevents regression

❌ Debugging in prod instead of staging
✅ Reproduce locally; add observability to prod for future incidents

---

Quick Reference

Technique	When to use	Tool
Breakpoints	Step through logic	DevTools / VSCode
Binary search	Narrow down commit	git bisect
Network tab	API / fetch issues	DevTools Network
Memory snapshot	Leak investigation	DevTools Memory
Performance flame	Slow renders	DevTools Performance
Error boundary	React render errors	React DevTools

🌍 Universal Language Support

• Turkish Native: This skill natively supports Turkish. If the user prompt is in Turkish, all analysis, formatting, and output MUST be entirely in Turkish. You do not need explicit "write in Turkish" instructions.