Node debug config provider doesn't work?

[roblourens]

• Start with --disable-extensions
• Open the smoketest repo
• "Select environment" popup appears, and is empty
• Press esc
• Opens settings for some reason

If I start with extensions enabled, I see other extensions but not node.

Also, if I click the "configure or open launch.json" button, it just opens the settings editor. Related issue or different?

[weinand]

@roblourens I cannot reproduce this with Stable or Insiders.

[roblourens]

I can repro in both, and on a Linux VM.

If I reload the window then trigger/esc multiple times, I sometimes see Node.js appear after a few iterations. I think it's showing the popup without wiating for the extension to finish activating.

[isidorn]

@roblourens I cannot reproduce this on my mac, I nicely get offered Node and launch.json always nicely gets opened. If I understand corerctly you see this both on linux and on mac.

Can you still see it with latest vscode insiders?
If yes, put a bp here and check the candidates array https://github.com/Microsoft/vscode/blob/master/src/vs/workbench/parts/debug/electron-browser/debugConfigurationManager.ts#L516
Are you in some multi root repo? Can you repro if you use a differnt user-data-dir?

[roblourens]

Still happens for me.

Latest insiders with extensions disabled:

• Pressing F5 with no files open
  • Empty "Select Environment" popup appears.
  • I press esc
  • Settings editor appears
  • If I force the node debug extension to activate (Like by running the Toggle Auto Attach) command, it works
  • Debugging, I see that this.debuggers has the debuggers but hasConfigurationProvider is false so candidates stays empty
• Pressing F5 with app.js open
  • Debugging, I see it pick node-debug from the language
  • Error popup "Cannot find a program to debug"
  • Settings editor opens

With fresh user-data-dir and extensions disabled:

• Pressing F5 with no files open
  • Empty "Select Environment" popup appears.
  • I press esc
  • "Select Environment" appears a second time with Node.js
  • Debugging it, the second time node-debug does have hasConfigurationProvider: true
• Pressing F5 with app.js open
  • Works fine

Seems that there's partly something wrong in my userDataDir but it's not perfect with a fresh one either.

I've had a default launch config in my user settings but I comment it out and reload before reproing this.

[roblourens]

I think that the launch config in user settings is actually persisted as the current one even though it doesn't exist anymore. launch of "user settings" is passed to startDebugging. That's why it keeps opening the settings editor.

But I don't see how the extensions are supposed to be activated for onDebugInitialConfigurations before startDebugging gets to calling guessDebugger.

[isidorn]

@roblourens extensions get activated for 'onDebugResolve:node' in this case.
Did you check in your case are the extensions active?
Does the problem go away if you add onDebug as an activation event in the node extension?

I believe these are two unrelated problems, the first one is about activation.
The second one is about having the user settings be the selected configuration. For that one can you put a brekapoint here on startup and figure out how it gets selected (since the names array should be empty for a deleted user launch configuration.

[roblourens]

But onDebugResolve happens after the call to guessDebugger in my first scenario. If I force node-debug to activate, it does work, so I think that's the problem. Can we debug over a call?

[isidorn]

@roblourens Yeah, let's debug over a call. How about tomorrow morning your time / evening my time?
Ping me on slack

[roblourens]

Sure. I agree that there are two issues. The second one is also showing up in another way, I keep seeing the debug config dropdown showing configs from different vscode windows. @octref saw the same thing. But I can't repro it consistently and it goes away after a reload.

[roblourens]

Another way I'm seeing it:

• Run the "Launch VS Code"
• Using the debug quickopen menu (debug ...), run the "Attach to Extension Host" config
• The debug dropdown still shows "Launch VS Code", and if I press F5 later, it's actually running "Attach to Extension Host"
• And if I open the quickopen again later, it shows the correct config selected initially.

Sorry if I'm mixing more unrelated issues in here but it seems relevant and these steps are simpler.

[isidorn]

@roblourens your latest comment with steps is fixed in latest vscode insiders. I am investigating into the original issue...

[isidorn]

The issue was with the activation events. In that paritcular code paths the node debug would not get activated due to my broken activation strategy.
If you still see some unrelated issues please file a new issue, thanks :)

To verify, check that the node debug gets activated (you get it in the quick open) in the following situations each right after a reload:

1. Open debug config (no launch.json present)
2. Start debugging (no launch.json present)
3. Also with launch.json there