Systems and methods for multi-view debugging environment

• US 7,650,592 B2
• Filed: 02/23/2004
• Issued: 01/19/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: BEA Systems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Pugh, William, Eckels, Josh
• Primary Examiner(s): Dam; Tuan Q
• Assistant Examiner(s): DAO, THUY CHAN
• Application Number:
  US10/784,346
• Publication Number:
  US 20040172623A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,157 Days
• Field of Search: 717/100, 717/125
• US Class Current: 717/125
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3664 Environments for testing or debugging software

Abstract

A software debugging environment uses multiple abstract views to provide the flexibility required to perform effective debugging on an executing software program using data structures. Developers can select between one or more views to see different aspects of the software being examined. Each view can have a filter with specific properties determining which quantities are displayed, the format they are displayed in and any editing capability. In some embodiments, the selection of views, filters defining the views, and the editing properties for the contents shown in the views may be set interactively. In some cases, this interaction occurs through the interface of an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) containing the debugger. In other cases, the properties of views in the debugging environment are determined by definitions supplied in configuration files. Special facilities are provided for the debugging of JSP programs.

Claims

1. A method executed by a processor to provide a software debugging environment, comprising:

providing a software program containing at least one data structure with one or more contents, wherein the software program is a server page application running on one or more processor that allows for automatically generating one or more servlets in machine generated code in a programming language, wherein the machine generated code contains one or more underlying physical data structures that are used to represent the one or more contents of the at least one data structure, and wherein the machine generated code allows for further compilation into binary code before execution;

displaying and/or editing the one or more contents of the at least one data structure via at least one abstract view based on the one or more underlying physical data structures used to represent the one or more contents; and

extracting and formatting, via at least one filter, the one or more contents from the underlying physical data structures and defining a displaying and/or editing property of the at least one abstract view via at least one filter, the at least one filter is used to extract data from and manipulate one or more contents in a buffer used to transmit and receive streaming data, wherein the at least one filter allows a user to view the at least one data structure in a data stream relative to one or more tag library associated with the server page application using intermediate data created by the one or more tag library, wherein the intermediate data created by the one or more tag library is not sent back to the data stream.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

allowing the one or more contents to be modified through the at least one abstract view; and

validating an input value to the at least one content against an allowed value for the at least one content.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

presenting the one or more contents of the at least one data structure without showing a physical implementation of the at least one data structure.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

selecting each of the at least one abstract view individually for display.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

displaying and/or editing the same one of the one or more contents via two or more of the at least one abstract view without being deadlocked.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

defining the at least one filter via configuration information stored in a file, which can be a file in a markup language.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

interactively performing at least one of;

selecting a subset of the at least one of abstract view for display; and

defining the displaying and/or editing property of the at least one filter.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

supporting the debugging of a server page and a machine generated servlet that implements the server page.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

extracting and displaying a code and/or a content of interest, and mapping them to a format used in a source code in a server page, for use with executing a servlet;

following an execution path through at least one level of redirection using at least one tag;

extracting and manipulating a streaming data from a content of a buffer used to transmit and receive the streaming data; and

setting at least one break point in a server page and stepping through the execution of the page based on the displaying property.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein:

the streaming data can be extracted by inserting a wrapper or “

writer”

class around the servlet.

11. A computer-enabled system to provide for a software debugging environment, comprising:

one or more processor;

a software program containing at least one data structure with one or more contents, wherein the software program is a server page application running on the one or more processor that allows for automatically generating one or more servlets in machine generated code in a programming language, wherein the machine generated code contains one or more underlying physical data structures that are used to represent the one or more contents of the at least one data structure, and wherein the machine generated code allows for further compilation into binary code before execution;

at least one abstract view capable of displaying and/or editing the one or more contents of the at least one data structure based on the one or more underlying physical data structures used to represent the one or more contents; and

at least one filter capable of extracting and formatting the one or more contents from the one or more underlying physical data structures and defining a displaying and/or editing property of the at least one abstract view, the at least one filter is used to extract data from and manipulate one or more contents in a buffer used to transmit and receive streaming data, wherein the at least one filter allows a user to view the at least one data structure in a data stream relative to one or more tag library associated with the server page application using intermediate data created by the one or more tag library, wherein the intermediate data created by the one or more tag library is not sent back to the data stream.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein:

the system is at least partially implemented using an objected-oriented language.

13. The system according to claim 11, further comprising:

at least one editor associated with the at least one abstract view capable of at least one of;

allowing the one or more contents to be modified through the at least one abstract view; and

validating an input value to the one or more contents against an allowed value for the one or more contents.

14. The system according to claim 11, further comprising:

at least one another abstract view is capable of presenting the one or more contents of the at least one data structure without showing a physical implementation of the at least one data structure.

15. The system according to claim 11, wherein:

each of the at least one abstract view can be individually selected for display.

16. The system according to claim 11, wherein:

two or more of the at least one abstract view are capable of displaying and/or editing the same one of the one or more contents without being deadlocked.

17. The system according to claim 11, wherein:

the at least one filter can be defined via configuration information stored in a file, which can be a file in a markup language.

18. The system according to claim 11, further comprising:

a component capable of interactively performing at least one of;

selecting a subset of the at least one of abstract view for display; and

defining the displaying and/or editing property of the at least one filter.

19. The system according to claim 18, wherein:

the component can be realized via an interface to an Integrated Development Environment (IDE).

20. The system according to claim 11, further comprising:

at least one component capable of supporting the debugging of a server page and a machine generated servlet that implements the server page.

21. The system according to claim 20, wherein:

the at least one component can perform at least one of;

extracting and displaying a code and/or a content of interest, and mapping them to a format used in a source code in a server page, for use with executing a servlet;

following an execution path through at least one level of redirection using at least one tag;

extracting and manipulating a streaming data from a content of a buffer used to transmit and receive the streaming data; and

setting at least one break point in a server page and stepping through the execution of the page based on the displaying property.

22. The system according to claim 21, wherein:

the streaming data can be extracted by inserting a wrapper or “

writer”

class around the servlet.

23. A machine readable medium having instructions stored thereon that when executed by a processor cause a system to:

provide a software program containing at least one data structure with one or more contents, wherein the software program is a server page application running on one or more processor that allows for automatically generating one or more servlets in machine generated code in a programming language, wherein the machine generated code contains one or more underlying physical data structures that are used to represent the one or more contents of the at least one data structure, and wherein the machine generated code allows for further compilation into binary code before execution;

display and/or editing the one or more contents of the at least one data structure via at least one abstract view based on the one or more underlying physical data structures used to represent the one or more contents; and

extract and format, via at least one filter, the one or more contents from the underlying physical data structures and defining a displaying and/or editing property of the at least one abstract view via at least one filter, the at least one filter is used to extract data from and manipulate one or more contents in a buffer used to transmit and receive streaming data, wherein the at least one filter allows a user to view the at least one data structure in a data stream relative to one or more tag library associated with the server page application using intermediate data created by the one or more tag library, wherein the intermediate data created by the one or more tag library is not sent back to the data stream.

24. The machine readable medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

allow the one or more contents to be modified through the at least one abstract view; and

validate an input value to one or more contents against an allowed value for the at least one content.

25. The machine readable medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

present the one or more contents of the at least one data structure without showing an physical implementation of the at least one data structure.

26. The machine readable medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

select each of the at least one abstract view individually for display.

27. The machine readable medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

display and/or edit the same one of the one or more contents via two or more of the at least one abstract view without being deadlocked.

28. The machine readable medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

define the at least one filter via configuration information stored in a file, which can be a file in a markup language.

29. The machine readable medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

interactively perform at least one of;

selecting a subset of the at least one of abstract view for display; and

defining the displaying and/or editing property of the at least one filter.

30. The machine readable medium of claim 23 further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

support the debugging of a server page and a machine generated servlet that implements the server page.

31. The machine readable medium of claim 30, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

extract and display a code and/or a content of interest, and mapping them to a format used in a source code in a server page, for use with executing a servlet;

follow an execution path through at least one level of redirection using at least one tag;

extract and manipulate a streaming data from a content of a buffer used to transmit and receive the streaming data; and

set at least one break point in a server page and step through the execution of the page based on the displaying property.

32. The machine readable medium of claim 31, wherein:

the streaming data can be extracted by inserting a wrapper or “

writer”

class around the servlet.

33. A computer-enabled system embodied in a storage medium to provide a software debugging environment, comprising:

means for providing a software program containing at least one data structure with one or more contents, wherein the software program is a sewer page application running on one or more processor that allows for automatically generating one or more servlets in machine generated code in a programming language, wherein the machine generated code contains one or more underlying physical data structures that are used to represent the one or more contents of the at least one data structure, and wherein the machine generated code allows for further compilation into binary code before execution;

means for displaying and/or editing the one or more contents of the at least one data structure via at least one abstract view based on the one or more underlying physical data structures used to represent the one or more contents; and

means for extracting and formatting, via at least one filter, the one or more contents from the underlying physical data structures and defining a displaying and/or editing property of the at least one abstract view via at least one filter, the at least one filter is used to extract data from and manipulate one or more contents in a buffer used to transmit and receive streaming data, wherein the at least one filter allows a user to view the at least one data structure in a data stream relative to one or more tag library associated with the server page application using intermediate data created by the one or more tag library, wherein the intermediate data created by the one or more tag library is not sent back to the data stream.