Visual Studio Remote Debugging

Using the VS2008 remote debugger to remotely debug Windows applications running under WINE.

Steps to debug

1. Get the remote debugger onto the Linux machine either by downloading, [http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=440ec902-3260-4cdc-b11a-6a9070a2aaab&displaylang=en], or by mounting a remote share.
2. Run the remote debugger: wine msvsmon.exe
3. Start the remote application: wine <myremoteapp.exe>
4. In Visual Studio, Attach to Process..., then change the transport to Remote (Native) only with no authentication.
5. Enter the hostname or IP address [I had to use the IP], click Refresh, and select the process to debug.

What works

• Breakpoints
• Quickwatch
• Set Next Statement
• Modifying variables
• Go To Disassembly
• Callstack
• Threads

You can right click on the callstack frame, and select Symbol Load Information... to see where VS is trying to resolve the symbols. I can see a Linux path, which doesn't exist on Windows 7, but then the correct symbols are loaded due to the path being embedded into the executable.

What doesn't work

• The Break All button: http://www.winehq.org/pipermail/wine-devel/2010-December/088180.html.

A tested setup

• Windows 7 64
• Visual Studio 2008 SP1
• WINE 1.2
• Mint 9 32 running in a VM