Software Trace Reconstruction for Real-Time Time-Travel Debugging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Debugging complex software with millions of lines of code and numerous bugs is challenging due to the complexity of the code, difficulty in reproducing bugs, and limitations of existing debugging tools like hardware trace and copying backends, which are slow, costly, and limited in functionality.
Innovation Solution
A software-based approach using instrumentation in the target program and operating system to generate trace information, allowing for efficient reconstruction of memory and register states, enabling a time traveling debugger backend that operates on various architectures without hardware trace limitations, supports multi-processing environments, and allows immediate debugging without waiting for all data to be downloaded.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If hardware trace is used for debugging, then debugging functionality is provided, but the system is limited by hardware capabilities and incurs high cost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces hardware-based trace mechanisms with a software-based instrumentation system. The instrumentation code is inserted into the target program to collect trace information, eliminating dependence on hardware trace capabilities and reducing hardware complexity requirements while maintaining debugging functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary instrumentation layer between the target program and the debugging system. This instrumentation code acts as a mediator that collects trace information and passes it to the debugging backend, enabling debugging functionality without direct hardware trace support.
2Reliability
If copying backend is used for debugging, then trace data collection is enabled, but the debugging process becomes slow due to data download requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary processing of trace data at the source by the instrumentation code embedded in the target program. Trace information is collected and prepared in advance during program execution, eliminating the need for slow post-execution data download and enabling immediate debugging analysis.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the trace data collection functionality from the separate copying backend process and integrates it directly into the target program through instrumentation. This extraction eliminates the data download bottleneck by collecting and preparing trace data in-place during execution.
3Measurement precision
If comprehensive trace data is collected for accurate debugging, then debugging accuracy is improved, but the amount of data to be processed increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by selectively collecting trace information at specific instrumentation points within the target program. Rather than uniformly collecting all possible trace data, the system collects only the specific trace information relevant to each execution context, maintaining debugging accuracy while reducing overall data volume.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements partial action by collecting only the necessary subset of trace data required for accurate debugging at each instrumentation point. The instrumentation code determines the appropriate level of trace data collection based on local program context, avoiding unnecessary data collection while maintaining sufficient debugging accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
In an embodiment, a system is configured to replay and/or reconstruct execution events and system states in real time or substantially in real time starting from the point when execution of a target program has stopped to the point when the user desires to step through the target program's execution in order to debug the software. In an embodiment, a system is configured to efficiently collect trace data that is sufficient to reconstruct the state of a computer system at any point of time from the start of execution to the time execution was stopped. Efficient and effective debugging of the software can be performed using embodiments of the disclosed methods, systems, and devices.