GnuCOBOL Source Level Debugging

COBOLworx developed GnuCOBOL Debugging Extensions for GnuCOBOL. The Extensions let COBOL programmers debug their programmers with the same powerful capabilities that C programmers enjoy. You can debug programs from the command line using gdb from the command line or in a graphical Integrated Development Environment (VS Code, VS Codium, or, soon, Eclipse’s Theia).

The Extensions can:

• List COBOL statements by line number (required for command line operation),
• Set BreakPoints by COBOL line numbers,
• Print out current values of variables – VS Code and VS Codium show variables and their values in a separate column of their display during debugging,
• Modify values of variables during the debug session, and
• Watch a variable – the program stops if the value of the variable changes.

The Extensions are a free and Open Source package. They are hosted at our GitLab Server. You can download binary packages of or containing the GnuCOBOL Debugging Extensions from the Downloads page.