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How do I debug a Pipes project?
How do I debug a Pipes project?

Get help troubleshooting pipes through our debugging feature

Henrik Hofmeister avatar
Written by Henrik Hofmeister
Updated over a week ago

Active and completed executions for Pipes projects can be debugged using our special Pipes debugging tool.

Opening the debugging tool

Pipes projects can only be debugged while they are executing or when the execution has ended. This means that the debugger depends on a run configuration having been executed.

  • Select the run configuration for the pipe you wish to debug.

  • In the Executions tab, click the View button of an active or completed execution.

  • Head to the Results tab. In the options panel you will notice an icon shaped like a bug, this opens up the debugging tool for the selected execution.

Debugging a Pipes project
The debugging tool provides you with information on several aspects of a Pipes robot execution:

  • The order in which the individual nodes were executed

  • The data that was passed to each individual node as it was executed

  • Whether there was an error on executing an individual node

  • Log information published by the node

The main component of the debugger is the timeline - this shows you the current step in the playback which is being examined. The total number of steps correspond to the total number of node executions at the point in which the debugger is being examined - this number dynamically changes for active executions. Be advised that the timeline manipulation buttons - restart, previous, forward and play - do not affect the execution in any way, and simply control the playback of the timeline for debugging purposes. The execution cannot be modified from inside the debugger. The icon on the right part of the timeline shows the current status of the Pipe execution - a cog indicates that the execution is running, a green check sign indicates a successful completion of the execution, and a red cross indicates that the execution finished with an error.

The timeline store a maximum of 250 steps of a completed execution - if your execution has over 250 steps, the steps at the beginning will be pruned to make space for the latest steps.

If you are debugging a running execution, as long as you do not navigate away from the debugger while the execution is taking place, 2500 steps will remain in your browser memory.

When pressing play or fast-forward, you will advance in the timeline. The next node in the timeline will be highlighted.

A node information panel will appear, showing input and log information for the node. The information displayed on the top part is not linked to the timeline, and shows per-execution statistics for the selected node:

  • Hits corresponds to the total number of times this node was executed

  • Avg. time corresponds to the average time this node took to execute

  • Active corresponds to the number of active executions for this node

  • Total time used displays the total time this node spent being executed

The inputs displayed will also correspond to the inputs which were provided for this individual node at this moment in time. The log information is not linked to the timeline and simply reflects to all logs for this node.

Nodes that have failed will be displayed in red, nodes which are currently executing will display a running cog icon on the bottom-right corner.

Using breakpoints

Breakpoints can be set on individual nodes to stop timeline playback when the node is reached. Breakpoints on a node can be toggled by pressing the empty red circle on the top-right corner.

Changing debugging options

Clicking on the small bug icon to the left of the timeline displays options for manipulating the debugger. Changing the options will automatically store them.

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