Visual Studio only debugs javascript in .js files not .aspx files

[Phil Johnson]

Hi,

This is an issue that happens to me and everybody else I know and I've never
found a way around it.

In Visual Studio (currently using 2003 but the same has happened for me in
2005 and 2008 as well)

If I put a breakpoint in a .js file, the debugger picks it up and breaks
into it at that point.

If I put a break in javascript in a .aspx file, the debugger kicks in, but
the breakpoint is somewhere in the html of the aspx page and you can't tell
where in the javascript its trying to debug.

Is there anything I can do to resolve this and debug javascript in Visual
Studio in aspx pages, or is it a known issue we just have to live with?

Thanks.

--
Regards,

Phillip Johnson (MCSD For .NET)
PJ Software Development
www.pjsoftwaredevelopment.com

 

[Kevin Spencer]

When you put a breakpoint in an ASPX page, you are putting a breakpoint into
server-side code. When you put a breakpoint into JavaScript that is in a .js
file, you are putting a breakpoint into client-side code. Since JavaScript
only runs on the client, you cannot debug it from the server-side.

--
HTH,

Kevin Spencer
Chicken Salad Surgeon
Microsoft MVP

 

[Patrice]

For now my understanding is that you have js code embedded in server side
code so the breakpoint is applied to the server code not to the js script
the server code renders into the page...

It's likely easier to break into js client side (for example the script
debugger in IE have an option to break on the next javascript statement that
will run). AFAIK Firebug allows to browse all javascript code and to place
breakpoints (you also have developer toolbars for IE that could perhaps
allows this).

For IE, you also have a debugger statement that explicitely breaks into the
debugger...

 

[Phil Johnson]

Here is the thing though....

In Visual Studio (pretty expensive software)
=============================
If I put a breakpoint in a .js file... it breaks fine, the VS ide displays
where it is and I can step into it... if it makes a call to a javascript
function in an aspx page though... it gets to that line in the .js file,
steps into it... opens the correct apsx file BUT the show next statement
indicator is nowhere near the actual line it is going to run.

In Microsoft Script Editor (free software)
==========================
If I break into the Microsoft Script Editor ide displays where it is and I
can step into it... if it makes a call to a javascript function in an aspx
page though... it gets to that line in the .js file, steps into it... opens
the correct apsx file and the show next statement indicator is on the correct
line of code to run and you can set the next line etc

Surely the fact that Visual Studio is debugging javascript in the .js files
means it CAN debug clientside javascript, so why does it get confused when it
steps from a .js file into an .aspx file or even just breaks into javascript
in an aspx file.

I must be missing something with the configuration of my tools or this is a
pretty major issue for a web development tool.

--
Regards,

Phillip Johnson (MCSD For .NET)
PJ Software Development
www.pjsoftwaredevelopment.com

 

[Kevin Spencer]

Hi Phil,

I tried to explain this to you. An ASPX page is a class that generates HTML
from the server. It is not a client-side document. It CREATES a client-side
document. The entire page code is actually a class that is executed on the
server. Therefore, when you place a breakpoint anywhere in the page code,
including any literal JavaScript in the page code, you are instructing the
debugger to break DURING THE SERVER SIDE EXECUTION OF THE PAGE. A .js file
is used by the client browser to execute JavaScript on the client side, in
the browser. It is NOT server-side executable code.

The Visual Studio JavaScript debugging tools are used to debug client-side
scripting during its execution ON THE CLIENT. Therefore, you cannot debug
JavaScript that is NOT executing during the execution of the server-side
code. At that point, it is simply text in the server-side code, and is NOT
executing.

--
HTH,

Kevin Spencer
Chicken Salad Surgeon
Microsoft MVP

 

[Phil Johnson]

I get what your saying, but in that case how can a free tool like the
Microsoft Script Editor handle it right, but Visual Studio cannot.

Visual Studio does some pretty amazing things, but this is a pretty big
limitation when working with application that have javascript in them.

Why can't it just do whatever the free Script Editor does, it doesn't need
to step back into the aspx page source, if it just stepped into something
that could display where it is in the javascript that would be be a big
improvement...

I guess I begrudge paying so much for Visual Studio when it can't do
something that a free tool by the same company can do.

Also, when you debug serverside code, surely its actually the compiled IL
that is running and the pdb files tell the debugger whereabouts in the source
that is, so why can't the pdb files, or something similar, contain the info
to tell the debugger where it is?

If MS aren't looking to put this in to future versions of Visual Studio, I
think they should... its a nightmare working on ajax apps where there is
javascript code in the aspx pages.

And I know given this limitation its probably good practice to just put all
your javascript in .js files, but that doesn't help if your maintaining code
that already has a lot of javascript in the pages.

--
Regards,

Phillip Johnson (MCSD For .NET)
PJ Software Development
www.pjsoftwaredevelopment.com

 

[ProgTalk]

You can debug into the javascript line. Make sure you enable debugging in the IE explorer. Next when you are at the page, add watch to the temp page created. This will load the generated html (really aspx) page, and will allow you to parse through all the javascript. I have done multiple times.

 

[Phil Johnson]

This guy has allegedly got debugging of javascript in aspx files workign in
VS2005.

http://www.ben-rush.net/blog/Commen...66ba-43e5-b0d6-4aa11c76d739&dotnet=consultant

Also, I've seen it working on VS 2003 with IE6, but when the guy upgraded to
IE7 it stopped working.

You can obviously do this, does anybody know of a setting etc I could change
to enable this?

--
Regards,

Phillip Johnson (MCSD For .NET)
PJ Software Development
www.pjsoftwaredevelopment.com

 

[Patrice]

I'm on IE6. My first though would be that the appropriate option needs to be
checked in IE. "Tools" "Options" and make sure the "Deactive script
debugging" (translated from my french IE6 so it may vary in an english IE7)
is not checked. Could be also in Tools Options Debugging in VS but as it
follow a IE upgrade...

To be crystal clear this is for javascript script code that is embeded
inside a client side script tag inside the aspx markup (not sure where the
breakpoints was as sometimes ASPX page is quite a vague term).

 

[Phil Johnson]

Hi Patrice,

Yeah, thats right... re the javascript is in a script tag in the aspx page.

I've got the correct settings on the option you mentioned in IE because the
js files will debug fine and if I put a breakpoint in the javascript in an
aspx page it does actually break and the code executing is at that point, you
can step through etc, but Visual Studio does not display the correct line as
being the current line to execute (even though when you do step through it
executes the correct line, you just can't see which line it is going to
execute on the screen).
--
Regards,

Phillip Johnson (MCSD For .NET)
PJ Software Development
www.pjsoftwaredevelopment.com