Re: [hatari-devel] Re: Hatari debugging improvements / NatFeats Extension Patch

[Eero Tamminen <oak@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi,

On torstai 01 toukokuu 2014, Eero Tamminen wrote:
> I was thinking of some other potential debugging enhancements:
> 
> * Showing exception debugging indication in statusbar
>   (maybe one letter per exception type)
> 
> * Keyboard shortcut for toggling exception debugging (AltGr + e)
> 
> * "autostart" setting for --debug-except option.  This would
>   enable exception debugging automatically after TOS startup,
>   if program autostarting is used.  It would be enabled at point
>   when TOS loads the autostart modified INF file, exception
>   generating TOS HW tests should then already have been done
> 
> * Loading debug symbols automatically when entering debugger, if:
>   - there are no debug symbols
>   - program counter is within program TEXT section
>   - program has been started through GEMDOS emulation
>     and its binary contains debug symbols
> 
> * Removing program's debug symbols when it terminates, if they
>   had been loaded automatically or through "symbols prg"

Besides the new --slowdown option, I've commited support for the last
three items above, and removed need for using --bios-intercept
when wanting to trace BIOS/XBIOS.

I'll look into statusbar expansion while waiting comments on
first two items above, and NF additions listed below.


	- Eero

> Comments?
> 
> On keskiviikko 30 huhtikuu 2014, Nicolas Pomarède wrote:
> > Le 30/04/2014 17:05, Mark Fechtner a écrit :
> > > here's a small patch I'm using for quite some time now and that is
> > > (to me at least) pretty helpfull while developing. Its a simple
> > > Native Features command that allows the guest programm to control
> > > wether Hatari is in fast forward mode or not.
> 
> Same functionality is provided also by XBios(255) which can be enabled
> with "--bios-intercept".  Xbios(255) accepts string in same format as
> Hatari control socket, and gives help on syntax errors.  These strings
> can provide any debugger commands, for example with "setopt" command you
> can set command line options like "--fast-forward".
> 
> Btw. natfeats.c code has NF_DEBUGGER command with same functionality as
> Xbios(255).  However, NF_DEBUGGER is ifdeffed out, because I'm not sure
> whether access to all debugger features actually gives too much control
> for the emulated programs.  With debugger commands (e.g. for saving data
> from RAM) it's possible to overwrite files on host file system etc.
> 
> I had though to replace XBios(255) with NF_DEBUGGER, but maybe it's
> better to keep these APIs separate:
> - Xbios(255) continues provide string based access to all debugger
>   features
> - NatFeats provides more standardized & structured access to most
>   useful subset of Hatari functionality, but nothing that would allow
>   emulated code to harm host
> 
> So, I think I'll remove NF_DEBUGGER stuff from natfeats.c, and add
> instead there more explicit commands.  Any wishes on that front, what
> you would think to be most useful?
> 
> Potentially useful NF commands for debugging could be for example for:
> - setting tracing options
> - setting (CPU) history tracking
> - pausing [1]
> - slowdown [2]
> - screenshot [3]
> 
> Opinions?
> 
> [1] if program takes long time to get to the interesting point, it
>     could automatically pause emulation when that has been reached
>     so that you can go to coffee while waiting for that. :-)
> 
> [2] I was thinking that I could add a new option to slow down Hatari
>     execution, which would do a small additional wait on each VBL.
> 
> [3] This causes file to be written to host disk, but as directory for
>     that is predefined and fine name autogenerated, most it can do is
>     fill the disk
> 
> 
> 	- Eero