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Assignment Coal

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anas
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The Debugger program

Introduction to Debug:
The Debug program is a command-line tool originally introduced in MS-DOS,
used primarily for examining and modifying the operation of assembly
language code. It is designed to help programmers inspect, troubleshoot,
and manipulate the internal workings of their code at a low level, providing a
hands-on experience with how a CPU processes instructions and handles
memory. Debugging is essential for any programming process, but it is
especially crucial in assembly language due to the complexity and precision
required to work directly with machine-level instructions. Debug’s
capabilities allow users to inspect memory, registers, and flags; step through
instructions one by one; and observe how each instruction affects the
system. This control and visibility are essential for understanding the
assembly language, as they allow users to see how high-level logic translates
into the micro-level instructions a CPU can execute. Furthermore, the Debug
tool’s simplicity and minimalistic interface make it valuable for learning
purposes, where students and novice programmers can gain insight into
foundational concepts of computing. Although Debug was originally designed
for older DOS environments, it continues to serve as an educational resource
that provides insight into the low-level mechanics of computer operation,
helping users learn the fundamentals of debugging in a structured,
command-driven environment.

Debugging functions:
Some of the most rudimentary functions that any debugger can perform are
the following:

• Assemble short programs

• View a program's source code along with its machine code

• View the CPU registers and flags

• Trace or execute a program, watching variables for changes


• Enter new values into memory

• Search for binary or ASCII values in memory

• Move a block of memory from one location to another

• Fill a block of memory

• Load and write disk files and sectors

There are many commercial debuggers available for Intel microprocessors,


varying significantly in complexity and price. Some of the popular options
include:

1. CodeView
2. Periscope
3. Atron
4. Turbo Debugger
5. SYMDEB
6. Codesmith-86
7. Advanced-Trace-86

Among these, Debug is one of the simplest options. The fundamental


concepts you learn using Debug can be applied to nearly any other
debugger.

Debug is considered an assembly-level debugger because it displays only


assembly mnemonics and machine instructions. This means that even if you
use it to debug a compiled program written in a high-level language like C+
+, you won’t see the original source code. Instead, you will see a
disassembled view of the program’s machine instructions.

Debug command summary:


Debug commands can be divided into four categories: program
creation/debugging, memory manipulation, miscellaneous, and input-output.

Program Creation and Debugging:


A – Assemble a program using instruction mnemonics.

G – Execute the program currently in memory.

R – Display the contents of registers and flags.

P – Proceed past an instruction, procedure, or loop.


T – Trace a single instruction.

U – Disassemble memory into assembler mnemonics.

Memory Manipulation:
C – Compare one memory range with another.

D – Dump (display) the contents of memory.

E – Enter bytes into memory.

F – Fill a memory range with a single value.

M – Move bytes from one memory range to another.

S – Search a memory range for specific value(s).

Miscellaneous:
H – Perform hexadecimal addition and subtraction.

Q – Quit Debug and return to DOS.

Input-Output:
I – Input a byte from a port.

L – Load data from disk.

O – Send a byte to a port.

N – Create a filename for use by the L and W commands.

W – Write data from memory to disk.

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