GDB_Visual_Studio_2017_Windows_Subsystem_Linux

How to debug in Windows Subsystem Linux (WSL) using GDB debugger

Prerequisites

• Must be on Windows 10 and it is up to date.

• Must be on the latest Insider Preview build 1703 or higher (Creators Update) Link

• Must have WSL (Windows Subsystem Linux) installed. I used this great how to from How-To Geek to install Bash on Ubuntu on Windows. Link

• Must have Visual Studio 2017 installed. You can use the the free edition (Visual Studio Community 2017). Download here

Setting up Visual Studio to Compile and Debug

1. Install metapackage build-essential, gdb server, and openssh server
   1. Open WSL
   2. sudo apt-get update
   3. sudo apt-get install -y build-essential
   4. sudo apt-get install -y gdbserver
   5. sudo apt=get install -y openssh-server
2. Open sshd_config using vi, emacs, or nano. I prefer nano as it is much easier to use for beginners.
   1. nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config
   2. set PasswordAuhentication to yes
3. Generate SSH keys
   1. sudo ssh-keygen -A
4. Start openssh server
   1. sudo service ssh start
5. Create a console application in Visual Studio
6. Target x64
7. Add SSh connections
   1. Host Name: localhost
   2. Port: 22
   3. User Name: "Enter your bash user name"
   4. Password: "Enter password associated with your bash user name"
8. Ensure debugging mode is set to gdb
   1. Go to Project -> ConsoleApplication1 Properties -> Configuration Properties -> Debugging
   2. Set Debugging Mode to gdb