[bpt/guile.git] / doc / ref / api-debug.texi

@c -*-texinfo-*-
@c This is part of the GNU Guile Reference Manual.
@c Copyright (C)  1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2010
@c   Free Software Foundation, Inc.
@c See the file guile.texi for copying conditions.

@node Debugging
@section Debugging Infrastructure

@cindex Debugging
In order to understand Guile's debugging facilities, you first need to
understand a little about how Guile represent the Scheme control stack.
With that in place we explain the low level trap calls that the
evaluator can be configured to make, and the trap and breakpoint
infrastructure that builds on top of those calls.

@menu
* Evaluation Model::            Evaluation and the Scheme stack.
* Debug on Error::              Debugging when an error occurs.
* Traps::
* Debugging Examples::
@end menu

@node Evaluation Model
@subsection Evaluation and the Scheme Stack

The idea of the Scheme stack is central to a lot of debugging.  The
Scheme stack is a reified representation of the pending function returns
in an expression's continuation. As Guile implements function calls
using a stack, this reification takes the form of a number of nested
stack frames, each of which has the procedure and its arguments, along
with local variables and temporary values.

A Scheme stack always exists implicitly, and can be summoned into
concrete existence as a first-class Scheme value by the
@code{make-stack} call, so that an introspective Scheme program -- such
as a debugger -- can present it in some way and allow the user to query
its details. The first thing to understand, therefore, is how Guile's
function call convention creates the stack.

Broadly speaking, Guile represents all control flow on a stack. Calling
a function involves pushing an empty frame on the stack, then evaluating
the procedure and its arguments, then fixing up the new frame so that it
points to the old one. Frames on the stack are thus linked together. A
tail call is the same, except it reuses the existing frame instead of
pushing on a new one.

In this way, the only frames that are on the stack are ``active''
frames, frames which need to do some work before the computation is
complete. On the other hand, a function that has tail-called another
function will not be on the stack, as it has no work left to do.

Therefore, when an error occurs in a running program, or the program
hits a breakpoint, or in fact at any point that the programmer chooses,
its state at that point can be represented by a @dfn{stack} of all the
evaluations and procedure applications that are logically in progress at
that time, each of which is known as a @dfn{frame}.  The programmer can
learn more about the program's state at that point by inspecting the
stack and its frames.

@menu
* Capturing the Stack or Innermost Stack Frame::
* Examining the Stack::
* Examining Stack Frames::
* Source Properties::           Remembering the source of an expression.
* Starting a New Stack::
@end menu

@node Capturing the Stack or Innermost Stack Frame
@subsubsection Capturing the Stack or Innermost Stack Frame

A Scheme program can use the @code{make-stack} primitive anywhere in its
code, with first arg @code{#t}, to construct a Scheme value that
describes the Scheme stack at that point.

@lisp
(make-stack #t)
@result{}
#<stack 805c840:808d250>
@end lisp

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} make-stack obj . args
@deffnx {C Function} scm_make_stack (obj, args)
Create a new stack. If @var{obj} is @code{#t}, the current
evaluation stack is used for creating the stack frames,
otherwise the frames are taken from @var{obj} (which must be
a continuation or a frame object).

@var{args} should be a list containing any combination of
integer, procedure, prompt tag and @code{#t} values.

These values specify various ways of cutting away uninteresting
stack frames from the top and bottom of the stack that
@code{make-stack} returns.  They come in pairs like this:
@code{(@var{inner_cut_1} @var{outer_cut_1} @var{inner_cut_2}
@var{outer_cut_2} @dots{})}.

Each @var{inner_cut_N} can be @code{#t}, an integer, a prompt
tag, or a procedure.  @code{#t} means to cut away all frames up
to but excluding the first user module frame.  An integer means
to cut away exactly that number of frames.  A prompt tag means
to cut away all frames that are inside a prompt with the given
tag. A procedure means to cut away all frames up to but
excluding the application frame whose procedure matches the
specified one.

Each @var{outer_cut_N} can be an integer, a prompt tag, or a
procedure.  An integer means to cut away that number of frames.
A prompt tag means to cut away all frames that are outside a
prompt with the given tag. A procedure means to cut away
frames down to but excluding the application frame whose
procedure matches the specified one.

If the @var{outer_cut_N} of the last pair is missing, it is
taken as 0.
@end deffn


@node Examining the Stack
@subsubsection Examining the Stack

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} stack? obj
@deffnx {C Function} scm_stack_p (obj)
Return @code{#t} if @var{obj} is a calling stack.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} stack-id stack
@deffnx {C Function} scm_stack_id (stack)
Return the identifier given to @var{stack} by @code{start-stack}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} stack-length stack
@deffnx {C Function} scm_stack_length (stack)
Return the length of @var{stack}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} stack-ref stack index
@deffnx {C Function} scm_stack_ref (stack, index)
Return the @var{index}'th frame from @var{stack}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} display-backtrace stack port [first [depth [highlights]]]
@deffnx {C Function} scm_display_backtrace_with_highlights (stack, port, first, depth, highlights)
@deffnx {C Function} scm_display_backtrace (stack, port, first, depth)
Display a backtrace to the output port @var{port}.  @var{stack}
is the stack to take the backtrace from, @var{first} specifies
where in the stack to start and @var{depth} how many frames
to display.  @var{first} and @var{depth} can be @code{#f},
which means that default values will be used.
If @var{highlights} is given it should be a list; the elements
of this list will be highlighted wherever they appear in the
backtrace.
@end deffn


@node Examining Stack Frames
@subsubsection Examining Stack Frames

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} frame? obj
@deffnx {C Function} scm_frame_p (obj)
Return @code{#t} if @var{obj} is a stack frame.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} frame-previous frame
@deffnx {C Function} scm_frame_previous (frame)
Return the previous frame of @var{frame}, or @code{#f} if
@var{frame} is the first frame in its stack.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} frame-procedure frame
@deffnx {C Function} scm_frame_procedure (frame)
Return the procedure for @var{frame}, or @code{#f} if no
procedure is associated with @var{frame}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} frame-arguments frame
@deffnx {C Function} scm_frame_arguments (frame)
Return the arguments of @var{frame}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} display-application frame [port [indent]]
@deffnx {C Function} scm_display_application (frame, port, indent)
Display a procedure application @var{frame} to the output port
@var{port}. @var{indent} specifies the indentation of the
output.
@end deffn


@node Source Properties
@subsubsection Source Properties

@cindex source properties
As Guile reads in Scheme code from file or from standard input, it
remembers the file name, line number and column number where each
expression begins. These pieces of information are known as the
@dfn{source properties} of the expression. Syntax expanders and the
compiler propagate these source properties to compiled procedures, so
that, if an error occurs when evaluating the transformed expression,
Guile's debugger can point back to the file and location where the
expression originated.

The way that source properties are stored means that Guile can only
associate source properties with parenthesized expressions, and not, for
example, with individual symbols, numbers or strings.  The difference
can be seen by typing @code{(xxx)} and @code{xxx} at the Guile prompt
(where the variable @code{xxx} has not been defined):

@example
guile> (xxx)
standard input:2:1: In expression (xxx):
standard input:2:1: Unbound variable: xxx
ABORT: (unbound-variable)
guile> xxx
<unnamed port>: In expression xxx:
<unnamed port>: Unbound variable: xxx
ABORT: (unbound-variable)
@end example

@noindent
In the latter case, no source properties were stored, so the best that
Guile could say regarding the location of the problem was ``<unnamed
port>''.

The recording of source properties is controlled by the read option
named ``positions'' (@pxref{Reader options}).  This option is switched
@emph{on} by default.

The following procedures can be used to access and set the source
properties of read expressions.

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} set-source-properties! obj alist
@deffnx {C Function} scm_set_source_properties_x (obj, alist)
Install the association list @var{alist} as the source property
list for @var{obj}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} set-source-property! obj key datum
@deffnx {C Function} scm_set_source_property_x (obj, key, datum)
Set the source property of object @var{obj}, which is specified by
@var{key} to @var{datum}.  Normally, the key will be a symbol.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} source-properties obj
@deffnx {C Function} scm_source_properties (obj)
Return the source property association list of @var{obj}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} source-property obj key
@deffnx {C Function} scm_source_property (obj, key)
Return the property specified by @var{key} from @var{obj}'s source
properties.
@end deffn

If the @code{positions} reader option is enabled, each parenthesized
expression will have values set for the @code{filename}, @code{line} and
@code{column} properties.

If you're stuck with defmacros (@pxref{Defmacros}), and want to preserve
source information, the following helper function might be useful to
you:

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} cons-source xorig x y
@deffnx {C Function} scm_cons_source (xorig, x, y)
Create and return a new pair whose car and cdr are @var{x} and @var{y}.
Any source properties associated with @var{xorig} are also associated
with the new pair.
@end deffn


@node Starting a New Stack
@subsubsection Starting a New Stack

@deffn {Scheme Syntax} start-stack id exp
Evaluate @var{exp} on a new calling stack with identity @var{id}.  If
@var{exp} is interrupted during evaluation, backtraces will not display
frames farther back than @var{exp}'s top-level form.  This macro is a
way of artificially limiting backtraces and stack procedures, largely as
a convenience to the user.
@end deffn


@node Debug on Error
@subsection Debugging when an error occurs

A common requirement is to be able to show as much useful context as
possible when a Scheme program hits an error.  The most immediate
information about an error is the kind of error that it is -- such as
``division by zero'' -- and any parameters that the code which signalled
the error chose explicitly to provide.  This information originates with
the @code{error} or @code{throw} call (or their C code equivalents, if
the error is detected by C code) that signals the error, and is passed
automatically to the handler procedure of the innermost applicable
@code{catch} or @code{with-throw-handler} expression.

@subsubsection Intercepting basic error information

Therefore, to catch errors that occur within a chunk of Scheme code, and
to intercept basic information about those errors, you need to execute
that code inside the dynamic context of a @code{catch} or
@code{with-throw-handler} expression, or the equivalent in C. In Scheme,
this means you need something like this:

@lisp
(catch #t
       (lambda ()
         ;; Execute the code in which
         ;; you want to catch errors here.
         ...)
       (lambda (key . parameters)
         ;; Put the code which you want
         ;; to handle an error here.
         ...))
@end lisp

@noindent
The @code{catch} here can also be @code{with-throw-handler}; see @ref{Throw
Handlers} for information on the when you might want to use
@code{with-throw-handler} instead of @code{catch}. The @code{#t} means that the
catch is applicable to all kinds of error; if you want to restrict your catch to
just one kind of error, you can put the symbol for that kind of error instead of
@code{#t}. The equivalent to this in C would be something like this:

@lisp
SCM my_body_proc (void *body_data)
@{
  /* Execute the code in which
     you want to catch errors here. */
  ...
@}

SCM my_handler_proc (void *handler_data,
                     SCM key,
                     SCM parameters)
@{
  /* Put the code which you want
     to handle an error here. */
  ...
@}

@{
  ...
  scm_c_catch (SCM_BOOL_T,
               my_body_proc, body_data,
               my_handler_proc, handler_data,
               NULL, NULL);
  ...
@}
@end lisp

@noindent
Again, as with the Scheme version, @code{scm_c_catch} could be replaced
by @code{scm_c_with_throw_handler}, and @code{SCM_BOOL_T} could instead
be the symbol for a particular kind of error.

@subsubsection Capturing the full error stack

The other interesting information about an error is the full Scheme
stack at the point where the error occurred; in other words what
innermost expression was being evaluated, what was the expression that
called that one, and so on.  If you want to write your code so that it
captures and can display this information as well, there are a couple
important things to understand.

Firstly, the stack at the point of the error needs to be explicitly
captured by a @code{make-stack} call (or the C equivalent
@code{scm_make_stack}).  The Guile library does not do this
``automatically'' for you, so you will need to write code with a
@code{make-stack} or @code{scm_make_stack} call yourself.  (We emphasise
this point because some people are misled by the fact that the Guile
interactive REPL code @emph{does} capture and display the stack
automatically.  But the Guile interactive REPL is itself a Scheme
program@footnote{In effect, it is the default program which is run when
no commands or script file are specified on the Guile command line.}
running on top of the Guile library, and which uses @code{catch} and
@code{make-stack} in the way we are about to describe to capture the
stack when an error occurs.)

And secondly, in order to capture the stack effectively at the point
where the error occurred, the @code{make-stack} call must be made before
Guile unwinds the stack back to the location of the prevailing catch
expression. This means that the @code{make-stack} call must be made
within the handler of a @code{with-throw-handler} expression, or the
optional "pre-unwind" handler of a @code{catch}. (For the full story of
how these alternatives differ from each other, see @ref{Exceptions}. The
main difference is that @code{catch} terminates the error, whereas
@code{with-throw-handler} only intercepts it temporarily and then allow
it to continue propagating up to the next innermost handler.)

So, here are some examples of how to do all this in Scheme and in C.
For the purpose of these examples we assume that the captured stack
should be stored in a variable, so that it can be displayed or
arbitrarily processed later on.  In Scheme:

@lisp
(let ((captured-stack #f))
  (catch #t
         (lambda ()
           ;; Execute the code in which
           ;; you want to catch errors here.
           ...)
         (lambda (key . parameters)
           ;; Put the code which you want
           ;; to handle an error after the
           ;; stack has been unwound here.
           ...)
         (lambda (key . parameters)
           ;; Capture the stack here:
           (set! captured-stack (make-stack #t))))
  ...
  (if captured-stack
      (begin
        ;; Display or process the captured stack.
        ...))
  ...)
@end lisp

@noindent
And in C:

@lisp
SCM my_body_proc (void *body_data)
@{
  /* Execute the code in which
     you want to catch errors here. */
  ...
@}

SCM my_handler_proc (void *handler_data,
                     SCM key,
                     SCM parameters)
@{
  /* Put the code which you want
     to handle an error after the
     stack has been unwound here. */
  ...
@}

SCM my_preunwind_proc (void *handler_data,
                       SCM key,
                       SCM parameters)
@{
  /* Capture the stack here: */
  *(SCM *)handler_data = scm_make_stack (SCM_BOOL_T, SCM_EOL);
@}

@{
  SCM captured_stack = SCM_BOOL_F;
  ...
  scm_c_catch (SCM_BOOL_T,
               my_body_proc, body_data,
               my_handler_proc, handler_data,
               my_preunwind_proc, &captured_stack);
  ...
  if (captured_stack != SCM_BOOL_F)
  @{
    /* Display or process the captured stack. */
    ...
  @}
  ...
@}
@end lisp

@noindent
Note that you don't have to wait until after the @code{catch} or
@code{scm_c_catch} has returned.  You can also do whatever you like with
the stack immediately after it has been captured in the pre-unwind
handler, or in the normal (post-unwind) handler.  (Except that for the
latter case in C you will need to change @code{handler_data} in the
@code{scm_c_catch(@dots{})} call to @code{&captured_stack}, so that
@code{my_handler_proc} has access to the captured stack.)

@subsubsection Displaying or interrogating the captured stack

Once you have a captured stack, you can interrogate and display its
details in any way that you want, using the @code{stack-@dots{}} and
@code{frame-@dots{}} API described in @ref{Examining the Stack} and
@ref{Examining Stack Frames}.

If you want to print out a backtrace in the same format that the Guile
REPL does, you can use the @code{display-backtrace} procedure to do so.
You can also use @code{display-application} to display an individual
application frame -- that is, a frame that satisfies the
@code{frame-procedure?} predicate -- in the Guile REPL format.

@subsubsection What the Guile REPL does

The Guile REPL code (in @file{system/repl/repl.scm} and related files)
uses a @code{catch} with a pre-unwind handler to capture the stack when
an error occurs in an expression that was typed into the REPL, and saves
the captured stack in a fluid (@pxref{Fluids and Dynamic States}) called
@code{the-last-stack}. You can then use the @code{(backtrace)} command,
which is basically equivalent to @code{(display-backtrace (fluid-ref
the-last-stack))}, to print out this stack at any time until it is
overwritten by the next error that occurs.

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} backtrace [highlights]
@deffnx {C Function} scm_backtrace_with_highlights (highlights)
@deffnx {C Function} scm_backtrace ()
Display a backtrace of the stack saved by the last error
to the current output port.  If @var{highlights} is given
it should be a list; the elements of this list will be
highlighted wherever they appear in the backtrace.
@end deffn

You can also use the @code{(debug)} command to explore the saved stack
using an interactive command-line-driven debugger.  See @ref{Interactive
Debugger} for more information about this.

@deffn {Scheme Procedure} debug
Invoke the Guile debugger to explore the context of the last error.
@end deffn


@node Traps
@subsection Traps

@cindex Traps
@cindex Evaluator trap calls
@cindex Breakpoints
@cindex Trace
@cindex Tracing
@cindex Code coverage
@cindex Profiling
Guile's virtual machine can be configured to call out at key points to
arbitrary user-specified procedures. For more information on these
hooks, and the circumstances under which the VM calls them, see @ref{VM
Behaviour}.

In principle, these hooks allow Scheme code to implement any model it
chooses for examining the evaluation stack as program execution
proceeds, and for suspending execution to be resumed later. Possible
applications of this feature include breakpoints, runtime tracing, code
coverage, and profiling.

@cindex Trap classes
@cindex Trap objects
Based on these low level trap calls, Guile provides a higher level,
object-oriented interface for the manipulation of traps.  Different
kinds of trap are represented as GOOPS classes; for example, the
@code{<procedure-trap>} class describes traps that are triggered by
invocation of a specified procedure.  A particular instance of a trap
class --- or @dfn{trap object} --- describes the condition under which
a single trap will be triggered, and what will happen then; for
example, an instance of @code{<procedure-trap>} whose @code{procedure}
and @code{behaviour} slots contain @code{my-factorial} and
@code{debug-trap} would be a trap that enters the command line
debugger when the @code{my-factorial} procedure is invoked.

The following subsections describe all this in detail, for both the
user wanting to use traps, and the developer interested in
understanding how the interface hangs together.


@subsubsection Actually, this section is bitrotten

Dear reader: the following sections have some great ideas, and some code
that just needs a few days of massaging to get it to work with the VM
(as opposed to the old interpreter). Want to help? Yes? Yes!
@code{guile-devel@@gnu.org}, that's where.


@subsubsection A Quick Note on Terminology

@cindex Trap terminology
It feels natural to use the word ``trap'' in some form for all levels
of the structure just described, so we need to be clear on the
terminology we use to describe each particular level.  The terminology
used in this subsection is as follows.

@itemize @bullet
@item
@cindex Evaluator trap calls
@cindex Low level trap calls
``Low level trap calls'', or ``low level traps'', are the calls made
directly from the C code of the Guile evaluator.

@item
@cindex Trap classes
``Trap classes'' are self-explanatory.

@item
@cindex Trap objects
``Trap objects'', ``trap instances'', or just ``traps'', are instances
of a trap class, and each describe a single logical trap condition
plus behaviour as specified by the user of this interface.
@end itemize

A good example of when it is important to be clear, is when we talk
below of behaviours that should only happen once per low level trap.
A single low level trap call will typically map onto the processing of
several trap objects, so ``once per low level trap'' is significantly
different from ``once per trap''.


@menu
* How to Set a Trap::
* Specifying Trap Behaviour::
* Trap Context::
* Tracing Examples::
* Tracing Configuration::
* Tracing and (ice-9 debug)::
* Traps Installing More Traps::
* Common Trap Options::
* Procedure Traps::
* Exit Traps::
* Entry Traps::
* Apply Traps::
* Step Traps::
* Source Traps::
* Location Traps::
* Trap Shorthands::
* Trap Utilities::
@end menu


@node How to Set a Trap
@subsubsection How to Set a Trap

@cindex Setting traps
@cindex Installing and uninstalling traps
Setting a trap is done in two parts.  First the trap is defined by
creating an instance of the appropriate trap class, with slot values
specifying the condition under which the trap will fire and the action
to take when it fires.  Secondly the trap object thus created must be
@dfn{installed}.

To make this immediately concrete, here is an example that sets a trap
to fire on the next application of the @code{facti} procedure, and to
handle the trap by entering the command line debugger.

@lisp
(install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                #:procedure facti
                #:single-shot #t
                #:behaviour debug-trap))
@end lisp

@noindent
Briefly, the elements of this incantation are as follows.  (All of
these are described more fully in the following subsubsections.)

@itemize @bullet
@item
@code{<procedure-trap>} is the trap class for trapping on invocation
of a specific procedure.

@item
@code{#:procedure facti} says that the specific procedure to trap on for this
trap object is @code{facti}.

@item
@code{#:single-shot #t} says that this trap should only fire on the
@emph{next} invocation of @code{facti}, not on all future invocations
(which is the default if the @code{#:single-shot} option is not
specified).

@item
@code{#:behaviour debug-trap} says that the trap infrastructure should
call the procedure @code{debug-trap} when this trap fires.

@item
Finally, the @code{install-trap} call installs the trap immediately.
@end itemize

@noindent
It is of course possible for the user to define more convenient
shorthands for setting common kinds of traps.  @xref{Trap Shorthands},
for some examples.

The ability to install, uninstall and reinstall a trap without losing
its definition is Guile's equivalent of the disable/enable commands
provided by debuggers like GDB.

@deffn {Generic Function} install-trap trap
Install the trap object @var{trap}, so that its behaviour will be
executed when the conditions for the trap firing are met.
@end deffn

@deffn {Generic Function} uninstall-trap trap
Uninstall the trap object @var{trap}, so that its behaviour will
@emph{not} be executed even if the conditions for the trap firing are
met.
@end deffn


@node Specifying Trap Behaviour
@subsubsection Specifying Trap Behaviour

@cindex Trap behaviour
Guile provides several ``out-of-the-box'' behaviours for common needs.
All of the following can be used directly as the value of the
@code{#:behaviour} option when creating a trap object.

@deffn {Procedure} debug-trap trap-context
Enter Guile's command line debugger to explore the stack at
@var{trap-context}, and to single-step or continue program execution
from that point.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} gds-debug-trap trap-context
Use the GDS debugging interface, which displays the stack and
corresponding source code via Emacs, to explore the stack at
@var{trap-context} and to single-step or continue program execution
from that point.
@end deffn

@cindex Trace
@cindex Tracing
@deffn {Procedure} trace-trap trap-context
Display trace information to summarize the current @var{trap-context}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace-at-exit trap-context
Install a further trap to cause the return value of the application or
evaluation just starting (as described by @var{trap-context}) to be
traced using @code{trace-trap}, when this application or evaluation
completes.  The extra trap is automatically uninstalled after the
return value has been traced.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace-until-exit trap-context
Install a further trap so that every step that the evaluator performs
as part of the application or evaluation just starting (as described
by @var{trap-context}) is traced using @code{trace-trap}.  The extra
trap is automatically uninstalled when the application or evaluation
is complete.  @code{trace-until-exit} can be very useful as a first
step when all you know is that there is a bug ``somewhere in XXX or in
something that XXX calls''.
@end deffn

@noindent
@code{debug-trap} and @code{gds-debug-trap} are provided by the modules
@code{(ice-9 debugger)} and @code{(ice-9 gds-client)} respectively, and
their behaviours are fairly self-explanatory.  For more information on
the operation of the GDS interface via Emacs, see @ref{Using Guile in
Emacs}.  The tracing behaviours are explained more fully below.

@cindex Trap context
More generally, the @dfn{behaviour} specified for a trap can be any
procedure that expects to be called with one @dfn{trap context}
argument.  A trivial example would be:

@lisp
(define (report-stack-depth trap-context)
  (display "Stack depth at the trap is: ")
  (display (tc:depth trap-context))
  (newline))
@end lisp


@node Trap Context
@subsubsection Trap Context

The @dfn{trap context} is an object that caches information about the
low level trap call and the stack at the point of the trap, and is
passed as the only argument to all behaviour procedures.  The
information in the trap context can be accessed through the procedures
beginning @code{tc:} that are exported by the @code{(ice-9 debugging
traps)} module@footnote{Plus of course any procedures that build on
these, such as the @code{trace/@dots{}} procedures exported by
@code{(ice-9 debugging trace)} (@pxref{Tracing Configuration}).}; the
most useful of these are as follows.

@deffn {Generic Function} tc:type trap-context
Indicates the type of the low level trap by returning one of the
keywords @code{#:application}, @code{#:evaluation}, @code{#:return} or
@code{#:error}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Generic Function} tc:return-value trap-context
When @code{tc:type} gives @code{#:return}, this provides the value
that is being returned.
@end deffn

@deffn {Generic Function} tc:stack trap-context
Provides the stack at the point of the trap (as computed by
@code{make-stack}, but cached so that the lengthy @code{make-stack}
operation is not performed more than once for the same low level
trap).
@end deffn

@deffn {Generic Function} tc:frame trap-context
The innermost frame of the stack at the point of the trap.
@end deffn

@deffn {Generic Function} tc:depth trap-context
The number of frames (including tail recursive non-real frames) in the
stack at the point of the trap.
@end deffn

@deffn {Generic Function} tc:real-depth trap-context
The number of real frames (that is, excluding the non-real frames that
describe tail recursive calls) in the stack at the point of the trap.
@end deffn


@node Tracing Examples
@subsubsection Tracing Examples

The following examples show what tracing is and the kind of output that
it generates.  In the first example, we define a recursive function for
reversing a list, then watch the effect of the recursive calls by
tracing each call and return value.

@lisp
guile> (define (rev ls)
         (if (null? ls)
             ls
             (append (rev (cdr ls))
                     (list (car ls)))))
guile> (use-modules (ice-9 debugging traps) (ice-9 debugging trace))
guile> (define t1 (make <procedure-trap>
                    #:procedure rev
                    #:behaviour (list trace-trap
                                      trace-at-exit)))
guile> (install-trap t1)
guile> (rev '(a b c))
|  2: [rev (a b c)]
|  3: [rev (b c)]
|  4: [rev (c)]
|  5: [rev ()]
|  5: =>()
|  4: =>(c)
|  3: =>(c b)
|  2: =>(c b a)
(c b a)
@end lisp

@noindent
The number before the colon in this output (which follows @code{(ice-9
debugging trace)}'s default output format) is the number of real frames
on the stack.  The fact that this number increases for each recursive
call confirms that the implementation above of @code{rev} is not
tail-recursive.

In the next example, we probe the @emph{internal} workings of
@code{rev} in more detail by using the @code{trace-until-exit}
behaviour.

@lisp
guile> (uninstall-trap t1)
guile> (define t2 (make <procedure-trap>
                    #:procedure rev
                    #:behaviour (list trace-trap
                                      trace-until-exit)))
guile> (install-trap t2)
guile> (rev '(a b))
|  2: [rev (a b)]
|  2: (if (null? ls) ls (append (rev (cdr ls)) (list (car ls))))
|  3: (null? ls)
|  3: [null? (a b)]
|  3: =>#f
|  2: (append (rev (cdr ls)) (list (car ls)))
|  3: (rev (cdr ls))
|  4: (cdr ls)
|  4: [cdr (a b)]
|  4: =>(b)
|  3: [rev (b)]
|  3: (if (null? ls) ls (append (rev (cdr ls)) (list (car ls))))
|  4: (null? ls)
|  4: [null? (b)]
|  4: =>#f
|  3: (append (rev (cdr ls)) (list (car ls)))
|  4: (rev (cdr ls))
|  5: (cdr ls)
|  5: [cdr (b)]
|  5: =>()
|  4: [rev ()]
|  4: (if (null? ls) ls (append (rev (cdr ls)) (list (car ls))))
|  5: (null? ls)
|  5: [null? ()]
|  5: =>#t
|  4: (list (car ls))
|  5: (car ls)
|  5: [car (b)]
|  5: =>b
|  4: [list b]
|  4: =>(b)
|  3: [append () (b)]
|  3: =>(b)
|  3: (list (car ls))
|  4: (car ls)
|  4: [car (a b)]
|  4: =>a
|  3: [list a]
|  3: =>(a)
|  2: [append (b) (a)]
|  2: =>(b a)
(b a)
@end lisp

@noindent
The output in this case shows every step that the evaluator performs
in evaluating @code{(rev '(a b))}.


@node Tracing Configuration
@subsubsection Tracing Configuration

The detail of what gets printed in each trace line, and the port to
which tracing is written, can be configured by the procedures
@code{set-trace-layout} and @code{trace-port}, both exported by the
@code{(ice-9 debugging trace)} module.

@deffn {Procedure with Setter} trace-port
Get or set the port to which tracing is printed.  The default is the
value of @code{(current-output-port)} when the @code{(ice-9 debugging
trace)} module is first loaded.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} set-trace-layout format-string . arg-procs
Layout each trace line using @var{format-string} and @var{arg-procs}.
For each trace line, the list of values to be printed is obtained by
calling all the @var{arg-procs}, passing the trap context as the only
parameter to each one.  This list of values is then formatted using
the specified @var{format-string}.
@end deffn

@noindent
The @code{(ice-9 debugging trace)} module exports a set of arg-proc
procedures to cover most common needs, with names beginning
@code{trace/}.  These are all implemented on top of the @code{tc:} trap
context accessor procedures documented in @ref{Trap Context}, and if any
trace output not provided by the following is needed, it should be
possible to implement based on a combination of the @code{tc:}
procedures.

@deffn {Procedure} trace/pid trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the current process ID.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/stack-id trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the stack ID of the stack in which the
current trap occurred.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/stack-depth trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the length (including non-real frames) of the
stack at the point of the current trap.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/stack-real-depth trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the length excluding non-real frames of the
stack at the point of the current trap.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/stack trap-context
An arg-proc that returns a string summarizing stack information.  This
string includes the stack ID, real depth, and count of additional
non-real frames, with the format @code{"~a:~a+~a"}.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/source-file-name trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the name of the source file for the innermost
stack frame, or an empty string if source is not available for the
innermost frame.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/source-line trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the line number of the source code for the
innermost stack frame, or zero if source is not available for the
innermost frame.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/source-column trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the column number of the start of the source
code for the innermost stack frame, or zero if source is not available
for the innermost frame.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/source trap-context
An arg-proc that returns the source location for the innermost stack
frame.  This is a string composed of file name, line and column number
with the format @code{"~a:~a:~a"}, or an empty string if source is not
available for the innermost frame.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/type trap-context
An arg-proc that returns a three letter abbreviation indicating the
type of the current trap: @code{"APP"} for an application frame,
@code{"EVA"} for an evaluation, @code{"RET"} for an exit trap, or
@code{"ERR"} for an error (pseudo-)trap.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/real? trap-context
An arg-proc that returns @code{" "} if the innermost stack frame is a
real frame, or @code{"t"} if it is not.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} trace/info trap-context
An arg-proc that returns a string describing the expression being
evaluated, application being performed, or return value, according to
the current trap type.
@end deffn

@noindent
@code{trace/stack-depth} and @code{trace/stack-real-depth} are identical
to the trap context methods @code{tc:depth} and @code{tc:real-depth}
described before (@pxref{Trap Context}), but renamed here for
convenience.

The default trace layout, as exhibited by the examples of the previous
subsubsubsection, is set by this line of code from the @code{(ice-9 debugging
traps)} module:

@lisp
(set-trace-layout "|~3@@a: ~a\n" trace/stack-real-depth trace/info)
@end lisp

@noindent
If we rerun the first of those examples, but with trace layout
configured to show source location and trap type in addition, the
output looks like this:

@lisp
guile> (set-trace-layout "| ~25a ~3@@a: ~a ~a\n"
                         trace/source
                         trace/stack-real-depth
                         trace/type
                         trace/info)
guile> (rev '(a b c))
| standard input:29:0         2: APP [rev (a b c)]
| standard input:4:21         3: APP [rev (b c)]
| standard input:4:21         4: APP [rev (c)]
| standard input:4:21         5: APP [rev ()]
| standard input:2:9          5: RET =>()
| standard input:4:13         4: RET =>(c)
| standard input:4:13         3: RET =>(c b)
| standard input:4:13         2: RET =>(c b a)
(c b a)
@end lisp


@node Tracing and (ice-9 debug)
@subsubsection Tracing and (ice-9 debug)

The @code{(ice-9 debug)} module provides a tracing facility
(@pxref{Tracing}) that is roughly similar to that described here, but
there are important differences.

@itemize @bullet
@item
The @code{(ice-9 debug)} trace gives a nice pictorial view of changes
in stack depth, by using indentation like this:

@lisp
[fact1 4]
|  [fact1 3]
|  |  [fact1 2]
|  |  |  [fact1 1]
|  |  |  |  [fact1 0]
|  |  |  |  1
|  |  |  1
|  |  2
|  6
24
@end lisp

However its output can @emph{only} show the information seen here,
which corresponds to @code{(ice-9 debugging trace)}'s
@code{trace/info} procedure; it cannot be configured to show other
pieces of information about the trap context in the way that the
@code{(ice-9 debugging trace)} implementation can.

@item
The @code{(ice-9 debug)} trace only allows the tracing of procedure
applications and their return values, whereas the @code{(ice-9 debugging
trace)} implementation allows any kind of trap to be traced.

It's interesting to note that @code{(ice-9 debug)}'s restriction here,
which might initially appear to be just a straightforward consequence
of its implementation, is also somewhat dictated by its pictorial
display.  The use of indentation in the output relies on hooking into
the low level trap calls in such a way that the trapped application
entries and exits exactly balance each other.  The @code{ice-9
debugging trace} implementation allows traps to be installed such that
entry and exit traps don't necessarily balance, which means that, in
general, indentation diagrams like the one above don't work.
@end itemize

It isn't currently possible to use both @code{(ice-9 debug)} trace and
@code{(ice-9 debugging trace)} in the same Guile session, because
their settings of the low level trap options conflict with each other.


@node Traps Installing More Traps
@subsubsection Traps Installing More Traps

Sometimes it is desirable for the behaviour at one trap to install
further traps.  In other words, the behaviour is something like
``Don't do much right now, but set things up to stop after two or
three more steps'', or ``@dots{} when this frame completes''.  This is
absolutely fine.  For example, it is easy to code a generic ``do
so-and-so when the current frame exits'' procedure, which can be used
wherever a trap context is available, as follows.

@lisp
(define (at-exit trap-context behaviour)
  (install-trap (make <exit-trap>
		  #:depth (tc:depth trap-context)
		  #:single-shot #t
		  #:behaviour behaviour)))
@end lisp

To continue and pin down the example, this could then be used as part
of a behaviour whose purpose was to measure the accumulated time spent
in and below a specified procedure.

@lisp
(define calls 0)
(define total 0)

(define accumulate-time
  (lambda (trap-context)
    (set! calls (+ calls 1))
    (let ((entry (current-time)))
      (at-exit trap-context
        (lambda (ignored)
          (set! total
                (+ total (- (current-time)
                            entry))))))))

(install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                #:procedure my-proc
                #:behaviour accumulate-time))
@end lisp


@node Common Trap Options
@subsubsection Common Trap Options

When creating any kind of trap object, settings for the trap being
created are specified as options on the @code{make} call using syntax
like this:

@lisp
(make <@var{trap-class}>
  #:@var{option-keyword} @var{setting}
  @dots{})
@end lisp

The following common options are provided by the base class
@code{<trap>}, and so can be specified for any kind of trap.

@deffn {Class} <trap>
Base class for trap objects.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:condition thunk
If not @code{#f}, this is a thunk which is called when the trap fires,
to determine whether trap processing should proceed any further.  If
the thunk returns @code{#f}, the trap is basically suppressed.
Otherwise processing continues normally.  (Default value @code{#f}.)
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:skip-count count
A count of valid (after @code{#:condition} processing) firings of this
trap to skip.  (Default value 0.)
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:single-shot boolean
If not @code{#f}, this indicates that the trap should be automatically
uninstalled after it has successfully fired (after @code{#:condition}
and @code{#:skip-count} processing) for the first time.  (Default
value @code{#f}.)
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:behaviour behaviour-proc
A trap behaviour procedure --- as discussed in the preceding subsubsection
--- or a list of such procedures, in which case each procedure is
called in turn when the trap fires.  (Default value @code{'()}.)
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:repeat-identical-behaviour boolean
Normally, if multiple trap objects are triggered by the same low level
trap, and they request the same behaviour, it's only actually useful
to do that behaviour once (per low level trap); so by default multiple
requests for the same behaviour are coalesced.  If this option is set
other than @code{#f}, the contents of the @code{#:behaviour} option
are uniquified so that they avoid being coalesced in this way.
(Default value @code{#f}.)
@end deffn


@node Procedure Traps
@subsubsection Procedure Traps

The @code{<procedure-trap>} class implements traps that are triggered
upon application of a specified procedure.  Instances of this class
should use the @code{#:procedure} option to specify the procedure to
trap on.

@deffn {Class} <procedure-trap>
Class for traps triggered by application of a specified procedure.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:procedure procedure
Specifies the procedure to trap on.
@end deffn

@noindent
Example:

@lisp
(install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                #:procedure my-proc
                #:behaviour (list trace-trap
                                  trace-until-exit)))
@end lisp


@node Exit Traps
@subsubsection Exit Traps

The @code{<exit-trap>} class implements traps that are triggered upon
stack frame exit past a specified stack depth.  Instances of this
class should use the @code{#:depth} option to specify the target stack
depth.

@deffn {Class} <exit-trap>
Class for traps triggered by exit past a specified stack depth.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:depth depth
Specifies the reference depth for the trap.
@end deffn

@noindent
Example:

@lisp
(define (trace-at-exit trap-context)
  (install-trap (make <exit-trap>
		  #:depth (tc:depth trap-context)
		  #:single-shot #t
		  #:behaviour trace-trap)))
@end lisp

@noindent
(This is the actual definition of the @code{trace-at-exit} behaviour.)


@node Entry Traps
@subsubsection Entry Traps

The @code{<entry-trap>} class implements traps that are triggered upon
any stack frame entry.  No further parameters are needed to specify an
instance of this class, so there are no class-specific trap options.
Note that it remains possible to use the common trap options
(@pxref{Common Trap Options}), for example to set a trap for the
@var{n}th next frame entry.

@deffn {Class} <entry-trap>
Class for traps triggered by any stack frame entry.
@end deffn

@noindent
Example:

@lisp
(install-trap (make <entry-trap>
        	#:skip-count 5
		#:behaviour gds-debug-trap))
@end lisp


@node Apply Traps
@subsubsection Apply Traps

The @code{<apply-trap>} class implements traps that are triggered upon
any procedure application.  No further parameters are needed to
specify an instance of this class, so there are no class-specific trap
options.  Note that it remains possible to use the common trap options
(@pxref{Common Trap Options}), for example to set a trap for the next
application where some condition is true.

@deffn {Class} <apply-trap>
Class for traps triggered by any procedure application.
@end deffn

@noindent
Example:

@lisp
(install-trap (make <apply-trap>
        	#:condition my-condition
		#:behaviour gds-debug-trap))
@end lisp


@node Step Traps
@subsubsection Step Traps

The @code{<step-trap>} class implements traps that do single-stepping
through a program's execution.  They come in two flavours, with and
without a specified file name.  If a file name is specified, the trap
is triggered by the next evaluation, application or frame exit
pertaining to source code from the specified file.  If a file name is
not specified, the trap is triggered by the next evaluation,
application or frame exit from any file (or for code whose source
location was not recorded), in other words by the next evaluator step
of any kind.

The design goal of the @code{<step-trap>} class is to match what a
user would intuitively think of as single-stepping through their code,
either through code in general (roughly corresponding to GDB's
@code{step} command, for example), or through code from a particular
source file (roughly corresponding to GDB's @code{next}).  Therefore
if you are using a step trap to single-step through code and finding
its behaviour counter-intuitive, please report that so we can improve
it.

The implementation and options of the @code{<step-trap>} class are
complicated by the fact that it is unreliable to determine whether a
low level frame exit trap is applicable to a specified file by
examining the details of the reported frame.  This is a consequence of
tail recursion, which has the effect that many frames can be removed
from the stack at once, with only the outermost frame being reported
by the low level trap call.  The effects of this on the
@code{<step-trap>} class are such as to require the introduction of
the strange-looking @code{#:exit-depth} option, for the following
reasons.

@itemize @bullet
@item
When stopped at the start of an application or evaluation frame, and
it is desired to continue execution until the next ``step'' in the same
source file, that next step could be the start of a nested application
or evaluation frame, or --- if the procedure definition is in a
different file, for example --- it could be the exit from the current
frame.

@item
Because of the effects of tail recursion noted above, the current
frame exit possibility must be expressed as frame exit past a
specified stack depth.  When an instance of the @code{<step-trap>}
class is installed from the context of an application or evaluation
frame entry, the @code{#:exit-depth} option should be used to specify
this stack depth.

@item
When stopped at a frame exit, on the other hand, we know that the next
step must be an application or evaluation frame entry.  In this
context the @code{#:exit-depth} option is not needed and should be
omitted or set to @code{#f}.
@end itemize

@noindent
When a step trap is installed without @code{#:single-shot #t}, such
that it keeps firing, the @code{<step-trap>} code automatically
updates its idea of the @code{#:exit-depth} setting each time, so that
the trap always fires correctly for the following step.

@deffn {Class} <step-trap>
Class for single-stepping traps.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:file-name name
If not @code{#f}, this is a string containing the name of a source
file, and restricts the step trap to evaluation steps within that
source file.  (Default value @code{#f}.)
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:exit-depth depth
If not @code{#f}, this is a positive integer implying that the next
step may be frame exit past the stack depth @var{depth}.  See the
discussion above for more details.  (Default value @code{#f}.)
@end deffn

@noindent
Example:

@lisp
(install-trap (make <step-trap>
                #:file-name (frame-file-name
                              (stack-ref stack index))
                #:exit-depth (- (stack-length stack)
                                (stack-ref stack index))
                #:single-shot #t
                #:behaviour debug-trap))
@end lisp


@node Source Traps
@subsubsection Source Traps

The @code{<source-trap>} class implements traps that are attached to a
precise source code expression, as read by the reader, and which fire
each time that that expression is evaluated.  These traps use a low
level Guile feature which can mark individual expressions for
trapping, and are relatively efficient.  But it can be tricky to get
at the source expression in the first place, and these traps are
liable to become irrelevant if the procedure containing the expression
is reevaluated; these issues are discussed further below.

@deffn {Class} <source-trap>
Class for traps triggered by evaluation of a specific Scheme
expression.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:expression expr
Specifies the Scheme expression to trap on.
@end deffn

@noindent
Example:

@lisp
(display "Enter an expression: ")
(let ((x (read)))
  (install-trap (make <source-trap>
                  #:expression x
                  #:behaviour (list trace-trap
                                    trace-at-exit)))
  (primitive-eval x))
@print{}
Enter an expression: (+ 1 2 3 4 5 6)
|  3: (+ 1 2 3 4 5 6)
|  3: =>21
21
@end lisp

The key point here is that the expression specified by the
@code{#:expression} option must be @emph{exactly} (i.e. @code{eq?} to)
what is going to be evaluated later.  It doesn't work, for example, to
say @code{#:expression '(+ x 3)}, with the expectation that the trap
will fire whenever evaluating any expression @code{(+ x 3)}.

The @code{trap-here} macro can be used in source code to create and
install a source trap correctly.  Take for example the factorial
function defined in the @code{(ice-9 debugging example-fns)} module:

@lisp
(define (fact1 n)
  (if (= n 0)
      1
      (* n (fact1 (- n 1)))))
@end lisp

@noindent
To set a source trap on a particular expression --- let's say the
expression @code{(= n 0)} --- edit the code so that the expression is
enclosed in a @code{trap-here} macro call like this:

@lisp
(define (fact1 n)
  (if (trap-here (= n 0) #:behaviour debug-trap)
      1
      (* n (fact1 (- n 1)))))
@end lisp

@deffn {Macro} trap-here expression . trap-options
Install a source trap with options @var{trap-options} on
@var{expression}, then return with the whole call transformed to
@code{(begin @var{expression})}.
@end deffn

Note that if the @code{trap-here} incantation is removed, and
@code{fact1} then redefined by reloading its source file, the effect
of the source trap is lost, because the text ``(= n 0)'' is read again
from scratch and becomes a new expression @code{(= n 0)} which does
not have the ``trap here'' mark on it.

If the semantics and setting of source traps seem unwieldy, location
traps may meet your need more closely; these are described in the
following subsubsection.


@node Location Traps
@subsubsection Location Traps

The @code{<location-trap>} class implements traps that are triggered
by evaluation of code at a specific source location.  When compared
with source traps, they are easier to set, and do not become
irrelevant when the relevant code is reloaded; but unfortunately they
are a lot less efficient, as they require running some ``are we in the
right place for a trap'' code on every low level frame entry trap
call.

@deffn {Class} <location-trap>
Class for traps triggered by evaluation of code at a specific source
location.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:file-regexp regexp
A regular expression specifying the filenames that will match this
trap.  This option must be specified when creating a location trap.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:line line
The line number (0-based) of the source location at which the trap
should be triggered.  This option must be specified when creating a
location trap.
@end deffn

@deffn {Trap Option} #:column column
The column number (0-based) of the source location at which the trap
should be triggered.  This option must be specified when creating a
location trap.
@end deffn

@noindent
Here is an example, which matches the @code{(facti (- n 1) (* a n))}
expression in @file{ice-9/debugging/example-fns.scm}:

@lisp
(install-trap (make <location-trap>
                #:file-regexp "example-fns.scm"
                #:line 11
                #:column 6
                #:behaviour gds-debug-trap))
@end lisp


@node Trap Shorthands
@subsubsection Trap Shorthands

If the code described in the preceding subsubsections for creating and
manipulating traps seems a little long-winded, it is of course
possible to define more convenient shorthand forms for typical usage
patterns.  Here are some examples.

@lisp
(define (break! proc)
  (install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                  #:procedure proc
                  #:behaviour gds-debug-trap)))

(define (trace! proc)
  (install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                  #:procedure proc
                  #:behaviour (list trace-trap
                                    trace-at-exit))))

(define (trace-subtree! proc)
  (install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                  #:procedure proc
                  #:behaviour (list trace-trap
                                    trace-until-exit))))
@end lisp

Definitions like these are not provided out-of-the-box by Guile,
because different users will have different ideas about what their
default debugger should be, or, for example, which of the common trap
options (@pxref{Common Trap Options}) it might be useful to expose
through such shorthand procedures.


@node Trap Utilities
@subsubsection Trap Utilities

@code{list-traps} can be used to print a description of all known trap
objects.  This uses a weak value hash table, keyed by a trap index
number.  Each trap object has its index number assigned, and is added
to the hash table, when it is created by a @code{make @var{trap-class}
@dots{}} call.  When a trap object is GC'd, it is automatically
removed from the hash table, and so no longer appears in the output
from @code{list-traps}.

@deffn {Variable} all-traps
Weak value hash table containing all known trap objects.
@end deffn

@deffn {Procedure} list-traps
Print a description of all known trap objects.
@end deffn

The following example shows a single trap that traces applications of
the procedure @code{facti}.

@lisp
guile> (list-traps)
#<<procedure-trap> 100d2e30> is an instance of class <procedure-trap>
Slots are:
     number = 1
     installed = #t
     condition = #f
     skip-count = 0
     single-shot = #f
     behaviour = (#<procedure trace-trap (trap-context)>)
     repeat-identical-behaviour = #f
     procedure = #<procedure facti (n a)>
@end lisp

When @code{all-traps} or @code{list-traps} reveals a trap that you
want to modify but no longer have a reference to, you can retrieve the
trap object by calling @code{get-trap} with the trap's number.  For
example, here's how you could change the behaviour of the trap listed
just above.

@lisp
(slot-set! (get-trap 1) 'behaviour (list debug-trap))
@end lisp

@deffn {Procedure} get-trap number
Return the trap object with the specified @var{number}, or @code{#f}
if there isn't one.
@end deffn


@node Debugging Examples
@subsection Debugging Examples

Here we present some examples of what you can do with the debugging
facilities just described.

@menu
* Single Stepping through a Procedure's Code::
* Profiling or Tracing a Procedure's Code::
@end menu


@node Single Stepping through a Procedure's Code
@subsubsection Single Stepping through a Procedure's Code

A good way to explore in detail what a Scheme procedure does is to set
a trap on it and then single step through what it does.  To do this,
make and install a @code{<procedure-trap>} with the @code{debug-trap}
behaviour from @code{(ice-9 debugger)}.

The following sample session illustrates this.  It assumes that the
file @file{matrix.scm} defines a procedure @code{mkmatrix}, which is
the one we want to explore, and another procedure @code{do-main} which
calls @code{mkmatrix}.

@lisp
$ /usr/bin/guile -q
guile> (use-modules (ice-9 debugger)
                    (ice-9 debugging traps))
guile> (load "matrix.scm")
guile> (install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                       #:procedure mkmatrix
                       #:behaviour debug-trap))
guile> (do-main 4)
This is the Guile debugger -- for help, type `help'.
There are 3 frames on the stack.

Frame 2 at matrix.scm:8:3
        [mkmatrix]
debug> next
Frame 3 at matrix.scm:4:3
        (let ((x 1)) (quote hi!))
debug> info frame
Stack frame: 3
This frame is an evaluation.
The expression being evaluated is:
matrix.scm:4:3:
  (let ((x 1)) (quote hi!))
debug> next
Frame 3 at matrix.scm:5:21
        (quote hi!)
debug> bt
In unknown file:
   ?: 0* [primitive-eval (do-main 4)]
In standard input:
   4: 1* [do-main 4]
In matrix.scm:
   8: 2  [mkmatrix]
   ...
   5: 3  (quote hi!)
debug> quit
hi!
guile> 
@end lisp

Or you can use Guile's Emacs interface (GDS), by using the module
@code{(ice-9 gds-client)} instead of @code{(ice-9 debugger)} and
changing @code{debug-trap} to @code{gds-debug-trap}.  Then the stack and
corresponding source locations are displayed in Emacs instead of on the
Guile command line.


@node Profiling or Tracing a Procedure's Code
@subsubsection Profiling or Tracing a Procedure's Code

What if you wanted to get a trace of everything that the Guile
evaluator does within a given procedure, but without Guile stopping
and waiting for your input at every step?  For this requirement you
can install a trap on the procedure, as in the previous example, but
instead of @code{debug-trap} or @code{gds-debug-trap}, use the
@code{trace-trap} and @code{trace-until-exit} behaviours provided by
the @code{(ice-9 debugging trace)} module.

@lisp
guile> (use-modules (ice-9 debugging traps) (ice-9 debugging trace))
guile> (load "matrix.scm")
guile> (install-trap (make <procedure-trap>
                       #:procedure mkmatrix
                       #:behaviour (list trace-trap trace-until-exit)))
guile> (do-main 4)
|  2: [mkmatrix]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> define #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> define #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq define (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> define #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> define #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq define (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq let (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq let (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq let (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  2: (letrec ((yy 23)) (let ((x 1)) (quote hi!)))
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq let (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq let (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq let (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  2: (let ((x 1)) (quote hi!))
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  3: [#<procedure #f (a sym definep)> #<autoload # b7c93870> let #f]
|  4: (and (memq sym bindings) (let ...))
|  5: (memq sym bindings)
|  5: [memq let (debug)]
|  5: =>#f
|  2: [let (let # #) (# # #)]
|  2: [let (let # #) (# # #)]
|  2: =>(#@@let* (x 1) #@@let (quote hi!))
hi!
guile> (do-main 4)
|  2: [mkmatrix]
|  2: (letrec ((yy 23)) (let* ((x 1)) (quote hi!)))
|  2: (let* ((x 1)) (quote hi!))
|  2: (quote hi!)
|  2: =>hi!
hi!
guile> 
@end lisp

This example shows the default configuration for how each line of trace
output is formatted, which is:

@itemize
@item
the character @code{|}, a visual clue that the line is a line of trace
output, followed by

@item
a number indicating the real evaluator stack depth (where ``real'' means
not counting tail-calls), followed by

@item
a summary of the expression being evaluated (@code{(@dots{})}), the
procedure being called (@code{[@dots{}]}), or the value being returned
from an evaluation or procedure call (@code{=>@dots{}}).
@end itemize

@noindent
You can customize @code{(ice-9 debugging trace)} to show different
information in each trace line using the @code{set-trace-layout}
procedure.  The next example shows how to get the source location in
each trace line instead of the stack depth.

@lisp
guile> (set-trace-layout "|~16@@a: ~a\n" trace/source trace/info)
guile> (do-main 4)
|  matrix.scm:7:2: [mkmatrix]
|                : (letrec ((yy 23)) (let* ((x 1)) (quote hi!)))
|  matrix.scm:3:2: (let* ((x 1)) (quote hi!))
|  matrix.scm:4:4: (quote hi!)
|  matrix.scm:4:4: =>hi!
hi!
guile> 
@end lisp

@c Local Variables:
@c TeX-master: "guile.texi"
@c End: