Systematic Debugging Protocol

A disciplined, evidence-based approach to debugging that prevents guessing and ensures root cause discovery.

The 4-Phase Protocol

Phase 1: REPRODUCE (Establish Ground Truth)

Goal: Create reliable reproduction steps before ANY investigation.

Actions:

1. Document exact steps to trigger the bug
2. Record environment specifics (OS, versions, config, memory, network)
3. Determine frequency: Always? Sometimes? Specific conditions?
4. Capture exact error messages, stack traces, screenshots
5. Test on different environments to isolate variables

Key Questions: