Local and remote debugging (Server-side JavaScript debug adapter)

With the debugger's client/server design, you can debug programs that are running on WebSphere^® Application Server on a remote machine or on your workstation. If you debug a program running on your workstation, you are performing local debugging. If you debug a program running on a system accessible through a network connection, you are performing remote debugging.

With remote debugging, you can run the application on one system and control it from your workstation. The local system runs the debugger user interface, and the remote system runs both the debug engine and your program. To be able to debug remotely, you need access to the remote machine where the program files you are debugging reside. Source files used to compile the program files can be located on the remote machine or the local system. The debug engine is controlled through the Bean Scripting Framework (BSF) running on the application server. Whether on a local or remote system, when you start the application server (enabled for debugging), the BSF debug manager begins listening for a connection. The connection is made when you launch a debug session and attach to the JVM and BSF port.

When debugging remotely, you might need to configure a rule for or turn off your personal firewall. Some corporations have firewalls that might not allow you to connect to an offsite machine. To determine if there are any actions you can take to connect to the remote machine, contact your site administrator

Why Use Remote Debugging?

Remote debugging can prove useful in any number of situations, such as:

The program you are debugging might be running on another system and might behave differently on that system than on your own. You can use the remote debug feature to debug this program on the (other) remote system from your local system. The user on the system running that program interacts with the program as usual (except where breakpoints or step commands introduce delays), and you are able to control the program and observe the remote program's internal behavior from your local system. Remote debugging looks and acts like local debugging, except for possible network delays.
You might want to debug a program that uses graphics or has a graphical user interface (GUI). It is easier to debug an application that uses graphics or has a GUI when you keep the debugger user interface (UI) separate from the UI of the application itself. Your interaction (or another user's interaction) with the application occurs on the remote system, while your interaction with the debugger occurs on the local system.