ReSharper 2023.3 Help

Visual helpers for debugger

With ReSharper, you can improve your debugging experience in the editor.

Inline values

When you suspend execution while debugging your C#, VB.NET, or C++ code, you can see the values of local variables, current line expressions, and function returns right in the editor, next to the corresponding code lines.

This feature provides immediate feedback during debugging sessions, which means that often you don’t even have to consult the Watches or Autos tool windows.

Inline values are enabled by default, but you can configure, which kinds of values should be displayed using the Tools | Debugger page of ReSharper options (Alt+R, O) .

ReSharper: inline values

ReSharper understands the [DebuggerDisplayAttribute], which means that values of types, properties, and fields marked with this attribute will be displayed accordingly in the editor adornments.

ReSharper: inline values

ReSharper is careful to evaluate only those expressions that do not have side effects. At the moment, expression evaluation is limited to references, constants, member access, and built-in subscript operators. Subscript operators of std::vector and std::array are also evaluated as an exception.

Note that ReSharper calculates inline values using the Visual Studio debugger engine to evaluate expressions, which means that Natvis files with user-provided visualization rules are automatically supported.

Intermediate results in LINQ expressions

When you debug LINQ expression chains, ReSharper can add editor adornments for individual method calls that are separated by a new line. To study objects returned by each method, click the adornment and expand the object tree in the tooltip that opens.

ReSharper: Debugging intermediate results in a LINQ expression

This feature is disabled by default. To enable it, select Show LINQ expression values on the Tools | Debugger page of ReSharper options (Alt+R, O) .

Searchable DataTips

ReSharper can optionally replace the Visual Studio DataTips with its own DataTips, which have a number of distinctions:

  • You can search for specific values in the current suspended-execution context. To do so, just start typing when the focus is in the DataTip. Note that the search will only find values in expanded nodes.

  • The DataTip disappears not when you remove the mouse pointer, but when you click anywhere outside the DataTip.

  • If a type neither has a meaningful ToString() override nor is it annotated with the [DebuggerDisplay] attribute, then the presentation of objects of this type in debugger views could be quite uninformative. In ReSharper DataTips, you can customize presentation of such objects on-the-fly. To do so, expand the type in the DataTip, right-click the desired data members and choose Highlight Property:

    ReSharper DataTips: Revealing values for debugged objects

To use ReSharper DataTips instead of Visual Studio DataTips, enable the corresponding option on the Tools | Debugger page of ReSharper options (Alt+R, O) .

This feature is supported in the following languages and technologies:

Language: C#

Language: VB.NET

Language: C++

Language: HTML

Language: ASP.NET

Language: Razor

Language: JavaScript

Language: TypeScript

Language: CSS

Language: XML

Language: XAML

Language: Resx

Language: Build Scripts

Language: Protobuf

Language: JSON

Feature is available in C#

Feature is available in Visual Basic

Feature is available in C++

Feature is not available in HTML

Feature is not available in ASP.NET

Feature is not available in Razor

Feature is not available in JavaScript

Feature is not available in TypeScript

Feature is not available in CSS

Feature is not available in XML

Feature is not available in XAML

Feature is not available in Resource files

Feature is not available in build script files

Feature is not available in Protobuf

Feature is not available in JSON

The instructions and examples given here address the use of the feature in C#. For more information about other languages, refer to corresponding topics in the ReSharper by language section.

Last modified: 18 March 2024