Add daily email for 2024-04-30

Stepping back into debugging

source/_daily_emails/2024-04-30.md

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+---
+title: Stepping back into debugging
+date: 2024-04-30
+permalink: archive/2024/04/30/stepping-back-into-debugging
+tags:
+    - software-development
+    - php
+cta: ~
+snippet: |
+    This week, I've set up Xdebug on a new project to help with some complicated debugging.
+---
+
+In PHP, we have functions like `var_dump()`, `dump()` and `dd()` that are used to debug code and print output to the screen.
+
+In Drupal, we have functions like `dpm()` and `kint()`, too.
+
+These functions are great for simple debugging but sometimes I need more, which is when I reach for a step debugger - namely, Xdebug.
+
+This is common when working in complex legacy code, where you need to be able to see a breakpoint and step through the code to see what path it takes and what the state is at each step.
+
+## Enter Xdebug
+
+Xdebug is a tool I use fairly often and something I have configured on an individual project basis.
+
+This week, I spent some time adding it to a new project and ensured my notes and documentation still worked.
+
+I use Docker and Docker Compose on Linux, so there are slight changes compared to running PHP natively, so I wanted to make sure it still works.
+
+I've added my latest setup to my [Drupal Docker Example repository][repo] and plan to add it to my standard [Build Configs] setup for Drupal projects.
+
+If you use Docker Compose on Linux, it may be useful for you.
+
+If you haven't tried Xdebug before, I suggest giving it a try and see if improves your debugging.
+
+[build configs]: {{site.url}}/build-configs
+[repo]: https://github.com/opdavies/docker-example-drupal