debug

Systematic Debugging

Iron Law: NO FIXES WITHOUT ROOT CAUSE INVESTIGATION FIRST.

Phase 1: Reproduce & Isolate

• Reproduce the failure reliably before anything else
• Isolate the smallest failing case
• If you can't reproduce it, you can't fix it
• Record the exact command, input, and output that demonstrates the failure

Phase 2: Gather Evidence

Before forming hypotheses, collect facts:

• Read the actual code path from input to failure point. Don't guess from memory.
• Check recent changes: git log --oneline -10 -- <file>
• Add temporary logging or assertions at key points to trace data flow
• Collect the full error message, stack trace, and relevant log output
• If a stack trace exists, trace backward through the call chain to the origin

Known bug patterns — check these first:

Pattern	Signature
Race condition	Intermittent failure, timing-dependent, works in debugger
Nil/null propagation	undefined is not a function, NoMethodError, NoneType
State corruption	Works first time, fails on second; stale data after mutation
Integration failure	Works in isolation, fails with real dependency (DB, API, queue)
Configuration drift	Works locally, fails in CI/staging; env var mismatch
Stale cache	Old behavior persists after code change; hard refresh fixes it
Off-by-one / boundary	Fails at 0, 1, max, or empty input; pagination edge cases

If the bug matches a known pattern, state which one and focus investigation there.

Phase 3: Hypothesize & Test

• Form a specific hypothesis: "The root cause is X because evidence Y"
• Predict the outcome BEFORE running each test
• Test one variable at a time
• If your prediction is wrong, update your mental model — don't just try the next thing

"5 Whys" drill-down — when the cause isn't obvious, ask why iteratively:

1. Why did the request fail? → The handler returned null
2. Why did it return null? → The query returned no rows
3. Why did the query return no rows? → The ID was from a different tenant
4. Why was the ID from a different tenant? → The session wasn't scoped to tenant
5. Why wasn't the session scoped? → Root cause: middleware ordering

Keep asking why until you reach something you can fix directly.

Phase 4: Fix & Verify

1. Write a regression test that fails without the fix and passes with it. This is not optional.
2. Fix the root cause, not the symptom
3. Keep the diff minimal — only change what's needed to fix the bug
4. Run the original failing test to confirm the fix
5. Run the full test suite to check for regressions

Three-Strikes Rule

If 3 hypotheses have failed, STOP. You are likely wrong about the root cause.

• Go back to Phase 2 and re-read the code path from scratch
• Question your assumptions about the architecture
• Use AskUserQuestion to escalate: describe what you've tried, what you've ruled out, and where you're stuck
• Optionally WebSearch for the error message or pattern — someone may have hit this before

Escalation is not failure. Bad work is worse than no work. Stop guessing.

Red Flags

If you catch yourself thinking any of these, STOP:

• "Let me just try..." — You're guessing, not tracing.
• "Maybe if I..." — Form a hypothesis and predict the outcome first.
• "This might work..." — Why would it work? What's your evidence?
• "It's probably this..." — Probably based on what? State the evidence.

Anti-Rationalization Table

Excuse	Reality
"Let me try a quick fix first"	Quick fixes without root cause analysis create new bugs.
"I know what the problem is"	Then state your hypothesis and predict the test outcome.
"It works now after my change"	Correlation is not causation. Verify your fix addresses the root cause.
"The test is flaky, not my code"	Reproduce it 3 times. If it fails 2/3, it's your code.
"I'll add better error handling"	Error handling hides bugs. Fix the cause, not the symptom.

Debug Report

After resolution, output a structured report:

═══════════════════════════════════════════
DEBUG REPORT
═══════════════════════════════════════════
Status: DONE / DONE_WITH_CONCERNS / BLOCKED
Symptom: [what was observed]
Root Cause: [what was actually wrong]
Pattern: [known pattern match, if any]
Fix: [what was changed and why]
Regression Test: [test name and what it verifies]
Evidence: [how you confirmed the fix addresses the root cause]
Hypotheses Tested: N (list failed ones if >1)
═══════════════════════════════════════════

• DONE — Root cause identified, fix applied, regression test passes, full suite green
• DONE_WITH_CONCERNS — Fixed, but related issues discovered. Note them for follow-up.
• BLOCKED — Cannot resolve. Document what was tried and what's needed to proceed.

If the root cause was non-obvious, save debugging insights to auto-memory.

Evolved from obra/superpowers systematic-debugging skill with patterns from garrytan/gstack and community best practices.