Visual Studio Code Debugger not launching - visual-studio-code

Question

OS and Version: Windows 10 Build 19042.985
VS Code Version: 1.56.2
C/C++ Extension Version: v1.4.0-insiders
other extensions: remote-ssh
I've been working with remote-ssh on a raspberry and c/c++ extension without any issue, all of a sudden I cannot start the debugger. Nothing changed, configuration files are the same as before but now when I start the debugger, I see for a couple of seconds the top debugging bar and then it disappears. No message on the console, nothing.
For this purpose, I created a simple project from scratch, and even there, the same issue appears.
To Reproduce
launch.json
{
"version": "0.2.0",
"configurations": [
{
"name": "(gdb) Launch",
"type": "cppdbg",
"request": "launch",
"program": "${workspaceFolder}/a.out",
"args": [],
"stopAtEntry": false,
"cwd": "${workspaceFolder}",
"environment": [],
"logging": { "engineLogging": true },
"externalConsole": true,
"MIMode": "gdb",
"miDebuggerPath": "/usr/bin/gdb",
"setupCommands": [
{
"description": "Enable pretty-printing for gdb",
"text": "-enable-pretty-printing",
"ignoreFailures": false
}
]
}
]
}
main.c
#include <stdio.h>
int main(){
printf("ciao\n");
return 1;
}
Compile with gcc -g main.c
As I stated before, this workflow worked for me, from one second to another it stopped working as intended and I have no idea why and how to fix it, any help is appreciated.
What I tried
reinstall vscode
reinstall the c/c++ extension and delete by hand the extension folder
numerous reboots
Updates
I have tried with the wsl-remote extension and it is working as expected.ù
Tried to uninstall gdb from host and launch the debug session, the message "gdb" not found does not even appear as it should

Answer 1

I was in similar situation and couldn't find relevant resolutions:
Quick Answer:
After upgrade to VS Code 1.56.2, make sure to remove old breakpoints and create new breakpoint and at-least have 1 breakpoint and launch.json available.
Lengthy details:
I have similar issue for python scripts when I start the "debugger bar" I see it for a couple of seconds the top debugging bar and then it disappears. Bu then no message on the console, nothing. I tried reinstalling VS Code, enabling/disabling extension, various restart.
OS and Version: Mac OSX Version 11.4 (20F71)
VS Code Version: 1.56.2
Extension: Python v2021.5.842923320 by Microsoft
RootCause:
What I did know for sure that I updated my VS Code, and after that this mysterious issue start happening, so when to release log of VS Code 1.56.2. I found below release log
Debug view displayed on break#
The default value of the debug.openDebug setting is now
openOnDebugBreak so that on every breakpoint hit, VS Code will open
the Debug view. The Debug view is also displayed on first session
start.
So VS code Version 1.56 release, debugger will only show when at-least 1 breakpoint is found. However, looks like there is issue with their internal code checking for historical breakpoint data after VS Code upgrade..
https://code.visualstudio.com/updates/v1_56#_debug-view-displayed-on-break

Answer 2

I had this same issue in python. The fix for python was changing to a valid interpreter due to a python library not being installed. Make sure that the interpreter is correct and then try again.

Answer 3

This may be caused by a faulty installation of the VS Code C/C++ extension. When launching VS Code, if the message "Unable to start the C/C++ language server. IntelliSense features will be disabled" appears, this is probably the cause. Was able to fix the installation in this case by installing a previous version of the C/C++ extension as per this answer.

Answer 4

I had the same problem (though the debug bar would show up for a second and then disappear). I was using a conda env with python 3.6. I updated to 3.8, with the same dependencies, and it started working.