What problem does it solve?
Node.js failures are hard to diagnose when console.log is too shallow, so breakpoints and paused-state inspection are needed to understand the real control flow and values at the moment things go wrong.
Core Features & Use Cases
- Interactive breakpoint debugging (node inspect): Step through code, set/clear breakpoints, inspect call stacks, and evaluate expressions in the paused frame to pinpoint the exact moment and value that caused the issue.
- Programmatic CDP automation (chrome-remote-interface): Script breakpoints and gather scope/local/closure state automatically for repeatable investigations and non-interactive debugging workflows.
- Debugging real runtimes (including inspector attach): Attach to running Node processes, debug Ink/tsx-based UIs, and pause execution in the right worker to inspect state that may not be observable via logs.
Use case example: a Vitest test or TUI render crashes intermittently, and you need to pause execution on a specific file/line to inspect React/Ink props, hooks state, and async timing issues rather than guessing from logs.
Quick Start
Start your debug session by running node with the inspector paused on entry for your target, then attach and set a breakpoint at the suspicious file and line.
