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symbolicate-crash-dump

Symbolicate native VS Code crash dumps into readable backtraces using electron-minidump.

190k|41.9k|Updated Sep 3, 2015
Search Tags:#symbolication#VSCode#backtrace#crash dump#native debugging#breakpad#electron-minidump
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/microsoft/vscode --skill symbolicate-crash-dump
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent▼
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: symbolicate-crash-dump
Source: https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/tree/main/.github/skills/symbolicate-crash-dump
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/microsoft/vscode --skill symbolicate-crash-dump

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

💡 This Skill requires electron-minidump.

What problem does it solve?

Native VS Code crash dumps (.dmp) contain raw memory addresses and module names but no human-readable method names, making root-cause analysis nearly impossible without proper symbol files. This Skill walks through the full symbolication workflow so engineers can turn an opaque dump into an actionable backtrace.

Core Features & Use Cases

  • Multi-source symbol resolution: Pulls symbols from public electron/electron releases for Code - OSS builds, and from the private microsoft/vscode-electron-prebuilt repo for Insiders/Stable builds.
  • Cache-aware symbol matching: Copies .sym files into the electron-minidump breakpad cache using exact debug-id matching, with retry logic for transient download failures.
  • Crash attribution guidance: Identifies the crashing module (VS Code, Electron, or third-party DLL) and process type (main, renderer, GPU, extension host) from dump strings.
  • Use Case: A user reports VS Code crashing repeatedly on Windows. You grab the .dmp from the crash reporter directory, symbolicate it against the matching Insiders symbol zip, and discover the top frame is in a third-party antivirus DLL injected into the extension host process — confirming the crash is environmental, not a VS Code bug.

Quick Start

Symbolicate the crash dump at /tmp/crash.dmp and tell me which module and process caused the crash.

Frequently Asked Questions about symbolicate-crash-dump

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I symbolicate a VS Code crash dump on macOS or Linux?▼

Install electron-minidump globally with npm, run it against the .dmp file, then copy matching .sym files from the appropriate symbol zip into the breakpad_symbols cache directory. Re-run electron-minidump to produce a backtrace with method names attached.

Where do I get symbol files for VS Code Insiders and Stable builds?▼

Download them from the private microsoft/vscode-electron-prebuilt releases repo using an authenticated GitHub CLI. Pick the zip matching the Electron version, quality (insiders/stable), platform, and architecture of the crashed build.

Why are some frames still missing method names after symbolication?▼

Breakpad matches symbols by exact debug-id, so a same-version zip from a different pipeline run will not work. Third-party modules, runtime.node, and OS DLLs typically have no public symbols at all, so attribute those crashes by module name instead.

Can I symbolicate VS Code crash dumps on Windows?▼

No. electron-minidump does not run on Windows. For remote extension host crashes on Linux, use gdb with the core dump instead of electron-minidump.

How do I tell if a crash is in the extension host or main process?▼

Grep the dump strings for utility-sub-type or --type markers. node.mojom.NodeService indicates the extension host, --type=renderer is a workbench window, --type=gpu-process is the GPU process, and no --type flag means the main process.

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