Debugging Microflows Remotely

Last modified: November 29, 2023

1 Introduction

In addition to debugging a local deployment of your app, it is also possible to debug applications that are already in a cloud environment.

This how-to teaches you how to do the following:

  • Connect the debugger in Studio Pro to your Mendix Cloud environment

2 Prerequisites

Before starting this how-to, make sure you have completed the following prerequisites:

  • Have access as a team member to a Mendix app deployed to a licensed Mendix Cloud environment
  • Have TRANSPORT RIGHTS to the app environment you want to debug in the app’s node permissions

3 The Basics

In the Mendix Cloud, the debugger is always listening for connections so you cannot turn it on or off. To debug your app in the cloud, you need to get a URL and a password from the app environment and provide that information to Studio Pro. The steps below explain how to do this.

3.1 Obtain Debugging Credentials

3.1.1 Obtain Debugging Credentials from Mendix Cloud

When your application is in Mendix Cloud, follow these steps:

  1. Open your app in the Developer Portal.

  2. Click Environments in the navigation pane.

  3. In the Deploy tab, click Details for the environment that you want to debug:

  4. In the General tab, click Show Debugger Information:

    This invokes the Debugger settings pop-up window, which provides a URL (such as http://yourapp.mendixcloud.com/debugger/) and a password:

You will need to provide these credentials to Studio Pro to connect the debugger to the app running in the cloud.

3.1.2 Obtain Debugging Credentials from Private Cloud Connected

If your application is on a connected Private Cloud, you can get the credentials from the Developer Portal:

  1. Open your app in the Developer Portal.

  2. Click Environments in the navigation pane.

  3. Click Details for the environment that you want to debug.

  4. Open the Debugger tab.

  5. If the debugger is disabled, click Enable Debugger. You will be asked to confirm the generated strong password. Mendix recommends not changing this password.

    Enter password for the private cloud debugger

    You will receive a warning that you have made some changes. Click Apply Changes to restart the app and apply the changes.

Once the debugger is enabled, you will see the URL and Password which are the credentials you need to supply to Studio Pro. Use the Copy to clipboard links to simplify providing the credentials.

When the debugger is enabled, you can click Disable Debugger to disable it. You will be asked to confirm your choice and will receive a warning that you have made some changes. Click Apply Changes to restart the app and apply the changes.

3.1.3 Obtain Debugging Credentials from SAP S/4 HANA Cloud

If your application is on the SAP S/4 HANA cloud, you will need to set the password in the SAP Cockpit:

  1. Log in to the SAP Cockpit and go to your application’s settings page.

  2. Go to your application > User-Provided Variables.

  3. Click on the button ‘Add variable’ and add ‘DEBUGGER_PASSWORD’ and the password. Both are case-sensitive.

    SAP Cockpit showing user-provided variables
  4. Restart your application.

3.1.4 Obtain Debugging Credentials from Windows Mendix Service Console

If your application is deployed to a Microsoft Windows environment, you will need to obtain the password from the Windows Mendix Service Console

  1. Start your app.

  2. Go to the Advanced menu of the Windows Mendix Service Console.

  3. Select Enable debugging and copy the password which is displayed in the popup.

The debugger is available at {appURL}/debugger/ using the default runtime server port.

If you are debugging your app running behind IIS, make sure the debugger path is forwarded to the right runtime location as described in the Reverse Proxy Inbound Rules section of Microsoft Windows – deploy.

3.2 How to Enable Cloud Debugging in Studio Pro

Once you have the unique URL and password, there are two methods for connecting Studio Pro to the cloud environment.

  1. Open the Connect Debugger dialog box – you can do this in two ways within Studio Pro:

    • Go to the Run menu and select Connect Debugger…:

    • Click Connect… in the Debugger pane:

  2. In the Connect Debugger dialog box set the following:

    • Connect to – select the option An app running in the Mendix Cloud or on another remote server.

    • URL – the URL from the Debugger Settings for your app environment

    • Password – the Password from the Debugger Settings for your app environment

  3. Click OK.

The debugger is now connected to your app running in the cloud.

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