With xdebug you can set breakpoints in your code, see all defined variable and even change them while running the code.

1. Xdebug Phpstorm Cli
2. Chrome Xdebug Helper Phpstorm
3. Phpstorm Setup Xdebug
4. Phpstorm Xdebug Vagrant

To start we need to download the latest Xdebug version from http://xdebug.org/download.php. You have to choose the right version for your installed php version. If you’re using a newer XAMPP version you should already have this file installed under C:xamppphpextphp_xdebug.dll.

Configure xDebug with phpStrome. This will cover the following things, Configure xDebug with PHPStrome Configure Xdebug with PHP ini file: -. Change Dockerfile. Comment Xdebug 3 setting lines adn uncomment Xdebug 2 setting lines. Start again from point 3. ###PhpStorm doesn't see connection. Restart terminal. Check Xdebug in PhpStorm Setting. Disable a firewall and check again. If work, enable the firewall again, and add a rule to allow connection PhpStorm in your. Xdebug is an extension for debugging your PHP. The following explains how to configure Xdebug and PhpStorm to debug in your local environment. You can use the IDE of your choice. See the vendor documentation for those applications for further configuration information. I use 'Wait for Xdebug connection with ide key' (key=phpstorm) and also configured xdebug.idekey='phpstorm' in php.ini. PhpStorm does not detect any breakpoints. Using 'Open web page in browser. Xdebug helper - Chrome Web Store - Google Chrome, A must have for everyone thats debugging, profiling and tracing PHP code with Xdebug.

Now that we’ve installed the Xdebug extension we need to configure it to work with our Php and Phpstorm installation. First let’s configure the our Php installation. For this we need to open our php.ini file (C:xamppphpphp.ini)

At the bottom of the file you should see the following commented section for the configuration of Xdebug.

We now need to replace this section with the following code:

Now we need a browser extension to enable the debug mode. For this we can use Xdebug helper from the Chrome Web Store. For now just install the extension.

We can now open our PhpStorm project and enable the debugging mode in “Run”, “Start Listening for PHP Debug Connections”. It’s also a good idea to activate “Break at first line of PHP scripts”. This will stop at every request even if you don’t set a breakpoint.

Now add a breakpoint in your code which you want to debug. You can do this by clicking on the right of the line number. There should appear a red circle at the line which you clicked.

Now open the local website you want to debug and enable the debugging mode in the right corner of the address bar by clicking on debug in the dropdown.

If you now reload the website you should get a new dialog in your PhpStorm window.

Here we have to select the file in which the request starts. In this case it is the index.php in the api directory.

You can now view all the defined variables in your scope with the global variables like $_SERVER, $_COOKIE, $_GET and more. You can also set additional breakpoints, change the value by double clicking on a variable and go step by step through the request.

More information about the configuration is available here:
http://confluence.jetbrains.com/display/PhpStorm/Xdebug+Installation+Guide
https://www.jetbrains.com/phpstorm/quickstart/debugger.html

August 11, 2016Yann Jacquot6 min read

Warning: this article concerns php5 version. If your PHP version is different, replace php5 by php/X.Y in paths (X.Y is your PHP version) and phpX.Y in command. For example :

• sudo apt-get install php5-xdebug becomes sudo apt-get install php5.6-xdebug
• /etc/php5/mods-available/xdebug.ini becomes /etc/php/5.6/mods-available/xdebug.ini

I love debuggers. They allow me to understand deep down in my code why something doesn't work, and are even more useful when I work on legacy projects.
When I work on the client side, the browser already provides me all the tools I need to dig deeper than some console.log() scattered semi-randomly in the source code.
However, I struggled to configure my workspace when I worked on a PHP Symfony2 project hosted in a Vagrant virtual machine.

Step1: Install Xdebug on your Vagrant virtual machine

That may seem obvious, but you need to have Xdebug installed on your virtual machine to benefit from its services.

Then, configure it:

with the following lines:

Finally, if you use php5-fpm, you need to restart it:

If you use Ansible to provision your virtual machine, you can also use a ready-to-action Xdebug role.

Step2: Configure PhpStorm

First, select the 'Edit configurations' item in the 'Run' menu.

Then, add a new 'PHP Remote Debug' configuration.

We will use the IDE key configured in your Vagrant and in your browser.
To fully configure this debugger configuration, you will need to create what PhpStorm calls a server.

• Fill the correct hostname
• Check 'Use path mappings' checkbox, and write the project's absolute path
  on your Vagrant virtual machine

Step3: Configure Xdebug

Use Xdebug to debug your web application on Chrome

Now that Vagrant with Xdebug is up and running, let's configure Xdebug Chrome extension.

First, we need to install it from Chrome Web Store

Xdebug Phpstorm Cli

Make sure that the extension is enabled on your browser's extensions list page.

Now, you should see on the right side of the address bar the extension's symbol.

Right-click on it, then click on the 'Options' sub-menu.

You have to use the IDE key previously set.

Xdebug plugin also exists for other browsers.

Finally, in your browser click on the bug in your address bar to switch to the 'Debug' mode

Use Xdebug to debug your APIs route with Postman

Once your Xdebug configuration is added, you need to add ?XDEBUG_SESSION_START=_<XDEBUG_KEYNAME>_ at the end of your route. And that's all!

Use Xdebug to debug commands or unit tests

To use Xdebug for debugging commands or unit tests, first, you need to add xdebug.remote_autostart=true in XDebug configuration file of your Vagrant xdebug.ini.

Then, you need to specify the xdebug.remote_host (IP address of your local from your Vagrant) when launching the command from the virtual machine’s terminal.

• First, get the host IP address by using ifconfig from your local terminal (the host) :

• Then, launch your command

For instance, if you want to debug your unit tests in a Symfony project, you can run:

Step4: Enjoy!

Now, in PhpStorm you:

• Add your breakpoints by clicking to the left of the lines

• Click on the bug icon on the upper-right corner

You should now be able to break on the exact line you selected in your IDE.

Chrome Xdebug Helper Phpstorm

Bonus: Performance

You need to know that enabling Xdebug slows down your app (x2), the fastest way to disable it is to run the following command: php5dismod xdebug

Use php5enmod xdebug to enable it back. Each time you'll also need to restart php-fpm or apache.

Troubleshooting: I did the tutorial but Xdebug doesn’t work

It’s probably because a symbolic link is missing in your php conf.

• First type in your virtual machine php -i | grep xdebug

If you have no response, it means Xdebug is not set correctly

• Then check if Xdebug is mentioned when running php -v from your Vagrant.
• If not, add a symbolic link to specify that the Xdebug module should be enabled, for instance (you may need sudo):

Phpstorm Setup Xdebug

• You should obtain by running php -v

Phpstorm Xdebug Vagrant

I hope you've made your way through the process and that it will improve your efficiency as much as it does for me. If you have other ways to configure your debugger, feel free to share them in the comments section below.