BKPT DEBUG · VS CODE EXTENSIONDS-0008 · REV A · 2026
BKPT Debug: when instrumenting the code is not an option.
BKPT Debug is a free VS Code extension for Arm Cortex-M firmware. Start debugging with the ST-LINK or J-Link already on your desk. No paid license required.
Step through code, catch faults at the exception itself, watch where the CPU spends its time, replay the exact instructions that ran, and graph variables while the target is still running. All of it tiles around your code in one dockable layout.
Pro is optional: extend ITM/SWO and RTOS trace recordings beyond the free limits. See what is free and what Pro adds ↓
The demo below is deliberately maxed out, with every view open at once for the tour. The panel is fully tileable: show as much or as little as you want.
Free debugging. Pro for longer trace recordings.
The debugger is free.
Stepping, breakpoints, call stacks, locals, registers, memory, peripheral inspection and fault analysis are included. So are live variable watch and PC sampling through probe polling.
ETM History is also included on targets with compatible ETM and an on-chip trace buffer: instruction history, flame graphs and historical disassembly.
Pro extends trace recording.
Free ITM/SWO captures run for up to 5 seconds, with a 5-second cooldown. This shared stream powers the ITM console, on-chip DWT PC sampling, data trace, exception events and event counters.
RTOS task activity recording includes 5 seconds of active acquisition per recording, shared across Samples and DWT modes. Captured history remains available to inspect.
A paid ViewAlyzer license removes those free recording limits and the 10 task/ISR/function lane cap in ViewAlyzer recording analysis.
PRO LICENSES & TRIALS →The Debug Layout is the debugger.
Call stack, breakpoints, registers, memory, sampling, faults and the trace views tile around a code view that follows the halt. Drag tiles where you want them; the layout is remembered per workspace.
The probe is driven directly.
ST-LINK and J-Link work with nothing to install. One process owns the wire, so sampling, trace and live memory ride alongside run control instead of queueing behind a GDB-server chain.
Your flash is not its business.
Program the board with whatever you use today. BKPT Debug attaches to what is there, checks it against your ELF, and tells you when the two do not match instead of guessing.
Everything the debug port offers, not just the stepping.
Start, attach, step, breakpoints, call stack with locals, registers and memory, all around your code. F5 runs to main and halts with the source center stage.
HardFault, BusFault, MemManage, UsageFault and SecureFault caught at the exception itself, before any handler runs. Every set status bit decoded in plain language, the stacked frame recovered, the faulting line one click away. No fault handler needed in your firmware.
FAULT ANALYZER DOCS →The on-chip trace buffer records instruction trace in a rolling loop while the target runs. Each breakpoint, pause or fault drains it into a flame graph, a history cursor through your code, and historical disassembly. Exact execution history, not samples.
HARDWARE TRACE DOCS →Live CPU load, hottest functions and per-line heat in the editor while the target runs. Probe polling is included free. On-chip DWT sampling over SWO uses the shared trace capture allowance; Pro extends recording time. Neither mode needs firmware instrumentation.
PC SAMPLING DOCS →Pick variables from your ELF: no recorder library, no code changes. Watch them as values or graphs, running, halted or stepping. Probe polling up to 1 kHz is included free. DWT data trace observes core accesses through the shared SWO capture allowance.
LIVE WATCH DOCS →A read-only CoreSight walk of the connected chip: every debug component, the DWT comparator budget, ETM and the trace sink. Anything the silicon lacks is disabled with the reason, never silently hidden.
Sample interval, exception enter/exit/return trace, event counters and ITM timestamps, each choice labelled with its rate and SWO share, and a load meter that warns before the pin overflows.
What the firmware prints on ITM stimulus ports, live and timestamped, all 32 ports selectable. Printf debugging without a UART, on the same pin as the sampling. Included in free 5-second SWO captures; Pro removes the free duration and cooldown limits.
Debug-session trace in synchronized timeline, event, graph, task-detail, health, flame-graph and disassembly views. The same recording engine as ViewAlyzer, inside the layout, without instrumentation.
RECORDING DOCS →Install BKPT Debug for free.
Install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace and start debugging with your ST-LINK or J-Link. Upgrade to Pro whenever you need longer trace recordings.