• Symbol servers allow debuggers to automatically retrieve debug info for stripped binaries. • Microsoft has had their own implementation for a long time and AFAIK it’s not yet supported in LLDB. • There are some docs about it here. • I am proposing to add support for it in LLDB. • It would be great to get your feedback and ideas for improvement. • A few years ago, SymbolLocator was factored out from core LLDB into the plugin system.

Article Summaries:

  • A proposal has been submitted to add support for Microsoft Windows PDB symbol servers to the LLDB debugger. The plan builds on LLDB’s existing SymbolLocator plugin framework, which already includes debuginfod and Python‑based variants. The initial implementation will read a binary’s UUID, construct a server path, and locate the corresponding PDB file, mirroring WinDBG’s .sympath and .reload workflow. Future enhancements include HTTP access, environment‑based symbol sources, caching, and progress feedback. The proposal invites community input on design, naming, and integration with VSCode’s CoreLLDB plugin.

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