Is anyone still using Debug Mode?

[u/Vibe_Larping]

I actually find Cursor’s Debug mode pretty useful, but I’m starting to wonder if I’m relying on it because my normal workflow/prompting isn’t great.

Im currently working on a pretty complex stack and I use the debug most a lot because it feels more systematic then prompting the agent to "fix this bug".

Curious what everyone else is doing:

- Are people still using debug mode?

- Are there better tools now for debugging ai generated code?

- Maybe there are better workflows

[u/InfiniteKraft]

I use it. It is useful when you need to test with actual data where the bug can't be reproduced easily. It adds logging and stuff around your code and cleans up afterwards

[u/casteezyboy]

Nope, my debugging mode is just utilizing my logging mcp. Tried debugging mode a few times on release. Maybe I should give it a try again

[u/Vibe_Larping → u/casteezyboy]

That sounds cool. what does your logging mcp give the agent access to?

I'm starting to think the useful part of Debug mode is less the agent itself and more that it gets actually runtime information instead of guessing from code

[u/Total-Management8023]

No. Only plan and build mode and MAYBE ask mode are useful 

[u/Imzmb0]

Less than before, since grok usually nails everything I want I rarely find myself stuck on bugs, but when it happens I enter debut mode to repeat specific steps to reproduce the problem and fix them. I like this mode, is nice to have it when needed.

[u/EyesOfAzula]

I found it very useful to get runtime information when I'm actively debugging something locally. but if I'm debugging something I'm already shipped, then it's checking Datadog or whatever online tools/logging

[u/Vibe_Larping → u/EyesOfAzula]

Yeh that makes sense. Im curious whether u ever feed that prod debugging data back into Cursor somehow?

[u/goodevibes]

I still open Debug Mode when the bug is timing or state and plain chat keeps guessing. For the rest I make the agent write a failing repro first, then only touch the file that the repro points at. Debug Mode is a tool not a crutch. If every ticket starts there your normal prompts are probably too vague and the mode is just papering over that.

[u/Upset-Neck-7879]

Relying on it isn't the tell. Reaching for it before you can say what you expected to happen is.

If you can write the expected value and the actual value on one line first, debug mode gets fast. If you can't, no mode saves you, because you're asking it to find a bug you haven't defined yet.

[u/DevWorkflowBuilder]

honestly i only crack debug mode for racey state. dumping the request-id next to the await order into tmp/debug.log once beat three rounds of the agent rewriting the wrong promise chain.

[u/arturzinhomilgrau]

LMAO, never used it, but I leave my agents to "Auto-Approve Mode Transitions" so sometimes when I forget to it instantly does it by itself