> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://gluals.arnux.net/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Breakpoints and stepping

> Set breakpoints, control execution flow, and navigate your running GLua code line by line.

## Setting breakpoints

Click in the **gutter** (left margin) of any `.lua` file to set a breakpoint. A red dot appears where execution will pause.

You can also set breakpoints from the **Run & Debug** panel's **Breakpoints** section.

### Conditional breakpoints

Right-click in the gutter (or on an existing breakpoint) and choose **Edit Breakpoint** to add a condition:

```lua theme={null}
-- Only break when this is true:
ply:Health() < 10
```

The debugger evaluates the condition as a Lua expression in the paused stack frame. Execution pauses only when the expression returns a truthy value.

### Logpoints

A logpoint prints a message to the Debug Console when execution reaches that line. Right-click in the gutter and choose **Add Logpoint**:

```
Player {ply:Nick()} took damage: {dmg:GetDamage()}
```

Curly braces `{}` evaluate Lua expressions.

***

## Stepping controls

When execution is paused at a breakpoint, use the debug toolbar or keyboard shortcuts:

| Action        | Shortcut    | Description                                             |
| ------------- | ----------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Continue**  | `F5`        | Resume execution until the next breakpoint              |
| **Step Over** | `F10`       | Execute the current line and pause on the next          |
| **Step Into** | `F11`       | Step into the function call on the current line         |
| **Step Out**  | `Shift+F11` | Continue until the current function returns, then pause |
| **Pause**     | `F6`        | Pause execution at the current Lua instruction          |
| **Stop**      | `Shift+F5`  | Disconnect the debugger                                 |

***

## Call stack

When paused, the **Call Stack** panel shows the full active call stack from the current Lua execution context. Each frame shows:

* The function name (or `(anonymous)` for unnamed functions)
* The source file and line number

Click any frame to navigate to that file and inspect the variables at that level.

***

## Stop on entry

Set `"stopOnEntry": true` in `launch.json` (default: `true`) to pause at the first Lua instruction after connecting. Useful when debugging server startup behavior.

***

## Stop on error

Set `"stopOnError": true` in `launch.json` to pause when a Lua error is thrown anywhere on the server, including unhandled errors in hook callbacks.

GLuaLS preserves the call stack at the moment of the error so you can inspect the full execution context.

***

## Break here (manual pause)

To pause at an arbitrary point without a file breakpoint, use the **Break Here** command:

1. Open the Command Palette (`Ctrl+Shift+P`)
2. Run **Debug: Break Here**

This inserts a debug break at the current Lua execution point.