Debugging React application
Debugging is a crucial part of the development process. In React, we’re fortunate to have a range of tools and techniques at our disposal. Here’s a quick guide to get you started:
Keep the Console Open Always
keep your browser’s developer console open. The Console tab should be your go-to, unless you need to view another tab. This will help you catch errors as they happen.
Don’t Ignore Errors
If your code fails to compile, don’t ignore it. Stop and fix the problem immediately. Writing more code won’t magically fix a compilation error.
- Use console.log
Old-school, print-based debugging is still effective. If a component isn’t working as expected, start by printing its variables to the console.
This will help you spot if an attribute has been misspelled or if there’s another issue with the props.
- Use the Debugger
You can pause your application code’s execution in the Chrome developer console’s debugger by writing the debugger command anywhere in your code.
This allows you to inspect the current state of variables and execute your code line by line.
- Use Breakpoints
You can also add breakpoints in the Sources tab of the developer console to pause execution at specific points. This is useful for inspecting the values of your component’s variables.
- Use React Developer Tools
The React Developer Tools extension for Chrome is also highly recommended. It adds a new Components tab to the developer tools, allowing you to inspect different React elements in your application, along with their state and props.