Backdrop LIVE is based upon an unconference model. Anyone can declare a topic up through the day of the event and the schedule is subject to change at any time. What would you like to talk about?

Block B - Slot 4

Slot 4: 2:00 pm America/Los_Angeles - October 22, 2026

Do you find yourself doing dpm(), print_r(), or backdrop_set_message() to print the contents of variables all the time? Level-up your coding skills by using a debugger. Debuggers allow inspecting the contents of variables as code runs so that you can easily see the contents. Debuggers can also help resolve logic issues, allowing code to be step through one line at a time.

This demo will use DDEV to set up XDebug because it is the easiest known way to get up and running with a local debugger. XDebug can then be connected to IDEs like PHPStorm and VSCode, which provides the interface for inspecting variables and controlling execution.

Learn about:

  • Breakpoints
  • Inspecting variables
  • Stepping through execution line-by-line
  • Conditional breakpoints
Facilitator(s): 
Topics: 
Intended Audience: 
  • Intermediate
  • Experienced
  • Developers (yes code)
  • Back-End Developers (modules + more)
Collaborative Notes: 
Please add notes here