Skills jeffallan claude-skills
debugging-wizard
- Use it when:
- You're chasing an error, a crash, a stack trace or unexpected behaviour and want its root cause rather than a guess.
- It does:
- Reproduces the bug, narrows it to the smallest failing case, tests one hypothesis at a time, fixes it and adds a regression test.
- You get:
- The root cause, the evidence that proves it (a stack trace, logs or a test), the fix, and a safeguard against it coming back.
- Works with:
- Any language; it shows pdb for Python, node --inspect-brk for Node.js, delve for Go, and git bisect to find the commit that broke something.
TL;DR
It applies one method to any codebase. Its rules: reproduce the issue first, gather the full error messages and stack traces, change one thing at a time, never assume the cause, document findings, add a regression test after the fix, and remove console.log and debugger statements before committing. It won't debug in production without safeguards. Five reference files load as needed: debugger setup by language, common bug patterns, strategies such as binary search, git bisect and time-travel debugging, quick fixes for common errors, and a systematic-debugging guide, adapted from obra/superpowers, for complex bugs or after several failed fixes.
Summarizes the skill at 078a25c.
npx skills add https://github.com/jeffallan/claude-skills --skill debugging-wizard skills.sh pageSource on GitHubAll skills from jeffallan/claude-skills
- Total Downloads
- 5,400 on skills.sh, Nov 9, 2026
- Repo stars
- 12,279 jeffallan/claude-skills
- First seen
- Jan 20, 2026 on skills.sh
Weekly values
| Week to | Installs |
|---|---|
| Sep 21 | 96 |
| Sep 28 | 107 |
| Oct 5 | 108 |
| Oct 12 | 119 |
| Oct 19 | 165 |
| Oct 26 | 141 |
| Nov 2 | 150 |
| Nov 9 | 120 |
| Category |
Find root causes, review code and test what you built. Everything for building software: planning, coding, debugging, design, frameworks, cloud, agents and skills. |
|---|---|
| Type |
A multi-step process the agent follows: interview, debug, run a TDD loop, review. |
| Effect |
Its own steps create or change files, git state or local tools. |
| Needs |
Instructions only. Works in any agent that supports skills. |
| Publisher |
Everyone else. Unverified vendor claims default to community. |
| Topics |
SKILL.md
From jeffallan/claude-skills at 078a25c. Checked daily, last changed Nov 6, 2026.
Frontmatter
name: debugging-wizard
description: Parses error messages, traces execution flow through stack traces, correlates log entries to identify failure points, and applies systematic hypothesis-driven methodology to isolate and resolve bugs. Use when investigating errors, analyzing stack traces, finding root causes of unexpected behavior, troubleshooting crashes, or performing log analysis, error investigation, or root cause analysis.
license: MIT
metadata:
author: https://github.com/Jeffallan
company: https://synergetic.solutions
version: "1.1.0"
domain: quality
triggers: debug, error, bug, exception, traceback, stack trace, troubleshoot, not working, crash, fix issue
role: specialist
scope: analysis
output-format: analysis
related-skills: test-master, fullstack-guardian, monitoring-expertDebugging Wizard
Expert debugger applying systematic methodology to isolate and resolve issues in any codebase.
Core Workflow
- Reproduce - Establish consistent reproduction steps
- Isolate - Narrow down to smallest failing case
- Hypothesize and test - Form testable theories, verify/disprove each one
- Fix - Implement and verify solution
- Prevent - Add tests/safeguards against regression
Reference Guide
Load detailed guidance based on context:
<!-- Systematic Debugging row adapted from obra/superpowers by Jesse Vincent (@obra), MIT License -->
| Topic | Reference | Load When |
|---|---|---|
| Debugging Tools | references/debugging-tools.md |
Setting up debuggers by language |
| Common Patterns | references/common-patterns.md |
Recognizing bug patterns |
| Strategies | references/strategies.md |
Binary search, git bisect, time travel |
| Quick Fixes | references/quick-fixes.md |
Common error solutions |
| Systematic Debugging | references/systematic-debugging.md |
Complex bugs, multiple failed fixes, root cause analysis |
Constraints
MUST DO
- Reproduce the issue first
- Gather complete error messages and stack traces
- Test one hypothesis at a time
- Document findings for future reference
- Add regression tests after fixing
- Remove all debug code before committing
MUST NOT DO
- Guess without testing
- Make multiple changes at once
- Skip reproduction steps
- Assume you know the cause
- Debug in production without safeguards
- Leave console.log/debugger statements in code
Common Debugging Commands
Python (pdb)
python -m pdb script.py # launch debugger
# inside pdb:
# b 42 — set breakpoint at line 42
# n — step over
# s — step into
# p some_var — print variable
# bt — print full traceback
JavaScript (Node.js)
node --inspect-brk script.js # pause at first line, attach Chrome DevTools
# In Chrome: open chrome://inspect → click "inspect"
# Sources panel: add breakpoints, watch expressions, step through
Git bisect (regression hunting)
git bisect start
git bisect bad # current commit is broken
git bisect good v1.2.0 # last known good tag/commit
# Git checks out midpoint — test, then:
git bisect good # or: git bisect bad
# Repeat until git identifies the first bad commit
git bisect reset
Go (delve)
dlv debug ./cmd/server # build & attach
# (dlv) break main.go:55
# (dlv) continue
# (dlv) print myVar
Output Templates
When debugging, provide:
- Root Cause: What specifically caused the issue
- Evidence: Stack trace, logs, or test that proves it
- Fix: Code change that resolves it
- Prevention: Test or safeguard to prevent recurrence
Maintained by @jeffallan, Principal Consultant at Synergetic Solutions