Apple App Store has strict policies when it comes to getting your iOS app launched on the App Store, which is why you have to be very vigilant in debugging and have to strip your code bare of anything that can potentially cause slowdowns or potential errors.

This article covers a wide range of iOS app debugging tips, such as Xcode’s built-in debugger, third-party debugging tools, remote debugging tools, console logs, instruments, breakpoints, conditional breakpoints, unit testing, etc., so by the end of this article, you will be fully equipped with all the tactics and strategies to submit a flawless app.

Just before, we want to let you know that we have outlined the top debugging strategies every iOS app development company has as part of their debugging process. So now, without further ado, let’s delve into the top 10 debugging tips you can implement during and post-development.

Top 10 Tips for Debugging iOS Apps

Debugging has a multifaceted impact on ensuring top-notch iOS apps. You need to make a checklist and go about each of the tips one by one. 

Xcode’s Built-in Debugger

Xcode is the official IDE (Integrated Development Environment) for iOS app development that comes with a whole built-in toolkit that helps you find and fix issues in your code and lets you clear up your codebase inside and out.

In Xcode, you have and can: breakpoints and debug area, debug gauges and instruments, simulator and device, view debugger and UI testing, source control and testing, inspect variables and memory, etc.

Third-Party Debugging Tools

Apart from leveraging Xcode’s native tools, you can supplement third-party debugging tools that can provide extra insights and functionalities and help you take your debugging game to the next level. These tools possess specialized features that enhance the whole debugging process and help developers fix a wide range of problems in their code.

Remote Debugging Tools

Remote debugging tools come in handy and are of utmost use when it comes to dealing with issues that appear only in some specific environments or devices. They let developers monitor and analyze the behavior of the application in real-time on remote devices, which gives insight into issues that developers miss in the development environment setup.

Console Logs

Take console log errors and warnings seriously and try to comprehend the core issues. The console log gives valuable insights into the problems and issues and tries to resolve those issues with strategized and nuanced approaches that further enhance the quality of code.

You can leverage the NSLog() function to display log messages on the console, which you can view in Xcode’s console or in the device’s system logs. The console log displays your error and warning on the console.  So, with those warnings and eros messages, you can fortify the codebase of our iOS app.

Breakpoints

Breakpoints are weaved into every code’s debugging process. By marking up breakpoints in your code, does it allow you to stop the execution of the code at a specific point, like at a specific line of code, and scrutinize the code? Every iOS and Android developer company has breakpoints weaved into the fabric of their debugging process.

for (let i = 0; i < box.length; i++) {

  text += box[i];}

There are no rules or restrictions when it comes to setting up breakpoints. For example, in the JS code below, you can set a break on the line of code “text += box[i]” because there is nothing executing. You would like to set breakpoints on lines of code containing function or class declarations, method signatures, or variable declarations if they are missing assignments and there is no getter/ setter. Also, one thing worthy of mention is that you should be nuanced and strategic with your breakpoint setup approach.

Conditional Breakpoints

So, as it is explained in the name, a breakpoint would evaluate something, and that is usually an expression. And that can be more useful if you want to add useful logging statements within that expression.

With conditional breakpoints, you can have breakpoints that stop execution and scrutinize inside a code block when an expression yields true in the result. You can add a conditional breakpoint by right-clicking on a line number and selecting the option Add Conditional Breakpoint. Then, you can add an expression.

Unit Testing

As self-explanatory as the name itself, unit testing involves testing even the tiniest of functional units of your code. Unit testing lets you put every component through dedicated, rigorous testing that helps you ensure the component is not a performance bottleneck or may cause any kind of vulnerability.

It is recommended to write small functional units as they are integral to performance, and unit testing is just as important. First, you write unit tests and then run that test code on autopilot every time a change is made to the code. This practice lets you proactively identify the circle around that chunk of code that is buggy or faulty.

Instruments

Debugging the iOS app is a complex task it involves identifying and resolving issues such as memory leaks, CPU spikes, slow network requirements, etc. For the ease of developers, Xcode fortunately has built-in tools called instruments that help you analyze and optimize your app’s performance.

The instrument is a kind of package that encompasses tools for monitoring several aspects of your app’s behavior, such as memory usage, CPU activity, energy consumption, network traffic, and many other performance metrics. The first is to launch instructions from Xcode; the next is to select a specific target and a device for your performance analysis; the third is that you have to analyze the data; and then comes your role, i.e., fixing the issue.

Conclusion

Debugging is a self-draining and time-consuming process, but the reward you reap is much bigger than that in the form of a high-quality, high-performance, flawless, and secure iOS app. If you own a business and you have an iOS app that you want to make of high quality so users have extraordinary experience using your app, you can hire any top company offering any kind of development service, be it react development service or whatever, because every development company has developers that are part of company’s debugging partners.