Debugging Basics

Block Diagram Toolbar

Basic debugging tools come integrated into every block diagram window in the toolbar. See Debugging Tools in LabVIEW .^[1]

Broken Run Button - appears broken when the VI you are creating or editing contains errors
Highlight Execution - displays an animation of the block diagram execution when you run the VI
Retain Wire Values - save the wire values at each point in the flow of execution so that when you place a probe on the wire you can immediately retain the most recent value of the data that passed through the wire
Step Into - opens a node and pauses
Step Over - executes a node and pauses at the next node
Step Out - finishes executing the current node and pauses

Tips and tricks

Use conditional probes to break code execution when a specified condition is met.
To edit a VI that is set to run when opened, open the VI from the block diagram of another VI.
Select Edit > Remove Breakpoints from Hierarchy to quickly remove all breakpoints in the hierarchy.
A call list will appear in the toolbar on the block diagram of a subVI while it is paused or suspended. This list contains all the callers the VI. Choose an entry to highlight the subVI in the caller.

Basics of Debugging LabVIEW - by Quentin Alldredge, Q Software Innovations, LLC