cmux-debugging
Debug logging, Debug menu, runtime pitfalls, typing-latency-sensitive paths, SwiftUI list snapshot boundaries, OS-version repros, and local visual iteration for cmux. Use when adding debug probes, diagnosing UI/runtime issues, touching terminal rendering, tab/sidebar list views, drag/drop UTTypes, or using the Debug menu.
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/manaflow-ai/cmux /tmp/cmux-debugging && cp -r /tmp/cmux-debugging/skills/cmux-debugging ~/.claude/skills/cmux-debuggingSKILL.md
# cmux Debugging
## Debug event log
Put debug event instrumentation (keys, mouse, focus, splits, tabs) in the unified DEBUG build log. This is not a requirement to log every new code path; most probes belong to a dogfood debug loop and are removed before merge.
```bash
tail -f "$(cat /tmp/cmux-last-debug-log-path 2>/dev/null || echo /tmp/cmux-debug.log)"
```
- Untagged Debug app logs to `/tmp/cmux-debug.log`; tagged (`./scripts/reload.sh --tag <tag>`) to `/tmp/cmux-debug-<tag>.log`.
- `reload.sh` writes the current log path to `/tmp/cmux-last-debug-log-path` and the selected dev CLI path to `/tmp/cmux-last-cli-path`, and points `/tmp/cmux-cli` and `$HOME/.local/bin/cmux-dev` at that CLI.
- Implementation: `Packages/macOS/CMUXDebugLog/Sources/CMUXDebugLog/DebugEventLog.swift`. App shim: `Sources/App/DebugLogging.swift`. Both are `#if DEBUG`, so every call site must be wrapped in `#if DEBUG` / `#endif`.
- `cmuxDebugLog("message")` timestamps and appends in real time. A 500-entry ring buffer backs it; `CMUXDebugLog.DebugEventLog.shared.dump()` writes the full buffer to file.
- Key events are logged in `AppDelegate.swift` (monitor, `performKeyEquivalent`); mouse/UI events inline in views (`ContentView`, `BrowserPanelView`).
- Stable event prefixes: `focus.panel`, `focus.bonsplit`, `focus.firstResponder`, `focus.moveFocus`, `tab.select`, `tab.close`, `tab.dragStart`, `tab.drop`, `pane.focus`, `pane.drop`, `divider.dragStart`.
## Debug menu
DEBUG builds get a **Debug** menu in the macOS menu bar. When the user says "debug menu" or "debug window" they mean this, not `defaults write`.
**Debug > Debug Windows** holds panels for tuning layout, colors, and behavior, listed alphabetically with no dividers. To add one: create an `NSWindowController` subclass with a `shared` singleton, register it in the "Debug Windows" menu in `Sources/cmuxApp.swift`, and back it with a SwiftUI view using `@AppStorage` bindings for live changes.
## Runtime pitfalls
- Custom drag-and-drop UTTypes must be declared in `Resources/Info.plist` under `UTExportedTypeDeclarations`.
- Do not add an app-level display link or manual `ghostty_surface_draw` loop; rely on Ghostty wakeups/renderer to avoid typing lag.
- `WindowTerminalHostView.hitTest()` in `Sources/TerminalWindowPortal.swift` runs on every event including keyboard. Add no work outside the `isPointerEvent` guard.
- `TabItemView` in `Sources/ContentView.swift` uses `Equatable` plus `.equatable()` to skip body re-evaluation during typing. Do not add environment/store/binding reads without updating `==` and keeping `.equatable()` at the call site.
- `TerminalSurface.forceRefresh()` in `Sources/GhosttyTerminalView.swift` runs on every keystroke. No allocations, file I/O, or formatting.
- `SurfaceSearchOverlay` must be mounted from `GhosttySurfaceScrollView` in `Sources/GhosttyTerminalView.swift`, not from SwiftUI panel containers.
- Views below a `LazyVStack` / `LazyHStack` / `List` / `ForEach` boundary receive immutable snapshots plus closures, never an observable store.
- Functions called from SwiftUI `body` must not mutate state or schedule store writes.
- Foundation, SwiftUI, AttributeGraph, and WebKit semantics change between macOS majors. Test on the reporter's macOS before declaring a user repro disproven.
## Detailed references
- [references/debug-event-log.md](references/debug-event-log.md): when to add probes and how to name them.
- [references/runtime-pitfalls.md](references/runtime-pitfalls.md): read before touching terminal rendering, hit testing, tab rows, list virtualization, search overlay layering, or OS-version-sensitive code.cmux package architecture, refactor layering, dependency inversion, file organization, DocC documentation, package design discipline, testability, and Swift 6 concurrency rules. Use before adding or meaningfully rewriting Swift files, Swift packages, coordinators, services, repositories, or public package APIs.
Backend TypeScript and Cloud VM development rules for cmux. Use when editing web/app/api, web/services, backend scripts, Cloud VM lifecycle, provider integrations, Postgres, Stack Auth pricing gates, migrations, or provider image build scripts.
Stripe checkout, pricing, subscription, Pro plan, webhook, and entitlement runbook for cmux billing work. Use when editing or debugging billing, pricing, Stripe Checkout, subscription recording, Pro plan status, webhooks, entitlement metadata, or pricing dev/prod tooling.
End-user browser automation with cmux. Use when you need to open sites, interact with pages, wait for state changes, and extract data from cmux browser surfaces.
Route work to cmux Cloud machines (persistent cloud VMs) from the CLI — `cmux vm route`/`run`/`agent` pick a machine for you; `vm tree` / `surface ls` show the surface catalog (This Mac and every machine: terminals, VNC screens, browsers) and `vm open` / `surface open` put any of them in a pane; plus create, exec, push/pull, ports, checkpoints, forks. Use when an agent should run builds, tests, servers, desktop/browser tasks, or another agent on a cloud machine instead of the local Mac, or when the user says "cloud machine", "cloud VM", "run it in the cloud", or "cmux vm".
Drive real macOS apps from a cmux agent session via the bundled computer-use engine (accessibility tree + screenshot perception, click/type/scroll/drag, branded agent cursor). Use when an agent should see and operate GUI apps on the local Mac, when computer-use tools are missing or failing, or when explaining how to grant permissions, brand the cursor, or focus the driving session.
Build a custom cmux sidebar from a plain-language request. Use when the user asks for a custom sidebar, a sidebar that shows their workspaces/tabs/PRs/clock, a vibe-coded sidebar, or anything involving files in ~/.config/cmux/sidebars/. Covers authoring the interpreted SwiftUI-style file, enabling the beta flag, selecting it, and iterating with hot reload.