Method and system for program editing and debugging in a common language runtime environment

US7516441B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Microsoft Corporation · US

Inventors

• Jennifer Hamilton · Seattle, US
• Michael M. Magruder · Issaquah, US
• James H. Hogg · Bellevue, US
• William G. Evans · Yakima, US
• Vance Morrison · Kirkland, US
• Lawrence B. Sullivan · Renton, US
• Sean E. Trowbridge · Redmond, US
• Jason L. Zander · Sammamish, US
• Ian Carmichael · Sammamish, US
• Patrick H. Dussud · Bellevue, US
• John Lawrence Hamby · Port Townsend, US
• John Rivard · Redmond, US
• Li Zhang · San Diego, US
• Mario Chenier · Woodinville, US
• Douglas J. Rosen · Woodinville, US
• Steven J. Steiner · Seattle, US
• Peter A. Hallam · Seattle, US
• Brian R. Crawford · Seattle, US
• James S. Miller · Bellevue, US
• Sam Spencer · Redmond, US
• Habib Heydarian · Kirkland, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Jul 21, 2004
• Grant date: Apr 7, 2009
• Expiry date: Jan 16, 2026

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y10S707/99944
• WIPO field: Computer technology
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

A system and method of providing edit and continue support in a software program debugging environment. “Edit and continue” support allows a user (e.g., programmer and/or developer) to update the code and/or data structure(s) of an executing program while it is running. After the user has finished editing their code and resumes execution, an integrated development environment (IDE) propagates the edit(s) into a common language runtime (CLR) environment before continuing. Therefore, from the CLR environment's perspective, an edit is a block of intermediate language code (IL) and/or metadata that is inserted into a running process. Moreover, The IDE can facilitate: determining “legality” of an edit; building the edit; sending the edit to the CLR environment; and/or, facilitating the CLR environment switch execution to the edited code.