sr-systematic-debugginglisted

# Systematic Debugging ## Overview Random fixes waste time and create new bugs. Quick patches mask underlying issues. **Core principle:** ALWAYS find root cause before attempting fixes. Symptom fixes are failure. **Violating the letter of this process is violating the spirit of debugging.** ## The Iron Law ``` NO FIXES WITHOUT ROOT CAUSE INVESTIGATION FIRST ``` If you haven't completed Phase 1, you cannot propose fixes. ## When to Use Use for ANY technical issue: - Test failures - Bugs in production - Unexpected behavior - Performance problems - Build failures - Integration issues **Use this ESPECIALLY when:** - Under time pressure (emergencies make guessing tempting) - "Just one quick fix" seems obvious - You've already tried multiple fixes - Previous fix didn't work - You don't fully understand the issue ## The Four Phases You MUST complete each phase before proceeding to the next. ### Phase 1: Root Cause Investigation **BEFORE attempting ANY fix:** 1. **Read Error Messages Carefully** - Don't skip past errors or warnings - Read stack traces completely - Note line numbers, file paths, error codes 2. **Reproduce Consistently** - Can you trigger it reliably? - What are the exact steps? - If not reproducible -> gather more data, don't guess 3. **Check Recent Changes** - What changed that could cause this? - Git diff, recent commits - New dependencies, config changes 4. **Gather Evidence in Multi-Component Systems** **WHEN system