Debugger Engine Overview
The debugger engine (DbgEng.dll), typically referred to as the engine, provides an interface for examining and manipulating debugging targets in user mode and kernel mode on Microsoft Windows.
The debugger engine can acquire targets, set breakpoints, monitor events, query symbols, read and write to memory, and control threads and processes in a target.
You can use the debugger engine to write both debugger extension libraries and stand-alone applications. Such applications are referred to as debugger engine applications. A debugger engine application that uses the full functionality of the debugger engine is called a debugger. For example, WinDbg, CDB, NTSD, and KD are debuggers; the debugger engine provides the core of their functionality.
Engine Concepts:
Debugging Session and Execution Model
Examining and Manipulating Targets:
Incomplete Documentation
This is a preliminary document and is currently incomplete.
For many concepts relating to the debuggers and the debugger engine that are not yet documented here, look in the Debugging Techniques section of this documentation.
To obtain some of the currently undocumented functionality of the debugger engine API, use the Execute method to execute individual debugger commands.