[cdt-dev] "display as array" behavior

[Tim Black <timblaktu@xxxxxxxxx>]

I couldn't find any conclusion about this on the CDT Forum or in Bugzilla, so here goes:

I am getting strange behavior when doing "Display as array" on the array pointer found within a std::vector in the Variables tab of Debug perspective while actively debugging using GDB/MI launcher and Helios release. "Display as array" seems to work fine on a "regular" int *, and I can redisplay with different sized to my heart's content. However, when I simply try to open up a vector in the Variables tab, either before or after my code has initialized and resized the vector, I get the following in the GDB console:

"A syntax error in _expression_, near `v))'.

where v is defined as "std::vector<int> v;".

Of course, any subsequent attempts to open up members of v result in similar "syntax error in _expression_" GDB errors. When I try to "Display as array" on the vector data pointer _M_start, I get the syntax error as well as:

"mi_cmd_var_create: unable to create variable object."

If I change my launcher to "Standard Create Process" type this works better, but still not perfectly:

The first time I "display as array", it displays the correct number of elements. Sometimes, and frequently, subsequent attempts to "display as array" on that same pointer result in:

(a) the pointer is no longer displayed as an array and its value is not even displayed
(b) upon relaunching the same debug launcher, the same pointer will always be displayed as array with the last requested length (the one that failed previously).

Not being able to view arrays is obviously a pretty serious problem for an IDE. Let me know if I can provide more info, if you know of a workaround, or if I should file a bug... 

Thanks,
T