Show all exported functions of an extension DLL. FunctionFilter = wildcard string Same in DML format (functions link to "!ExtName.help FuncName" commands)
Example: .extmatch /D /e uext * (show all exported functions of uext.dll)
.hh
.hh .hh Text
Open WinDbg's help Text = text to look up in the help file index Example: .hh dt
2) General WinDbg's commands (show version, clear screen, etc.)
Cmd
Variants / Params
Description
version
Dump version info of debugger and loaded extension DLLs
vercommand
Dump command line that was used to start the debugger
vertarget
Version of target computer
CTRL+ALT+V
Toggle verbose mode ON/OFF In verbose mode some commands (such as register dumping) have more detailed output.
n
n [8 | 10 | 16]
Set number base
.formats
.formats Expression
Show number formats = evaluates a numerical expression or symbol and displays it in multiple numerical formats (hex, decimal, octal, binary, time, ..) Example 1: .formats 5 Example 2: .formats poi(nLocal1) == .formats @@($!nLocal1)
.cls
Clear screen
.lastevent
Displays the most recent exception or event that occurred (why the debugger is waiting?)
Dump effective machine (x86, amd64, ..): Use target computer's native processor mode Use processor mode of the code that is executing for the most recent event Use x86, amd64, ia64, or ebc processor mode
This setting influences many debugger features: -> which processor's unwinder is used for stack tracing -> which processor's register set is active
.time
display time (system-up, process-up, kernel time, user time)
Evaluate expression (use default evaluator) Evaluate c++ expression
.expr
.expr .expr /q .expr /s c++ .expr /s masm
Choose default expression evaluator Show current evaluator Show available evaluators Set c++ as the default expression evaluator Set masm as the default expression evaluator
*
* [any text]
Comment Line Specifier Terminated by: end of line
$$
$$ [any text]
Comment Specifier Terminated by: end of line OR semicolon
.echo
.echo String .echo "String"
Echo Comment -> comment text + echo it Terminated by: end of line OR semicolon With the $$ token or the * token the debugger will ignore the inputted text without echoing it.
Starting with the 6.6.07 version of the debugger a new mechanism for enhancing output from the debugger and extensions was included: DML. DML allows output to include directives and extra non-display information in the form of tags. Debugger user interfaces parse out the extra information to provide new behaviors.
DML is primarily intended to address two issues:
Linking of related information
Discoverability of debugger and extension functionality
Cmd
Variants / Params
Description
.dml_start
Kick of to other DML commands
.prefer_dml
.prefer_dml [1 | 0]
Global setting: should DML-enhanced commands default to DML? Note that many commands like k, lm, .. output DML content thereafter.
.help /D
.help has a new DML mode where a top bar of links is given
.chain /D
.chain has a new DML mode where extensions are linked to a .extmatch
.extmatch /D
.extmatch has a new DML format where exported functions link to "!ExtName.help FuncName" commands
lmD
lm has a new DML mode where module names link to lmv commands
kM
k has a new DML mode where frame numbers link to a .frame/dv
.dml_flow
.dml_flow StartAddr TargetAddr
Allows for interactive exploration of code flow for a function.
Builds a code flow graph for the function starting at the given start address (similar to uf)
Shows the basic block given the target address plus links to referring blocks and blocks referred to by the current block
Load symbols for Module Load symbols for all modules
!sym
!sym !sym noisy !sym quiet
Get state of symbol loading Set noisy symbol loading (debugger displays info about its search for symbols) Set quiet symbol loading (=default)
x
x [Options] Module!Symbol x /t .. x /v .. x /a .. x /n .. x /z ..
Examine symbols: displays symbols that match the specified pattern with data type verbose (symbol type and size) sort by address sort by name sort by size ("size" of a function symbol is the size of the function in memory)
ln
ln Addr
List nearest symbols = display the symbols at or near the given Addr. Useful to:
determine what a pointer is pointing to
when looking at a corrupted stack to determine which procedure made a call
.sympath
.sympath .sympath+
Display or set symbol search path Append directories to previous symbol path
.symopt
.symopt .symopt+ Flags .symopt- Flags
displays current symbol options add option remove option
.symfix
.symfix .symfix+ DownstreamStore
Set symbol store path to automatically point to http://msdl.microsoft.com/download/symbols + = append it to the existing path DownstreamStore = directory to be used as a downstream store. Default is WinDbgInstallationDir\Sym.
Reload symbol information for all modules** f = force immediate symbol load (overrides lazy loading); v = verbose mode Module = for Module only
**Note: The .reload command does not actually cause symbol information to be read. It just lets the debugger know that the symbol files may have changed, or that a new module should be added to the module list. To force actual symbol loading to occur use the /f option, or the ld (Load Symbols) command.
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x *!
list all modules
x ntdll!*
list all symbols of ntdll
x /t /v MyDll!*
list all symbol in MyDll with data type, symbol type and size
x kernel32!*LoadLib*
list all symbols in kernel32 that contain the word LoadLib
What happened? Shows most recent event or exception
!analyze
!analyze -v !analyze -hang !analyze -f
Display information about the current exception or bug check; verbose User mode: Analyzes the thread stack to determine whether any threads are blocking other threads. See an exception analysis even when the debugger does not detect an exception.
sx
sx sxe sxd sxn sxi sxr
Show all event filters with break status and handling break first-chance break second-chance notify; don't break ignore event reset filter settings to default values
.exr
.exr-1 .exr Addr
display most recent exception record display exception record at Addr
.ecxr
displays exception context record (registers) associated with the current exception
List modules; verbose | with loaded symbols | k-kernel or u-user only symbol info | image path; pattern that the module name must match DML mode of lm; lmv command links included in output
all loaded modules with load count by initialization order by load order (default) by memory order with version info only module at ModuleAddr brief help
!imgreloc
ImgBaseAddr
information about relocated images
!lmi
Module
detailed info about a module (including exact symbol info)
Dump headers for ImgBaseAddr f = file headers only s = section headers only h = brief help
The !lmi extension extracts the most important information from the image header and displays it in a concise summary format. It is often more useful than !dh.
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lm
display all loaded and unloaded modules
lmv m kernel32
display verbose (all possible) information for kernel32.dll
lmD
DML variant of lm
!dlls -v -c kernel32
display information for kernel32.dll, including load-count
!lmi kernel32
display detailed information about kernel32, including symbol information
list threads all threads current thread thread that caused the current event or exception thread whose ordinal is Number thread whose thread ID is TID (the brackets are required) switch to thread N (new current thread)
[Command]: works for a few regular commands such as k, r
~e
~* e CommandString ~. e CommandString ~# e CommandString ~Number e CommandString
Execute thread-specific commands (CommandString = one or more commands to be executed) for: all threads current thread thread which caused the current event thread with ordinal
~f
~Thread f
Freeze thread (see ~ for Thread syntax)
~u
~Thread u
Unfreeze thread (see ~ for Thread syntax)
~n
~Thread n
Suspend thread = increment thread's suspend count
~m
~Thread m
Resume thread = decrement thread's suspend count
!teb
display formatted view of the thread's environment block (TEB)
!tls
!tls -1 !tls SlotIdx !tls [-1 | SlotIdx] TebAddr
-1 = dump all slots for current thread SlotIdx = dump only specified slot TebAddr = specify thread; if omitted, the current thread is used
.ttime
display thread times (user + kernel mode)
!runaway
[Flags: 0 | 1 | 2]
display information about time consumed by each thread (0-user time, 1-kernel time, 2-time elapsed since thread creation). quick way to find out which threads are spinning out of control or consuming too much CPU time
!gle
!gle !gle -all
Dump last error for current thread Dump last error for all threads
Point of interest: SetLastError( dwErrCode ) checks the value of kernel32!g_dwLastErrorToBreakOn and possibly executes a DbgBreakPoint.
if ((g_dwLastErrorToBreakOn != 0 ) && (dwErrCode == g_dwLastErrorToBreakOn)) DbgBreakPoint();
The downside is that SetLastError is only called from within KERNEL32.DLL. Other calls to SetLastError are redirected to a function located in NTDLL.DLL, RtlSetLastWin32Error.
!error
!error ErrValue !error ErrValue 1
Decode and display information about an error value Treat ErrValue value as an NTSTATUS code
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~* k
call stack for all threads ~ !uniqstack
~2 f
Freeze Thread TID=2
~# f
Freeze the thread causing the current exception
~3 u
Unfreeze Thread TID=3
~2e r; k; kd
== ~2r; ~2k; ~2kd
~*e !gle
will repeat every the extension command !gle for every single thread being debugged
The first parameter to LoadLibrary (at address ESP + 4) is a string pointer to the DLL name in question.
The MASM $spat operator will compare this pointer to a predefined string-wildcard, this is *MYDLL* in our example.
Unfortunately $spat can accept aliases or constants, but no memory pointers. This is why we store our string in question to an alias (MyAlias) first.
Our kernel32!LoadLibraryExW breakpoint will hit only if the pattern compared by $spat matches. Otherwise the application will continue executing.
Skip execution of a function
bu sioctl!DriverEntry "r eip = poi(@esp); r esp = @esp + 0xC; .echo sioctl!DriverEntry skipped; g"
Right at a function’s entry point the value found on the top of the stack contains the return address r eip = poi(@esp) -> Set EIP (instruction pointer) to the value found at offset 0x0
DriverEntry has 2x4 byte parameters = 8 bytes + 4 bytes for the return address = 0xC r esp = @esp + 0xC -> Add 0xC to Esp (the stack pointer), effectively unwinding the stack pointer
bu MyApp!WinMain "r eip = poi(@esp); r esp = @esp + 0x14; .echo WinSpy!WinMain entered; g"
WinMain has 4x4 byte parameters = 0x10 bytes + 4 bytes for the return address = 0x14
Howto set a brekpoint in your code programatically?
Each step executes either a single assembly instruction or a single source line, depending on whether the debugger is in assembly mode or source mode. Use the l+t and l-t commands or the buttons on the WinDbg toolbar to switch between these modes.
Cmd
Variants / Params
Description
g (F5)
g gu
Go (F5) Go up = execute until the current function is complete gu ~= g @$ra gu ~= bp /1 /c @$csp @$ra;g -> $csp = same as esp on x86 -> $ra = The return address currently on the stack
p (F10)
p
pr p Count p [Count] "Command" p =StartAddress [Count] ["Command"]
[~Thread] p [=StartAddress] [Count] ["Command"]
Single step - executes a single instruction or source line. Subroutines are treated as a single step.
Toggle display of registers and flags Count = count of instructions or source lines to step through before stopping Command = debugger command to be executed after the step is performed StartAddress = Causes execution to begin at the specified address. Default is the current EIP.
~Thread = The specified thread is thawed and all others frozen
t (F11)
t ..
Single trace - executes a single instruction or source line. For subroutines each step is traced as well.
pt
pt ..
Step to next return - similar to the GU (go up), but staying in context of the current function If EIP is already on a return instruction, the entire return is executed. After this return is returned, execution will continue until another return is reached.
tt
tt ..
Trace to next return - similar to the GU (go up), but staying in context of the current function If EIP is already on a return instruction, the debugger traces into the return and continues executing until another return is reached.
pc
pc ..
Step to next call - executes the program until a call instruction is reached If EIP is already on a call instruction, the entire call will be executed. After this call is returned execution will continue until another call is reached.
tc
tc ..
Trace to next call - executes the program until a call instruction is reached If EIP is already on a call instruction, the debugger will trace into the call and continue executing until another call is reached.
pa
pa StopAddr
par pa StopAddr "Command" pa =StartAddress StopAddr ["Command"]
Step to address; StopAddr = address at which execution will stop Called functions are treated as a single unit
Toggle display of registers and flags Command = debugger command to be executed after the step is performed StartAddress = Causes execution to begin at the specified address. Default is the current EIP.
ta
ta StopAddr ..
Trace to address; StopAddr = address at which execution will stop Called functions are traced as well
Trace and watch data. Go to the beginning of a function and do a wt. It will run through the entire function and display statistics.
StartAddr = execution begin; EndAddr = address at which to end tracing (default = after RET of current function) l = maximum depth of traced calls m = restrict tracing to Module i = ignore code from Module oa = dump actual address of call sites or = dump return register values (EAX value) of sub-functions oR = dump return register values (EAX value) in the appropriate type nc = no info for individual calls ns = no summary info ns = no warnings
Dump current filter list = functions that are skipped when tracing (t, ta, tc) FilterList = Filter 1; Filter 2; ... symbols associated with functions to be stepped over (skipped) clear the filter list
.step_filter is not very useful in assembly mode, as each function call is on a different line.
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g
go
g `:123`; ? poi(counter); g
executes the current program to source line 123; print the value of counter; resume execution
p
single step
pr
toggle displaying of registers
p 5 "kb"
5x steps, execute "kb" thereafter
pc
step to next CALL instruction
pa 7c801b0b
step until 7c801b0b is reached
wt
trace and watch sub-functions
wt -l 4 -oR
trace sub-functions to depth 4, display their return values
dump stack; n = with frame #; f = distance between adjacent frames; L = omit source lines; number of stack frames to display first 3 params all params: param type + name + value all params formatted (new line) FPO info, calling convention
kd
kd [WordCnt]
display raw stack data + possible symbol info == dds esp
kM
DML variant with links to .frame #;dv
.kframes
Set stack length. The default is 20 (0x14).
.frame
.frame .frame # .frame /r [#]
show current frame specify frame # show register values
The .frame command specifies which local context (scope) will be used to interpret local variables, or displays the current local context. When executing a near call, the processor pushes the value of the EIP register (which contains the offset of the instruction following the CALL instruction) onto the stack (for use later as a return-instruction pointer). This is the first step in building a frame. Each time a function call is made, another frame is created so that the called function can access arguments, create local variables, and provide a mechanism to return to calling function. The composition of the frame is dependant on the function calling convention.
!uniqstack
!uniqstack !uniqstack [b|v|p] [n] !uniqstack -?
show stacks for all threads [b = first 3 params, v = FPO + calling convention, p = all params: param type + name + value], [n = with frame #] brief help
!findstack
!findstack Symbol !findstack Symbol [0|1|2] !findstack -?
locate all stacks that contain Symbol or module [0 = show only TID, 1 = TID + frames, 2 = entire thread stack] brief help
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k
display call stack
kn
call stack with frame numbers
kb
display call stack with first 3 params
kb 5
display first 5 frames only
To get more than 3 Function Arguments from the stack dd ChildEBP+8 (Parameters start at ChildEBP+8) dd ChildEBP+8 (frame X) == dd ESP (frame X-1)
!uniqstack
get all stacks of our process (one for each thread)
Dump all registers Dump only specified registers (i.e.: r eax, edx) Value to assign to the register (i.e.: r eax=5, edx=6)
Type = data format in which to display the register (i.e.: r eax:uw) ib = Signed byte ub = Unsigned byte iw = Signed word (2b) uw = Unsigned word (2b) id = Signed dword (4b) ud = Unsigned dword (4b) iq = Signed qword (8b) uq = Unsigned qword (8b) f = 32-bit floating-point d = 64-bit floating-point
Num = number of elements to display (i.e.: r eax:1uw) Default is full register length, thus r eax:uw would display two values as EAX is a 32-bit register.
Thread = thread from which the registers are to be read (i.e.: ~1 r eax)
rM
rM Mask rM Mask Reg1, Reg2 rM Mask Reg=Value ..
Dump register types specified by Mask Dump only specified registers from current mask Value to assign to the register
Dump all floating-point registers == rM 0x4 Dump only specified floating-point registers Value to assign to the register
rX
rX rX Reg1, Reg2 rX Reg=Value ..
Dump all SSE XMM registers == rM 0x40 Dump only specified SSE XMM registers Value to assign to the register
rm
rm rm ? rm Mask
Dump default register mask. This mask controls how registers are displayed by the "r". Dump a list of possible Mask bits Specify the mask to use when displaying the registers.
Brief help Dump variable info Dump only 'field-name(s)' (struct or unions) Addr of struct to be dumped list symbols (wildcard)
-n Name = param is a name (use if name can be mistaken as an address) -y Name = partially match instead of default exact match
-a = Shows array elements in new line with its index -b = Dump only contiguous block of struct -c = Compact output (all fields in one line) -i = Does not indent the subtypes -l ListField = Field which is pointer to the next element in list -o = Omit the offset value (fields of struct) -p = Dump from physical address -r[l] = Recursively dump subtypes/fields (up to l levels) -s [size] = For enumeration only, enumerate types only of given size. -v = Verbose output.
dv
dv dv Pattern dv [/i /t /V] [Pattern] dv [/i /t /V /a /n /z] [Pattern]
display local variables and parameters vars matching Pattern i = type (local, global, parameter), t = data type, V = memory address or register location a = sort by Addr, n = sort by name, z = sort by size
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dt ntdll!_PEB*
list all variables that contain the word _PEB
dt ntdll!_PEB* -v
list with verbose output (address and size included)
dt ntdll!_PEB* -v -s 9
list only symbols whose size is 9 bytes
dt ntdll!_PEB
dump _PEB info
dt ntdll!_PEB @$peb
dump _PEB for our process
dt ntdll!_PEB 7efde000
dump _PEB at Addr 7efde000 You can get our process's PEB address with "r @$peb" or with "!peb".
dt ntdll!_PEB Ldr SessionId
dump only PEB's Ldr and SessionId fields
dt ntdll!_PEB Ldr -y OS*
dump Ldr field + all fields that start with OS*
dt mod!var m_cs.
dump m_cs and expand its subfields
dt mod!var m_cs..
expand its subfields for 2 levels
dt ntdll!_PEB -r2
dump recursively (2 levels)
dv /t /i /V
dump local variables with type information (/t), addresses and EBP offsets (/V), classify them into categories (/i) Note: dv will also display the value of a THIS pointer for methods called with the "this calling-convention". BUG: You must first execute a few commands before dv displays the correct value. Right at a function's entry point the THIS pointer is present in ECX, so you can easily get it from there.
Display memory [#columns to display] a = ascii chars u = Unicode chars
b = byte + ascii w = word (2b) W = word (2b) + ascii d = dword (4b) c = dword (4b) + ascii q = qword (8b)
f = floating point (single precision - 4b) D = floating point (double precision - 8b)
b = binary + byte d = binary + dword
e*
e[ b | w | d | q | f | D ] Addr Value
e[ a | u | za | zu ] Addr "String"
Edit memory b = byte w = word (2b) d = dword (4b) q = qword (8b)
f = floating point (single precision - 4b) D = floating point (double precision - 8b)
a = ascii string za = ascii string (NULL-terminated) u = Unicode string zu = Unicode string (NULL-terminated)
ds, dS
ds [/c #] [Addr] dS [/c #] [Addr]
Dump string struct (struct! not null-delimited char sequence) s = STRING or ANSI_STRING S = UNICODE_STRING
d*s
dds [/c #] [Addr] dqs [/c #] [Addr]
Display words and symbols (memory at Addr is assumed to be a series of addresses in the symbol table) dds = dwords (4b) dqs = qwords (8b)
dd*, dq*, dp*
dd* dq* dp*
d*a d*u d*p
Display referenced memory = display pointer at specified Addr, dereference it, and then display the memory at the resulting location in a variety of formats.
the 2nd char determines the pointer size used: dd* -> 32-bit pointer used dq* -> 64-bit pointer used dp* -> standard size: 32-bit or 64-bit, depending on the CPU architecture
the 3rd char determines how the dereferenced memory is displayed: d*a -> dereferenced mem as asci chars d*u -> dereferenced mem as Unicode chars d*p -> dereferenced mem as dword or qword, depending on the CPU architecture. If this value matches any known symbol, this symbol is displayed as well.
dl
dl[b] Addr MaxCount Size
Display linked list (LIST_ENTRY or SINGLE_LIST_ENTRY) b = dump in reverse order (follow BLinks instead of FLinks) Addr = start address of the list MaxCount = max # elements to dump Size = Size of each element
Use !list to execute some command for each element in the list.
Display info about the memory used by the target process Brief help Dump info for region with Addr Dump summary info for process Dump specified regions (RegionUsageStack, RegionUsagePageHeap, ..)
!vprot
!vprot -? !vprot Addr
Brief Help Dump virtual memory protection info
!mapped_file
!mapped_file -? !mapped_file Addr
Brief Help Dump name of the file containing given Addr
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dd 0046c6b0
display dwords at 0046c6b0
dd 0046c6b0 L1
display 1 dword at 0046c6b0
dd 0046c6b0 L3
display 3 dwords at 0046c6b0
du 0046c6b0
display Unicode chars at 0046c6b0
du 0046c6b0 L5
display 5 Unicode chars at 0046c6b0
dds esp == kd
display words and symbols on stack
!mapped_file 00400000
Dump name of file containing address 00400000
!address
show all memory regions of our process
!address -RegionUsageStack
show all stack regions of our process
!address esp
show info for committed sub-region for our thread's stack. Note: For stack overflows SubRegionSize (size of committed memory) will be large, i.e.:
From MSDN CreateThread > dwStackSize > "Thread Stack Size": "Each new thread receives its own stack space, consisting of both committed and reserved memory. By default, each thread uses 1 Mb of reserved memory, and one page of committed memory. The system will commit one page block from the reserved stack memory as needed."
Fill memory. Pattern = a series of bytes (numeric or ASCII chars)
s
s Range Pattern
s -[Flags]b Range Pattern
s -[Flags]w Range 'Pattern' s -[Flags]d Range 'Pattern' s -[Flags]q Range 'Pattern'
s -[Flags]a Range "Pattern" s -[Flags]u Range "Pattern"
s -[Flags,l length]sa Range s -[Flags,l length]su Range
s -[Flags]v Range Object
Search memory
b = byte (default value) Pattern = a series of bytes (numeric or ASCII chars)
w = word (2b) d = dword (4b) q = qword (8b) Pattern = enclosed in single quotation marks (for example, 'Tag7')
a = ascii string (must not be null-terminated) u = Unicode string (must not be null-terminated) Pattern = enclosed in double quotation marks (for example, "This string")
Search for any memory containing printable ascii strings Search for any memory containing printable Unicode strings Length = minimum length of such strings; the default is 3 chars
Search for objects of the same type. Object = Addr of a pointer to the Object or of the Object itself
Flags ------- w = search only writable memory 1 = output only addresses of search matches (useful if you are using the .foreach) Flags must be surrounded by a single set of brackets without spaces. Example: s -[swl 10]Type Range Pattern
.holdmem
.holdmem -a Range .holdmem -o .holdmem -c Range .holdmem -D .holdmem -d { Range | Address }
Hold and compare memory. The comparison is made byte-for-byte Memory range to safe Display all saved memory ranges Compares Range to all saved memory ranges Delete all saved memory ranges Delete specified memory ranges (any saved range containing Addr or overlapping with Range)
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c Addr (Addr+100) DestAddr
compare 100 bytes at Addr with DestAddr
c Addr L100 DestAddr
-||-
m Addr L20 DestAddr
move 20 bytes from Addr to DestAddr
f Addr L20 'A' 'B' 'C'
fill specified memory location with the pattern "ABC", repeated several times
f Addr L20 41 42 43
-||-
s 0012ff40 L20 'H' 'e' 'l' 'l' 'o'
search memory locations 0012FF40 through 0012FF5F for the pattern "Hello"
List heaps with index and HeapAddr List heaps with index and range (= startAddr(=HeapAddr), endAddr) Detailed heap info [Idx = heap Idx, 0 = all heaps] Validate heap [Idx = heap Idx, 0 = all heaps] Summary info, i.e. reserved and committed memory [Idx = heap Idx, 0 = all heaps] Detailed info for a block at given address Search heap block containing the address (v = search the whole process virtual space) Search for potentially leaked heap blocks
Set conditional breakpoint in the heap manager [Heap = HeapAddr | Idx | 0] Remove a conditional breakpoint
!heap -flt
!heap -flt s Size !heap -flt r SizeMin SizeMax
Dump info for allocations matching the specified size Filter by range
!heap -stat
!heap -stat !heap -stat -h [HeapHandle | 0]
Dump heap handle list Dump usage statistic for every AllocSize [HeapHandle = given heap | 0 = all heaps]. The statistic includes AllocSize, #blocks, TotalMem for each AllocSize.
Extended page heap help Summary for NtGlobalFlag, HeapHandle + NormalHeap list ** Detailed info about a page heap with Handle Details of heap allocation containing UserAddr. Prints backtraces when available. Details of all allocations in all heaps in the process. The output includes UserAddr and AllocSize for every HeapAlloc call.
It seems that the following applies for windows XP SP2:
a) Normal heap
CreateHeap -> creates a _HEAP
AllocHeap -> creates a _HEAP_ENTRY
b) Page heap enabled (gflags.exe /i MyApp.exe +hpa)
CreateHeap -> creates a _DPH_HEAP_ROOT (+ _HEAP + 2x _HEAP_ENTRY)**
AllocHeap -> creates a _DPH_HEAP_BLOCK
** With page heap enabled there will still be a _HEAP with two constant _HEAP_ENTRY's for every CreateHeap call.
Term
Description
Heap type
HeapHandle
= value returned by HeapCreate or GetProcessHeap For normal heap: HeapHandle == HeapStartAddr
Normal & page
HeapAddr
= startAddr = NormalHeap
Normal & page
UserAddr, UserPtr
= value in the range [HeapAlloc...HeapAlloc+AllocSize] For normal heap this range is further within Heap[startAddr-endAddr]
Normal & page
UserSize
= AllocSize (value passed to HeapAlloc)
Normal & page
_HEAP
= HeapHandle = HeapStartAddr For every HeapCreate a _HEAP struct is created. You can use "!heap -p -all" to get these addresses.
Normal heap
_HEAP_ENTRY
For every HeapAlloc a _HEAP_ENTRY is created. You can use "!heap -p -all" to get these addresses.
Normal heap
_DPH_HEAP_ROOT
= usually HeapHandle + 0x1000 For every HeapCreate a _DPH_HEAP_ROOT is created. You can use "!heap -p -all" to get these addresses.
Page heap
_DPH_HEAP_BLOCK
For every HeapAlloc a _DPH_HEAP_BLOCK is created. You can use "!heap -p -all" to get these addresses.
Page heap
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dt ntdll!_HEAP
dump _HEAP struct
dt ntdll!_DPH_HEAP_ROOT
dump _DPH_HEAP_ROOT struct. Enable page heap. Then you can use "!heap -p -all" to get addresses of actual _DPH_HEAP_ROOT structs in your process.
dt ntdll!_DPH_HEAP_BLOCK
dump _DPH_HEAP_BLOCK struct. Enable page heap. Then you can use "!heap -p -all" to get addresses of actual _DPH_HEAP_BLOCK structs in your process.
!heap
list all heaps with index and HeapAddr
!heap -h
list all heaps with range information (startAddr, endAddr)
!heap -h 1
detailed heap info for heap with index 1
!heap -s 0
Summary for all heaps (reserved and committed memory, ..)
!heap -flt s 20
Dump heap allocations of size 20 bytes
!heap -stat
Dump HeapHandle list. HeapHandle = value returned by HeapCreate or GetProcessHeap
!heap -stat -h 00150000
Dump usage statistic for HeapHandle = 00150000
!heap 2 -b alloc mtag
Breakpoint on HeapAlloc calls with TAG=mtag in heap with index 2
!heap -p
Dump heap handle list
!heap -p -a 014c6fb0
Details of heap allocation containing address 014c6fb0 + call-stack if available
!heap -p -all
Dump details of all allocations in all heaps in the process
Who allocated memory - who called HeapAlloc?
Select "Create user mode stack trace database" for your image in GFlags (gflags.exe /i MyApp.exe +ust)
From WinDbg's command line do a !heap -p -a [UserAddr], where [UserAddr] is the address of your allocation ***.
While !heap -p -a [UserAddr] will dump a call-stack, no source information will be included.
To get source information you must additionally enable page heap in step 1 (gflags.exe /i MyApp.exe +ust +hpa)
Do a dt ntdll!_DPH_HEAP_BLOCK StackTrace [MyHeapBlockAddr], where [MyHeapBlockAddr] is the DPH_HEAP_BLOCK address retrieved in step 3.
Do a dds [StackTrace]", where [StackTrace] is the value retrieved in step 5. Note that dds will dump the stack with source information included.
Who created a heap - who called HeapCreate?
Select "Create user mode stack trace database" and "Enable page heap" for your image in GFlags (gflags.exe /i MyApp.exe +ust +hpa)
a) From WinDbg's command line do a !heap -p -h [HeapHandle], where [HeapHandle] is the value returned by HeapCreate. You can do a !heap -stat or !heap -p to get all heap handles of your process. b) Alternatively you can use !heap -p -all to get addresses of all _DPH_HEAP_ROOT's of your process directly.
Do a dt ntdll!_DPH_HEAP_ROOT CreateStackTrace [MyHeapRootAddr], where is the address of a _DPH_HEAP_ROOT retrieved in step 2
Do a dds , where [CreateStackTrace] is the value retrieved in step 3.
Finding memory leaks
From WinDbg's command line do a !address –summary. If RegionUsageHeap or RegionUsagePageHeap are growing, then you might have a memory leak on the heap. Proceed with the following steps.
Enable "Create user mode stack trace database" for your image in GFlags (gflags.exe /i MyApp.exe +ust)
From WinDbg's command line do a !heap -stat, to get all active heap blocks and their handles.
Do a !heap -stat -h 0. This will list down handle specific allocation statistics for every AllocSize. For every AllocSize the following is listed: AllocSize, #blocks, and TotalMem. Take the AllocSize with maximum TotalMem.
Do a !heap -flt s [Size]. [Size]=AllocSize that we determined in the previous step. This command will list down all blocks with that particular size.
Do a !heap -p -a [UserAddr] to get the stack trace from where you have allocated that much bytes. Use the [UserAddr] that you got in step 4.
To get source information you must additionally enable page heap in step 1 (gflags.exe /i MyApp.exe +ust +hpa)
Do a dt ntdll!_DPH_HEAP_BLOCK StackTrace [MyHeapBlockAddr], where [MyHeapBlockAddr] is the DPH_HEAP_BLOCK address retrieved in step 5.
Do a dds [StackTrace]", where [StackTrace] is the value retrieved in step 7. Note that dds will dump the stack with source information included.
*** What is a [UserAddr]?
[UserAddr] is usually the address returned by HeapAlloc:
21) Application Verifier Application Verifier profiles and tracks Microsoft Win32 APIs (heap, handles, locks, threads, DLL load/unload, and more), Exceptions, Kernel objects, Registry, File system. With the !avrf extension we get access to this tracking information!
Cmd
Variants / Params
Description
!avrf
Displays Application Verifier options. If an Application Verifier Stop has occurred, reveal the nature of the stop and what caused it.
!avrf
-?
-vs N -vs -a ADDR
-hp N -hp -a ADDR
-cs N -cs -a ADDR
-dlls N -ex N -cnt -threads -trm -trace INDEX -brk [INDEX]
Brief help
Dump last N entries from vspace log (MapViewOfFile, UnmapViewOfFile, ..). Searches ADDR in the vspace log.
HeapAlloc, HeapFree, new, and delete log Searches ADDR in the heap log.
DeleteCriticalSection API log (last #Entries). ~CCriticalSection calls this implicitly. Searches ADDR in the critical section delete log.
LoadLibrary/FreeLibrary log exception log global counters (WaitForSingleObject, HeapAllocation calls, ...) thread information + start parameters for child threads TerminateThread API log dump stack trace with INDEX. dump or set/reset break triggers.
You must enable the following options for you image in GFlags: -> "Create user mode stack trace database" -> "Stack Backtrace: (Megs)" -> 10 -> It seems that you sometimes also need to check and specify the "Debugger" field in GFlags
Cmd
Variants / Params
Description
!logexts.help
displays all Logexts.dll extension commands
!loge
!loge [dir]
Enable logging + possibly initialize it if not yet done. Output directory optional.
!logi
Initialize (=inject Logger into the target application) but don't enable logging.
!logd
Disable logging
!logo
!logo !logo [e|d] [d|t|v]
List output settings Enable/disable [d - Debugger, t - Text file, v - Verbose log] output. Use logviewer.exe to examine Verbose logs.
http://www.windbg.info/doc/1-common-cmds.html1) Built-in help commands 9) Exceptions, events, and crash analysis 17) Information about variables Collapse all examples 2) General ...