RuntimeSearch: Ctrl+F for a Running Program

TL;DR

RuntimeSearch enables developers to search for specific terms within the runtime of a program, allowing dynamic inspection and debugging of string values during execution, which extends traditional static code search methods.

Contribution

The paper introduces RuntimeSearch, a novel tool that allows searching for string expressions in a running program, bridging the gap between static search and dynamic runtime inspection.

Findings

Effective in a medium-sized Java project

Allows pausing and inspecting runtime string values

Enhances debugging capabilities with dynamic search

Abstract

Developers often try to find occurrences of a certain term in a software system. Traditionally, a text search is limited to static source code files. In this paper, we introduce a simple approach, RuntimeSearch, where the given term is searched in the values of all string expressions in a running program. When a match is found, the program is paused and its runtime properties can be explored with a traditional debugger. The feasibility and usefulness of RuntimeSearch is demonstrated on a medium-sized Java project.