The inspector module provides an API for interacting with the V8 inspector, enabling debugging, profiling, and runtime analysis. Here's how to use it.
Basic Setup
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Session API
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CPU Profiling
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Heap Snapshot
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Heap Profiling
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Code Coverage
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Runtime Evaluation
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Breakpoint Management
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Async Stack Traces
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Memory Monitoring
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Profiling Wrapper
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Best Practices
Profiling:
✓ Profile in production-like environment
✓ Use sampling for long runs
✓ Take multiple snapshots
✓ Compare before/after
Debugging:
✓ Use conditional breakpoints
✓ Enable async stack traces
✓ Inspect scope chain
✓ Monitor memory usage
Performance:
✓ Disable when not needed
✓ Use appropriate sample intervals
✓ Clean up sessions
✓ Avoid in production
Avoid:
✗ Leaving inspector open in production
✗ Taking snapshots too frequently
✗ Ignoring session cleanup
✗ Profiling with debugger attached
Conclusion
The Node.js inspector module provides powerful tools for debugging and profiling. Use it for CPU profiling to find performance bottlenecks, heap snapshots to diagnose memory leaks, and code coverage for testing. Create wrapper utilities for common profiling tasks and remember to properly clean up sessions. For production debugging, consider using the inspector URL to connect Chrome DevTools remotely.