Walkthrough: Using the Debugger with Async Methods

Article
05/05/2015

By using the Async feature, you can call into asynchronous methods without using callbacks or splitting your code across multiple methods or lambda expressions. To make synchronous code asynchronous, you call an asynchronous method instead of a synchronous method and add a few keywords to the code. For more information, see Asynchronous Programming with Async and Await (C# and Visual Basic).

In the Visual Studio debugger, you can use the Step Into, Step Over, and Step Out commands with the Async feature. You can also continue to use breakpoints, particularly to view the control flow at a statement that contains an await operator. In this walkthrough, you'll complete the following tasks, which you can run in any order.

Demonstrate the control flow at an await statement by using breakpoints.
Understand the behavior of the Step Into and Step Over commands at statements that contain an await operator.
Understand the behavior of the Step Out command when you use it from within an async method.

Breakpoints to Show Control Flow

If you mark a method with the Async (Visual Basic) or async (C#) modifier, you can use the Await (Visual Basic) or await (C#) operator in the method. To create an await expression, you associate the await operator with a task. When an await expression is called for the task, the current method exits immediately and returns a different task. When the task that's associated with the await operator finishes, execution resumes in the same method. For more information, see Control Flow in Async Programs (C# and Visual Basic).

Note

An async method returns to the caller when either it encounters the first awaited object that’s not yet complete or it reaches the end of the async method, whichever occurs first.

Note

The console apps in these examples use Wait method to prevent the application from terminating in Main. You shouldn’t use the Wait method outside of console applications because a deadlock situation can occur.

The following procedure sets breakpoints to demonstrate what happens when the application reaches an await statement. You can also demonstrate the control flow by adding Debug.WriteLine statements.

Create a console application, and then paste the following code into it:

' Breakpoints to show control flow. 
Imports System.Threading.Tasks

Module Module1
    Sub Main()
        Dim theTask = ProcessAsync()
        Dim x = 0 ' set breakpoint
        theTask.Wait()
    End Sub

    Async Function ProcessAsync() As Task
        Dim result = Await DoSomethingAsync()  ' set breakpoint

        Dim y = 0 ' set breakpoint
    End Function

    Async Function DoSomethingAsync() As Task(Of Integer)
        Await Task.Delay(1000)
        Return 5
    End Function 
End Module

// Breakpoints to show control flow. 
using System.Threading.Tasks;

class Program
{
    static void Main(string[] args)
    {
        Task theTask = ProcessAsync();
        int x = 0;  // set breakpoint
        theTask.Wait();
    }

    static async Task ProcessAsync()
    {
        var result = await DoSomethingAsync();  // set breakpoint 

        int y = 0;  // set breakpoint
    }

    static async Task<int> DoSomethingAsync()
    {
        await Task.Delay(1000);
        return 5;
    }
}

Set debugging breakpoints on the three lines that end with a "set breakpoint" comment.
Choose the F5 key, or choose Debug, Start Debugging on the menu bar to run the application.

The application goes into the ProcessAsync method and breaks on the line that contains the await operator.
Choose the F5 key again.

Because the application stopped on a statement that contains an await operator, the application immediately exits the async method and returns a task. Therefore, the application exits the ProcessAsync method and breaks at the breakpoint in the calling method (Main).
Choose the F5 key again.

When the DoSomethingAsync method completes, the code resumes after the await statement in the calling method. Therefore, the application breaks at the breakpoint in the ProcessAsync method.

When DoSomethingAsync was initially awaited, the ProcessAsync method exited and returned a task. When the awaited DoSomethingAsync method then completed, the evaluation of the await statement produced the return value of DoSomethingAsync. The DoSomethingAsync method is defined to return a Task (Of Integer) in Visual Basic or Task<int> in C#, so the value in its return statement is an integer. For more information, see Async Return Types (C# and Visual Basic).

Obtaining and then awaiting a task

In the ProcessAsync method, the statement Dim result = Await DoSomethingAsync() (Visual Basic) or var result = await DoSomethingAsync(); (C#) is a contraction of the following two statements:

Dim theTask = DoSomethingAsync()
Dim result = Await theTask

var theTask = DoSomethingAsync();
var result = await theTask;

The first line of code calls the async method and returns a task. That task is associated with the await operator in the next line of code. The await statement exits the method (ProcessAsync) and returns a different task. When the task that’s associated with the await operator is complete, code resumes in the method (ProcessAsync) after the await statement.

When the await statement immediately returns a different task, that task is the returned argument of the async method that contains the await operator (ProcessAsync). The task that’s returned by the await includes code execution that occurs after the await in the same method, which is why that task is different from the task that’s associated with the await.

Step Into and Step Over

The Step Into command steps into a method, but the Step Over command executes the method call and then breaks on the next line of the calling method. For more information, see Step into, over, or out of the code.

The following procedure shows what occurs when you choose the Step Into or Step Over commands at an await statement.

Replace the code in the console application with the following code.

' Step Into and Step Over Example 
Imports System.Threading.Tasks

Module Module1
    Sub Main()
        ProcessAsync.Wait()
    End Sub

    Async Function ProcessAsync() As Task
        Dim result = Await DoSomethingAsync()  ' Step Into or Step Over from here

        Dim y = 0
    End Function

    Async Function DoSomethingAsync() As Task(Of Integer)
        Await Task.Delay(1000)
        Return 5
    End Function 
End Module

// Step Into and Step Over Example. 
using System.Threading.Tasks;

class Program
{
    static void Main(string[] args)
    {
        ProcessAsync().Wait();
    }

    static async Task ProcessAsync()
    {
        var result = await DoSomethingAsync();  // Step Into or Step Over from here 

        int y = 0;
    }

    static async Task<int> DoSomethingAsync()
    {
        await Task.Delay(1000);
        return 5;
    }
}

Choose the F11 key, or choose Debug, Step Into on the menu bar to start a demonstration of the Step Into command at a statement that contains an await operator.

The application starts and breaks on the first line, which is Sub Main() in Visual Basic or the opening curly brace of the Main method in C#.
Choose the F11 key three more times.

The application should now be at the await statement in the ProcessAsync method.
Choose the F11 key.

The application goes into the DoSomethingAsync method and breaks on the first line. This behavior occurs even though, at the await statement, the application immediately returns to the calling method (Main).
Keep choosing the F11 key until the application returns to the await statement in the ProcessAsync method.
Choose the F11 key.

The application breaks on the line that follows the await statement.
On the menu bar, choose Debug, Stop Debugging to stop execution of the application.

The next steps demonstrate the Step Over command at an await statement.
Choose the F11 key four times, or choose Debug, Step Into on the menu bar four times.

The application should now be at the await statement in the ProcessAsync method.
Choose the F10 key, or choose Debug, Step Over on the menu bar.

Execution breaks at the line that follows the await statement. This behavior occurs even though the application returns immediately to the calling method (Main) at the await statement. The Step Over command also steps over execution of the DoSomethingAsync method, as expected.
On the menu bar, choose Debug, Stop Debugging to stop execution of the application.

As the following steps show, the behavior of the Step Into and Step Over commands differs slightly when the await operator is on a different line from the call to the async method.
In the ProcessAsync method, replace the await statement with the following code. The original await statement is a contraction of the following two statements.
```
Dim theTask = DoSomethingAsync()
Dim result = Await theTask
```
```
var theTask = DoSomethingAsync();
var result = await theTask;
```
Choose the F11 key or choose Debug, Step Into on the menu bar multiple times to start execution and step through the code.

At the call to DoSomethingAsync, the Step Into command breaks in the DoSomethingAsync method, while the Step Over command goes to the next statement, as expected. At the await statement, both commands break at the statement that follows the await.

Step Out

In methods that aren't async, the Step Out command breaks in the calling method on the code that follows the method call. For async methods, the logic for where the execution breaks in the calling method is more complex, and that logic depends on whether the Step Out command is on the first line of the async method.

Replace the code in the console application with the following code.

' Step Out Example 
Imports System.Threading.Tasks

Module Module1
    Sub Main()
        ProcessAsync.Wait()
    End Sub

    Async Function ProcessAsync() As Task
        Dim theTask = DoSomethingAsync()
        Dim z = 0
        Dim result = Await theTask
    End Function

    Async Function DoSomethingAsync() As Task(Of Integer)
        Debug.WriteLine("before")  ' Step Out from here
        Await Task.Delay(1000)
        Debug.WriteLine("after")
        Return 5
    End Function 
End Module

// Step Out Example. 
using System.Diagnostics;
using System.Threading.Tasks;

class Program
{
    static void Main(string[] args)
    {
        ProcessAsync().Wait();
    }

    static async Task ProcessAsync()
    {
        var theTask = DoSomethingAsync();
        int z = 0;
        var result = await theTask;
    }

    static async Task<int> DoSomethingAsync()
    {
        Debug.WriteLine("before");  // Step Out from here
        await Task.Delay(1000);
        Debug.WriteLine("after");
        return 5;
    }
}

Set a breakpoint on the Debug.WriteLine("before") line in the DoSomethingAsync method.

This is to demonstrate the behavior of the Step Out command from a line in an async method that isn't the first line.
Choose the F5 key or choose Debug, Start Debugging on the menu bar to start the application.

The code breaks on Debug.WriteLine("before") in the DoSomethingAsync method.
Choose the Shift+F11 keys, or choose Debug, Step Out on the menu bar.

The application breaks in the calling method at the await statement for the task that’s associated with the current method. As a result, the application breaks on the await statement in the ProcessAsync method. The application doesn’t break on Dim z = 0 (Visual Basic) or int z = 0; (C#), which is the code that follows the call to the DoSomethingAsync method.
Choose Debug, Stop Debugging on the menu bar to stop execution of the application.

The next steps demonstrate what happens when you Step Out from the first line of an async method.
Remove the existing breakpoint, and add a breakpoint on the first line of the DoSomethingAsync method.

In C#, add the breakpoint on the opening curly brace of the DoSomethingAsync method. In Visual Basic, add the breakpoint on the line that contains Async Function DoSomethingAsync() As Task(Of Integer).
Choose the F5 key to start the application.

The code breaks on the first line of the DoSomethingAsync method.
On the menu bar, choose Debug, Windows, Output.

The Output window opens.
Choose the Shift+F11 keys, or choose Debug, Step Out on the menu bar.

The application resumes until the async method reaches its first await, and then the application breaks at the calling statement. As a result, the application breaks on Dim the Task = DoSomethingAsync() (Visual Basic) or var theTask = DoSomethingAsync(); (C#). The "before" message has appeared in the Output window, but the "after" message hasn't yet appeared.
Choose the F5 key to continue to run the application.

The application continues with the statement that follows the await statement in the called async function (DoSomethingAsync). The "after" message appears in the Output window.

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Walkthrough: Using the Debugger with Async Methods

Breakpoints to Show Control Flow

Obtaining and then awaiting a task

Step Into and Step Over

Step Out

See Also

Concepts

Additional resources