Smali Debugger in jadx-gui

Prerequisites

• adb installed and available on ANDROID_HOME or PATH
• A debuggable app or a rooted device/emulator that can force-enable debugging on any app

Warning: Android Studio interferes with the jadx debugger. Close Android Studio before attaching to a process in jadx.

Features

• Single-step execution (step into / step over / step out)
• Set and remove breakpoints
• Modify register values at runtime
• Modify fields of live objects at runtime

Keyboard Shortcuts

Usage

1. Make the App Debuggable

Launch the target app with the wait-for-debugger flag set, or use a rooted device to inject the debuggable flag at runtime. jadx will detect the waiting process via adb.

2. Connect via adb

Use the adb panel inside jadx-gui to select the device and target process. jadx searches ANDROID_HOME and PATH for the adb binary automatically.

3. Debug in Smali View

Note: Breakpoints and the current debug-position highlight only work inside the smali viewer when Show dalvik bytecode mode is active.
This mode is activated automatically on attach; if not, enable it from the right-click popup menu in the smali view.

Once attached:

• Click the gutter or press F2 to place a breakpoint on a smali instruction.
• Use F7 / F8 / Shift+F8 to step through instructions.
• Inspect and edit registers and object fields in the debugger panel.