GDB Installation on Mac OS

Step 1. Install gdb

1. To install gdb by the following command on terminal:

   $ brew install gdb

2. We can confirm whether gdb is installed successfully by running:

   $ gdb --version

   On my Mac, we can see:

   

3. However, we will get the information as follows while try to run a program:

   Unable to find Mach task port for process-id XXXXX: (os/kern) failure (0x5).
   (please check gdb is codesigned - see taskgated(8))

Step 2. Create a Certificate

1. Open Launchpad -> Other -> Keychain Access

2. In its menu, open Keychain Access -> Certificate Assistant -> Create a certificate

3. While creating, we set Identity type to Self Signed Root, Certificate type to Code Signing, and check “let me override defaults”.

   

4. We just continue until we get a page which prompts us for “specify a location”, and select Keychain location to System. Then, create a certificate and close assistant.

   Noting: If we get an error as follows, we need to repeat the whole Step 2, but set Keychain location to Login in 4.

   Unknown Error = -2,147,414,007

5. Find the certificate we just created, and double click it. Then, modify Trust, set Code Signing to Always Trust.

   

6. Restart taskgated in terminal by running:

   $ sudo killall taskgated

7. Create a file called gdb-entitlement.xml which allows OS to trust gdb for debugging:

   $ vim gdb-entitlement.xml

   which includes:

   <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
   <!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
   <plist version="1.0">
   <dict>
       <key>com.apple.security.cs.allow-jit</key>
       <true/>
       <key>com.apple.security.cs.allow-unsigned-executable-memory</key>
       <true/>
       <key>com.apple.security.cs.allow-dyld-environment-variables</key>
       <true/>
       <key>com.apple.security.cs.disable-library-validation</key>
       <true/>
       <key>com.apple.security.cs.disable-executable-page-protection</key>
       <true/>
       <key>com.apple.security.cs.debugger</key>
       <true/>
       <key>com.apple.security.get-task-allow</key>
       <true/>
   </dict>
   </plist>
   </pre>

8. Run codesign on terminal:

   $ codesign --entitlements gdb-entitlement.xml -fs gdb-cert /usr/local/bin/gdb

   And, we will ask for inputting the root password.

9. Finally, reboot!

Step 3. Runing gdb

1. Create HelloWorld.c using C:

   #include <stdio.h>
   
   int main(){
       printf("Hello World!\n");
       return 0;
   }

2. Compile it with -g option:

   $ gcc HelloWorld.c -g -o HelloWorld

3. Run gdb to debug this program. Successfully!!!

   

   Noting, if we find the following information, and the debugger is stopped:

   [New Thread 0x1a03 of process 3822]

   We need to type the following into the terminal, and restart a debugger:

   echo "set startup-with-shell off" >> ~/.gdbinit