Cannot step-point debug "Patterns In Action" with certain presentation layers

In addition to reading the PDF, another great way to learn your framework is in the debugger, stepping through code to see where things are happening.

However, if I use the WPF Application as the presentation layer, after the first run, when I try again to step-debug the the app, i.e. (set and reach breakpoints), upon start I get a Visual Studio Pop-Up Message with "Unable to automatically debug WCF.ActionServer. The remote procedure could not be debugged. This usually indicates that debugging has not been enabled on the server."

The problem is not the pop-up message, but with Visual Studio in that my breakpoints are set opaque and ignored, effectively eliminating step-point debugging as a learning aid.

In the Web.config in project "WCF.ActionServer", debug is set to true:
<compilation debug="true" targetFramework="4.0">

In the WCF.ActionServer Project Properties page, Web tab, Debuggers section, "ASP.NET" was checked by you. I additionally checked the "SQL Server" box. Nothing helps.

Note: I get the same behavior if I set the Presentation Layer to "Windows Forms Application".
Any ideas on what might cause this?

Thanx,
Mark

Mark Horowitz, Aug 10, 2011

Now I have this affect: I can debug in the PL, but I cannot debug in the SL ActionService.cs module, or below that facade.

Aug 11, 2011

When this happens (most of the time now), and I try to set a breakpoint, the breakpoint is, as I said, opaque. If I mouse-over the breakpoint I get the following tip: The breakpoint will not currently be hit. No symbols have been loaded for this document.

Aug 11, 2011

It would be great if someone in the know could comment on this. Sometimes I can debug, then the ability simply "falls away". I don't know the reason but it reduces the usefulness of the code-framework drastically. Thanx, Mark

Aug 11, 2011