OpenOCD vs Ruby debug

OpenOCD provides debugging, in-system programming, and boundary-scan testing for embedded target devices through a debug adapter. It communicates with targets over JTAG or Serial Wire Debug (SWD), and can run as a server for GDB clients. Users can also interact through Telnet or GDB; its Tcl interface is intended for machine interaction, and configuration files can contain commands using the documented Tcl scripting API. The target list includes ARM, MIPS, RISC-V, Xtensa, ARC, AVR32, and other architectures. Release 0.12.0 notes support for Espressif ESP32, ESP32-S2, ESP32-S3 cores, and Raspberry Pi Pico RP2040, along with Zephyr and a no-RTOS option. OpenOCD supports remote debugging and exception breakpoints. It is free and listed for Linux, macOS, Windows, and self-hosted setups. The project says it is packaged in popular operating-system repositories and provides access to source code; community binaries are marked unofficial. Host configuration may take extra steps: Linux usually needs a udev rule for adapter access, and Windows requires driver configuration for each peripheral.

Ruby debug is a free, BSD-2-Clause open-source debugger for Ruby MRI 2.7 and later, delivered for Linux and self-hosted use. Its console evaluates Ruby expressions, inspects program state, controls execution, sets conditional and exception breakpoints, and enables tracing. The debugger can record execution and replay it by stepping backward through the log. Remote sessions work over UNIX domain sockets or TCP/IP, allowing a console to attach to a running program. An IRB console adds autocompletion, multiline input, and commands including `show_source` and `show_doc`. The `rdbg` command launches Ruby scripts and commands such as Rails, Rake, and RSpec under debugging. Frontends are described for VS Code and Chrome DevTools; VS Code requires the vscode-rdbg extension. Installation uses `gem install debug` or a Gemfile entry. The project reports no performance penalty when not stepping and with no breakpoints set. It warns that remote messages are unencrypted and that `debug/open_nonstop` can expose access without stopping the program.