What is the core principle of root cause tracing?

The core principle is to trace backward through the call chain until you find the original trigger that caused the failure, rather than simply fixing the code where the symptom first appeared.

What is defense-in-depth in the context of debugging?

It involves adding validation checks at multiple layers of the application—from the initial input to the final execution point—to make future bugs impossible and provide clear error messages at the boundary.

When should I use instrumentation instead of manual tracing?

Instrumentation is recommended when manual tracing becomes a dead end or when you need to capture environment variables, timestamps, and full stack traces during runtime to identify patterns.

How does this skill handle test pollution?

It utilizes bisection techniques and specialized scripts to run tests individually, identifying which specific test is modifying the environment or global state.

Root Cause Tracing

Name: Root Cause Tracing
Author: cipherstash

bycipherstash

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安全与测试

Identifies the fundamental source of software bugs by systematically tracing execution backward through the call stack and implementing strategic instrumentation.

关于

The Root Cause Tracing skill transforms the way developers approach debugging by focusing on original triggers rather than surface-level symptoms. It provides a structured framework for analyzing deep execution errors, such as invalid file paths or corrupted data, by moving step-by-step through the call chain. By guiding Claude to add instrumentation, use bisection scripts for test pollution, and implement defense-in-depth validation, this skill ensures that bugs are permanently resolved at their origin. It is particularly valuable for complex enterprise applications where errors often manifest far from the code responsible for the initial state failure.

主要功能

4 GitHub stars
Validation at every execution boundary
Systematic backward call stack analysis
Strategic debug instrumentation and logging
Automated test pollution bisection
Multi-layered defense-in-depth implementation

使用场景

Tracing the origin of invalid data passed through multiple function layers
Identifying specific test cases causing global state or filesystem pollution
Debugging errors that occur deep in execution far from the initial entry point

关于

主要功能

4 GitHub stars
Validation at every execution boundary
Systematic backward call stack analysis
Strategic debug instrumentation and logging
Automated test pollution bisection
Multi-layered defense-in-depth implementation

使用场景

Tracing the origin of invalid data passed through multiple function layers
Identifying specific test cases causing global state or filesystem pollution
Debugging errors that occur deep in execution far from the initial entry point