Zed Debugging: Finally Works Without Extension Hell

Zed's debugger shipped in June 2025 after months of development. No more switching to VS Code every time you need to step through code.

What Actually Works Now (And What Doesn't)

The debugger supports Rust, Go, Python, JS/TS, and C/C++ through the Debug Adapter Protocol. It interfaces with GDB and LLDB so you get the same debugging you'd expect from VS Code or IntelliJ.

Supported debugging features:

• Breakpoints with conditional logic
• Variable inspection and modification
• Call stack navigation
• Step-through debugging (into, over, out)
• Watch expressions
• Multi-threaded debugging
• Remote debugging via SSH

Languages with full debugging support:

• Rust: rust-analyzer + CodeLLDB adapter
• Go: gopls + Delve debugger
• Python: pyright + debugpy adapter
• JavaScript/TypeScript: Built-in V8 debugging
• C/C++: clangd + CodeLLDB/GDB

At least they didn't rely on extensions that break every update. Built directly into Zed's Rust core.

OK, rant about VS Code over. Here's why Zed actually feels faster...

Zed feels way snappier than VS Code when debugging. I don't give a shit about exact milliseconds - it just doesn't lag when you're stepping through code.

What you'll notice:

• Breakpoints hit immediately instead of VS Code's "preparing debugger" bullshit
• Variable inspection doesn't freeze the UI like it does with some VS Code extensions
• Stepping through code stays responsive even in long debugging sessions

GPU-accelerated rendering means complex debugging sessions don't slow down the interface. When you're stepping through thousands of iterations or inspecting large data structures, Zed stays responsive.

Memory Usage: Actually Reasonable

Zed's memory usage is way better than VS Code, especially when debugging. My laptop doesn't sound like a jet engine anymore when I debug a React app with 500 components.

Instead of VS Code's gradual memory leak hell, Zed stays around 800MB even during 8-hour debugging sessions. No more restarting the editor because it ate 12GB of RAM.

The AI integration is fast - they optimized the hell out of it with TensorRT-LLM and custom caching. Same tricks work for debugging performance.

How It Actually Works

No more fucking around with VS Code debugging extensions that break every update.

Just works: Click debug button, breakpoints hit. No "preparing debugger" loading screens or extension activation delays.

Remembers your setup: Breakpoints stay where you put them across editor restarts. Shocking concept, I know.

Multi-language debugging: Debug your Rust backend and TypeScript frontend without switching editors or losing your mind.

Doesn't leak memory: Long debugging sessions don't gradually turn your laptop into a space heater like VS Code does.

Platform Reality Check

macOS: Works great. LLDB integration handles code signing automatically so you don't have to mess with certificates like some other editors. Had it running for weeks debugging our iOS app backend without issues.

Linux: Uses GDB/LLDB. If you have shitty old Intel graphics (pre-2016), you might hit performance issues. Update your drivers or get better hardware. On Ubuntu 20.04 with old Mesa drivers, had constant Vulkan crashes until I upgraded.

Windows: Still in alpha. Basic debugging works but expect it to crash with STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION errors. On Windows, you need to run this as admin or it fails silently with debugging permissions. Crashed on me 3 times debugging a simple Node.js app last week.

What Works and What Doesn't

Docker debugging: Works fine with SSH remoting and port forwarding. No special extensions needed.

Test debugging: Supports pytest, Jest, Go tests, and Rust tests. Just configure your debug launch settings.

Config sharing: Debug configurations are JSON files you can commit to git. Teams can share setups without the workspace bullshit that breaks when you switch machines.

Missing Stuff (Be Aware)

Zed's debugger is good but not perfect:

No embedded debugging: Can't debug ARM microcontrollers like VS Code's Cortex-Debug extension.

Basic debugging panels: Missing memory viewers, register inspectors, and disassembly views that hardcore debuggers expect.

No database debugging: Can't debug stored procedures or optimize queries like some VS Code extensions allow.

For typical web/CLI/desktop app debugging, Zed works fine. For specialized debugging needs, you might still need other tools.

Zed is already fast, but you can make it faster if you don't completely fuck up the configuration. Here's what actually matters.

GPU Acceleration: Why It Doesn't Suck

Zed actually uses your GPU through its GPUI framework. This means smooth scrolling through huge files while VS Code lags like shit. The GPU rendering was inspired by game engine design and uses Vulkan on Linux and Metal on macOS.

Your GPU needs:

• Not ancient drivers: Anything from 2018+ should work
• Enough VRAM: 4GB+ for big projects (no, you don't need a gaming GPU)
• Proper API support: Vulkan on Linux, Metal on macOS

What breaks GPU performance:

• Old Intel graphics: Pre-2016 Intel GPUs have issues with Mesa drivers
• VMs without GPU passthrough: Software rendering is slow as hell
• Remote desktop: Kills hardware acceleration, use SSH remoting instead
• Outdated drivers: Update your NVIDIA or AMD drivers

Recent Zed updates fixed GPU memory leaks that used to force editor restarts during long sessions. If you're still hitting vulkan: Out of device memory errors, update to Zed 0.142.0+ and restart your GPU drivers. Had this exact error kill a 6-hour debugging session on Zed 0.141.2 - lost all my breakpoints and watch expressions.

Language Servers: The Real Performance Killer

Zed is fast, but language servers will still eat your RAM and CPU. At least Zed makes it obvious which language server is being a resource hog, unlike VS Code where everything just feels slow.

Language Server Memory Usage Reality Check:

rust-analyzer still eats ridiculous amounts of RAM (like 4GB on our project), TypeScript is worse. At least Zed shows you which language server is being a memory hog.

Performance optimization strategies:

{
  "lsp": {
    "rust-analyzer": {
      "settings": {
        "rust-analyzer": {
          "cargo": {
            "features": "none"  // Disable unused features
          },
          "procMacro": {
            "enable": false     // Disable for performance-critical sessions
          }
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Critical performance settings:

{
  "file_scan_exclusions": [
    "**/node_modules", "**/target", "**/__pycache__",
    "**/dist", "**/build", "**/.git"
  ],
  "git": {
    "git_gutter": "tracked_files"  // Don't scan untracked files
  }
}

Monorepo Performance: Scaling Beyond VS Code

Large codebases expose Zed's architectural advantages. Where VS Code becomes unusable above certain project sizes, Zed's native implementation continues performing linearly.

Large projects expose where VS Code falls apart. On our monorepo with like 80k files, VS Code takes forever to start and eventually crashes. Zed handles it fine.

Real monorepo optimization example:

For a React + Node.js monorepo with 85,000 files:

{
  "file_scan_exclusions": [
    "**/node_modules",
    "**/packages/*/dist",
    "**/packages/*/build",
    "**/.next",
    "**/coverage"
  ],
  "languages": {
    "TypeScript": {
      "code_actions_on_format": {
        "source.organizeImports": false  // Disable on large projects
      }
    }
  }
}

This configuration reduced project load time from 45 seconds to 12 seconds and language server memory usage from 12GB to 4GB. If it's still fucked, delete ~/.local/share/zed and start over - takes 5 minutes if you're lucky, 2 hours if not. Found this out the hard way when our TypeScript monorepo brought the entire dev team's laptops to their knees for a week.

AI Performance: The Tricks Zed Used

The tricks Zed used to speed up AI also make debugging faster. Same memory pooling and async I/O patterns that keep Claude responses snappy.

They did some optimization tricks for AI responses that apparently work for debugging too. Something about batching DAP commands and async message handling - don't ask me about the technical details, but stepping through code doesn't block the UI.

These same tricks work for local development:

{
  "assistant": {
    "version": "2",
    "provider": {
      "name": "ollama",
      "settings": {
        "model": "qwen2.5-coder:1.5b",  // Smaller model for faster responses
        "low_speed_timeout_ms": 5000     // Fail fast on slow responses
      }
    }
  }
}

Performance Monitoring: What to Watch

Zed shows you actual performance metrics instead of VS Code's "everything is slow but we won't tell you why".

GPU performance indicators:

• Frame rate consistency (should maintain 60fps minimum)
• GPU memory usage (check Activity Monitor on macOS, nvidia-smi on Linux)
• Driver crash recovery (system logs will show GPU driver resets)

Language server health:

• Memory growth over time (restart LSP if exceeding 8GB)
• Response latency for code completion (should be <100ms)
• CPU usage spikes during file saves

File system performance:

• Project scan time (should complete within 30 seconds for most projects)
• Git operations responsiveness (status, blame, diff)
• Search result latency across entire codebase

Hardware Reality Check:

Hardware Recommendations for Optimal Performance

From what I've seen in the community:

Minimum viable setup:

• 16GB RAM (32GB for large TypeScript projects)
• Modern GPU with 4GB+ VRAM
• SSD storage (NVMe preferred for large projects)
• Post-2018 graphics drivers

Professional development setup:

• 32GB+ RAM for monorepo development
• Dedicated GPU or modern integrated graphics
• NVMe SSD with 10GB+ free space for language server caches
• Multiple monitors (Zed handles multi-monitor setups efficiently)

What doesn't help:

• More CPU cores beyond 8 (Zed doesn't need a Threadripper to edit text files)
• Extremely high-end GPUs (an RTX 4090 won't make your code compile faster)
• Complex cooling solutions (Zed actually runs cool, unlike Chrome with 47 tabs)

Network Performance: Remote Development

Zed's SSH remoting has lower latency than VS Code's remote development extensions:

Network optimization settings:

{
  "terminal": {
    "env": {
      "TERM": "xterm-256color"  // Reduces terminal rendering overhead
    }
  },
  "collaboration_panel": {
    "button": false            // Disable if not using collaboration
  }
}

Remote development performance tips:

• Use connection multiplexing in SSH config
• Disable real-time collaboration features for remote sessions
• Configure local Git operations instead of remote Git commands
• Use Zed's project switching instead of multiple editor windows

The native implementation means network latency affects only file operations, not interface responsiveness - a significant advantage over web-based remote development solutions.

Copy this to fix SSH lag:

## Add to ~/.ssh/config
Host *
    ControlMaster auto
    ControlPath ~/.ssh/sockets/%r@%h-%p
    ControlPersist 600
    Compression yes