Reading iPhone Crashlog

Published on October 1, 2010

I don’t have to discuss why you would want to read a crashlog.. it is just so much helpful than someone complaining “your app crashed”.

Reading iPhone’s crashlog is so much simple now. In the past, you would need scripts to decipher the crashlogs. Since Xcode 3.2.2, the process is quite easy doing away with the scripts.

1. Get the crashlog first

To find the crashlog on your iPhone, or rather your user’s iPhone, they have to sync the device with their Mac/PC.

The crash logs can then be found from:

  • Mac:  /Library/Logs/CrashReporter/MobileDevice/
  • Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\Application Data\Apple computer\Logs\CrashReporter\
  • Windows Vista: C:\Users[USERNAME]\AppData\Roaming\Apple computer\Logs\CrashReporter\MobileDevice\

2. Simply drag and drop to Xcode

If you open a crashlog, you will see a lot of function addresses. These does correspond to function names and line number, which in past you need to decipher with a script.

Now, you simple drag and drop the crashlog file to Xcode > Organizer > Device Logs.

Note: The deciphering only works if you have the app’s valuable dSYM. If you archive your app with the latest version of Xcode, the app and it’s dSYM will be kept.