Exploit Development and Reverse Engineering with GDB & LLDB Made Easy
pip install pwndbgpwndbg
pwndbg (/paʊnˈdiˌbʌɡ/) is a GDB and LLDB plug-in that makes debugging suck less,
with a focus on features needed by low-level software developers, hardware hackers,
reverse-engineers and exploit developers.
It has a boatload of features, see our Features page and CHEATSHEET (feel free to print it!). If you have any questions you may read the documentation or asks us in our Discord server.
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Why?
Vanilla GDB and LLDB are terrible to use for reverse engineering and exploit development.
Typing x/30gx $rsp or navigating cumbersome LLDB commands is not fun and often provides
minimal information. The year is 2026, and core debuggers still lack many user-friendly
features such as a robust hexdump command. WinDbg users are completely lost when they
occasionally need to bump into GDB or LLDB.
Pwndbg is a Python module which can be loaded into GDB or run as a REPL interface for LLDB. It provides a suite of utilities and enhancements that fill the gaps left by these debuggers, smoothing out rough edges and making them more user-friendly.
Installation
See installation instructions.
What about ...?
Many past (gdbinit, PEDA) and present projects (GEF, bata24/GEF) offer great features, but are hard to extend and are packaged as large single files (103KB, 195KB, 423KB, 5.24MB). Pwndbg aims to replace them with a faster, cleaner, and more robust implementation.
When to Use GDB or LLDB?
Pwndbg supports both GDB and LLDB, and each debugger has its own strengths. Here's a quick guide to help you decide which one to use:
| Use Case | Supported Debugger |
|---|---|
| Debugging Linux binaries or ELF files | GDB, LLDB |
| Debugging Mach-O binaries on macOS | LLDB |
| Linux kernel debugging (qemu-system) | GDB, LLDB |
| Linux user-space emulation (qemu-user) | GDB |
| Embedded debugging (ARM Cortex M* or RISC-V/32) | GDB, LLDB |
Pwndbg ensures a consistent experience across both, so switching between them is seamless.
The LLDB implementation in pwndbg is still in early-stage and may contain bugs or limitations.
Known issues are tracked in GitHub Issues.If you encounter any problems, feel free to report them or discuss on our Discord server.
Compatibility Table
| Feature | Supported Version | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| pwndbg-gdb | - Python 3.10+ - GDB 12.1+ |
Battle-tested on Ubuntu 22.04/24.04 |
| pwndbg-lldb | - Python 3.12+ - LLDB 19+ |
Experimental/early-stage support |
| qemu-user | QEMU 8.1+ | vFile API is needed for vmmap |
| qemu-system | QEMU 6.2+ | Supported version since Ubuntu 22.04 |
Contributing
Pull requests are welcome ❤️. Check out the Contributing Guide.
Acknowledgements
Pwndbg was originally created by Zach Riggle, who is no longer with us. We want to thank Zach for all of his contributions to pwndbg and the wider security community.