Troubleshoot Crashing Apps with ProcDump & WinDbg

“Logs tell you something broke; a crash dump tells you why.”

1. Set the Stage

1. Grab ProcDump if it’s not already on your toolbox machine.
   -> ProcDump - Sysinternals

2. Create a home for dumps:

   New-Item -ItemType Directory C:\Dumps -Force
   

3. Clean the slate: Close every stray instance of the app you’re chasing.

2. Capture the Crash

procdump.exe -e -h -ma excel.exe C:\Dumps

ProcDump parks the dump as excel.exe_YYMMDD_HHMM.dmp in C:\Dumps. Reproduce the crash and wait for Dump written to show.

3. Install WinDbg

I use WinDbg Preview because dark mode is life:
-> Install WinDbg - Windows Drivers

4. Open the Dump

1. File -> Open Dump…

2. The debugger breaks immediately - no need to hit Start.

3. Paste your symbol path (one-liner, no spaces):

   .symfix; .reload
   

   For stubborn cases:
   setx _NT_SYMBOL_PATH "srv*C:\Symbols*https://msdl.microsoft.com/download/symbols" and relaunch WinDbg.

5. Auto-analysis

!analyze -v

• EXCEPTION_CODE tells you what blew up.
• Faulting module shows where (DLL or EXE).
• The stack trace is your breadcrumb trail.

If the stack ends in ucrtbase!_invalid_parameter, your app fed bad data to a C runtime call - it’s not always Microsoft’s fault, promise.

6. Dig Deeper

• Threads: ~* k to list every thread’s call stack.
• Loaded modules: lmvm excel (swap excel for any DLL).
• Memory leaks: !heap -s (when RAM keeps climbing pre-crash).
• Handle leaks: !handle 0 7 (careful, noisy).

7. Fix or Escalate

1. Patch or update the crashing module first.
2. Check add-ins & plugins - Office add-ins love to throw stones.
3. Validate input if you own the source.
4. Capture a second dump after changes; compare stacks.

Cheat Sheet

.sympath           # Show current symbol path
.reload /f         # Force symbol reload
.ecxr              # Switch to the crashing thread's context
kb / kH            # Short / long stack
u address          # Disassemble around address
.dt nt!_EXCEPTION_RECORD -r @$exr  # Decode exception record