VarDumper — Variable Dumps ​

You call dump() or dd() and the output lands in the browser response, mixes with HTML, or gets lost in CLI output. With Buggregator, dumps go to a dedicated TCP server and show up in a clean UI — alongside your logs, exceptions, and everything else. No browser pollution, no output buffering issues, no lost dumps in long-running processes.

Use cases ​

• Long-running apps (RoadRunner, Swoole, queue workers) — dd() doesn't print to a browser here, but Buggregator catches it.
• API development — dump variables without breaking JSON responses.
• Microservices — collect dumps from all services in one place.
• IDE integration — click the source location to jump straight to the file in your editor.

What you see in the UI ​

• Dumped value — full variable content with type information, rendered as an interactive expandable tree.
• Source location — file and line where dump() was called. Clickable — opens in your IDE.
• Variable name and label — custom labels if provided.
• Syntax highlighting — for text-only dumps (see below).

Setup ​

Install the Symfony VarDumper component:

composer require --dev symfony/var-dumper

Set two env variables to redirect output to Buggregator:

VAR_DUMPER_FORMAT=server
VAR_DUMPER_SERVER=127.0.0.1:9912

In Docker Compose, replace 127.0.0.1 with the Buggregator service name (e.g., VAR_DUMPER_SERVER=buggregator:9912).

That's it. Use dump() and dd() as usual — the output goes to Buggregator.

If your project doesn't use .env files, set via PHP:

$_SERVER['VAR_DUMPER_FORMAT'] = 'server';
$_SERVER['VAR_DUMPER_SERVER'] = '127.0.0.1:9912';

Performance tip ​

Large objects with deep nesting can slow down the browser. Limit the preview depth on the events list page:

docker run --pull always \
  -p 127.0.0.1:8000:8000 \
  -p 127.0.0.1:9912:9912 \
  -e VAR_DUMPER_PREVIEW_MAX_DEPTH=3 \
  ghcr.io/buggregator/server:latest

The full dump is still available when you open the event detail page.

Syntax highlighting ​

Dump a text string with syntax highlighting using Buggregator Trap:

$code = <<<PHP
<?php

declare(strict_types=1);

echo 'Hello, World!';
PHP;

trap($code)->context(language: 'php');

Buggregator Trap ​

Consider using Buggregator Trap instead of raw VarDumper — it uses VarDumper under the hood but adds extra features like trap(), tr(), and td() helpers.