Building Debug-Friendly Types
Combine descriptions and reflection effectively.
Building Debug-Friendly Types is a free Swift Academy lesson on CoddyKit. This is lesson 4 of 4. Any 3 lessons of this learning path are free to read in full — after that, CoddyKit PRO unlocks every lesson, plus hands-on practice with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. It is part of the Swift Academy learning path, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app. The Swift Academy course includes 4 lessons in total.
Combining the Tools
The best types are easy to inspect. Combine CustomStringConvertible, CustomDebugStringConvertible, and Mirror to make values that print clearly and reveal their internals on demand.
A Clean description
Start with user-facing output:
struct Vector: CustomStringConvertible {
let x: Double
let y: Double
var description: String { "(\(x), \(y))" }
}
print(Vector(x: 1, y: 2)) // (1.0, 2.0)Add Diagnostic debugDescription
Layer on detail for debugging:
struct Vector: CustomStringConvertible, CustomDebugStringConvertible {
let x: Double
let y: Double
var description: String { "(\(x), \(y))" }
var debugDescription: String { "Vector(x: \(x), y: \(y), len: \(length))" }
var length: Double { (x * x + y * y).squareRoot() }
}
debugPrint(Vector(x: 3, y: 4)) // Vector(x: 3.0, y: 4.0, len: 5.0)Auto-Generate description with Mirror
Use reflection to build a description without listing every field by hand:
struct Auto: CustomStringConvertible {
let a = 1
let b = "x"
var description: String {
let fields = Mirror(reflecting: self).children
.map { "\($0.label ?? "_")=\($0.value)" }
.joined(separator: ", ")
return "Auto(\(fields))"
}
}
print(Auto()) // Auto(a=1, b=x)A Reusable Reflection Helper
Factor the Mirror logic into a free function so many types can share one debug formatter.
Shared describe Helper
One helper, reused everywhere:
func reflectiveDescription(_ value: Any) -> String {
let name = String(describing: type(of: value))
let parts = Mirror(reflecting: value).children
.map { "\($0.label ?? "_"): \($0.value)" }
.joined(separator: ", ")
return "\(name)(\(parts))"
}
struct P { let id = 7; let tag = "z" }
print(reflectiveDescription(P())) // P(id: 7, tag: z)Protocol-Default Implementation
Give a whole family of types reflective debugging via a protocol extension:
protocol Inspectable: CustomStringConvertible {}
extension Inspectable {
var description: String {
let parts = Mirror(reflecting: self).children
.map { "\($0.label ?? "_")=\($0.value)" }
.joined(separator: ", ")
return "\(type(of: self))[\(parts)]"
}
}
struct Widget: Inspectable { let w = 10; let h = 20 }
print(Widget()) // Widget[w=10, h=20]Pretty-Printing Nested Values
Reflection recurses naturally when children are themselves printable:
struct Inner: CustomStringConvertible { let v = 1; var description: String { "Inner(\(v))" } }
struct Outer: CustomStringConvertible {
let inner = Inner()
var description: String { "Outer(\(inner))" }
}
print(Outer()) // Outer(Inner(1))Using Swift dump
The built-in dump uses Mirror to print a deep, indented tree — handy for quick inspection:
struct Node { let id = 1; let kids = [2, 3] }
dump(Node())
// - id: 1
// - kids: 2 elements ...Putting It All Together
A polished type: clean description, rich debug info, reflective fallback — easy to log and easy to debug.
struct Order: CustomStringConvertible, CustomDebugStringConvertible {
let id: Int
let total: Double
var description: String { "Order #\(id)" }
var debugDescription: String { "Order(id: \(id), total: \(total))" }
}
let o = Order(id: 5, total: 9.99)
print(o) // Order #5
debugPrint(o) // Order(id: 5, total: 9.99)Counting Fields Reflectively
Reflection is also handy for quick structural assertions, like counting properties:
struct Profile { let name = "A"; let age = 1; let city = "X" }
let fieldCount = Mirror(reflecting: Profile()).children.count
print("Profile has \(fieldCount) fields") // Profile has 3 fieldsQuick Check
How can you build a description without manually listing every property?
Recap
You learned to build debug-friendly types:
- Combine
description(clean) anddebugDescription(detailed) - Use
Mirrorto auto-generate descriptions from children - Factor reflection into a helper or protocol-default implementation
dumpprints a deep reflected tree for quick inspection
Course complete!
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is the “Building Debug-Friendly Types” lesson free?
Yes — any 3 lessons of the Swift Academy learning path, including “Building Debug-Friendly Types”, are free to read in full here on the web. After that, CoddyKit PRO unlocks every lesson, plus interactive practice with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. The Swift Academy course includes 4 lessons in total.
What will I learn in “Building Debug-Friendly Types”?
Combine descriptions and reflection effectively. You practise Swift Academy with hands-on code you run directly in the browser, and a 24/7 AI tutor answers your questions as you work through the lesson.
Do I need any experience to start Swift Academy?
No prior experience is required. Swift Academy on CoddyKit is structured for beginners through advanced learners, so you can start here or from the beginning and move at your own pace. This is lesson 4 of 4.
How long does the “Building Debug-Friendly Types” lesson take?
Most CoddyKit lessons take about 5–10 minutes. Each one is bite-sized and interactive, so you make steady progress and pick up exactly where you left off across the web and the app.
Can I write and run code in this Swift Academy lesson?
Yes. Every Swift Academy lesson includes a built-in code editor, so you write and run real code right in your browser and get instant AI feedback — no local setup required.
All lessons in this course
- CustomStringConvertible
- CustomDebugStringConvertible
- Reflection with Mirror
- Building Debug-Friendly Types