Obscure productivity tips: Debug Javascript running within SAPGUI browser

While investigating an issue in AbapGit, I suspected the cause to be a Javascript error. The F12 browser debugger is the go-to thing for any web developer trying to fix something, but how to do it from SAPGUI? The best you can do from the right click menu in SAP is view the page source.

It turns out there is a way and since it surprised even the AbapGit authors, it is not as well-known as it should be. The only place I could find it mentioned is this stackoverflow answer with 5 upvotes, the standard for SAP-related questions.

It is actually very simple to do:

1. Have the transaction you want to debug running
2. In the folder C:\Windows\SysWOW64\F12 (or windows\system32 for 32bit systems), you will find a utility called IEChooser.exe
3. Open it and select the window you want to attach to

4. You’re done.

Now you can browse the page contents:

Or set breakpoints and debug Javascript code:

I hope this will save you some work. Please share your experiences or problems in the comments. And most importantly, if you know any secret tricks yourself, let others know!