# Debugging and common issues

Most of the steps around troubleshooting are the same when creating a plugin as they are when using one.

Refer to the troubleshooting page below to see some common steps below, or continue for some development-specific errors to look out for.

{% content-ref url="/pages/-Mc-cMNe7Z1WrGhtvYf7" %}
[Troubleshooting](/plugins/troubleshooting.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}

## Common issues in development

<details>

<summary>My plugin immediately deactivates when activated</summary>

Just like Node.js, a plugin will exit if there's no reason for it to stay open. For example, a plugin that contains only one line of code (`console.log("Hello world");`) will run that line and then exit straight away.

In order to keep the process running, your code will have to be doing something long-lived to keep the [event loop](https://nodejs.dev/learn/the-nodejs-event-loop) busy.

It is also possible that your plugin is throwing an unhandled exception, causing the process to crash. In this case the error should be viewable in your plugin's log file as `%appdata%/midi-mixer-app/logs/com.myplugin.id.log`.

</details>

<details>

<summary>My dependencies aren't being included</summary>

When packing your plugin using [midi-mixer-cli](https://github.com/midi-mixer/midi-mixer-cli), you'll need to explicitly mark any dependencies you want to bundle under a `bundledDependencies` key in `package.json`.

See the [template plugin `package.json`](https://github.com/midi-mixer/plugin-template/blob/main/package.json#L27-L29) for an example.

</details>


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.midi-mixer.com/plugins/create-a-plugin/debugging-and-common-issues.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.