Debug Packages

Normally all Debian packages contain only binaries with stripped symbols. Thus debugging using gdb is not possible. You have to create separate debug packages by adding a new package to your debian/control file:

Package: des-example-dbg 
Architecture: any
Section: debug
Priority: extra
Depends:
    des-example (= ${binary:Version}), ${misc:Depends}
Description: debugging symbols for des-example
 This package contains the debugging symbols for des-example.

Additionally some small modifications are required to the debian/rules file. You have to find the following line in the binary-arch or binary-indep target.

dh_strip

Modifiy the line as follows:

dh_strip --dbg-package=des-example-dbg