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wtf is kscrash?

mustangym/kscrash — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-08-03 · repo last pushed 2020-11-27

2Objective-CAudience · developerComplexity · 3/5DormantSetup · moderate

TL;DR

KSCrash is an iOS crash reporting library that captures detailed information when your app crashes, right on the user's phone. It translates raw memory addresses into readable function names and can automatically diagnose the root cause of the crash.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Captures app crashes
      On-device symbolication
      Crash Doctor diagnoses cause
    Key Features
      Zombie tracking
      C++ exception handling
      Custom report data
    Tech stack
      Objective-C
      iOS
    Integration options
      Hockey service
      QuincyKit service
      Email reports
    Trade-offs
      Zombie tracking adds overhead
      Deadlock detection risks startup
      Advanced features off by default

Code map

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Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Add crash reporting to your iOS app so you know exactly what went wrong when it unexpectedly quits.

REASON 2

Track down crashes caused by accessing deleted objects using the zombie tracking feature.

REASON 3

Automatically diagnose the root cause of crashes with the built-in Crash Doctor.

What's in the stack?

Objective-CiOSC++

How it stacks up

mustangym/kscrashaonez/macreflowerburningtyger/gmail-notifr
Stars211
LanguageObjective-CObjective-CObjective-C
Last pushed2020-11-272016-11-272013-01-22
MaintenanceDormantDormantDormant
Setup difficultymoderatemoderatemoderate
Complexity3/52/52/5
Audiencedevelopergeneralgeneral

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · moderate Time to first run · 30min

Requires integrating the library into an Xcode project and configuring crash report delivery options.

Wtf does this do

KSCrash is a tool for iOS developers that captures detailed information when an app crashes. When your app unexpectedly quits on a user's phone, this tool records exactly what went wrong so you can fix it. Think of it as a flight data recorder for your app. It works by intercepting crashes at multiple levels of the system, catching everything from standard errors to deeper system-level failures that other crash reporters might miss. It then translates the crash into a readable report, either in Apple's standard format or a JSON format with extra diagnostic details. A standout feature is "on-device symbolication," which translates raw memory addresses into human-readable function names right on the phone, without needing to connect to a server. It also includes a "Crash Doctor" that attempts to diagnose the root cause of the crash automatically. This is for iOS developers who need deep visibility into why their app is failing in the real world. For example, if your app crashes because it tried to access an object that had already been deleted, the zombie tracking feature can tell you exactly what that object was. If a C++ exception goes uncaught, the tool recovers the exception type and where it was thrown, rather than just showing a generic crash screen. You can also attach custom data to crash reports, which is useful for logging things like what a user was doing right before the crash. The project offers flexible reporting options. Crash reports can be sent to services like Hockey, QuincyKit, or Victory, or simply emailed directly to a developer. There are some trade-offs with the advanced features. For instance, zombie tracking adds slight overhead to how the app handles memory, and deadlock detection can accidentally crash your app if your startup code runs too long. These advanced features are disabled by default, so developers can opt in based on their debugging needs.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Help me integrate KSCrash into my iOS app using CocoaPods and configure it to email crash reports to my inbox
Prompt 2
How do I enable KSCrash zombie tracking to debug an EXC_BAD_ACCESS crash where a deallocated object is being accessed
Prompt 3
Show me how to attach custom user data to KSCrash reports so I can log what screen a user was on before a crash
Prompt 4
Walk me through enabling on-device symbolication in KSCrash so crash reports show human-readable function names without a server

Frequently asked questions

wtf is kscrash?

KSCrash is an iOS crash reporting library that captures detailed information when your app crashes, right on the user's phone. It translates raw memory addresses into readable function names and can automatically diagnose the root cause of the crash.

What language is kscrash written in?

Mainly Objective-C. The stack also includes Objective-C, iOS, C++.

Is kscrash actively maintained?

Dormant — no commits in 2+ years (last push 2020-11-27).

How hard is kscrash to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated moderate, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.

Who is kscrash for?

Mainly developer.

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