About

Mali Graphics Debugger (MGD) enables developers to trace OpenGL ES and Vulkan API calls made by their application. MGD users can see a frame-by-frame overview of the work submitted to the graphics API, and can capture specific frames to visualize and inspect the input and output of the rendering commands.

As a graphics API debugger with a Mali GPU focus, MGD can provide GPU architecture-specific analysis and warn users when their API call usage is not optimal. Mali-specific features include:

• Shader statistics

  • Understand which vertex and fragment shaders are most expensive with cycle count reporting

• Dynamic optimization advice

  • Automatic highlighting of common API misuse and dynamic performance improvement advice

• Overdraw histograms

  • Analyse the impact of pixel overdraw

You can learn more about the tool on Arm's Mali Graphics Debugger overview page.

Download

• Mali Graphics Debugger

Quick Start Guide

(Guide written for Mali Graphics Debugger v4.7.0)

OpenGL ES

• Download Mali Graphics Debugger

• Extract the package

  • In this guide, the unpack location will be referred to as $MGD_DIR

  • $PROJ_DIR refers to the directory of your Android project

• Install the MGD daemon APK

  • adb install -r $MGD_DIR/target/android/arm/MGD.apk

• Package the interceptor in your APK

  • build.gradle

    Show Lines

    android {
    	sourceSets {
    		main {
    		jniLibs.srcDirs += $MGD_DIR/target/android/arm/unrooted/']
    		}
    	}
    }
    

• Enable the interceptor

  • Create a new Java activity that extends android.app.NativeActivity

  • Reference the activity in your AndroidManifest.xml as android:name attribute of the activity element. Check the android:has Code attribute of the application element is set to true

  • Add the following to the beginning of your project's main Activity class:

    Show Lines

    
    static {
    	try {
    	System.loadLibrary("MGD");
    	}
    	catch (UnsatisfiedLinkError e)
    	{
    	Log.e("[ MGD ]", "MGD not loaded: " + e.getMessage());
    	Log.d("[ MGD ]", Log.getStackTraceString(e));
    	}
    }
    

• Build & install your APK package

• MGD GUI: Connect to the MGD daemon running on your connected Galaxy device

• Run your game

• Capture!

Vulkan

• Download Mali Graphics Debugger

• Extract the package

  • In this guide, the unpack location will be referred to as $MGD_DIR

  • $PROJ_DIR refers to the directory of your Android project

• Install the MGD daemon APK

  • adb install -r $MGD_DIR/target/android/arm/MGD.apk

• Prepare 32-bit and 64-bit Vulkan MGD layers

  • cp $MGD_DIR/target/android/arm/rooted/armeabi-v7a/libGLES_mgd.so libVkLayerMGD.so

  • cp $MGD_DIR/target/android/arm/rooted/arm64-v8a/libGLES_mgd.so libVkLayerMGD64.so

• Package Vulkan layers in your APK

  • mv libVkLayerMGD.so $PROJ_DIR/src/main/jniLibs/arm64-v8a/

  • mv libVkLayerMGD64.so $PROJ_DIR/src/main/jniLibs/arm64-v8a/

• Enable the VK_LAYER_ARM_MGD layer

  • Programmatically

    • Set the layer name via VkInstanceCreateInfo.ppEnabledLayerNames

  • Via adb

    • adb shell setprop "debug.vulkan.layers" VK_LAYER_ARM_MGD layer":"

    • adb reboot

• Build & install your APK package

• MGD GUI: Connect to the MGD daemon running on your connected Galaxy device

• Run your game

• Capture!

Documentation

• User guide

• Blog post: Using Mali Graphics Debugger on a Non-rooted device

• Video tutorial: Arm Tools Intergration in UE4