PhpStorm comes with a handy phpunit test runner, which lets you execute your tests with just one click. Even better: if a test fails, you can just run that test also with just one click. That’s how I like it.
However I often use the debugger to debug failed tests. This is easy with phpunit and via the command line (see e.g. Remote CLI debugging). But since PhpStorm is obviously not using the command line, we have to pass the information necessary for Xdebug and PhpStorm to initiate the debug session using the Test Runners configuration.
XDEBUG_CONFIG=idekey=PHPSTORM ; PHP_IDE_CONFIG=serverName=local.dev
Needless to mention that the above values need to fit your setup. Most likely your server name will be different, and make sure to check the ide key.
But where to put it? Assuming you already setup your Run/Debug configuration, just open the configuration dialog and put the above environment variables into the “Environment variables” input field. You don’t need to add “export” or anything. Well, just have a look:
Now just place your breakpoints as you need them and start the Run/Debug configuration.
