Developers often rely on powerful tools like Visual Studio 2015 and Fiddler to build and debug applications. However, a common challenge many encounter is when the background processes of Visual Studio, particularly VSHub.exe, begin to aggressively “spam” Fiddler with a deluge of internal network traffic. This overwhelming activity makes it incredibly difficult to isolate and inspect the relevant HTTP requests your application is actually making, significantly hindering the essential task of network monitoring and troubleshooting. This article delves into why Visual Studio 2015 VSHub is spamming Fiddler, its impact on your debugging workflow, and, most importantly, provides practical, expert-backed strategies to regain control of your Fiddler session, ensuring a cleaner, more efficient development experience.

Understanding the VSHub.exe Phenomenon in Visual Studio 2015

VSHub.exe, or the Visual Studio Hub, is an integral component of the Visual Studio 2015 ecosystem, designed to facilitate various diagnostic and development-related services. Its primary role involves managing communication between different parts of the IDE, including the debugger, profilers, and other diagnostic tools. When you run or debug an application within Visual Studio, VSHub.exe orchestrates a significant amount of internal traffic, often related to telemetry, performance monitoring, and the activation of extensions. This behind-the-scenes activity is crucial for Visual Studio’s functionality but can become a major nuisance when attempting to debug network-dependent applications.

The sheer volume of data exchanged by VSHub.exe can quickly flood an HTTP debugging proxy like Fiddler. Unlike your application’s specific API calls or web requests, this internal traffic is generally irrelevant to the business logic you are trying to analyze. As a result, developers spend valuable time sifting through hundreds, if not thousands, of extraneous entries, searching for the few critical requests they actually need to inspect. This not only slows down the debugging process but also creates mental overhead, detracting from the core task of solving application-specific issues. Recognizing the source and nature of this traffic is the first step toward effective mitigation.

The Role of VSHub in Diagnostics

VSHub.exe acts as a central broker for diagnostic sessions. For instance, when you launch the Performance Profiler or the Diagnostic Tools window, VSHub.exe initiates and manages the data collection processes. It communicates with various agents and services, gathering information about CPU usage, memory consumption, and network activity. While this functionality is vital for comprehensive performance analysis and identifying bottlenecks, it inherently generates a constant stream of localhost traffic. This local communication, often on obscure ports, is what Fiddler intercepts, leading to the “spamming” effect when Visual Studio 2015 VSHub is spamming Fiddler.

Why VSHub.exe Overwhelms Fiddler

Fiddler, a powerful web debugging proxy, works by intercepting all HTTP/HTTPS traffic that passes through its configured proxy port. By default, Fiddler is designed to capture requests from all applications on your system that are configured to use a proxy, or those that Fiddler can transparently intercept. VSHub.exe, being a .NET application, often uses standard HTTP communication for its internal messaging, even if it’s only talking to other local processes. When Fiddler is active, it sees these communications, just like any other web request, and logs them.

The problem is exacerbated by the continuous nature of VSHub.exe’s operations. It’s not just a few requests; it’s a persistent stream of heartbeat messages, telemetry data, and diagnostic updates, all logged by Fiddler. This constant chatter from VSHub.exe obscures the truly relevant traffic from your web application or API client. Imagine trying to find a single conversation in a crowded room where everyone is talking at once; that’s the experience when Visual Studio 2015 VSHub is spamming Fiddler. This challenge highlights the need for effective filtering mechanisms within Fiddler itself.

Fiddler’s Operational Mechanics

Fiddler operates by acting as a “man-in-the-middle” proxy. It configures your system’s network settings to route all web traffic through itself. When an application, like Visual Studio’s VSHub.exe, makes an HTTP request, that request first goes to Fiddler. Fiddler logs the request, forwards it to its destination, receives the response, logs it, and then passes it back to the originating application. This transparent interception is what makes Fiddler so effective for debugging, but it also means it captures everything, including the internal noise generated by diagnostic tools. To maintain productivity, developers must learn to selectively ignore unwanted traffic.

Taming the flood of VSHub.exe traffic in Fiddler requires a strategic approach, combining Fiddler’s built-in filtering capabilities with an understanding of Visual Studio’s behavior. The goal is to allow Fiddler to continue monitoring your application’s network activity without being overwhelmed by diagnostic data. Implementing these strategies will significantly improve your debugging efficiency and make your Fiddler sessions much more productive.

One of the most effective methods involves configuring Fiddler to ignore requests originating from specific processes. Since VSHub.exe is a distinct executable, Fiddler can be instructed to simply drop its traffic. Another approach is to use Fiddler’s powerful filtering rules to hide or mark sessions based on various criteria, such as host, URL, or process name. By proactively managing how Fiddler displays traffic, you can create a much clearer view of your application’s network interactions. According to a Telerik Fiddler community survey, filtering by process is among the top 3 most used features for managing noisy sessions, underscoring its importance for developers navigating scenarios where Visual Studio 2015 VSHub is spamming Fiddler.

Configuring Fiddler for Clarity

Here’s a step-by-step guide to effectively filter out VSHub.exe traffic in Fiddler:

1. Open Fiddler and Navigate to Filters: Launch Fiddler, then go to the “Filters” tab on the right-hand side.
2. Enable Filters: Check the “Use Filters” box at the top of the Filters tab.
3. Configure “Hide or Show” Options: Under the “Hide or Show” section, locate the “Hide sessions from processes” dropdown.
4. Select VSHub.exe: From the dropdown list, find and select “VSHub” (or “VSHub.exe” depending on Fiddler version and running processes). This tells Fiddler to automatically hide all traffic originating from that process.
5. Verify and Apply: Ensure the filter is active. You should immediately see a reduction in irrelevant traffic. If you still see some, you might need to restart Visual Studio or Fiddler to ensure all new connections are subject to the filter.

Adjusting Visual Studio Settings

While Fiddler-side filtering is often sufficient, some Visual Studio settings can also contribute to reducing background noise:

• Disable unnecessary diagnostic tools: If you’re not actively profiling performance, consider closing the “Diagnostic Tools” window in Visual Studio to reduce the telemetry traffic VSHub generates.

• Limit debugger features: For simple debugging tasks, sometimes disabling certain advanced debugger features can reduce background activity, though this is less directly related to VSHub’s general traffic.

• Consider specific project configurations: For certain projects, particularly those involving web services or IoT, review your project settings for excessive logging or diagnostic outputs that might be captured by Fiddler. For further optimization strategies, you might find useful insights in this article on [http://docs.telerik.com/fiddler/Configure-Fiddler/Tasks/ConfigureDotNETApp](<https://courthousezoological.com/n7sqp6kh?key=e6dd02bc5dbf461b97a9da08df84d Question & Answer :
  

  I have read: How do I disable VsHub.exe in the system tray? and https://connect.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/feedback/details/1919828/hundreds-of-calls-second-to-vshub-and-browserlink-is-off

  I would prefer to not disable vshub; I just want it to be more quiet when I am using fiddler. Right now it spams everything else out, and I cannot do general debugging.

  Does anybody know a workaround? Can I block vshub from showing up in fiddler without blocking the rest of locahost?

  
  

  This is a relatively new problem because System.NET used to ignore proxy settings for localhost, and therefore Fiddler wouldn>)) - see bottom section. Now this no longer appears to be the case, so I expect more people will have the same question. Fiddler supports several ways to filter requests, though nothing that the client can control (which is probably good, since you wouldn’t want malware from excluding its traffic). The most appropriate and simplest mechanism in this case is probably to set a filter for any url that contains localhost or vshub. You can do that by:

  1. Click the filters tab (it’s a top-level tab, at the same level as inspectors, statistics, etc.),
  2. Check the checkbox labeled ‘Use Filters’
  3. Scroll down and find the checkbox labeled ‘Hide if URL contains’.
  4. Check that box, and enter either localhost or vshub into the accompanying textbox.
  5. You should see the vshub traffic stop immediately.

  This filter will persist, so if you shutdown Fiddler and start it up again later, it will still be set.