mod rewrite - How to debug Apache mod_rewrite

I have two main problems with mod_rewrite:

1) There is no meaningful error reported when I have an invalid rule

2) To reliably test each modification, I have to erase chrome's cache. This isn't rocket science, but I have to hit Ctrl+Shift+Delete then click OK, then close the window, and reload.

I'd like to see if any of the gurus are willing to share their secrets to efficiently managing mod_rewrite code.

Answer

One trick is to turn on the rewrite log. To turn it on,try these lines in your apache main config or current virtual host file (not in .htaccess):

RewriteEngine On
RewriteLog "/var/log/apache2/rewrite.log"
RewriteLogLevel 3

Since Apache httpd 2.4 mod_rewrite RewriteLog and RewriteLogLevel directives has been completely replaced by the new per-module logging configuration.

LogLevel alert rewrite:trace6