A mechanism is provided in a data processing system for installing a software product in a data processing system using a debug mode of an installation wizard. The mechanism separates an installation wizard for installing a software product in a data processing system into a plurality of installation code portions. Each of the plurality of installation code portions corresponds to a state. The mechanism associates each of the plurality of installation code portions with a display panel. The mechanism initializes execution of the installation wizard. For a given installation code portion within the plurality of code portions, the mechanism presents a display panel associated with the given installation code portion to a user, receives user input associated with the given installation code portion, and proceeds to the next installation code portion. The mechanism then completes the installation wizard to install the software product in the data processing system.