CLI Reference

Related Topics: Quickstart (first commands) | Common Tasks (quick how-to) | Quality (validation, testing, linting)

Complete reference for all MXCP command-line interface commands.

Quick Reference

Command	Description	Category
mxcp init	Initialize a new MXCP project	Development
mxcp serve	Start the MCP server	Development
mxcp run	Execute an endpoint	Development
mxcp query	Execute SQL directly	Development
mxcp validate	Validate endpoint definitions	Quality
mxcp test	Run endpoint tests	Quality
mxcp lint	Check metadata quality	Quality
mxcp evals	Run LLM evaluations	Quality
mxcp list	List available endpoints	Operations
mxcp drift-snapshot	Create drift detection baseline	Operations
mxcp drift-check	Check for drift from baseline	Operations
mxcp log	Query audit logs	Operations
mxcp log-cleanup	Apply audit retention policies	Operations
mxcp dbt-config	Generate dbt configuration files	dbt Integration
mxcp dbt	Wrapper for dbt CLI with secret injection	dbt Integration

Project Structure

MXCP expects a specific directory structure:

my-project/
├── mxcp-site.yml        # Project configuration (required)
├── tools/               # Tool endpoint definitions
│   ├── get_user.yml
│   └── search.yml
├── resources/           # Resource endpoint definitions
│   └── user-profile.yml
├── prompts/             # Prompt endpoint definitions
│   └── analyze.yml
├── sql/                 # SQL source files
│   ├── queries/
│   └── migrations/
├── python/              # Python source files
│   └── handlers.py
├── plugins/             # Custom plugins
│   └── my_plugin/
├── evals/               # LLM evaluation suites
│   └── safety.evals.yml
├── drift/               # Drift detection snapshots
│   └── snapshot.json
├── data/                # DuckDB database files
├── audit/               # Audit logs (when enabled)
├── models/              # dbt models (if using dbt)
└── target/              # dbt target directory (if using dbt)

Directory Requirements

Directory	Purpose	Auto-discovered
tools/	Tool endpoint YAML files	Yes
resources/	Resource endpoint YAML files	Yes
prompts/	Prompt endpoint YAML files	Yes
sql/	SQL source files (referenced by endpoints)	No
python/	Python source files (referenced by endpoints)	No
plugins/	Custom plugin modules	No
evals/	LLM evaluation suite files (*.evals.yml)	Yes
data/	DuckDB database files	No
audit/	Audit logs (when auditing enabled)	No
models/	dbt models (if using dbt integration)	No
target/	dbt target directory (if using dbt integration)	No

Key Rules

1. mxcp-site.yml must exist in the project root
2. Endpoint files must use .yml or .yaml extension
3. Eval files must use .evals.yml suffix
4. SQL/Python files are referenced via source.file in endpoints
5. Plugins are referenced by module name in mxcp-site.yml

Common Options

Most commands support these options:

Option	Description
--profile	Override profile from mxcp-site.yml
--json-output	Output results in JSON format
--debug	Show detailed debug information
--readonly	Open database in read-only mode

---

Development Commands

mxcp init

Initialize a new MXCP project.

mxcp init [FOLDER] [OPTIONS]

Description:

Creates a new MXCP repository by:

1. Creating a mxcp-site.yml file with project and profile configuration
2. Creating standard directory structure (tools/, resources/, prompts/, etc.)
3. Optionally creating example endpoint files with --bootstrap
4. Generating a server_config.json for Claude Desktop integration

Arguments:

• FOLDER: Target directory (default: current directory)

Options:

• --project: Project name (defaults to folder name)
• --profile: Profile name (defaults to ‘default’)
• --bootstrap: Create example hello world endpoint
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp init                     # Initialize in current directory
mxcp init my-project          # Initialize in new directory
mxcp init --bootstrap         # Include example endpoint
mxcp init --project=analytics # Custom project name

mxcp serve

Start the MCP server to expose endpoints via HTTP or stdio.

mxcp serve [OPTIONS]

Description:

Starts a server that exposes your MXCP endpoints as an MCP-compatible interface. By default, it uses the transport configuration from your user config. The server validates all endpoints at startup and fails if any endpoints have errors - use --ignore-errors to start anyway with invalid endpoints skipped.

Options:

• --transport: Protocol (streamable-http, sse, stdio)
• --port: Port for HTTP transport
• --sql-tools: Enable/disable SQL tools (true/false)
• --stateless: Enable stateless HTTP mode (for serverless deployments)
• --readonly: Open database in read-only mode
• --ignore-errors: Start server even if some endpoints have validation errors
• --json-output: Output startup errors in JSON format (useful for CI/CD)
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp serve                              # Default transport
mxcp serve --transport stdio            # For Claude Desktop
mxcp serve --transport streamable-http  # HTTP API
mxcp serve --port 9000                  # Custom port
mxcp serve --sql-tools true             # Enable SQL tools
mxcp serve --stateless                  # Stateless mode (HTTP)
mxcp serve --ignore-errors              # Start even if endpoints invalid
mxcp serve --json-output                # JSON format for CI/CD

mxcp run

Execute an endpoint (tool, resource, or prompt).

mxcp run ENDPOINT_TYPE NAME [OPTIONS]

Description:

Executes a single endpoint with the specified parameters. Supports both simple values and complex JSON values from files. User context can be provided for testing policy-protected endpoints.

Arguments:

• ENDPOINT_TYPE: tool, resource, or prompt
• NAME: Endpoint name

Options:

• --param, -p: Parameter (name=value or name=@file.json)
• --user-context, -u: User context JSON or @file.json
• --request-headers: Request headers JSON or @file.json
• --skip-output-validation: Skip return type validation
• --readonly: Open database in read-only mode
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp run tool get_user --param user_id=123
mxcp run tool search --param query=test --param limit=10
mxcp run resource "users://{id}" --param id=alice
mxcp run prompt analyze --param data="sample"
mxcp run tool my_tool --user-context '{"role": "admin"}'
mxcp run tool my_tool --request-headers '{"Authorization": "Bearer token"}'
mxcp run tool my_tool --param data=@input.json

Note: For resources, use the full URI template (e.g., users://{id}) and provide parameters with --param.

mxcp query

Execute SQL directly against the database.

mxcp query [SQL] [OPTIONS]

Description:

Executes a SQL query directly against the database. The query can be provided as an argument or from a file. Parameters can be provided for parameterized queries.

Arguments:

• SQL: SQL query (optional if --file provided)

Options:

• --file: Path to SQL file
• --param, -p: Parameter (name=value or name=@file.json)
• --readonly: Open database in read-only mode
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp query "SELECT * FROM users"
mxcp query "SELECT * FROM users WHERE age > \$age" --param age=18
mxcp query --file reports/monthly.sql
mxcp query --file query.sql --param start=@dates.json

---

Quality Commands

See Also: Quality & Testing Guide for comprehensive testing best practices.

mxcp validate

Validate endpoint definitions for correctness.

mxcp validate [ENDPOINT] [OPTIONS]

Description:

Validates the schema and configuration of endpoints, including YAML syntax, required fields, SQL syntax errors, and parameter/return type definitions. If no endpoint is specified, all endpoints are validated.

Arguments:

• ENDPOINT: Specific endpoint to validate (optional)

Options:

• --readonly: Open database in read-only mode
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp validate                        # Validate all
mxcp validate tools/get_user.yml     # Validate specific endpoint
mxcp validate --json-output          # JSON output

mxcp test

Run endpoint tests.

mxcp test [ENDPOINT_TYPE] [NAME] [OPTIONS]

Description:

Executes test cases defined in endpoint configurations. If no endpoint type and name are provided, runs all tests. User context can be provided for testing policy-protected endpoints.

Arguments:

• ENDPOINT_TYPE: tool, resource, or prompt (optional)
• NAME: Endpoint name (optional)

Options:

• --user-context, -u: User context JSON or @file.json
• --request-headers: Request headers JSON or @file.json
• --readonly: Open database in read-only mode
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp test                                    # Run all tests
mxcp test tool get_user                      # Test specific endpoint
mxcp test --user-context '{"role":"admin"}'  # Test with user context
mxcp test --user-context @admin.json         # Context from file
mxcp test --request-headers '{"Authorization":"Bearer token"}'  # With headers
mxcp test --debug                            # Verbose output

User Context in Tests:

The --user-context flag allows you to test endpoints with policies that depend on user authentication. The command-line context overrides any user_context defined in test specifications.

You can also define user context directly in test specifications:

tests:
  - name: Admin can see all fields
    user_context:
      role: admin
      permissions: ["employee:read:all"]
    arguments:
      - key: employee_id
        value: "123"
    result:
      id: "123"
      name: "John Doe"
      salary: 100000  # Admin can see salary

mxcp lint

Check endpoints for metadata quality issues.

mxcp lint [OPTIONS]

Description:

Analyzes your endpoints and suggests improvements to make them more effective for LLM usage. Good metadata is crucial for LLM performance - it helps the model understand what each endpoint does, valid parameter values, expected output structures, and safety considerations.

Checks Performed:

• Missing descriptions on endpoints, parameters, and return types
• Missing test cases
• Missing parameter examples
• Missing type descriptions in nested structures
• Missing tags for categorization
• Missing behavioral annotations (readOnlyHint, idempotentHint, etc.)
• Missing default values on optional parameters

Options:

• --severity: Minimum level (all, warning, info)
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp lint                      # Check all endpoints
mxcp lint --severity warning   # Only warnings
mxcp lint --json-output        # JSON output

mxcp evals

Run LLM evaluations.

mxcp evals [SUITE_NAME] [OPTIONS]

Description:

Executes evaluation tests that verify LLM behavior with your endpoints. Unlike regular tests that execute endpoints directly, evals:

1. Send prompts to an LLM
2. Verify the LLM calls appropriate tools
3. Check that responses contain expected information
4. Ensure safety by verifying destructive operations aren’t called inappropriately

Eval files should have the suffix -evals.yml or .evals.yml and are automatically discovered.

Arguments:

• SUITE_NAME: Specific eval suite (optional)

Options:

• --user-context, -u: User context JSON or @file.json
• --model, -m: Override model for evaluation
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp evals                           # Run all evals
mxcp evals customer_service          # Run specific suite
mxcp evals --model gpt-4-turbo       # Use specific model
mxcp evals --user-context @user.json # With user context

---

Operations Commands

mxcp list

List available endpoints.

mxcp list [OPTIONS]

Description:

Discovers and lists all endpoints in the current repository, grouped by type (tools, resources, prompts). Shows both valid endpoints and any files with parsing errors.

Options:

• --profile: Profile name to use
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp list                 # List all endpoints
mxcp list --json-output   # JSON format
mxcp list --profile prod  # From specific profile

mxcp drift-snapshot

Create a drift detection baseline.

mxcp drift-snapshot [OPTIONS]

Description:

Creates a snapshot of the current state of your MXCP repository for change detection. The snapshot is used to detect drift between different environments or over time.

Captures:

• Database schema (tables, columns)
• Endpoint definitions (tools, resources, prompts)
• Validation results
• Test results

See Also: Drift Detection for comprehensive guide.

Options:

• --force: Overwrite existing snapshot
• --dry-run: Show what would be done
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp drift-snapshot                # Create snapshot
mxcp drift-snapshot --force        # Overwrite existing
mxcp drift-snapshot --dry-run      # Preview only
mxcp drift-snapshot --profile prod # From specific profile

mxcp drift-check

Check for drift from baseline.

mxcp drift-check [OPTIONS]

Description:

Compares the current state of your database and endpoints against a previously generated baseline snapshot to detect any changes. Reports added, removed, or modified tables, columns, and endpoints.

Options:

• --baseline: Path to baseline snapshot file
• --readonly: Open database in read-only mode
• --json-output: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed change information

Exit Codes:

• 0: No drift detected
• 1: Drift detected

Examples:

mxcp drift-check                            # Check default baseline
mxcp drift-check --baseline prod-snapshot   # Specific baseline
mxcp drift-check --json-output              # JSON output

mxcp log

Query audit logs.

mxcp log [OPTIONS]

Description:

Queries the audit logs to show execution history for tools, resources, and prompts. Audit logging must be enabled in your profile configuration. Logs are stored in JSONL format for concurrent access while the server is running.

See Also: Auditing Guide for comprehensive guide.

Options:

• --tool: Filter by tool name
• --resource: Filter by resource URI
• --prompt: Filter by prompt name
• --type: Filter by type (tool, resource, prompt)
• --policy: Filter by decision (allow, deny, warn, n/a)
• --status: Filter by status (success, error)
• --since: Time range (10m, 2h, 1d)
• --limit: Maximum results (default: 100)
• --export-csv: Export to CSV file
• --export-duckdb: Export to DuckDB file
• --json: JSON output
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Time Formats:

• 10s - 10 seconds
• 5m - 5 minutes
• 2h - 2 hours
• 1d - 1 day

Examples:

mxcp log                              # Recent logs
mxcp log --tool get_user              # Filter by tool
mxcp log --policy deny                # Blocked executions
mxcp log --since 1h                   # Last hour
mxcp log --since 1d --status error    # Errors today
mxcp log --export-csv audit.csv       # Export to CSV
mxcp log --export-duckdb audit.duckdb # Export to DuckDB

mxcp log-cleanup

Apply audit retention policies.

mxcp log-cleanup [OPTIONS]

Description:

Deletes audit records older than their schema’s retention policy. Each audit schema can define a retention_days value specifying how long records should be kept. This command is designed to be run periodically via cron or systemd timer.

Options:

• --dry-run: Show what would be deleted
• --json: Output in JSON format
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp log-cleanup                # Apply retention
mxcp log-cleanup --dry-run      # Preview only
mxcp log-cleanup --profile prod # Specific profile

# Schedule with cron (daily at 2 AM)
# 0 2 * * * /usr/bin/mxcp log-cleanup

# Systemd timer example - see mxcp-log-cleanup.service

---

dbt Integration Commands

See Also: dbt Integration for comprehensive guide.

mxcp dbt-config

Generate dbt configuration files.

mxcp dbt-config [OPTIONS]

Description:

Generates or patches dbt side-car files (dbt_project.yml + profiles.yml). Default mode writes env_var() templates so secrets stay out of YAML. Use --embed-secrets to flatten secrets directly into profiles.yml (not recommended for production).

Options:

• --profile: Override profile from mxcp-site.yml
• --dry-run: Show what would be written
• --force: Overwrite existing files
• --embed-secrets: Embed secrets in profiles.yml
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp dbt-config                         # Generate config
mxcp dbt-config --dry-run               # Preview only
mxcp dbt-config --embed-secrets --force # With secrets

mxcp dbt

Wrapper for dbt CLI with secret injection.

mxcp dbt [DBT_COMMAND] [OPTIONS]

Description:

Injects secrets as environment variables then delegates to the real dbt CLI. This allows dbt to access secrets defined in your MXCP configuration without exposing them in profiles.yml.

Options:

• --profile: Override profile from mxcp-site.yml
• --debug: Show detailed debug information

Examples:

mxcp dbt run                      # Run all models
mxcp dbt run --select my_model    # Specific model
mxcp dbt test                     # Run tests
mxcp dbt docs generate            # Generate docs
mxcp dbt docs serve               # Serve docs
mxcp dbt run --profile prod       # Use prod profile

---

Output Formats

JSON Output

When using --json-output:

{
  "status": "ok",
  "result": {},
  "error": null
}

With errors:

{
  "status": "error",
  "result": null,
  "error": "Error message",
  "traceback": "..."
}

Human-Readable Output

Default output uses formatted text with:

• Success messages to stdout
• Error messages to stderr
• Tables and lists formatted for readability

Environment Variables

Core Configuration

Variable	Description	Default
MXCP_DEBUG	Enable debug logging	false
MXCP_PROFILE	Default profile	-
MXCP_READONLY	Read-only mode	false
MXCP_DUCKDB_PATH	Override DuckDB path	-
MXCP_CONFIG_PATH	User config path	~/.mxcp/config.yml

Admin Socket

Variable	Description	Default
MXCP_ADMIN_ENABLED	Enable admin socket	true
MXCP_ADMIN_SOCKET	Admin socket path	-

Telemetry (OpenTelemetry)

Variable	Description
OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT	OTLP collector endpoint
OTEL_SERVICE_NAME	Service name (default: mxcp)
OTEL_RESOURCE_ATTRIBUTES	Resource attributes
OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_HEADERS	OTLP headers
MXCP_TELEMETRY_ENABLED	Enable/disable telemetry
MXCP_TELEMETRY_TRACING_CONSOLE	Console trace export
MXCP_TELEMETRY_METRICS_INTERVAL	Metrics interval (seconds)

Error Handling

Commands handle errors consistently:

1. Invalid arguments show usage information
2. Runtime errors show descriptive messages
3. --debug includes full tracebacks
4. --json-output returns errors in JSON format

Next Steps

• SQL Reference - SQL capabilities
• Python Reference - Runtime API
• Plugin Reference - Plugin development