Skip to content

MCP Tools Reference

Jump to bottom
github-actions[bot] edited this page Mar 22, 2026 · 13 revisions

MCP Tools Reference

The server exposes 20 built-in tools plus any custom tools defined in your custom_tools.yaml.

Execution & Workspace

execute_code

Execute MATLAB code in the session's engine.

Parameter Type Required Description
code string yes MATLAB code to execute

Behavior:

  • Runs synchronously if it completes within sync_timeout (default 30s)
  • Auto-promotes to async if it exceeds the timeout
  • Returns inline result for sync, or job_id for async

Example response (sync):

{
  "status": "completed",
  "output": "ans =\n    15",
  "execution_time": 0.23,
  "variables": {
    "x": {"class": "double", "size": [1, 1], "value": 5}
  }
}

Example response (async promotion):

{
  "status": "running",
  "job_id": "abc123-def456",
  "message": "Job promoted to async execution"
}

check_code

Lint MATLAB code using checkcode/mlint.

Parameter Type Required Description
code string yes MATLAB code to check

Example response:

{
  "issues": [
    {
      "line": 3,
      "column": 5,
      "message": "Variable 'x' might be unused",
      "severity": "warning"
    },
    {
      "line": 7,
      "column": 12,
      "message": "Missing space after comma",
      "severity": "info"
    }
  ],
  "summary": "1 warning(s), 1 info(s), 0 error(s)"
}

get_workspace

Get variables in the current MATLAB workspace.

Parameter Type Required Description
(none) — — —

Returns the output of MATLAB's whos command, showing all variables, their sizes, and data types.

Example response:

{
  "workspace": "Name      Size       Bytes    Class\n  A         5x5        200    double array\n  b         1x1          8    double\n  result   10x1         80    double array",
  "variables": [
    {"name": "A", "size": "5x5", "bytes": 200, "class": "double"},
    {"name": "b", "size": "1x1", "bytes": 8, "class": "double"},
    {"name": "result", "size": "10x1", "bytes": 80, "class": "double"}
  ]
}

Job Management

get_job_status

Get status and progress of a running job.

Parameter Type Required Description
job_id string yes Job ID from execute_code

Example response:

{
  "job_id": "abc123-def456",
  "status": "running",
  "progress": 65.0,
  "message": "Trial 650000/1000000",
  "elapsed_seconds": 120.5,
  "state": "running"
}

get_job_result

Get the full result of a completed job.

Parameter Type Required Description
job_id string yes Job ID

Example response (completed):

{
  "status": "completed",
  "job_id": "abc123-def456",
  "output": "Simulation finished successfully",
  "execution_time": 245.67,
  "variables": {
    "results": {"class": "struct", "size": [1, 1]}
  }
}

Example response (failed):

{
  "status": "failed",
  "job_id": "abc123-def456",
  "error": "Index exceeds array dimensions",
  "error_trace": "Error in myScript (line 12)\n  x(100) = 5;"
}

cancel_job

Cancel a pending or running job.

Parameter Type Required Description
job_id string yes Job ID

Example response:

{
  "status": "cancelled",
  "job_id": "abc123-def456",
  "message": "Job cancelled successfully"
}

list_jobs

List all jobs in the current session.

Parameter Type Required Description
(none) — — —

Example response:

{
  "jobs": [
    {
      "job_id": "abc123-def456",
      "status": "completed",
      "created_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
      "execution_time": 15.34
    },
    {
      "job_id": "xyz789-uvw012",
      "status": "running",
      "created_at": "2024-01-15T10:31:00Z",
      "elapsed_seconds": 45.2
    }
  ],
  "total": 2
}

Discovery

list_toolboxes

List available MATLAB toolboxes.

Parameter Type Required Description
(none) — — —

Returns the output of MATLAB's ver command along with toolbox configuration information.

Example response:

{
  "output": "MATLAB Version 9.13 (R2022b)",
  "toolboxes": [
    {
      "name": "MATLAB",
      "version": "9.13"
    },
    {
      "name": "Signal Processing Toolbox",
      "version": "9.14"
    },
    {
      "name": "Statistics and Machine Learning Toolbox",
      "version": "12.4"
    }
  ]
}

list_functions

List functions in a specific MATLAB toolbox.

Parameter Type Required Description
toolbox_name string yes Name of the toolbox (e.g., "signal", "stats")

Example response:

{
  "toolbox": "Signal Processing Toolbox",
  "output": "Signal Processing Toolbox\n  Filters\n    butter      - Butterworth filter design\n    fir1        - FIR filter design using the window method\n  Analysis\n    periodogram - Power spectral density using Welch method"
}

get_help

Get MATLAB help text for any function.

Parameter Type Required Description
function_name string yes Name of the function

Example response:

{
  "function": "sin",
  "help_text": "SIN    Sine of argument in radians.\n   SIN(X) is the sine of the elements of X.\n\n   See also asin, sind.\n\n   Reference page for sin\n   Other functions named sin"
}

File Operations

upload_data

Upload a data file to the session's temporary directory.

Parameter Type Required Description
filename string yes Name of the file to create
content_base64 string yes File content as base64-encoded string

Example response:

{
  "filename": "data.csv",
  "path": "/tmp/matlab_session_abc123/data.csv",
  "size_bytes": 1024,
  "message": "File uploaded successfully"
}

delete_file

Delete a file from the session's temporary directory.

Parameter Type Required Description
filename string yes Name of the file to delete

Example response:

{
  "filename": "data.csv",
  "message": "File deleted successfully"
}

list_files

List files in the session's temporary directory.

Parameter Type Required Description
(none) — — —

Example response:

{
  "files": [
    {
      "name": "data.csv",
      "path": "/tmp/matlab_session_abc123/data.csv",
      "size_bytes": 2048
    },
    {
      "name": "myScript.m",
      "path": "/tmp/matlab_session_abc123/myScript.m",
      "size_bytes": 512
    },
    {
      "name": "results.mat",
      "path": "/tmp/matlab_session_abc123/results.mat",
      "size_bytes": 4096
    }
  ],
  "total": 3
}

read_script

Read a MATLAB .m script file from the session's temporary directory.

Parameter Type Required Description
filename string yes Name of the .m file to read

Example response:

{
  "filename": "myScript.m",
  "content": "function result = myScript(x)\n% Calculate something\nresult = x * 2 + 5;\nend"
}

read_data

Read a data file from the session's temporary directory.

Parameter Type Required Description
filename string yes Name of the file (.mat, .csv, .json, .txt, .xlsx)
format string no Read format: "summary" (default) or "raw"

Behavior:

  • For .mat files: "summary" shows variable names/sizes/types; "raw" returns base64-encoded content
  • For text files (.csv, .json, .txt): Returns content inline
  • For .xlsx files: Returns summary of sheets and data

Example response (MAT summary):

{
  "filename": "results.mat",
  "format": "summary",
  "variables": [
    {
      "name": "signal",
      "class": "double",
      "size": [1, 1000],
      "bytes": 8000
    },
    {
      "name": "metadata",
      "class": "struct",
      "size": [1, 1],
      "bytes": 256
    }
  ]
}

Example response (CSV):

{
  "filename": "data.csv",
  "content": "time,value,status\n0,10.5,ok\n1,11.2,ok\n2,10.8,ok",
  "rows": 3
}

read_image

Read an image file from the session's temporary directory.

Parameter Type Required Description
filename string yes Name of the image file (.png, .jpg, .gif)

Returns the image as an inline content block that renders in agent UIs.

Example response:

{
  "filename": "plot.png",
  "mime_type": "image/png",
  "data": "iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAYAAAAfFcSJAAAADUlEQVR42mNk+M9QDwADhgGAWjR9awAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==",
  "size_bytes": 68
}

Admin

get_pool_status

Get the current status of the MATLAB engine pool.

Parameter Type Required Description
(none) — — —

Example response:

{
  "total_engines": 4,
  "available_engines": 2,
  "busy_engines": 2,
  "max_engines": 8,
  "pool_type": "ProcessPool"
}

Monitoring

get_server_metrics

Get comprehensive server metrics including pool, jobs, sessions, and system stats.

Parameter Type Required Description
(none) — — —

Example response:

{
  "timestamp": "2024-01-15T10:35:00Z",
  "pool": {
    "total_engines": 4,
    "available_engines": 2,
    "busy_engines": 2,
    "max_engines": 8
  },
  "jobs": {
    "total": 15,
    "running": 2,
    "completed": 12,
    "failed": 1
  },
  "sessions": {
    "total": 3,
    "active": 3
  },
  "system": {
    "cpu_percent": 45.2,
    "memory_percent": 62.8,
    "uptime_seconds": 86400
  }
}

get_server_health

Get server health status with issue detection.

Parameter Type Required Description
(none) — — —

Example response (healthy):

{
  "status": "healthy",
  "summary": "All systems operational",
  "timestamp": "2024-01-15T10:35:00Z",
  "checks": {
    "pool": "healthy",
    "jobs": "healthy",
    "memory": "healthy"
  }
}

Example response (degraded):

{
  "status": "degraded",
  "summary": "High memory usage detected",
  "timestamp": "2024-01-15T10:35:00Z",
  "issues": [
    {
      "component": "memory",
      "severity": "warning",
      "message": "Memory usage at 85%"
    }
  ]
}

get_error_log

Get recent server errors and notable events for diagnosing issues.

Parameter Type Required Description
limit integer no Maximum number of entries to return (default 20)

Example response:

{
  "errors": [
    {
      "timestamp": "2024-01-15T10:34:22Z",
      "level": "error",
      "component": "job_executor",
      "message": "Job abc123 failed: Index exceeds array dimensions"
    },
    {
      "timestamp": "2024-01-15T10:32:15Z",
      "level": "warning",
      "component": "pool",
      "message": "Engine pool running at 95% capacity"
    }
  ],
  "total": 2
}

Custom Tools

Custom tools can be defined in your custom_tools.yaml configuration file. These tools are dynamically registered at runtime and extend the built-in tool set. Custom tools follow the same parameter and response conventions as built-in tools and are accessible through the same MCP interface.

Clone this wiki locally