The Tool Reference

Complete reference for all 52 sylvan MCP tools. Every parameter, every default.

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Indexing (3 tools)

index_project

Index a local folder. Run once per project, re-run after code changes. Incremental reindex only processes changed files.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
path	string	yes	--	Absolute path to the folder to index
name	string	no	folder name	Display name for the repository

index_project(path="/home/user/my-project", name="my-project")

reindex_file

Surgical single-file reindex. Use after editing one file instead of re-indexing the whole folder.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name (as shown in indexed_repos)
file_path	string	yes	--	Relative path within the repo

reindex_file(repo="my-project", file_path="src/main.py")

index_multi_repo

Index multiple folders at once, group them into a workspace, and resolve cross-repo imports.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
workspace	string	yes	--	Workspace name
paths	string[]	yes	--	List of absolute folder paths to index
description	string	no	--	Workspace description

index_multi_repo(workspace="my-app", paths=["/path/to/frontend", "/path/to/backend"])

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Search (5 tools)

find_code

Search indexed symbols by name, signature, docstring, or keywords. Returns signatures and locations without reading files.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
query	string	yes	--	Search query (symbol name, keyword, or description)
repo	string	no	--	Filter to a specific repository
kind	string	no	--	Filter by kind: function, class, method, constant, type
language	string	no	--	Filter by language (e.g., python, typescript, go)
file_pattern	string	no	--	Glob pattern to filter by file path
max_results	integer	no	20	Maximum results
token_budget	integer	no	--	Greedy-pack results until budget exhausted

find_code(query="authenticate", repo="backend", kind="function")

find_code_batch

Run multiple symbol searches in one call.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
queries	object[]	yes	--	List of search queries. Each has: query (required), repo, kind, language, max_results
repo	string	no	--	Default repo filter for all queries
max_results_per_query	integer	no	10	Default max results per query

find_code_batch(queries=[{"query": "auth"}, {"query": "session"}], repo="backend")

find_text

Full-text search across all indexed file content. Use for comments, strings, TODOs, or literal text that find_code would not find.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
query	string	yes	--	Text to search for
repo	string	no	--	Repository filter
file_pattern	string	no	--	Glob pattern for files
max_results	integer	no	20	Maximum results
context_lines	integer	no	2	Lines of context around matches

find_text(query="TODO: fix", repo="backend")

find_docs

Search indexed documentation sections by title, summary, or tags.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
query	string	yes	--	Search query
repo	string	no	--	Filter to a specific repo
doc_path	string	no	--	Filter to a specific document
max_results	integer	no	10	Maximum results

find_docs(query="configuration", repo="my-project")

find_similar_code

Find symbols semantically similar to a given source symbol using vector similarity.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Source symbol ID to find similar symbols for
repo	string	no	--	Filter results to a specific repository
max_results	integer	no	10	Maximum similar symbols to return

find_similar_code(symbol_id="src/auth.py::login#function", repo="backend")

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Browsing (11 tools)

read_symbol

Retrieve the exact source of a function, class, or method by ID.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Symbol identifier (from search results)
verify	boolean	no	false	Verify content has not drifted since indexing
context_lines	integer	no	0	Number of surrounding lines to include (0-50)

read_symbol(symbol_id="src/auth.py::login#function")

read_symbols

Batch retrieve multiple symbols at once.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_ids	string[]	yes	--	List of symbol identifiers to retrieve

read_symbols(symbol_ids=["src/auth.py::login#function", "src/auth.py::logout#function"])

whats_in_file

Hierarchical outline of all symbols in a file with signatures and line numbers.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
file_path	string	yes	--	Relative file path

whats_in_file(repo="backend", file_path="src/auth.py")

whats_in_files

Batch retrieve outlines for multiple files in one call.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
file_paths	string[]	yes	--	List of relative file paths

whats_in_files(repo="backend", file_paths=["src/auth.py", "src/users.py"])

project_structure

Compact indented tree of the repo structure with language and symbol counts.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
max_depth	integer	no	3	Max directory depth to expand (max: 10)

project_structure(repo="backend", max_depth=2)

read_doc_section

Retrieve the exact content of a doc section by ID.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
section_id	string	yes	--	Section identifier
verify	boolean	no	false	Verify content hash

read_doc_section(section_id="docs/config.md::database-setup#section")

read_doc_sections

Batch retrieve multiple doc sections at once.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
section_ids	string[]	yes	--	List of section identifiers

read_doc_sections(section_ids=["docs/config.md::setup#section", "docs/config.md::options#section"])

doc_table_of_contents

Structured table of contents for all indexed docs.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
doc_path	string	no	--	Filter to a specific document

doc_table_of_contents(repo="backend")

doc_tree

Nested tree table of contents grouped by document.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
max_depth	integer	no	3	Max heading depth to include (max: 6)

doc_tree(repo="backend", max_depth=2)

repo_overview

High-level summary of a repo: file count, languages, symbol breakdown, documentation coverage.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name

repo_overview(repo="backend")

understand_symbol

Source + imports + callers + sibling symbols in one call. Replaces 3-5 separate Read/Grep calls.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Symbol to get context for
include_callers	boolean	no	false	Include caller symbols
include_imports	boolean	no	true	Include import information

understand_symbol(symbol_id="src/auth.py::login#function", include_callers=true)

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Analysis (15 tools)

what_breaks_if_i_change

Show which files and symbols would be affected by changing a symbol. Check this before refactoring.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Symbol to analyze
depth	integer	no	2	Import hops to follow (1-3)

what_breaks_if_i_change(symbol_id="src/auth.py::login#function")

what_breaks_if_i_change_these

Check blast radius for multiple symbols in one call.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_ids	string[]	yes	--	List of symbol identifiers to analyze
depth	integer	no	2	Import hops to follow (1-3)

what_breaks_if_i_change_these(symbol_ids=["src/auth.py::login#function", "src/auth.py::logout#function"])

inheritance_chain

Traverse class inheritance chains -- ancestors and descendants.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
class_name	string	yes	--	Class name to analyze
repo	string	no	--	Optional repo filter

inheritance_chain(class_name="BaseModel", repo="backend")

who_calls_this

Symbol-level references -- callers or callees.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Symbol to query
direction	string	no	"to"	to = callers, from = callees

who_calls_this(symbol_id="src/auth.py::login#function", direction="to")

who_depends_on_this

Find all files that import a given file.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
file_path	string	yes	--	File to find importers of
max_results	integer	no	50	Maximum results

who_depends_on_this(repo="backend", file_path="src/auth.py")

who_depends_on_these

Find importers for multiple files in one call.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
file_paths	string[]	yes	--	List of file paths to find importers of
max_results	integer	no	20	Max importers per file

who_depends_on_these(repo="backend", file_paths=["src/auth.py", "src/users.py"])

related_code

Find symbols related to a given symbol by co-location, shared imports, or name similarity.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Symbol to find relations for
max_results	integer	no	10	Maximum results

related_code(symbol_id="src/auth.py::login#function")

import_graph

File-level import dependency graph. Shows what a file imports and what imports it.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
file_path	string	yes	--	File to center the graph on
direction	string	no	"both"	imports, importers, or both
depth	integer	no	1	Import hops to follow (1-3)

import_graph(repo="backend", file_path="src/auth.py", direction="imports")

what_changed_in_symbols

Compare symbols between the current index and a previous git commit.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
commit	string	no	"HEAD~1"	Git ref to compare against
file_path	string	no	--	Optional file path filter
max_files	integer	no	50	Maximum files to compare

what_changed_in_symbols(repo="backend", commit="HEAD~3")

who_touched_this

Git blame, change frequency, and recent commits for a file or symbol.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
file_path	string	no	--	File path
symbol_id	string	no	--	Symbol ID (alternative to file_path)

who_touched_this(repo="backend", file_path="src/auth.py")

rename_everywhere

Find all edit locations needed to rename a symbol. Returns exact file/line/old_text/new_text for each occurrence.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Symbol to rename
new_name	string	yes	--	Desired new name (must be a valid identifier)

rename_everywhere(symbol_id="src/auth.py::login#function", new_name="authenticate")

whats_changed_recently

Show what changed in the last N commits at the file level.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
commits	integer	no	5	Number of commits to look back
file_path	string	no	--	Optional file path filter

whats_changed_recently(repo="backend", commits=10)

find_tech_debt

Quality metrics per symbol: has_tests, has_docs, has_types, complexity score.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
untested_only	boolean	no	false	Show only untested symbols
undocumented_only	boolean	no	false	Show only undocumented symbols
min_complexity	integer	no	0	Minimum complexity threshold
limit	integer	no	50	Maximum results

find_tech_debt(repo="backend", untested_only=true)

code_health_report

Comprehensive quality analysis: test coverage, documentation coverage, code smells, security findings, duplication, quality gate status.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name

code_health_report(repo="backend")

find_columns

Search column metadata from ecosystem context providers (dbt, etc.).

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name
query	string	yes	--	Column name or description to search
model_pattern	string	no	--	Glob pattern to filter model names
max_results	integer	no	20	Maximum results

find_columns(repo="analytics", query="user_id")

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Library (5 tools)

index_library_source

Index a third-party library's source code for precise API lookup.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
package	string	yes	--	Package spec: manager/name[@version] (e.g., pip/django@4.2, npm/react@18, go/github.com/gin-gonic/gin)

index_library_source(package="pip/django@4.2")

indexed_libraries

List all indexed third-party libraries. No parameters.

indexed_libraries()

remove_library

Remove an indexed library and its source files from disk.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
name	string	yes	--	Library name (e.g., django@4.2)

remove_library(name="django@4.2")

migration_guide

Compare two indexed versions of the same library. Shows added, removed, and changed symbols.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
package	string	yes	--	Package name without manager prefix (e.g., numpy)
from_version	string	yes	--	The old version to compare from
to_version	string	yes	--	The new version to compare to

migration_guide(package="numpy", from_version="1.26.0", to_version="2.2.2")

check_version_drift

Compare a project's installed dependencies against indexed library versions.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Indexed repository name to check

check_version_drift(repo="backend")

---

Workspace (5 tools)

index_multi_repo

Also listed under Indexing. Index multiple folders and group into a workspace.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
workspace	string	yes	--	Workspace name
paths	string[]	yes	--	List of absolute folder paths
description	string	no	--	Workspace description

index_multi_repo(workspace="my-app", paths=["/path/to/frontend", "/path/to/backend"])

search_all_repos

Search symbols across all repos in a workspace.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
workspace	string	yes	--	Workspace name
query	string	yes	--	Search query
kind	string	no	--	Filter by kind: function, class, method, constant, type
language	string	no	--	Filter by language
max_results	integer	no	20	Maximum results

search_all_repos(workspace="my-app", query="authenticate")

cross_repo_impact

Cross-repo blast radius -- shows impact across repositories.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
workspace	string	yes	--	Workspace name
symbol_id	string	yes	--	Symbol to analyze
depth	integer	no	2	Import hops to follow

cross_repo_impact(workspace="my-app", symbol_id="shared/types.ts::User#type")

add_repo_to_workspace

Add an already-indexed repo to a workspace.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
workspace	string	yes	--	Workspace name
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name

add_repo_to_workspace(workspace="my-app", repo="shared-lib")

pin_library_version

Pin a specific library version to a workspace. The library must already be indexed via index_library_source.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
workspace	string	yes	--	Workspace name
library	string	yes	--	Library display name with version (e.g., numpy@2.2.2)

pin_library_version(workspace="my-app", library="numpy@2.2.2")

---

Meta (9 tools)

how_to_use_sylvan

Call this first in every session. Returns workflow rules, common tool chains, and checks settings configuration.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
project_path	string	no	cwd	Absolute path to the project directory

how_to_use_sylvan(project_path="/home/user/my-project")

indexed_repos

List all indexed repositories. Shows file count, symbol count, and indexing timestamp. No parameters.

indexed_repos()

delete_repo_index

Delete an indexed repository and all its data. Permanent and cannot be undone.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name to delete

delete_repo_index(repo="old-project")

where_to_start

Suggest the best queries for exploring a repo. Session-aware.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Repository name

where_to_start(repo="backend")

usage_stats

Usage statistics for the current session, per-project lifetime, and overall.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	no	--	Show stats for a specific repo

usage_stats(repo="backend")

open_dashboard

Get the URL for the sylvan web dashboard. No parameters.

open_dashboard()

connection_config

Returns this server's MCP connection config (command, args, working directory). No parameters.

connection_config()

server_logs

Retrieve sylvan server log entries for debugging.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
lines	integer	no	50	Number of lines to return (1-500)
from_start	boolean	no	false	Read from beginning instead of end
offset	integer	no	0	Skip this many lines before reading

server_logs(lines=100)

generate_project_docs

Generate a sylvan/ project context directory and agent instructions.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
repo	string	yes	--	Indexed repo name
agent	string	no	"claude"	Agent format: claude, cursor, copilot, generic
root	string	no	--	Override project root path

generate_project_docs(repo="backend", agent="claude")