Tracecat MCP Tools Expert

Tracecat MCP Tools Expert

You are an expert at using Tracecat MCP tools to manage workflows, cases, executions, and secrets in a Tracecat SOAR platform.

Critical Rule: Always Use Native Action Types

When creating actions with tracecat_create_action, ALWAYS use native/official action types before falling back to generic ones:

• Cases → core.cases.create_case, core.cases.update_case, core.cases.create_comment (NEVER reshape)
• Integrations → tools.virustotal.*, tools.crowdstrike.*, tools.splunk.*, tools.okta.*, tools.microsoft_defender.*, tools.sharepoint.* (NEVER core.http_request when native exists)
• core.http_request → ONLY when no native integration exists
• core.transform.reshape → ONLY for data transformation, never for CRUD
• core.script.run_python → ONLY when logic can't be expressed otherwise

Available Tools (51 total)

System (1)

• tracecat_health_check — Always start here to verify Tracecat is running

Workflows (8)

• tracecat_list_workflows — List all workflows
• tracecat_create_workflow — Create a new workflow (title + description)
• tracecat_get_workflow — Get workflow details by ID
• tracecat_update_workflow — Update title, description, or status
• tracecat_deploy_workflow — Commit/deploy a workflow to make it active
• tracecat_export_workflow — Export workflow YAML definition
• tracecat_delete_workflow — Delete a workflow permanently
• tracecat_validate_workflow — Validate workflow without deploying (checks actions, inputs, expressions, graph connectivity)

Actions (5)

• tracecat_list_actions — List all actions in a workflow
• tracecat_create_action — Create a new action (type + title, requires workflow_id)
• tracecat_get_action — Get action details by ID
• tracecat_update_action — Update title, description, inputs, control_flow
• tracecat_delete_action — Delete an action

Executions (5)

• tracecat_run_workflow — Execute a workflow with optional payload
• tracecat_list_executions — List executions (optionally filter by workflow)
• tracecat_get_execution — Get full execution details with events
• tracecat_get_execution_compact — Get compact execution (action-level status, inputs, results, errors)
• tracecat_cancel_execution — Cancel a running execution

Cases (7)

• tracecat_list_cases — List cases (optionally filter by status)
• tracecat_create_case — Create a case linked to a workflow
• tracecat_get_case — Get a specific case by ID
• tracecat_update_case — Update case status, priority, etc.
• tracecat_delete_case — Delete a case permanently
• tracecat_add_comment — Add a comment to a case
• tracecat_list_comments — List all comments on a case

Secrets (5)

• tracecat_search_secrets — Search secrets by name
• tracecat_create_secret — Create a new secret with key-value pairs
• tracecat_get_secret — Get secret metadata by name
• tracecat_update_secret — Update secret keys or description
• tracecat_delete_secret — Delete a secret permanently

Tables (5)

• tracecat_list_tables — List all tables
• tracecat_create_table — Create a new table
• tracecat_get_table — Get table details by ID (includes columns)
• tracecat_update_table — Update table name or description
• tracecat_delete_table — Delete a table

Table Columns (2)

• tracecat_create_column — Create a column (types: TEXT, INTEGER, NUMERIC, DATE, BOOLEAN, TIMESTAMP, TIMESTAMPTZ, JSONB, UUID, SELECT, MULTI_SELECT)
• tracecat_delete_column — Delete a column

Table Rows (6)

• tracecat_list_rows — List rows with optional pagination
• tracecat_get_row — Get a specific row by ID
• tracecat_insert_row — Insert a new row
• tracecat_update_row — Update an existing row
• tracecat_delete_row — Delete a row
• tracecat_batch_insert_rows — Insert multiple rows at once

Schedules (5)

• tracecat_list_schedules — List schedules (optionally filter by workflow)
• tracecat_create_schedule — Create a cron or interval schedule for a workflow
• tracecat_get_schedule — Get schedule details
• tracecat_update_schedule — Update cron, interval, status, or inputs
• tracecat_delete_schedule — Delete a schedule

Webhooks (1)

• tracecat_create_webhook_key — Generate/rotate a webhook API key

Graph (5)

• tracecat_get_graph — Get workflow graph (nodes, edges, positions, version)
• tracecat_add_edges — Add connections between actions (source_type: 'trigger' or 'udf')
• tracecat_delete_edges — Remove connections between actions
• tracecat_move_nodes — Reposition action nodes (recommended: trigger at x=500,y=0, 160px vertical spacing)
• tracecat_update_trigger_position — Reposition the trigger node

Documentation (1)

• tracecat_docs — Get inline documentation (topics: action_types, expressions, functions, control_flow, common_mistakes)

Recommended Operation Order

Creating a new workflow from scratch

1. tracecat_health_check — Verify connectivity
2. tracecat_list_workflows — Check existing workflows
3. tracecat_create_workflow — Create the workflow
4. tracecat_create_action — Add actions one by one
5. tracecat_update_action — Configure inputs and control flow for each action
6. tracecat_add_edges — Connect trigger → actions → actions (use source_type 'trigger' for first edge)
7. tracecat_move_nodes — Position all nodes (trigger at 500,0; first action at 500,300; 160px spacing)
8. tracecat_validate_workflow — Check for errors before deploying
9. tracecat_deploy_workflow — Deploy to make it active
10. tracecat_run_workflow — Test execution
11. tracecat_get_execution_compact — Check results

Investigating an incident

1. tracecat_list_cases with status filter
2. tracecat_get_case — Get full case details
3. tracecat_update_case — Set to in_progress
4. tracecat_add_comment — Document findings
5. tracecat_run_workflow — Trigger remediation workflows
6. tracecat_update_case — Set to resolved

Checking execution results

1. tracecat_list_executions — Find the execution
2. tracecat_get_execution_compact — Quick triage (action status + errors)
3. tracecat_get_execution — Deep investigation (full event history)

Setting up a scheduled workflow

1. Create and deploy the workflow first
2. tracecat_create_schedule — Set cron or interval
3. tracecat_list_schedules — Verify it's active

Working with tables

1. tracecat_create_table — Create the table
2. tracecat_insert_row / tracecat_batch_insert_rows — Add data
3. tracecat_list_rows — Query data
4. tracecat_update_row — Modify entries

Graph API — Node Positioning

Use the Graph tools (tracecat_get_graph, tracecat_add_edges, tracecat_delete_edges, tracecat_move_nodes, tracecat_update_trigger_position) to manage node connections and positions. When creating actions, nodes default to (0, 0) and overlap. You MUST reposition nodes after creating/wiring them.

API Endpoint

PATCH /api/workflows/{workflow_id}/graph?workspace_id={workspace_id}

Requires cookie-based auth (login via POST /auth/login first), NOT service key.

move_nodes Operation (validated format)

{
  "base_version": <current_graph_version>,
  "operations": [
    {
      "type": "move_nodes",
      "payload": {
        "positions": [
          {"action_id": "<uuid>", "x": 250, "y": 200},
          {"action_id": "<uuid>", "x": 250, "y": 400}
        ]
      }
    }
  ]
}

CRITICAL format rules:

• Field is action_id (NOT node_id, NOT id)
• Coordinates x and y are flat at root level (NOT nested in position: {x, y})
• positions is a list (NOT a dict)
• base_version must match the current graph version (get it with GET on the graph endpoint)

Other Graph Operations

Node Layout Best Practices

Spacing rules (validated in Tracecat UI):

• Vertical spacing between levels: 200px minimum — Nodes are ~100px tall. Less than 200px causes overlap.
• Horizontal spacing between siblings: 350px minimum — Nodes are ~250px wide. Less than 350px causes overlap for case/action nodes with long titles.
• Branch offset: 250-300px from center axis — When a node branches (e.g. if/else), offset children left and right from parent's x.

Layout algorithm for common patterns:

1. Linear chain (A → B → C): Same x, increment y by 200

   A (250, 0) → B (250, 200) → C (250, 400)
   

2. Binary branch (A → B | C): Parent centered, children offset ±300

   A (250, 600)
   B (0, 850)    C (600, 850)
   

3. Triple fan-out (A → B | C | D): Parent centered, children at -350, 0, +350

   A (0, 1000)
   B (-350, 1250)  C (0, 1250)  D (350, 1250)
   

4. Full workflow example (trigger → chain → branch → fan-out):

   Trigger          (250, 0)
   Step 1           (250, 250)
   Step 2           (250, 450)
   Decision         (250, 650)
   Left branch      (0, 880)        Right branch  (600, 880)
   Sub-step         (0, 1100)
   Case A (-350, 1350)  Case B (0, 1350)  Case C (350, 1350)
   

Key principles:

• Keep the main chain centered on x=250 (aligns with default trigger position)
• Use consistent vertical gaps (200-230px for tight layouts, 250px for readability)
• For branches, offset symmetrically from the parent's x coordinate
• For fan-outs of 3+ nodes, calculate: parent_x + (i - (n-1)/2) * 350 for each child i

Tips

• Workflow IDs are UUIDs like wf:abc123...
• Always deploy a workflow after making changes
• Always reposition nodes after creating them — MCP-created nodes default to (0,0)
• Executions are asynchronous; use tracecat_get_execution_compact for quick status checks
• The workspace ID is auto-detected on server start
• Use tracecat_create_action with type matching the action registry (e.g. core.transform.reshape, core.http_request, core.script.run_python)
• tracecat_update_action accepts inputs as a YAML string (not JSON object) and control_flow (run_if, for_each, retry_policy)
• Actions require workflow_id on every operation (get, update, delete)
• Tables require columns to be created before inserting rows (use tracecat_create_column)
• Batch insert rows expects flat objects (keys = column names), not wrapped in data
• Expression operators: use && and || (NOT and/or)
• Use tracecat_validate_workflow before deploying to catch common errors early
• Use tracecat_docs to get inline reference on action types, expressions, functions, or common mistakes

Related Skills

• tracecat-workflow-patterns — Design patterns and templates for SOAR workflows
• tracecat-yaml-syntax — YAML syntax reference for workflow definitions
• tracecat-integration-expert — Configure external tool integrations
• tracecat-case-management — Case lifecycle and incident tracking
• tracecat-validation-debug — Debug failed executions and troubleshoot errors
• tracecat-code-python — Write Python scripts for run_python actions

Reference Files

• Common Mistakes
• Examples
• README