Query Data

Region: If more than one squaredup-* server is connected, ask the user which one they mean before running any tools, then use that same server for every SquaredUp tool call in the task.

Querying a SquaredUp data stream

The data_stream_query tool runs a configured data stream against one or more data sources, scoped to a set of entities, optionally parameterised by stream-specific inputs, over a timeframe, in the context of a workspace. Output is rows of structured data.

This mirrors the five steps a user takes in the tile editor (which always happen inside a workspace - MCP makes that context explicit as a required workspaceId):

1. Pick a data source.
2. Pick a data stream.
3. Pick scope (objects), if the stream requires it.
4. Fill in the stream's inputs (template), if it has any.
5. Optionally wrap the request in a SQL envelope to aggregate, filter, or sort.

The workspace context (required)

workspaceId is a required argument. The query runs under that workspace's access control, exactly as it would for a tile in that workspace: you must have access to the workspace, and the data sources you query must be linked to it. Get the id from workspace_list; if you're re-assembling a query from an existing tile, use the dashboard's workspaceId (returned by dashboard_list and dashboard_get). To check which data sources a workspace is linked to, read links.plugins from workspace_get.

The five pieces

1. Which stream - dataStreamId (e.g. datastream-upITeLZ9YzWNZbrx6iHU, or a built-in slug like datastream-health / datastream-sql) or dataStreamName (canonical name). The two are mutually exclusive. Discover stream IDs by:

   • Reading existing tiles via tile_get (the most reliable source - see the dashboards skill).
   • Finding stream-defining nodes via graph_query.
   • Asking the user if they referenced a specific report or metric by name.

2. Which data source(s) - pluginConfigId (single) or activePluginConfigIds (array, for streams that aggregate across sources). Get from data_source_list. Without this the stream has nothing to run against.

3. Scope - which entities to query for. Shape:

   {
       "resolvedIds": ["node-4tfDTNWMNFf9Hdygh53vwWB4pLY5iK6WYB-4cp3PAvZbuEoJr0V3iX7"],
       "resolvedTypes": ["host", "container"],
       "resolvedSourceTypes": ["AWS::EC2::Instance"]
   }
   

   Each data stream definition declares what it can be scoped to via its matches field - for example a Pull Requests stream that matches repo vertices means resolvedTypes must include the repo type or resolvedIds must point at concrete repo nodes. Picking the wrong entity types returns nothing.

   Use scope_resolve to convert workspace IDs / scope IDs / type filters into concrete resolvedIds, then pass the result through. For inventory-style streams ("list all EC2 instances"), an empty scope or a type-only scope often works.

4. Stream inputs (template) - many streams expose user-fillable inputs (state pickers, severity filters, query strings). In the tile editor these come from the stream's template definition; on the wire they live in dataSourceConfig. Example: a Pull Requests-style stream that takes a state choice (open, draft, merged) is invoked with:

   { "dataSourceConfig": { "state": "open" } }
   

   A built-in concrete example: the datastream-configurableGremlin stream takes a gremlin text input, so the call shape is { "dataStreamId": "datastream-configurableGremlin", "dataSourceConfig": { "gremlin": "g.V().limit(10)" } }.

   To find what inputs a stream accepts, the most reliable path is to read an existing tile that uses the same stream via tile_get and copy its config.dataSourceConfig. Inputs are stream-specific - there is no universal list.

5. Timeframe - a string like "last1hour", "last24hours", "last7days", or an object { from, to }. Required by most streams. Omit only for inventory-style streams that don't have a time dimension.

Standard workflow

1. workspace_list - pick the workspace the question targets (this becomes the required workspaceId).
2. data_source_list - pick the data source(s). Check they're linked to the workspace (workspace_get → links.plugins) if unsure.
3. Identify the stream (often by reading an existing tile via tile_get, which also reveals the required scope shape and any dataSourceConfig inputs).
4. scope_resolve - get the entity node IDs the user cares about, matching the stream's required entity types.
5. data_stream_query - pass workspaceId + stream id/name + source(s) + scope + dataSourceConfig (if the stream takes inputs) + timeframe.

If you don't know which stream to use, find a tile on an existing dashboard that does something similar and copy its dataStream.id, scope, dataSourceConfig, and source IDs - and take workspaceId from that dashboard (dashboard_list / dashboard_get return it). This is faster and more reliable than guessing.

Shortcut: re-running an existing tile's query

If the user wants the data a tile is already showing - don't assemble the query manually. Use:

• tile_query(dashboardId, tileId, timeframe?) - runs a single tile's stream as configured, returning its rows directly. Optionally override the timeframe.
• dashboard_query(dashboardId, timeframe?) - runs all data-stream tiles on a dashboard in parallel and returns all rows grouped by tile.

Both dashboardId and tileId are returned by tile_list, kpi_list, and dashboard_list. Use these tools when the tile already exists and you don't need to modify the query - data_stream_query is for custom or ad-hoc queries.

Aggregation, filtering, sorting - prefer SQL

options carries sort, filter, and group specs that mirror the dashboard tile UI (column-level sort/filter, single grouping key). They work for the simple cases the tile editor exposes, but they don't compose: you can't join, you can't aggregate-then-filter, and the spec shape is opaque to copy from a tile.

For anything beyond a single column sort or a flat group-by, invoke the built-in datastream-sql meta-stream and pass the inner stream as a table inside dataSourceConfig.tables. This is the path the client UI's "advanced mode" uses, and the only reliable one for joins, multi-step aggregations, top-N, or cross-stream queries:

{
    "workspaceId": "space-yHLAPmsNyGkUPe8ZdDxE",
    "dataStreamId": "datastream-sql",
    "dataSourceConfig": {
        "sql": "SELECT state, COUNT(*) AS n FROM prs GROUP BY state ORDER BY n DESC",
        "tables": [
            {
                "tableName": "prs",
                "config": {
                    "dataStream": {
                        "id": "datastream-upITeLZ9YzWNZbrx6iHU",
                        "pluginConfigId": "config-i5ZApyjOBIHBz2J4kG1z"
                    },
                    "scope": { "resolvedIds": ["node-4tfDTNWMNFf9Hdygh53vwWB4pLY5iK6WYB-4cp3PAvZbuEoJr0V3iX7"] },
                    "dataSourceConfig": { "state": "open" },
                    "timeframe": "last7days"
                }
            }
        ]
    }
}

The inner config of each entry in tables is a partial tile config (inner stream id, plugin config, scope, inputs, timeframe). The outer SQL runs over the resulting rows, with each tableName available as a SQL table. Use multiple tables entries to join across streams.

Use this whenever the user wants a summary, a top-N, a join, or any composed operation.

Result size

The MCP data_stream_query tool runs in multi-page mode internally and returns the full result set in one response - there is no paging knob exposed to the caller. That makes large queries dangerous: streams over noisy entities can return tens of thousands of rows straight into the LLM context.

Before invoking, decide whether the user actually wants raw rows or a rollup. If a rollup is fine, wrap the inner stream in the datastream-sql envelope above and aggregate server-side. If raw rows are needed, narrow the scope or shorten the timeframe rather than relying on a default limit - most streams don't have one.

Common mistakes

• Omitting workspaceId - it's required; the call is rejected before anything runs.
• Passing a workspaceId the user can't access, or one the queried data sources aren't linked to - denied or empty. Pick the workspace the tile/dashboard actually lives in, or check workspace_get → links.plugins.
• Trying to override access control via options.accessControlType - rejected; queries always run under the workspace's access control.
• Calling data_stream_query with no pluginConfigId / activePluginConfigIds - returns an error.
• Passing a scope with no resolvedIds, no resolvedTypes, and no resolvedSourceTypes - typically returns nothing.
• Passing scope with the wrong entity types for the stream's matches - returns nothing. Check an existing tile.
• Forgetting to pass required dataSourceConfig inputs (e.g. omitting state on a Pull Requests stream, or gremlin on datastream-configurableGremlin) - returns an error or empty result.
• Confusing dataStreamId (datastream-…) with the data source pluginConfigId (config-…).
• Passing both dataStreamId and dataStreamName - they are mutually exclusive.
• Forgetting timeframe on a time-series stream - error or empty result.
• Reaching for options.sort / options.filter / options.group for anything non-trivial - the spec shape mirrors the tile UI and doesn't compose. Use the datastream-sql envelope for joins, aggregation, top-N, or anything multi-step.
• Expecting options.pagingContext to work - the MCP tool runs the stream end-to-end internally; there is no LLM-driven pagination. Narrow scope/timeframe instead.