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Tools

The MCP server provides these tools for querying and exploring Trino.

Tool Summary

Tool Description
trino_query Execute SQL queries
trino_explain Analyze execution plans
trino_browse Browse catalog hierarchy (catalogs → schemas → tables)
trino_describe_table Get columns, sample data, and semantic context
trino_list_connections List configured server connections

trino_query

Execute SQL queries against Trino.

Parameters

Parameter Type Required Default Description
sql string Yes - SQL query to execute
limit integer No 1000 Max rows (1-10000)
format string No json Output: json, csv, markdown
timeout_seconds integer No 120 Timeout (1-300)
connection string No default Server connection

Examples

"Show me the first 10 customers"

SELECT * FROM customers LIMIT 10

"Count orders by status"

SELECT status, COUNT(*) as count
FROM orders
GROUP BY status

"Export users as CSV"

Uses format: "csv" parameter.

trino_explain

Analyze query execution plans without running the query.

Parameters

Parameter Type Required Default Description
sql string Yes - SQL query to explain
type string No LOGICAL Plan type
connection string No default Server connection

Explain Types

Type Use Case
LOGICAL Understand query structure
DISTRIBUTED See execution stages across nodes
IO Estimate data scanned
VALIDATE Check syntax without planning

Examples

"Why is this query slow?"

Uses type: "DISTRIBUTED" to see where time is spent.

"How much data will this read?"

Uses type: "IO" to see estimated bytes scanned.

trino_browse

Browse the Trino catalog hierarchy. The browsing level is determined by which parameters are provided.

Parameters

Parameter Type Required Default Description
catalog string No - Catalog name. Omit to list all catalogs.
schema string No - Schema name. Requires catalog. Omit to list schemas.
pattern string No - LIKE pattern to filter tables (only when listing tables)
connection string No default Server connection

Modes

Parameters Provided Action
(none) List all catalogs
catalog List schemas in that catalog
catalog + schema List tables in that schema
catalog + schema + pattern List tables matching the pattern

Pattern Syntax

Pattern Matches
order% Tables starting with "order"
%log Tables ending with "log"
%event% Tables containing "event"

Examples

"What databases are available?"

{
  "level": "catalogs",
  "items": ["hive", "iceberg", "memory", "system"],
  "count": 4
}

"Show me tables related to orders"

Uses catalog: "hive", schema: "default", pattern: "%order%": 

{
  "level": "tables",
  "catalog": "hive",
  "schema": "default",
  "items": ["orders", "order_items", "order_history"],
  "count": 3,
  "pattern": "%order%"
}

trino_describe_table

Get detailed information about a table including columns, sample data, and semantic context from metadata catalogs.

Semantic Context

When a semantic provider is configured, this tool enriches the output with:

  • Description: Business-friendly explanation of the table and columns
  • Ownership: Data stewards and technical owners
  • Tags & Domain: Classification labels and business domain
  • Sensitivity: Columns marked as containing PII or sensitive data

Parameters

Parameter Type Required Default Description
catalog string Yes - Catalog name
schema string Yes - Schema name
table string Yes - Table name
include_sample boolean No true Include sample rows
connection string No default Server connection

Example

"Describe the customers table"

Response: 

{
  "table": "hive.sales.customers",
  "columns": [
    {"name": "id", "type": "bigint", "nullable": false},
    {"name": "name", "type": "varchar(255)", "nullable": true},
    {"name": "email", "type": "varchar(255)", "nullable": true}
  ],
  "sample": [
    [1, "Alice Smith", "[email protected]"],
    [2, "Bob Jones", "[email protected]"]
  ]
}

trino_list_connections

List all configured Trino server connections.

Parameters

None.

Example

"What Trino servers are configured?"

Response: 

{
  "connections": [
    {"name": "default", "host": "prod.trino.example.com", "catalog": "hive"},
    {"name": "staging", "host": "staging.trino.example.com", "catalog": "hive"},
    {"name": "dev", "host": "localhost", "port": 8080, "ssl": false}
  ],
  "default": "default"
}

Common Workflows

Data Exploration

  1. trino_browse - See available catalogs
  2. trino_browse (with catalog) - Browse schemas
  3. trino_browse (with catalog + schema) - Find relevant tables
  4. trino_describe_table - Understand structure
  5. trino_query - Query the data

Query Optimization

  1. Write initial query
  2. trino_explain with IO - Check data scanned
  3. Add filters to reduce data
  4. trino_explain with DISTRIBUTED - Check stages
  5. trino_query - Run optimized query

Next Steps