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MCP.Tools

Tools are partitioned into three profiles inside _TOOL_REGISTRY. stata-mcp server --core registers only stata_do, get_data_info, and help. stata-mcp server --all (the default) registers standard tools but excludes high-risk third-party installation. stata-mcp server --unsafe adds ado_package_install. The help tool is filtered out on Windows. The deprecated write_dofile tool is skipped unless ENABLE_WRITE_DOFILE=true.

get_data_info

def get_data_info(data_path: str | Path,
                  vars_list: List[str] | None = None,
                  encoding: str = "utf-8",
                  head: int = 0) -> str:
    ...

Input Parameters: - data_path: Absolute filesystem path or URL to data file (required) - vars_list: Optional variable subset specification for selective analysis (default: null, all variables) - encoding: Character encoding for text-based formats (default: UTF-8, ignored for .dta) - head: Number of preview rows to display from the dataset (default: 0, disabled to avoid context overflow on large datasets)

Return Structure: Serialized JSON string containing multi-layered metadata:

{
  "overview": {"source": <path>, "obs": <int>, "var_numbers": <int>, "var_list": [<array>]},
  "info_config": {"metrics": [<array>], "max_display": <int>, "decimal_places": <int>},
  "vars_detail": {<variable_name>: {"var": <str>, "type": <str>, "summary": {...}}},
  "saved_path": <cache_file_path>
}

Operational Examples:

# Local file analysis
get_data_info("/data/econometrics/survey.dta")
get_data_info("~/Documents/exports/quarterly.csv", vars_list=["gdp", "inflation", "unemployment"])

# Remote data ingestion
get_data_info("https://repository.org/datasets/panel_data.xlsx")

# Encoded source handling
get_data_info("/data/legacy/latin1_data.csv", encoding="latin1")

Supported Formats: - Stata: .dta - CSV/Text: .csv, .tsv, .psv - Excel: .xlsx, .xls - SPSS: .sav, .zsav

Implementation Architecture: The tool operates through a multi-layered abstraction cascade. At the foundation lies a polymorphic class hierarchy where DataInfoBase defines the abstract interface for format-specific handlers (DtaDataInfo, CsvDataInfo, ExcelDataInfo, SpssDataInfo). Content integrity verification employs MD5 hashing with configurable suffix length for cache identification. Configuration propagation follows a precedence chain: runtime parameters override environment variables (STATA_MCP_DATA_INFO_DECIMAL_PLACES, STATA_MCP_DATA_INFO_STRING_KEEP_NUMBER), which in turn override TOML-based configuration at ~/.statamcp/config.toml.

Statistical computation leverages pandas DataFrame operations with NumPy backend. The metrics system implements a configurable computation pipeline where default metrics (obs, mean, stderr, min, max) can be extended through configuration to include quartiles (q1, q3) and distribution shape measures (skewness, kurtosis). Type dispatch separates string variables (observation counting with unique value sampling under max_display threshold) from numeric variables (central tendency, dispersion, and distribution shape computation with decimal_places precision rounding).

Caching strategy employs content-addressable storage where hash computation determines cache file naming: data_info__<name>_<ext>__hash_<suffix>.json. Cache resolution occurs at invocation time, with automatic regeneration on content hash divergence. The cache directory defaults to ~/.statamcp/.cache/ but can be overridden to project-specific stata-mcp-tmp/ locations through the cache_dir parameter.

stata_do

def stata_do(dofile_path: str,
             log_file_name: str | None = None,
             read_log_when_error: bool = False,
             is_replace_log: bool = True,
             enable_smcl: bool = True,
             timeout: float | None = None) -> Dict[str, Union[str, None]]:
    ...

Input Parameters: - dofile_path: Absolute or relative path to target .do file (required) - log_file_name: Custom log filename without timestamp (optional, auto-generated if null) - read_log_when_error: Boolean flag that gates log payload retrieval; the tool only reads the log when a Stata return-code error (e.g. r(198)) is detected, keeping the success path I/O-free (default: false) - is_replace_log: Boolean flag controlling whether an existing log file with the same name is overwritten (default: true) - enable_smcl: Boolean flag toggling SMCL formatted logging; when true the Stata CLI is invoked without the nolog redirection so both .smcl and .log artifacts are produced (default: true) - timeout: Optional maximum execution time in seconds. The default null value allows Stata to run without a time limit.

Return Structure: Dictionary containing execution metadata and optional log payload:

{
  "log_file_path": {"text": "<absolute_path_to_log>", "smcl": "<absolute_path_to_smcl>"},
  "log_content": {"text": "<error_log_text_or_placeholder>", "smcl": "<smcl_path>"}
}

The log_content key is only present when read_log_when_error=True. Error condition returns: {"error": "<exception_message>"}.

Operational Examples:

# Standard execution; log payload skipped on success
stata_do("/Users/project/stata-mcp-dofile/20250104153045.do")

# Custom log naming
stata_do("~/analysis/regression_pipeline.do", log_file_name="quarterly_results")

# Surface log content only when Stata reports an error
stata_do("/tmp/estimation.do", read_log_when_error=True)

# Keep prior logs and disable SMCL output
stata_do("/tmp/estimation.do",
         read_log_when_error=True,
         is_replace_log=False,
         enable_smcl=False)

# Stop Stata if execution exceeds five minutes
stata_do("/tmp/estimation.do", timeout=300)

Implementation Architecture: The tool encapsulates the StataDo executor class which implements platform-specific command invocation strategies. Cross-platform abstraction abstracts Stata executable location through the StataFinder class: macOS probes /Applications/Stata/ hierarchy, Windows interrogates Program Files registry, and Linux queries system PATH for stata-mp. The execution pipeline involves do-file staging, Stata CLI invocation with -b batch mode flag, log file redirection, and exit code monitoring.

Log file management operates within the stata-mcp-log/ directory structure with automatic timestamp generation when log_file_name is omitted. The is_replace_log flag determines whether prior logs are overwritten, and enable_smcl decides whether the SMCL artifact is emitted alongside the plain text log. The executor implements conditional log retrieval based on the read_log_when_error flag: the text log is scanned with the r(\d+) pattern, and only when a Stata return-code error is detected does the tool return the log payload, otherwise it returns a placeholder pointing users to the read_log tool.

Exception handling categorizes failures into three tiers: FileNotFoundError for missing do-file artifacts, RuntimeError for Stata execution failures or log generation issues, and PermissionError for insufficient execution or write permissions. Error conditions return dictionary with "error" key rather than raising exceptions to maintain MCP protocol compatibility.

write_dofile

Disabled by Default: Whether this tool is registered with the MCP server is controlled by the ENABLE_WRITE_DOFILE switch. Without setting it to true, register_tools() skips this entry entirely and the tool will not be exposed to the client.

Modern AI agents have native file writing capabilities, making this tool redundant. To enable, set STATA_MCP__ENABLE_WRITE_DOFILE=true or add [BETA] ENABLE_WRITE_DOFILE = true to your config.

def write_dofile(content: str,
                 encoding: str | None = None) -> str:
    ...

Input Parameters: - content: Stata command sequence to persist (required) - encoding: Character encoding for file output (optional, defaults to UTF-8)

Return Structure: String containing absolute POSIX-compliant path to generated do-file

Operational Examples:

# Basic regression analysis
write_dofile("""
use "/data/survey.dta", clear
regress income age education experience
outreg2 using "`output_path'/results.doc", replace
""")

# Time series analysis with encoding specification
write_dofile("""
tsset date
arima gdp, ar(1) ma(1)
predict forecast
""", encoding="latin1")

# Data transformation pipeline
write_dofile("""
gen log_gdp = ln(gdp)
gen diff_income = d(income)
xtset country_id year
xtreg diff_income log_gdp, fe
""")

Implementation Architecture: The tool implements atomic file creation within the stata-mcp-dofile/ directory hierarchy. File naming employs ISO 8601 basic format timestamp generation (YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.do) ensuring temporal uniqueness and chronological sorting. The write operation utilizes Python's built-in open() function with mode "w" and specified encoding parameter, performing implicit file creation and truncation for atomic write semantics.

Integration with output redirection commands (outreg2, esttab) requires coordination with the results_doc_path prompt to establish output directory paths prior to do-file generation. This separation of concerns enables deterministic output path management across multiple Stata execution cycles.

The tool does not perform syntactic validation or semantic analysis of the Stata code content. Code correctness, command sequencing, and macro expansion validity remain the responsibility of the calling context. Error handling wraps file I/O operations in try-except blocks with structured logging for success/failure tracking.

Deprecation Notice: This tool is disabled by default and will be removed in a future version. Modern AI agents have native file writing capabilities, so use those instead.

read_log

def read_log(file_path: str,
             encoding: str = "utf-8",
             is_beta: bool = False,
             lines: int = 0,
             *,
             output_format: Literal["full", "core", "dict"] = "dict") -> str:
    ...

Input Parameters: - file_path: Absolute path to target log file (required, .log or .smcl) - encoding: Character encoding for text decoding (optional, defaults to UTF-8) - is_beta: Enable structured log parsing with StataLog module (optional, default: false) - macOS/Linux only - Windows users should use default behavior - Recommended for .smcl files with dict format - lines: Content trimming control (default: 0, no trimming) - > 0: return first N items (lines for full/core, entries for dict) - < 0: return last |N| items (lines for full/core, entries for dict) - 0: return full content - output_format: Output format when is_beta=true (optional, default: "dict") - full: Raw log content without processing - core: Cleaned content with framework lines removed - dict: Structured command-result pairs (recommended)

Return Structure: - Default mode (is_beta=false): Raw string content of the file - Beta mode (is_beta=true): Depends on output_format: - full: Plain text log content - core: Log content without framework (headers, footers, log commands) - dict: String representation of command-result list

Operational Examples:

# Read log file (default mode)
read_log("/Users/project/stata-mcp-log/20250104153045.log")

# Read SMCL log with structured parsing (macOS/Linux)
read_log("/Users/project/stata-mcp-log/20250104153045.smcl",
         is_beta=True,
         output_format="dict")

# Get cleaned log content without framework
read_log("~/stata-mcp-log/session.log",
         is_beta=True,
         output_format="core")

# Read with custom encoding
read_log("~/analysis/tables/results.txt", encoding="utf-8")

Implementation Architecture: The tool implements dual-mode log reading: traditional file reading and structured parsing via the StataLog module.

Traditional Mode (is_beta=false): Generic file reading via Python's open() function with mode "r". Path validation checks file existence through Path.exists(). Content reading uses single file.read() operation for complete file retrieval.

Structured Parsing Mode (is_beta=true, Unix only): Leverages the stata_log module which provides: - StataLogTEXT: Parser for .log (plain text) files - StataLogSMCL: Parser for .smcl (Stata Markup and Control Language) files - StataLogInfo: Dataclass containing command_result_list with structured command-output pairs

The StataLog factory class (from_path() method) automatically detects file extension and returns the appropriate parser. Framework removal eliminates log headers/footers, log using/close commands, and do-file execution markers, preserving only actual Stata commands and their outputs.

Output Format Details: - full: Equivalent to read_plain_text() - raw file content - core: Equivalent to read_without_framework() - cleaned content - dict: Returns str(log_info.read_as_dict()) - structured mapping

Error handling covers: FileNotFoundError for missing files, IOError for I/O failures, ValueError for invalid output_format, and UnicodeDecodeError for encoding mismatches.

ado_package_install

def ado_package_install(package: str,
                        source: str = "ssc",
                        is_replace: bool = False,
                        package_source_from: str | None = None) -> str:
    ...

Input Parameters: - package: Package identifier (required) - SSC: package name (e.g., "outreg2") - GitHub: "username/reponame" format (e.g., "sepinetam/texiv") - net: package name with package_source_from specifying source - source: Distribution source (optional, default: "ssc") - Options: "ssc", "github", "net" - is_replace: Force replacement flag (optional, default: false) - package_source_from: HTTPS source URL for net installations

This high-risk tool is unavailable from the default all profile. The operator must enable it and start the unsafe profile. SSC and net package names may contain only ASCII letters and numbers. GitHub requires owner/repository format and an exact repository allowlist. Every MCP call also elicits user approval through the client and fails closed if approval is unavailable or declined. Local paths, IP hosts, credentials, queries, fragments, dot segments, duplicate slashes, and non-default ports are rejected.

GitHub repository contents receive no security protection. Inspect the repository before installation.

Return Structure: String containing complete Stata execution log from installation operation

Operational Examples:

# SSC package installation
ado_package_install("outreg2", source="ssc")

# GitHub package installation
ado_package_install("sepinetam/texiv", source="github")

# Network installation
ado_package_install("custompkg", source="net", package_source_from="https://example.com/stata")

# Force reinstall
ado_package_install("estout", source="ssc", is_replace=True)

Implementation Architecture: The tool implements platform-divergent installation strategies. Unix systems execute through internal specialized installers. Windows generates a temporary, prevalidated dofile and uses an internal trusted execution path. Direct package-management commands submitted through stata_do are blocked on every platform.

On Unix, installation success is based on the interactive Stata Controller returning normally. The Controller raises on Stata r(n) return-code errors, timeouts, or terminated sessions, so success does not depend on matching informational output text. Windows uses a conservative log fallback. In particular, GitHub installation accepts only explicit terminal success messages, rejects any error signal, and does not treat connection or repository-existence messages as proof of installation.

The GitHub helper is never installed implicitly. After any successful install, the shared installer attempts to refresh help with replace=True for the likely command name: the SSC/net package name, or the GitHub repository name. Refresh failure is logged and does not convert the completed installation into a failed installation. If a package exposes commands with different names, call help(cmd, replace=True) for those commands explicitly.

help

macOS and Linux only

def help(cmd: str) -> str:
    ...

Input Parameters: - cmd: Stata command name (required, e.g., "regress", "describe", "xtset")

Return Structure: String containing Stata help text output with optional cache status prefix (e.g., "Cached result for regress: ...")

Operational Examples:

# Regression command help
help("regress")

# Panel data commands
help("xtset")
help("xtreg")

# Data management
help("merge")
help("reshape")

Implementation Architecture: The tool implements Stata command documentation retrieval through CLI invocation with caching layer. Documentation requests execute Stata in batch mode with help <cmd> command, capturing stdout for return value. The StataHelp class manages invocation through platform-specific Stata CLI paths detected by StataFinder.

Caching architecture maintains help text cache at ~/.statamcp/help/ directory with file-based storage keyed by command name. Cache behavior controllable via environment variables: STATA_MCP__CACHE_HELP (default: true) enables/disables caching; STATA_MCP__SAVE_HELP controls cache persistence. Cached results include prefix message indicating cache status: "Cached result for {cmd}: ..." versus live help text.

Currently registered only as an MCP tool. Resource registration (URI pattern help://stata/{cmd}) was disabled in v1.16.1 due to a URI template parameter mismatch with FastMCP; tool form remains fully functional. The tool is gated by the unix_only flag in _TOOL_REGISTRY and is only available on macOS and Linux.

Cache invalidation requires manual deletion of cache files or environment variable configuration; no TTL-based expiration exists. Help text language depends on Stata installation locale; multilingual support requires separate Stata installations or locale reconfiguration.