OpenMetadata MCP Tools Reference

All OpenMetadata MCP tools, with parameters and examples.

Available Tools

Tool	Category	Description
`search_metadata`	Discovery	Keyword-based search for data assets and business terms
`semantic_search`	Discovery	Meaning-based search using vector embeddings
`get_entity_details`	Discovery	Retrieve full details for a specific entity by FQN
`patch_entity`	Governance	Update an existing entity using JSON Patch
`create_glossary`	Governance	Create a new glossary to organize business terms
`create_glossary_term`	Governance	Add a term to an existing glossary
`create_metric`	Governance	Create a new metric entity
`get_entity_lineage`	Lineage	Explore upstream/downstream dependencies
`create_lineage`	Lineage	Create a lineage relationship between two entities
`get_test_definitions`	Data Quality	List available test definitions for tables or columns
`create_test_case`	Data Quality	Create a data quality test for a table or column
`root_cause_analysis`	Data Quality	Perform root cause analysis via data quality lineage

Discovery & Search Tools

search_metadata

Description: Find data assets and business terms by keyword. Use when you know specific names, owners, tags, tiers, services, or column names. Use Cases:

Discover tables containing specific data
Find dashboards related to business areas
Search for glossary terms
Locate pipelines by name or description

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`query`	string	No	Keywords to search for
`entityType`	string	No	Filter by entity type (see list below)
`size`	integer	No	Max results to return (default: 10, max: 50)
`from`	integer	No	Offset for pagination (default: 0)
`fields`	string	No	Comma-separated additional fields to include
`queryFilter`	string	No	Advanced: direct OpenSearch DSL JSON query
`includeDeleted`	boolean	No	Include deleted entities (default: false)
`includeAggregations`	boolean	No	Include aggregation/facet data (default: false)
`maxAggregationBuckets`	integer	No	Max buckets per aggregation (default: 10, max: 50)

Entity Types

Service Entities: databaseService, messagingService, apiService, dashboardService, pipelineService, storageService, mlmodelService, metadataService, searchService
Data Asset Entities: apiCollection, apiEndpoint, table, storedProcedure, database, databaseSchema, dashboard, dashboardDataModel, pipeline, chart, topic, searchIndex, mlmodel, container
User Entities: user, team
Domain Entities: domain, dataProduct
Governance Entities: metric, glossary, glossaryTerm

Examples

Basic Search:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "search_metadata",
    "arguments": {
      "query": "sales"
    }
  }
}

Search for a Specific Entity Type:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 2,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "search_metadata",
    "arguments": {
      "query": "customer",
      "entityType": "table",
      "size": 15
    }
  }
}

Search with Additional Fields:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 3,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "search_metadata",
    "arguments": {
      "query": "order",
      "entityType": "table",
      "fields": "columns,queries,upstreamLineage",
      "size": 5
    }
  }
}

Sample Response:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "result": {
    "content": [
      {
        "type": "text",
        "text": "Found 5 results matching 'sales':\n\n**Tables:**\n1. **sales_transactions** (mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.sales_transactions)\n   - Description: Daily sales transaction records\n   - Service: mysql_prod (MySQL)\n   - Owners: sales-team, john.doe@company.com\n   - Tags: PII, Financial\n\n2. **sales_reports** (postgresql_analytics.reporting.main.sales_reports)\n   - Description: Aggregated sales reporting data\n   - Service: postgresql_analytics (PostgreSQL)\n\n**Dashboards:**\n3. **Sales Performance Dashboard** (looker_prod.sales.sales_performance)\n   - Description: Real-time sales KPI dashboard\n   - Charts: 8 charts"
      }
    ]
  }
}

semantic_search

Description: Find data assets by meaning using vector search (setup guide). Use for exploratory queries where you don’t know exact names. Returns conceptually related assets even when no keywords match. Use Cases:

Explore data when you don’t know exact table names
Find assets related to a concept (e.g., “customer spending behavior”)
Discover hidden relationships across services

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`query`	string	Yes	Natural language description of what you’re looking for
`filters`	object	No	Optional filters: `entityType`, `service`, `tags` (each an array of strings)
`size`	integer	No	Number of results to return (default: 10, max: 50)
`k`	integer	No	KNN neighbor count for tuning result quality (default: 100)
`threshold`	number	No	Minimum similarity score 0.0–1.0 (default: 0.0)

Examples

Conceptual Search:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "semantic_search",
    "arguments": {
      "query": "tables tracking customer purchase history and lifetime value"
    }
  }
}

Search with Filters and Threshold:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 2,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "semantic_search",
    "arguments": {
      "query": "revenue forecasting and financial reporting",
      "filters": {
        "entityType": ["table", "dashboard"],
        "service": ["BigQuery"]
      },
      "threshold": 0.5,
      "size": 5
    }
  }
}

get_entity_details

Description: Retrieve full details for a specific entity by fully qualified name (FQN). Pass the exact fullyQualifiedName value from search results — do not construct FQNs manually.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`entityType`	string	Yes	Type of entity (e.g., `table`, `dashboard`, `topic`, `pipeline`)
`fqn`	string	Yes	Fully qualified name — use the exact value from `search_metadata` or `semantic_search` results

Examples

Get Table Details:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 4,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "get_entity_details",
    "arguments": {
      "entityType": "table",
      "fqn": "mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.customer_orders"
    }
  }
}

Get Dashboard Details:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 5,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "get_entity_details",
    "arguments": {
      "entityType": "dashboard",
      "fqn": "superset_prod.sales.quarterly_revenue"
    }
  }
}

Sample Response:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 4,
  "result": {
    "content": [
      {
        "type": "text",
        "text": "## Table: customer_orders\n\n**FQN**: mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.customer_orders\n**Service**: mysql_prod (MySQL)\n**Database**: ecommerce | **Schema**: public\n**Description**: Stores all customer order transactions\n\n**Owners**: ecommerce-team, sarah.johnson@company.com\n**Tags**: PII, Financial, Customer-Data | **Tier**: Tier1\n\n**Columns** (5):\n- order_id (BIGINT) - Primary key\n- customer_id (BIGINT) - FK to customer table\n- order_date (TIMESTAMP)\n- total_amount (DECIMAL)\n- status (VARCHAR)"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Governance Tools

patch_entity

Description: Update an existing entity’s properties using JSON Patch (RFC 6902). Use get_entity_details first to retrieve the current state before constructing a patch.

Example

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "patch_entity",
    "arguments": {
      "entityType": "table",
      "fqn": "mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.customer_orders",
      "patch": "[{\"op\":\"replace\",\"path\":\"/description\",\"value\":\"Updated description for customer orders table.\"}]"
    }
  }
}

create_glossary

Description: Create a new glossary to organize business terms. Set mutuallyExclusive: true to restrict entities to a single term from the glossary at a time.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`name`	string	Yes	Name of the glossary
`description`	string	Yes	Description of the glossary’s purpose
`mutuallyExclusive`	boolean	Yes	If `true`, only one term from this glossary can tag an entity at a time
`owners`	array	No	List of owner usernames or emails
`reviewers`	array	No	List of reviewer usernames or emails

Examples

Create a Business Glossary:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 6,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "create_glossary",
    "arguments": {
      "name": "Marketing Terms",
      "description": "Marketing-related terms used across campaigns, analytics, and reporting",
      "owners": ["marketing-team", "alice.smith@company.com"],
      "reviewers": ["data-governance-team"],
      "mutuallyExclusive": false
    }
  }
}

Create a Mutually Exclusive Technical Glossary:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 7,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "create_glossary",
    "arguments": {
      "name": "Data Quality Metrics",
      "description": "Standardized definitions for data quality measurements and KPIs",
      "owners": ["data-quality-team"],
      "mutuallyExclusive": true
    }
  }
}

Sample Response:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 6,
  "result": {
    "content": [
      {
        "type": "text",
        "text": "✅ Successfully created glossary: **Marketing Terms**\n\n- Owners: marketing-team, alice.smith@company.com\n- Reviewers: data-governance-team\n- Mutually Exclusive: No\n- Status: Active"
      }
    ]
  }
}

create_glossary_term

Description: Create a new term within an existing glossary. Supports hierarchical parent–child relationships between terms.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`glossary`	string	Yes	FQN of the parent glossary
`name`	string	Yes	Name of the term
`description`	string	Yes	Definition of the term
`parentTerm`	string	No	FQN of the parent term (for nested/hierarchical terms)
`owners`	array	No	List of owner usernames or emails
`reviewers`	array	No	List of reviewer usernames or emails

Examples

Create a Root-Level Term:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 8,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "create_glossary_term",
    "arguments": {
      "glossary": "marketing-terms",
      "name": "Customer Acquisition Cost",
      "description": "The total cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing and sales expenses divided by the number of customers acquired in a specific period",
      "owners": ["marketing-team", "finance-team"]
    }
  }
}

Create a Child Term:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 9,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "create_glossary_term",
    "arguments": {
      "glossary": "marketing-terms",
      "parentTerm": "marketing-terms.customer-acquisition-cost",
      "name": "Organic CAC",
      "description": "Customer acquisition cost for customers acquired through organic channels (SEO, word of mouth) without paid advertising",
      "owners": ["marketing-team"]
    }
  }
}

create_metric

Description: Create a new metric entity in OpenMetadata to track and standardize business KPIs.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`name`	string	Yes	Name of the metric
`description`	string	No	Description of the metric in Markdown format
`displayName`	string	No	Human-readable display name for the metric
`metricExpressionLanguage`	string	Yes	Expression language used for the metric (for example, `SQL`)
`metricExpressionCode`	string	Yes	Metric formula/expression in the selected language
`metricType`	string	No	Metric type such as `COUNT`, `SUM`, `AVERAGE`, `RATIO`, or `OTHER`
`granularity`	string	No	Time granularity such as `DAY`, `WEEK`, `MONTH`, `QUARTER`, or `YEAR`
`unitOfMeasurement`	string	No	Unit of measurement such as `COUNT`, `DOLLARS`, `PERCENTAGE`, or `OTHER`
`customUnitOfMeasurement`	string	No	Custom unit string, required when `unitOfMeasurement` is `OTHER`
`owners`	array	No	List of owner usernames or emails
`reviewers`	array	No	List of reviewer usernames or emails
`relatedMetrics`	array	No	List of related metric FQNs
`tags`	array	No	List of tags to apply
`domains`	array	No	List of domains to associate

Example

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 10,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "create_metric",
    "arguments": {
      "name": "monthly_recurring_revenue",
      "displayName": "Monthly Recurring Revenue",
      "description": "Monthly recurring revenue from active subscriptions.",
      "metricExpressionLanguage": "SQL",
      "metricExpressionCode": "SUM(subscription_amount)",
      "metricType": "SUM",
      "granularity": "MONTH",
      "unitOfMeasurement": "DOLLARS",
      "owners": ["finance-team"],
      "reviewers": ["data-governance-team"],
      "tags": ["Finance", "KPI"],
      "domains": ["Revenue"]
    }
  }
}

Lineage Tools

get_entity_lineage

Description: Retrieve upstream and downstream lineage for any entity to understand data dependencies and perform impact analysis. Pass the exact fullyQualifiedName from search results.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`entityType`	string	Yes	Type of entity
`fqn`	string	Yes	Fully qualified name of the entity
`upstreamDepth`	integer	No	Hops to traverse upstream (default: 3, max: 10)
`downstreamDepth`	integer	No	Hops to traverse downstream (default: 3, max: 10)

Examples

Get Full Lineage:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "get_entity_lineage",
    "arguments": {
      "entityType": "table",
      "fqn": "mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.sales_transactions",
      "upstreamDepth": 3,
      "downstreamDepth": 3
    }
  }
}

Downstream-Focused Impact Analysis:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 2,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "get_entity_lineage",
    "arguments": {
      "entityType": "table",
      "fqn": "mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.sales_transactions",
      "upstreamDepth": 1,
      "downstreamDepth": 5
    }
  }
}

create_lineage

Description: Create a lineage relationship between two entities. Requires the id (UUID) and type of both the source and destination entities.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`fromEntity`	object	Yes	Source entity with `type` (string) and `id` (UUID string)
`toEntity`	object	Yes	Destination entity with `type` (string) and `id` (UUID string)

Example

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "create_lineage",
    "arguments": {
      "fromEntity": {
        "type": "table",
        "id": "3a1b2c3d-4e5f-6789-abcd-ef0123456789"
      },
      "toEntity": {
        "type": "table",
        "id": "9f8e7d6c-5b4a-3210-fedc-ba9876543210"
      }
    }
  }
}

Tip: Retrieve entity UUIDs from get_entity_details results before calling create_lineage.

Data Quality Tools

get_test_definitions

Description: List test definitions available in OpenMetadata for tables or columns. Call this before create_test_case to identify valid test types and their required parameters.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`entityType`	string	Yes	`TABLE` for table-level tests or `COLUMN` for column-level tests
`limit`	integer	No	Max results to return (default: 10)
`after`	string	No	Pagination cursor — use `nextCursor` from the previous response
`testPlatform`	string	No	Filter by platform: `OpenMetadata`, `GreatExpectations`, `DBT`, `Deequ`, `Soda`, `Other` (default: `OpenMetadata`)

Example

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "get_test_definitions",
    "arguments": {
      "entityType": "COLUMN",
      "limit": 20
    }
  }
}

create_test_case

Description: Create a data quality test case for a table or column. For column tests, ensure the column’s data type is listed in the test definition’s supportedDataTypes.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`name`	string	Yes	Name of the test case
`fqn`	string	Yes	FQN of the target entity (typically the table FQN)
`testDefinitionName`	string	Yes	Name of the test definition returned by `get_test_definitions`
`parameterValues`	array	Yes	List of test parameter objects (`name` + `value`) required by the test definition
`columnName`	string	No	Column name for column-level test cases
`entityType`	string	No	Target OpenMetadata entity type (default: `table`). For column-level tests, keep `entityType` as `table` and set `columnName`.
`description`	string	No	Optional description of the test case

Example

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 11,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "create_test_case",
    "arguments": {
      "name": "customer_id_not_null",
      "fqn": "mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.customer_orders",
      "columnName": "customer_id",
      "entityType": "table",
      "testDefinitionName": "columnValuesToBeNotNull",
      "description": "Ensures customer_id is always populated for downstream joins",
      "parameterValues": []
    }
  }
}

root_cause_analysis

Description: Trace a data quality failure back to its origin by traversing data quality lineage across pipeline hops.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`fqn`	string	Yes	FQN of the entity where failure was detected
`entityType`	string	Yes	Entity type to analyze (for example, `table`)
`upstreamDepth`	integer	No	Hops to traverse upstream (default: 3, max: 10)
`downstreamDepth`	integer	No	Hops to traverse downstream (default: 3, max: 10)
`queryFilter`	string	No	Optional OpenSearch DSL filter JSON
`includeDeleted`	boolean	No	Include deleted entities in traversal (default: false)

Example

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 12,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "root_cause_analysis",
    "arguments": {
      "fqn": "mysql_prod.ecommerce.public.customer_orders",
      "entityType": "table",
      "upstreamDepth": 4,
      "downstreamDepth": 1,
      "includeDeleted": false
    }
  }
}

​OpenMetadata MCP Tools Reference

​Available Tools

​Discovery & Search Tools

​search_metadata

​Parameters

​Entity Types

​Examples

​semantic_search

​Parameters

​Examples

​get_entity_details

​Parameters

​Examples

​Governance Tools

​patch_entity

​Example

​create_glossary

​Parameters

​Examples

​create_glossary_term

​Parameters

​Examples

​create_metric

​Parameters

​Example

​Lineage Tools

​get_entity_lineage

​Parameters

​Examples

​create_lineage

​Parameters

​Example

​Data Quality Tools

​get_test_definitions

​Parameters

​Example

​create_test_case

​Parameters

​Example

​root_cause_analysis

​Parameters

​Example

OpenMetadata MCP Tools Reference

Available Tools

Discovery & Search Tools

search_metadata

Parameters

Entity Types

Examples

semantic_search

Parameters

Examples

get_entity_details

Parameters

Examples

Governance Tools

patch_entity

Example

create_glossary

Parameters

Examples

create_glossary_term

Parameters

Examples

create_metric

Parameters

Example

Lineage Tools

get_entity_lineage

Parameters

Examples

create_lineage

Parameters

Example

Data Quality Tools

get_test_definitions

Parameters

Example

create_test_case

Parameters

Example

root_cause_analysis

Parameters

Example