Unity Catalog AI Model Context Protocol Server

Unity Catalog AI Model Context Protocol Server

What is Unity Catalog AI Model Context Protocol Server about?

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that wraps Unity Catalog function management APIs, exposing them as tools that can be called by LLMs or other agents. It supports listing, fetching, creating, and deleting functions within a specified catalog and schema.

How to use Unity Catalog AI Model Context Protocol Server?

1. Install – No separate installation is required when using uv. Run the server via uv run mcp-server-unitycatalog.
2. Configure – Provide required arguments either as CLI flags, environment variables, or entries in a .env file:
   • --uc_server / UC_SERVER – Unity Catalog base URL (required)
   • --uc_catalog / UC_CATALOG – Catalog name (required)
   • --uc_schema / UC_SCHEMA – Schema name (required)
   • --uc_token / UC_TOKEN – Access token (optional)
   • --uc_verbosity / UC_VERBOSITY – Logging level (optional, default warn)
   • --uc_log_directory / UC_LOG_DIRECTORY – Log storage path (optional)
3. Run – Example using uv:

   uv run mcp-server-unitycatalog \
     --uc_server https://your-unity-catalog.com \
     --uc_catalog my_catalog \
     --uc_schema my_schema
   

   Or via Docker:

   docker run --rm -i mcp/unitycatalog \
     --uc_server https://your-unity-catalog.com \
     --uc_catalog my_catalog \
     --uc_schema my_schema
   

4. Integrate – Add the server to Claude Desktop, VSCode Cline, or any MCP‑compatible client by referencing the command and arguments.

Key features

• All Unity Catalog functions are available as tools.
• Predefined AI tools: uc_list_functions, uc_get_function, uc_create_function, uc_delete_function.
• Supports optional token‑based authentication and configurable logging.
• Docker image (mcp/unitycatalog) for easy deployment.
• Future‑ready roadmap: semantic catalog explorer, dynamic use_catalog/use_schema methods.

Use cases

• Agent‑driven data engineering: An LLM can programmatically create or delete catalog functions during pipeline orchestration.
• Interactive development: Developers invoke catalog functions from VSCode or Claude Desktop without leaving their IDE.
• Automation scripts: Scripts can call the MCP server to synchronize catalog state across environments.
• Testing & CI: Spin up the Docker container in CI pipelines to validate function registration logic.

FAQ

Q: Do I need to install any Python packages? A: No. The server runs directly with uv; it will resolve dependencies on the fly.

Q: How do I provide the access token? A: Use the --uc_token flag, set the UC_TOKEN environment variable, or place it in a .env file.

Q: Can I change the catalog or schema after the server starts? A: Currently you must specify them at startup, but upcoming use_catalog and use_schema methods will allow dynamic switches.

Q: Is there a way to view logs? A: Logs are written to the directory defined by --uc_log_directory (default .mcp_server_unitycatalog).

mcp-server-unitycatalog: An Unity Catalog MCP server

Overview

A Model Context Protocol server for Unity Catalog. This server provides Unity Catalog Functions as MCP tools.

Tools

You can use all Unity Catalog Functions registered in Unity Catalog alongside the following predefined Unity Catalog AI tools:

1. uc_list_functions

   • Lists functions within the specified parent catalog and schema.
   • Returns: A list of functions retrieved from Unity Catalog.

2. uc_get_function

   • Gets a function within a parent catalog and schema.
   • Input:
     • name (string): The name of the function (not fully-qualified).
   • Returns: A function details retrieved from Unity Catalog.

3. uc_create_function

   • Creates a function within a parent catalog and schema. WARNING: This API is experimental and will change in future versions.
   • Input:
     • name (string): The name of the function (not fully-qualified).
     • script (string): The Python script including the function to be registered.
   • Returns: A function details created within Unity Catalog.

4. uc_delete_function

   • Deletes a function within a parent catalog and schema.
   • Input:
     • name (string): The name of the function (not fully-qualified).
   • Returns: None.

Installation

Using uv

When using uv no specific installation is needed. We will use uvx to directly run mcp-server-git.

Configuration

These values can also be set via CLI options or .env environment variables. Required arguments are the Unity Catalog server, catalog, and schema, while the access token and verbosity level are optional. Run uv run mcp-server-unitycatalog --help for more detailed configuration options.

Argument	Environment Variable	Description	Required/Optional
-u, --uc_server	UC_SERVER	The base URL of the Unity Catalog server.	Required
-c, --uc_catalog	UC_CATALOG	The name of the Unity Catalog catalog.	Required
-s, --uc_schema	UC_SCHEMA	The name of the schema within a Unity Catalog catalog.	Required
-t, --uc_token	UC_TOKEN	The access token used to authorize API requests to the Unity Catalog server.	Optional
-v, --uc_verbosity	UC_VERBOSITY	The verbosity level for logging. Default: warn.	Optional
-l, --uc_log_directory	UC_LOG_DIRECTORY	The directory where log files will be stored. Default: .mcp_server_unitycatalog.	Optional

Usage with Claude Desktop or VSCode Cline

Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json (or cline_mcp_settings.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "unitycatalog": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/<path to your local git repository>/mcp-server-unitycatalog",
        "run",
        "mcp-server-unitycatalog",
        "--uc_server",
        "<your unity catalog url>",
        "--uc_catalog",
        "<your catalog name>",
        "--uc_schema",
        "<your schema name>"
      ]
    }
  }
}

• Note: replace '/Users/username' with the a path that you want to be accessible by this tool

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "unitycatalog": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "--rm",
        "-i",
        "mcp/unitycatalog",
        "--uc_server",
        "<your unity catalog url>",
        "--uc_catalog",
        "<your catalog name>",
        "--uc_schema",
        "<your schema name>"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Building

Docker:

docker build -t mcp/unitycatalog .   

Future Plans

• Implement support for list_functions.
• Implement support for get_function.
• Implement support for create_python_function.
• Implement support for execute_function.
• Implement support for delete_function.
• Implement semantic catalog explorer tools.
• Add Docker image.
• Implement use_xxx methods. In the current implementation, catalog and schema need to be defined when starting the server. However, they will be implemented as use_catalog and use_schema functions, dynamically updating the list of available functions when the use_xxx is executed.

License

This MCP server is licensed under the MIT License. This means you are free to use, modify, and distribute the software, subject to the terms and conditions of the MIT License. For more details, please see the LICENSE file in the project repository.