MCP Tools Reference

Auto-Generated

This page was auto-generated from MCP server tool metadata on 2026-03-18 18:07 UTC. See source script.

The Canon MCP server exposes tools for coding agents (Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code Copilot) to query and update the spec knowledge base.

Setup

Claude Code

Add to your project's .mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "canon": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["canon", "mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor / VS Code

Add to your MCP configuration with the same command and args.

Tools (11)

search

Search the spec knowledge base using hybrid search (vector + BM25). Returns matching sections with repo, path, title, heading, body snippet, status, and relevance score. Use this to find specs related to what you're working on.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
query	str	Yes	—
repo	`str	None`	No
status	`str	None`	No
limit	int	No	10

---

get_spec

Get a full parsed spec document with frontmatter, sections, acceptance criteria, and status. Returns structured data.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—
file_path	str	Yes	—

---

get_section

Get a single section from a spec by its ID. Returns the section with content, acceptance criteria, and ticket link.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—
file_path	str	Yes	—
section_id	str	Yes	—

---

get_doc

Get raw markdown content of any document from a repository. Use this when you need the unprocessed markdown.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—
file_path	str	Yes	—

---

list_specs

List all spec documents in a repository (using configured doc_paths). Returns metadata (title, status, owner) without full content.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—

---

list_docs

List all indexed document paths in the knowledge base. Optionally filter by repository (e.g. 'owner/repo').

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
repo	`str	None`	No

---

get_coverage

Get spec coverage metrics for the organization. Returns aggregate coverage summary (total specs, sections, ACs, realization rate, health score) and a time-series trend. Optionally filter by repository or team.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
repo	`str	None`	No
team	`str	None`	No
days	int	No	30

---

create_spec

Create a new spec document in a repository from a template. Commits the file directly to the default branch.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—
title	str	Yes	—
doc_type	str	No	'spec'
team	str	No	''
owner_name	str	No	''
tags	`list[str]	None`	No
file_name	`str	None`	No

---

update_section_status

Update the status of a spec section. Modifies the status comment in-place or inserts one if missing, then commits the change.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—
file_path	str	Yes	—
section_id	str	Yes	—
new_state	str	Yes	—

---

add_realization

Add realization evidence to a spec section's acceptance criterion. Links a PR and code location to an AC checkbox.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—
file_path	str	Yes	—
section_id	str	Yes	—
ac_text	str	Yes	—
pr_number	int	Yes	—
code_file	str	Yes	—
lines	str	No	''

---

sync_spec_status

Bulk update a spec: apply multiple status updates and realizations in a single commit. More efficient than individual calls.

Parameters:

Name	Type	Required	Default
owner	str	Yes	—
repo	str	Yes	—
file_path	str	Yes	—
status_updates	`list[dict]	None`	No
realizations	`list[dict]	None`	No
commit_message	str	No	''

---