sqlite-mcp-rs

A bounded Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for SQLite with stdio (default) and optional HTTP transport. It supports both ephemeral in-memory databases and persisted databases, and provides typed tools for database lifecycle, query/execute operations, batch writes, data import, cursor-based pagination, and optional vector search.

Features

• Bounded SQL execution: strict limits for statement length, row count, and response bytes
• Safe-by-default policy: blocks ATTACH and LOAD_EXTENSION, confirms destructive batch operations
• Typed MCP contracts: structured request/response schemas and consistent tool envelopes
• Cursor pagination: resumable sql_query with TTL and bounded cursor capacity
• Ephemeral + persisted support: open/list/close in-memory (ephemeral) and file-backed (persisted) SQLite databases
• Import support: ingest CSV or JSON rows into validated table/column targets
• Lightweight queue primitives: push JSON jobs and long-poll for new rows over MCP/HTTP
• Optional vector search: sqlite-vec collections with embedding and optional reranking (vector feature)

Installation

Choose one of the following based on your environment.

Using NPX

If this package is published to npm:

npx @bradsjm/sqlite-mcp-rs@latest

Or install globally:

npm install -g @bradsjm/sqlite-mcp-rs
sqlite-mcp-rs

Using Docker

Local stdio transport with latest image:

docker run --rm -i --env-file .env ghcr.io/bradsjm/sqlite-mcp-rs:latest

The published Docker image uses a glibc runtime and includes local embedding/reranking support.

Run over HTTP transport:

docker run --rm -i --env-file .env ghcr.io/bradsjm/sqlite-mcp-rs:latest -- --transport http --host localhost --port 3000

Build locally:

docker build -t sqlite-mcp-rs .
docker run --rm -i --env-file .env sqlite-mcp-rs

From Source

cargo install --path .

Or run directly:

cargo run

Run over HTTP transport:

cargo run -- --transport http --host localhost --port 3000

Quick Start

Configure MCP

Use this MCP configuration template and set the optional environment value for persisted databases.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sqlite": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@bradsjm/sqlite-mcp-rs@latest"],
      "env": {
        "SQLITE_PERSIST_ROOT": "/absolute/path/to/sqlite-data",
      }
    }
  }
}

Transport Options

The server supports:

• --transport stdio (default)
• --transport http --host localhost --port 3000

When HTTP transport is enabled, expose and connect to:

http://<host>:<port>/mcp

HTTP connections are not isolated by session for database handles. All HTTP clients in one server process share the same SQLITE_PERSIST_ROOT and the same in-process registry, so they can open and use the same persisted database file at the same time.

Core Environment Variables

Defaults are shown below.

SQLITE_PERSIST_ROOT=                       # optional; if unset, only ephemeral (memory) databases are allowed
SQLITE_LOG_LEVEL=info
SQLITE_MAX_SQL_LENGTH=20000
SQLITE_MAX_STATEMENTS=50
SQLITE_MAX_ROWS=500
SQLITE_MAX_BYTES=1048576
SQLITE_MAX_DB_BYTES=100000000
SQLITE_MAX_PERSISTED_LIST_ENTRIES=500
SQLITE_CURSOR_TTL_SECONDS=600
SQLITE_CURSOR_CAPACITY=500
SQLITE_QUEUE_WAIT_TIMEOUT_MS_DEFAULT=30000
SQLITE_QUEUE_WAIT_TIMEOUT_MS_MAX=120000
SQLITE_QUEUE_POLL_INTERVAL_MS_DEFAULT=250
SQLITE_QUEUE_POLL_INTERVAL_MS_MIN=50
SQLITE_QUEUE_POLL_INTERVAL_MS_MAX=5000

Vector Feature (Optional)

Build/run with vector collection support:

cargo run --features vector

Add local embeddings and reranking:

cargo run --features "vector local-embeddings"

Vector environment variables:

SQLITE_VECTOR_DIMENSION=384
SQLITE_MAX_VECTOR_TOP_K=200
SQLITE_MAX_RERANK_FETCH_K=500

Local embedding environment variables (local-embeddings feature only):

SQLITE_EMBEDDING_PROVIDER=fastembed
SQLITE_EMBEDDING_MODEL=BAAI/bge-small-en-v1.5
SQLITE_EMBEDDING_CACHE_DIR=                # optional
SQLITE_RERANKER_PROVIDER=fastembed         # optional (only if reranker enabled)
SQLITE_RERANKER_MODEL=BAAI/bge-reranker-base  # optional (only if reranker enabled)
SQLITE_RERANKER_CACHE_DIR=                 # optional

Tool Reference

All tools return a consistent envelope:

{
  "summary": "Human-readable outcome",
  "data": {},
  "_meta": {
    "now_utc": "2026-03-02T00:00:00Z",
    "elapsed_ms": 12,
    "request_id": "uuid-v4"
  }
}

Database Tools

Tool	Purpose
db_open	Open and activate memory or persisted database handle
db_list	List active/open handles and discovered persisted databases
db_close	Close a database handle and invalidate related cursors

SQL Tools

Tool	Purpose
sql_query	Execute one read-only statement with bounded results and optional cursor continuation
sql_execute	Execute one non-read statement and return write metadata
sql_batch	Execute multiple write statements with optional transaction and destructive guard
db_import	Import CSV/JSON rows into a table

Queue Tools

Tool	Purpose
queue_push	Insert a JSON job into a named queue
queue_wait	Long-poll for the next visible job after a caller baseline

Vector Tools (vector feature)

Tool	Purpose
vector_collection_create	Create vector collection backing tables
vector_collection_list	List vector collections and metadata
vector_upsert	Upsert embedded vector documents
vector_search	Run semantic KNN search with optional reranking

For full schemas and validation rules, see docs/tool-contract.md.

Policy and Safety

• sql_query accepts exactly one read-only statement.
• sql_execute and sql_batch reject read statements.
• ATTACH and LOAD_EXTENSION are blocked.
• Destructive batch writes require confirm_destructive=true.
• Writes to internal table _vector_collections are blocked from generic SQL tools.
• queue_wait defaults to include_existing=false so callers wait for new rows unless they opt in.

Troubleshooting

Persisted mode rejected

If db_open with mode="persist" fails, ensure SQLITE_PERSIST_ROOT is set.

Query blocked by policy

If you see blocked SQL errors, remove ATTACH / LOAD_EXTENSION or use allowed statements.

Batch rejected as destructive

For DROP, TRUNCATE, or DELETE without WHERE, set confirm_destructive=true.

Vector tools unavailable

Run with --features vector for collection support, and --features "vector local-embeddings" for local embedding/reranking. Linux musl release binaries and npm Linux packages exclude local-embeddings.

Development

Run unit tests:

cargo test

Run integration checks against MCP Inspector:

bash scripts/test-sqlite-mcp-inspector.sh cargo run --

Run integration checks against MCP Inspector over HTTP transport:

bash scripts/test-sqlite-mcp-inspector-http.sh cargo run --

Show CLI help:

sqlite-mcp-rs --help