The mcpdelta command line
Every mcpdelta command at a glance: diagnose, use, restore, undo and more. What each one does, its options, and which one to use when.
On this page
The mcpdelta command is Delta MCP in a terminal. It takes the same steps as the app: see what your MCP servers cost, switch them over, set modes, read the history, undo a task and run a shortcut again. use and restore show their plan first and ask. policy, money ask, undo, recipe and compile --enable act at once.
Running it
Type mcpdelta followed by a command. This prints the list of commands:
mcpdelta --helpPutting mcpdelta on your path from the installed app: not yet.
Every command
| Command | What it does | Arguments and options |
|---|---|---|
| diagnose | Shows what your MCP servers cost in every conversation. | --json, --list, --timeout <seconds> |
| use | Moves servers behind Delta MCP. Shows the plan, then asks. | <server>… or --all; --yes, --dry-run |
| restore | Puts servers back direct, exactly as before. | <server>… or --all; --yes, --dry-run |
| status | Lists the servers behind Delta MCP and what each may change on its own. | none |
| policy | Sets the mode of one connector. | <server>, then ask, ask-final, auto or readonly |
| money | Shows the payments switch, or sets it back to ask. Nothing reads this switch yet. | ask |
| journal | Prints the last entries of the journal. | n, 20 by default |
| gain | Shows what Delta MCP did in place of your AI. What is measured on this machine is kept apart from what is modeled. | days (7 by default), or tout (or all) |
| recipes | Lists your shortcuts: what your AIs did once and you kept. | none |
| recipe | Runs a shortcut again without AI, for 0 tokens. | <name>, then key=value… |
| undo | Puts back what a task changed. | <d_…>, the id of a task |
| refresh | Lists the tools of your connectors again for the next conversation: every remote one, and a local one with no list yet or a newer npm version. It calls no tool. | <server>… |
| compile | Compiles a server into documents and checks the round trip of each document type on real objects. It only reads. | <server>, --in <folder>, --sample <n>, --enable or --disable |
| gate | The MCP server your AI apps launch. Not for you to run. | --client <id> |
mcpdelta --help prints this list, and mcpdelta --version prints the version.
Which one for what
- See what your servers cost, switch them, put them back:
diagnose,use,restore. See Switch and put back. - Choose what your AI may change:
status,policy,money. See Modes and payments. - Read what was done, undo it, see the gain:
journal,undo,gain. See History and undo. - Run a kept task without AI:
recipes,recipe. See Shortcuts. - Check how a server reads as documents:
compile. See The text form.
Exit codes
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0 | Done. Also when you declined the question, used --dry-run, or there was nothing to do. |
| 1 | A command failed: undo or recipe stopped on an error, policy named an unknown connector, money auto was refused, or something unexpected happened. The message goes to stderr. |
| 5 | Some work did not complete: a switch step failed, a connector could not be read, or compile --enable found no document type that round-trips. |
| 64 | Usage error: unknown command, missing or wrong arguments. With no command at all, the help is printed and the code is 64. |
Good to know
The messages the command prints are in French in this version, and numbers use French formatting. This documentation shows them in English. Colors are used only in a terminal, and not when NO_COLOR is set.
Only diagnose has --json. Delta MCP keeps its data in ~/.mcpdelta, or in the folder MCPDELTA_HOME points to. A script needs that folder to hold the same connectors and shortcuts as the machine you set them up on.
Next: Switch and put back, or the Quickstart for the app.
Something missing or wrong? Open an issue