Formatting MCP Queries

To get the best results from the Vault Developer Docs MCP tools, treat your queries like highly specific search engine terms. While the tools support natural language, they perform best when you include specific technical identifiers like class names, endpoint names, or component types.

General Formatting Tips

Be Surgical: Include the specific "noun" of what you are looking for (e.g., Document, Picklist, RecordService).
Use Contextual Keywords: Add verbs like Create, Update, Query, or Execute to narrow down the documentation section.
Avoid Filler: Words like "please show me how to" or "can you find" are unnecessary. Instead of "How do I create a document?", use Create Document API.

Tool-Specific Examples

Tool	Recommended Format	Example Query
`retrieve_developer_docs`	`[Technology] [Feature] [Detail]`	VQL find documents in binder, MDL Objectlifecycle attributes
`retrieve_api_reference`	`[Action] [Resource]`	Update Multiple Records, Get Document Renditions
`retrieve_sdk_javadocs`	`[Interface/Class] [Method]`	RecordService batchSaveRecords, DocumentAction execute context
`retrieve_vapil_javadocs`	`[VAPIL Class] [Requirement]`	VaultClient authenticate, DocumentRequest getDocumentMetadata

Optimizing Queries

Good: Authentication
Better: Authentication API request parameters (Targets a specific part of the API reference).

Good: SDK Triggers
Better: RecordTrigger execute method signature (Targets the specific Java implementation details).

Good: MDL Objects
Better: MDL component type Object attributes (Targets the specific Schema definition).

Handling the Release Parameter

By default, the tools search the General Release documentation. If you need information for the limited release Vault API version, specify the release parameter (release="limited"). For retrieve_vapil_javadocs queries, only the General Release documentation is available.

Example

Query

> update single user api uri path parameters

Response

✦ The Update Single User API endpoint uses the following URI path parameter:

  URI Path Parameter

│ Parameter │ Description |
───────────┼───────────────────────────┤
│ {id}      │ The system-assigned unique numeric ID of the user. You can also use the keyword me to update the profile of the currently authenticated user. │

  Endpoint Details
   * Method: PUT
   * URI Path: /api/{version}/objects/users/{id}
   * Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded

  Example Request

   1 curl -X PUT -H "Authorization: {SESSION_ID}" \
   2 -H "Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded" \
   3 -d "user_timezone__v=America/New_York" \
   4 -d "user_title__v=Senior Engineer" \
   5 "https://{server}/api/v26.1/objects/users/25001"

  Pro-Tip
  Since Vault v18.1, users are managed as Object Records. For most updates, it is recommended to use the generic Update Object Record endpoint instead:
  PUT /api/{version}/vobjects/user__sys/{id}