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Prism

Prism lets AI see through IRIS.

Prism is a command-line tool and MCP server for InterSystems IRIS. It gives you (and AI assistants) a consistent way to run SQL, manage source documents, compile classes, execute ObjectScript, run unit tests, and drive an interactive debugger — all against a live IRIS instance via the Atelier REST API and the IRIS SuperServer.

Two ways to use Prism

Prism ships a single executable that you can run in two modes:

Run commands ad-hoc from your shell. Great for quick SQL queries, uploading a class, or inspecting the server:

prism info
prism sql "SELECT TOP 3 Name FROM %Dictionary.ClassDefinition"
prism put-doc MyApp.Hello.cls ./MyApp.Hello.cls
prism compile MyApp.Hello.cls

Start Prism as a local Model Context Protocol server, then point Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, or any other MCP-compatible client at it:

prism serve

The server listens on http://localhost:3000/mcp and exposes 11 always-on tools covering the same operations, plus 2 workspace-gated tools and 9 interactive-debugger tools that have no CLI equivalent.

Install

Download the latest prism-<version>-setup.exe and run it. The installer puts prism.exe into C:\Program Files\prism\ and adds that folder to the system PATH. For Linux development, use uv or pip. Full instructions are on the Installation page.

  • Installation — Windows installer walkthrough and how to verify the install.
  • Quick Start — a five-minute tour that configures Prism, runs a SQL query, and compiles a class.
  • Configuration — prism config, settings file location, and the full environment-variable reference.
  • Commands — one page per CLI command, with every option and a runnable example.
  • GUI — the tkinter SQL editor with database navigator and inline-editable results grid (work in progress).
  • Cast Plugins — extend Prism with custom commands from any Git repository. Add repos, run commands with typed arguments, and get shell completion for free.
  • Testing — how to run unit, integration, and Windows Vagrant tests, read logs, and troubleshoot failures.
  • Releases — versioning, release workflow, branch protection, and CI pipelines.
  • MCP Server — how to connect an IDE / AI client, the list of MCP tools, and the interactive debugger.

License

Copyright © 2026 Adria Sanchez.

Licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 (AGPL-3.0). See LICENSE for full terms.

Quick prism --help

Usage: prism [OPTIONS] COMMAND [ARGS]...

  Prism — InterSystems IRIS CLI and MCP server.

Options:
  --format TEXT         Output format: json (default) or toon.
  -V, --version         Show the Prism version and exit.
  --install-completion  Install completion for the current shell.
  --show-completion     Show completion for the current shell, to copy it or
                        customize the installation.
  --help                Show this message and exit.

Commands:
  config      View or edit Prism settings.
  sql         Run an SQL query and print the IRIS response as JSON.
  terminal    Run an ObjectScript command via irisnative (SuperServer).
  ws          Run an ObjectScript command or start an interactive terminal.
  compile     Compile documents on IRIS.
  get-doc     Retrieve a document from IRIS and print the response as JSON.
  list-docs   List source documents on the IRIS server.
  put-doc     Upload a local file to IRIS as the given document name.
  delete-doc  Delete a document from IRIS.
  info        Print server version, installed namespaces, and feature flags.
  test        Run a unit test class via the deployed runner.
  list-tests  List %UnitTest.TestCase classes and their Test* methods.
  index       Build a compact index of classes in an IRIS namespace.
  serve       Start the Prism MCP server (streamable-http transport).
  setup       Set up Prism MCP server in external AI tools.
  gui         Launch the Prism GUI SQL editor (requires a display).
  cast        Manage and run custom command repositories (casts).