Sheet MCP capabilities
Purpose
Understand what an AI agent can actually do once it is connected: the two ways it works with an app, the tools it has, and the boundaries that keep it safe.
Two ways of working
The Sheet MCP works in one of two session modes. An agent opens a session, does its work, and closes it.
| Data session | Template session | |
|---|---|---|
| Works on | A dataset (a model with dataset selections) in work mode. | A model in design. |
| Opened with | data_session_open | template_session_open |
| Writing | Writes input cells; changes are kept in the session and only stored when you close with save=true. | Writes go straight into the model's draft. |
| Closing | data_session_close — save=false (default) discards, save=true stores. | template_session_close — finish with publish, review, or checkin. |
Reading the tool names
The tool names use internal terms. This is how they map to the UI terms used elsewhere in the designer documentation:
data_*tools work on a dataset.template_*tools work on a model in design (a template version).selectionsare dataset selections.- a
catalog elementis a data label.
Available tools
Grouped by area — one line each, not a full parameter reference:
- Discovery —
apps_list,model_selections_list,model_selection_elements_list,model_logicreleases_list: find the tenant, app, model, and the dataset selections to use. No session needed. - Data —
data_session_open,data_read,data_write,data_session_close: open a dataset, read its values, write input cells, and store or discard. - Template —
template_session_open,template_values_read/template_values_write,template_formulas_read/template_formulas_write,template_usedrange_read,template_sheets_list,template_sheet_add/template_sheet_rename,template_format_write,template_clear_contents,template_session_close: read and edit the model in design. - Ranges, formatting, and charts —
range,range_edit,range_format,range_link,sheet,worksheet_style,namedrange,conditionalformat,chart,chart_config,calculation_mode: fine-grained edits inside a template session. - Notes —
notes_list,notes_read: read the documentation notes attached to an app or model.
What each scope unlocks
The token scope decides which groups an agent may use:
| Scope | Unlocks |
|---|---|
| Reading Data | Discovery + data_read (read datasets). |
| Data modify | Additionally data_write and data_session_close(save=true). |
| Read Template | Read a model in design (template_*_read, sheet listing). |
| Change Template | The full template, range, formatting, and chart edits, plus publish. |
| ALL | Every scope, current and future. |
Limits
note
- Sessions time out after 30 minutes of inactivity; the agent then opens a new one.
- The agent works with names, not internal ids — it refers to apps, models, and data labels the way you see them in the app.
- Names starting with
znooxl(and_znooxl) are reserved and cannot be created or changed. - Scopes narrow, but do not replace, the platform permissions of the login the token runs under.