power-bi-xmla-mcp-server-by-cdata
Provides a local, read-only MCP server that wraps the CData JDBC Driver for Power BI XMLA, exposing Power BI XMLA data as MCP tools (get tables/columns and run_query) for LLM clients such as Claude Desktop.
Score Breakdown
⚙ Agent Friendliness
🔒 Security
Transport security (TLS) is not described for the MCP layer; since it runs locally over stdio, the risk shifts to local host security. Authentication is delegated to the CData JDBC Driver (potentially OAuth), but there is no MCP-level authorization/scoping described. Secrets/connection strings are placed in a local .prp file; README does not state how secrets are protected from logs or process inspection.
⚡ Reliability
Best When
You have a local machine where an MCP-capable client can run the server via stdio, and you want agent-friendly access to Power BI XMLA using natural language over a JDBC-backed SQL surface.
Avoid When
You need a network-exposed API, fine-grained authorization per user, or robust operational controls (pagination, retries, rate-limit handling) documented for automated agents.
Use Cases
- • Ask natural-language questions about live Power BI XMLA datasets
- • List available XMLA tables and columns for discovery
- • Run SQL SELECT queries against Power BI XMLA via MCP tools in an agent workflow
Not For
- • Internet-hosted/shared multi-tenant use (relies on local stdio)
- • Security-sensitive scenarios without careful credential handling and host isolation
- • High-throughput/large-result workloads without considering query cost and client-side handling
- • Full CRUD workflows (server is stated as read-only; uses JDBC driver for data access but this MCP wrapper is read-only)
Interface
Authentication
The MCP wrapper itself does not specify an auth scheme; it relies on the CData JDBC Driver connection string/connection properties in the provided .prp file. README notes OAuth may require browser authentication in the connection string builder.
Pricing
Repository is MIT, but the JDBC driver licensing is required to connect to data.
Agent Metadata
Known Gotchas
- ⚠ Server uses stdio; must run on the same machine as the MCP client.
- ⚠ Only read-only capabilities are advertised; agent attempts at write/update/delete may fail or be unsupported.
- ⚠ The SQL tool accepts an arbitrary SQL string; agents must constrain to safe/SELECT queries to avoid unexpected behavior and high load.
- ⚠ Output is described as CSV for get_tables/get_columns; agents should parse CSV reliably and handle large outputs.
Alternatives
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Scores are editorial opinions as of 2026-04-04.