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by app.nomac
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Start a cloud Mac

start_mac

Starts a cloud Mac with macOS, Xcode and the iOS Simulator, billed from prepaid credit at $0.80 an hour by the minute; it is usually ready within a minute (get_mac_session with wait_seconds). It is fully enabled for the agent: no administrator prompts, and the login password is in $NOMAC_MAC_PASSWORD; access opts out. The account's drive at ~/drive is on it, kept between sessions. Answers insufficient_credit when credit is short, and session_limit_reached with the running Mac's id while one runs. The same request_key returns the same Mac.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
accessNoOptional, over the account's defaults (fully enabled): prompts ask keeps macOS's usual prompts; permissions grants apps privacy permissions at start, also one built later ({"com.example.App": ["camera"]} or "all"); gatekeeper off or on; drive none starts without ~/drive.
limitsNoOptional caps: max_duration_seconds (60-28800, default 2 hours), spend_cap_microunits (USD × 1,000,000, default $5) and idle_timeout_seconds (60-3600, default 10 minutes). It stops at the first it reaches: past 6 hours 15 minutes, raise the spend cap too (8 hours is $6.40).
parallelNotrue starts a second Mac beside the running one (for accounts that bought credit, while NoMac has one to spare), without the account's drive.
public_keyNoOptional SSH public key (ed25519, RSA 2048+ or P-256), for SSH; exec_mac needs none.
request_keyYesIdempotency key you choose (8-128 letters, digits and - _ . :). Repeat a lost call with the same key and arguments; a new key is new work.

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

  1. Changed8 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / properties / access / description
      Previous value: -"Optional, over the account's saved defaults. A Mac is fully enabled for the agent by default (no administrator password prompts; privacy prompts and password dialogs answered on the Mac; a screen that never locks). { prompts: \"ask\" } keeps macOS's usual prompts for this session; { permissions: { \"com.example.App\": [\"camera\", \"microphone\"] } } (or \"all\") grants an app privacy permissions at start, also one built later; gatekeeper off or on asks for Gatekeeper's state (get_mac_session's account.gatekeeper says what the Mac has)."New value: +"Optional, over the account's defaults (fully enabled): prompts ask keeps macOS's usual prompts; permissions grants apps privacy permissions at start, also one built later ({\"com.example.App\": [\"camera\"]} or \"all\"); gatekeeper off or on; drive none starts without ~/drive."
    • changedInput schema / properties / access / properties / permissions / additionalProperties / anyOf
      Previous value: -[
-  {
-    "enum": [
-      "all"
-    ],
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  {
-    "items": {
-      "enum": [
-        "camera",
-        "microphone",
-        "contacts",
-        "calendars",
-        "reminders",
-        "photos",
-        "photos-add",
-        "media-library",
-        "speech-recognition",
-        "bluetooth",
-        "desktop",
-        "documents",
-        "downloads",
-        "removable-volumes",
-        "network-volumes"
-      ],
-      "type": "string"
-    },
-    "maxItems": 15,
-    "minItems": 1,
-    "type": "array"
-  }
-]New value: +[
+  {
+    "enum": [
+      "all"
+    ],
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "items": {
+      "enum": [
+        "camera",
+        "microphone",
+        "contacts",
+        "calendars",
+        "reminders",
+        "photos",
+        "photos-add",
+        "media-library",
+        "speech-recognition",
+        "bluetooth",
+        "desktop",
+        "documents",
+        "downloads",
+        "removable-volumes",
+        "network-volumes"
+      ],
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    "type": "array"
+  }
+]
    • removedInput schema / properties / access / properties / permissions / propertyNames / pattern
      Removed value: -"^[A-Za-z0-9][A-Za-z0-9.-]{0,154}$"
    • changedInput schema / properties / limits / description
      Previous value: -"Optional caps for this session: max_duration_seconds (60-28800), spend_cap_microunits (USD × 1,000,000) and idle_timeout_seconds (60-3600). Defaults: 2 hours, $5, 10 minutes idle. The session stops at whichever cap it reaches first: $5 covers 6 hours 15 minutes, so a session longer than that also needs a higher spend cap (8 hours is $6.40)."New value: +"Optional caps: max_duration_seconds (60-28800, default 2 hours), spend_cap_microunits (USD × 1,000,000, default $5) and idle_timeout_seconds (60-3600, default 10 minutes). It stops at the first it reaches: past 6 hours 15 minutes, raise the spend cap too (8 hours is $6.40)."
    • changedInput schema / properties / parallel / description
      Previous value: -"true starts a second Mac beside the account's running one, for an account that has bought credit, while NoMac has a Mac to spare; it runs without the account's drive. Without it, a start while a Mac runs answers session_limit_reached with that Mac's id, so the agent can use that Mac."New value: +"true starts a second Mac beside the running one (for accounts that bought credit, while NoMac has one to spare), without the account's drive."
    • changedInput schema / properties / public_key / description
      Previous value: -"Optional SSH public key (ed25519, RSA 2048+ or P-256) for direct SSH access. Omit when you only use exec_mac."New value: +"Optional SSH public key (ed25519, RSA 2048+ or P-256), for SSH; exec_mac needs none."
    • removedInput schema / properties / public_key / pattern
      Removed value: -"^(ssh-ed25519|ssh-rsa|ecdsa-sha2-nistp256) [A-Za-z0-9+/]+={0,2}(?: [^\\r\\n\\x00]*)?$"
    • changedInput schema / properties / request_key / description
      Previous value: -"Idempotency key you choose: 8-128 letters, digits, dashes, underscores, dots or colons. Retry a lost response with the same key and identical arguments; use a new key for new work."New value: +"Idempotency key you choose (8-128 letters, digits and - _ . :). Repeat a lost call with the same key and arguments; a new key is new work."
  2. Changed2 schema fields changed
    • removedInput schema / $schema
      Removed value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"
    • changedOutput schema / (root)
      Previous value: -{
-  "$schema": "http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#",
-  "additionalProperties": {},
-  "description": "The JSON response of the NoMac API for this operation",
-  "properties": {
-    "error": {
-      "additionalProperties": {},
-      "description": "Present only when the call failed",
-      "properties": {
-        "code": {
-          "description": "Stable machine-readable error code, for example insufficient_credit",
-          "type": "string"
-        },
-        "message": {
-          "description": "What went wrong and what to do next",
-          "type": "string"
-        }
-      },
-      "required": [
-        "code",
-        "message"
-      ],
-      "type": "object"
-    }
-  },
-  "type": "object"
-}New value: +null
  3. Changed1 schema field changed
    • addedInput schema / properties / parallel
      Added value: +{
+  "description": "true starts a second Mac beside the account's running one, for an account that has bought credit, while NoMac has a Mac to spare; it runs without the account's drive. Without it, a start while a Mac runs answers session_limit_reached with that Mac's id, so the agent can use that Mac.",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}
  4. Changed1 schema field changed
    • addedInput schema / properties / access / properties / drive
      Added value: +{
+  "enum": [
+    "account",
+    "none"
+  ],
+  "type": "string"
+}
  5. Changed1 schema field changed
    • addedInput schema / properties / access
      Added value: +{
+  "additionalProperties": false,
+  "description": "Optional, over the account's saved defaults. A Mac is fully enabled for the agent by default (no administrator password prompts; privacy prompts and password dialogs answered on the Mac; a screen that never locks). { prompts: \"ask\" } keeps macOS's usual prompts for this session; { permissions: { \"com.example.App\": [\"camera\", \"microphone\"] } } (or \"all\") grants an app privacy permissions at start, also one built later; gatekeeper off or on asks for Gatekeeper's state (get_mac_session's account.gatekeeper says what the Mac has).",
+  "properties": {
+    "gatekeeper": {
+      "enum": [
+        "off",
+        "on"
+      ],
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    "permissions": {
+      "additionalProperties": {
+        "anyOf": [
+          {
+            "enum": [
+              "all"
+            ],
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          {
+            "items": {
+              "enum": [
+                "camera",
+                "microphone",
+                "contacts",
+                "calendars",
+                "reminders",
+                "photos",
+                "photos-add",
+                "media-library",
+                "speech-recognition",
+                "bluetooth",
+                "desktop",
+                "documents",
+                "downloads",
+                "removable-volumes",
+                "network-volumes"
+              ],
+              "type": "string"
+            },
+            "maxItems": 15,
+            "minItems": 1,
+            "type": "array"
+          }
+        ]
+      },
+      "propertyNames": {
+        "pattern": "^[A-Za-z0-9][A-Za-z0-9.-]{0,154}$",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "type": "object"
+    },
+    "prompts": {
+      "enum": [
+        "auto",
+        "ask"
+      ],
+      "type": "string"
+    }
+  },
+  "type": "object"
+}
  6. Changed2 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / properties / limits / description
      Previous value: -"Optional caps for this session: max_duration_seconds (60-86400), spend_cap_microunits (USD × 1,000,000) and idle_timeout_seconds (60-3600). Defaults: 2 hours, $5, 10 minutes idle."New value: +"Optional caps for this session: max_duration_seconds (60-28800), spend_cap_microunits (USD × 1,000,000) and idle_timeout_seconds (60-3600). Defaults: 2 hours, $5, 10 minutes idle. The session stops at whichever cap it reaches first: $5 covers 6 hours 15 minutes, so a session longer than that also needs a higher spend cap (8 hours is $6.40)."
    • changedInput schema / properties / request_key / description
      Previous value: -"Idempotency key you choose (letters, digits, dash, underscore). Retry a lost response with the same key and identical arguments; use a new key for new work."New value: +"Idempotency key you choose: 8-128 letters, digits, dashes, underscores, dots or colons. Retry a lost response with the same key and identical arguments; use a new key for new work."
  7. First observed

TDQS

A4.5/5.0
Behavior5/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Discloses cost model ($0.80/hour billed by the minute from prepaid credit), expected readiness time, no admin prompts, the password location in $NOMAC_MAC_PASSWORD, drive persistence, and the exact error strings (insufficient_credit, session_limit_reached with the running Mac's id). This is far beyond what the annotations convey.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Dense with semicolons but front-loaded: purpose and cost land first, then readiness, security, persistence, and failure modes. Nearly every clause carries actionable information, though the run-on packing pushes toward the upper limit of readable density.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

With no output schema and a mutation tool, the description carries the burden well by naming success timing, error codes, and credit implications. It lacks details on what the response object looks like (id vs. session), which is the one remaining gap.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters4/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is already 100%, so the baseline is 3, but the description adds real semantics: request_key idempotency ('same request_key returns the same Mac', 'a new key is new work'), parallel starting without the account's drive, and limit tuning guidance ('past 6 hours 15 minutes, raise the spend cap too').

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

Opens with a specific verb+resource ('Starts a cloud Mac') and immediately specifies the image contents (macOS, Xcode, iOS Simulator), which cleanly separates it from siblings like stop_mac, extend_mac, and get_mac_session. An agent can pick this tool without opening the schema.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines4/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Gives clear operational context: readiness is checked via get_mac_session with wait_seconds, and the parallel flag is named as the route to a second Mac. It never states explicit when-not-to-use rules or direct alternatives, but the surrounding guidance is strong enough to route correctly.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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