get_userRead a public Synoptic profile by exact username. Use get_user_by_id for an ID such as a stream’s authorId, or get_me for the signed-in account. Unknown usernames return User not found.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| username | Yes | Exact, case-sensitive Synoptic username without @; not a display name |
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| user | Yes |
Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.
Output schema / properties / user / properties / medalsCountRemoved value: -{
- "type": "number"
-}Output schema / properties / user / requiredPrevious value: -[
- "id",
- "username",
- "fullName",
- "createdAt",
- "followingCount",
- "followersCount",
- "medalsCount",
- "isHighlighted"
-]New value: +[
+ "id",
+ "username",
+ "fullName",
+ "createdAt",
+ "followingCount",
+ "followersCount",
+ "isHighlighted"
+]Output schema / properties / user / properties / avatar / anyOfPrevious value: -[
- {
- "additionalProperties": false,
- "properties": {
- "bucket": {
- "description": "S3 bucket holding the image",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "height": {
- "anyOf": [
- {
- "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
- "type": "integer"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
- ],
- "description": "Height in pixels"
- },
- "key": {
- "description": "Storage key of the image",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "region": {
- "description": "AWS region of the bucket",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "type": {
- "description": "MIME type, such as image/png",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "width": {
- "anyOf": [
- {
- "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
- "type": "integer"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
- ],
- "description": "Width in pixels"
- }
- },
- "required": [
- "bucket",
- "key",
- "region",
- "type"
- ],
- "type": "object"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
-]New value: +[
+ {
+ "additionalProperties": false,
+ "properties": {
+ "bucket": {
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "height": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ]
+ },
+ "key": {
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "region": {
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "type": {
+ "description": "MIME type, such as image/png",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "width": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ]
+ }
+ },
+ "required": [
+ "bucket",
+ "key",
+ "region",
+ "type"
+ ],
+ "type": "object"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+]Output schema / properties / user / properties / backgroundImage / anyOfPrevious value: -[
- {
- "additionalProperties": false,
- "properties": {
- "bucket": {
- "description": "S3 bucket holding the image",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "height": {
- "anyOf": [
- {
- "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
- "type": "integer"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
- ],
- "description": "Height in pixels"
- },
- "key": {
- "description": "Storage key of the image",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "region": {
- "description": "AWS region of the bucket",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "type": {
- "description": "MIME type, such as image/png",
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "width": {
- "anyOf": [
- {
- "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
- "type": "integer"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
- ],
- "description": "Width in pixels"
- }
- },
- "required": [
- "bucket",
- "key",
- "region",
- "type"
- ],
- "type": "object"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
-]New value: +[
+ {
+ "additionalProperties": false,
+ "properties": {
+ "bucket": {
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "height": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ]
+ },
+ "key": {
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "region": {
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "type": {
+ "description": "MIME type, such as image/png",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "width": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ]
+ }
+ },
+ "required": [
+ "bucket",
+ "key",
+ "region",
+ "type"
+ ],
+ "type": "object"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+]Input schema / properties / username / descriptionAdded value: +"Exact, case-sensitive Synoptic username without @; not a display name"Output schema / properties / user / properties / avatar / anyOfPrevious value: -[
- {
- "additionalProperties": false,
- "properties": {
- "bucket": {
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "height": {
- "anyOf": [
- {
- "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
- "type": "integer"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
- ]
- },
- "key": {
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "region": {
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "type": {
- "minLength": 1,
- "type": "string"
- },
- "width": {
- "anyOf": [
- {
- "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
- "type": "integer"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
- ]
- }
- },
- "required": [
- "bucket",
- "key",
- "region",
- "type"
- ],
- "type": "object"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
-]New value: +[
+ {
+ "additionalProperties": false,
+ "properties": {
+ "bucket": {
+ "description": "S3 bucket holding the image",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "height": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ],
+ "description": "Height in pixels"
+ },
+ "key": {
+ "description": "Storage key of the image",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "region": {
+ "description": "AWS region of the bucket",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "type": {
+ "description": "MIME type, such as image/png",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "width": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ],
+ "description": "Width in pixels"
+ }
+ },
+ "required": [
+ "bucket",
+ "key",
+ "region",
+ "type"
+ ],
+ "type": "object"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+]Output schema / properties / user / properties / avatar / descriptionAdded value: +"Profile image; null when none is set"Output schema / properties / user / properties / backgroundImage / anyOfPrevious value: -[
- {
- "$ref": "#/properties/user/properties/avatar/anyOf/0"
- },
- {
- "type": "null"
- }
-]New value: +[
+ {
+ "additionalProperties": false,
+ "properties": {
+ "bucket": {
+ "description": "S3 bucket holding the image",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "height": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ],
+ "description": "Height in pixels"
+ },
+ "key": {
+ "description": "Storage key of the image",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "region": {
+ "description": "AWS region of the bucket",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "type": {
+ "description": "MIME type, such as image/png",
+ "minLength": 1,
+ "type": "string"
+ },
+ "width": {
+ "anyOf": [
+ {
+ "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
+ "type": "integer"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+ ],
+ "description": "Width in pixels"
+ }
+ },
+ "required": [
+ "bucket",
+ "key",
+ "region",
+ "type"
+ ],
+ "type": "object"
+ },
+ {
+ "type": "null"
+ }
+]Output schema / properties / user / properties / backgroundImage / descriptionAdded value: +"Profile background image; null when none is set"Output schema / properties / user / properties / followersCount / descriptionAdded value: +"Users following this user"Output schema / properties / user / properties / followingCount / descriptionAdded value: +"Users this user follows; excludes streams"Output schema / properties / user / properties / id / descriptionAdded value: +"Synoptic user ID for follow_user, is_following_user or get_user_by_id"Output schema / properties / user / properties / isHighlighted / descriptionAdded value: +"Featured by Synoptic; listed by get_highlighted_authors"Output schema / properties / user / properties / xComHandle / descriptionAdded value: +"Verified X handle linked to this profile, without @"Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?
Annotations already cover the safety profile (readOnly, idempotent, openWorld, non-destructive), so the description only needs to add context. It does so by scoping the read to public profiles and disclosing the failure mode (unknown usernames return 'User not found'), which annotations cannot express. It stops short of noting rate limits or whether private/suspended accounts behave differently.
Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.
Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?
Two short sentences with zero filler; the primary action is front-loaded and the disambiguation follows immediately. Every clause carries routing or error information.
Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.
Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?
A single-parameter read tool with full schema coverage, a rich annotation set, and an output schema, so return values need no explanation. The description covers the remaining gap (disambiguation and the not-found case), leaving nothing an agent needs missing.
Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.
Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?
Schema coverage is 100%: the schema already documents that the username is exact, case-sensitive, and excludes the @ prefix and display names. The description's 'exact username' phrasing largely repeats that, adding little new parameter meaning, so baseline 3 applies.
Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.
Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?
States a specific verb and resource (read a public profile) and constrains the lookup key to an exact username. It explicitly distinguishes itself from get_user_by_id and get_me, so an agent can select it without opening either schema.
Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.
Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?
Names both alternatives (get_user_by_id for an ID like a stream's authorId, get_me for the signed-in account) and the condition that selects each. This is explicit when-to-use routing with no inference required.
Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.
Add one secure layer between your agents and this server.