get_model_parents

Retrieve the parent models of a specified dbt model to understand its dependencies and lineage within the dbt-mcp server.

Instructions

Get the parents of a specific dbt model.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`model_name`	Yes

Implementation Reference

src/dbt_mcp/discovery/tools.py:132-145 (handler)

Primary MCP tool handler for get_model_parents. Defines input parameters (name or unique_id), description from prompt, and delegates execution to ModelsFetcher.fetch_model_parents.

@dbt_mcp_tool(
    description=get_prompt("discovery/get_model_parents"),
    title="Get Model Parents",
    read_only_hint=True,
    destructive_hint=False,
    idempotent_hint=True,
)
async def get_model_parents(
    context: DiscoveryToolContext,
    name: str | None = NAME_FIELD,
    unique_id: str | None = UNIQUE_ID_FIELD,
) -> list[dict]:
    return await context.models_fetcher.fetch_model_parents(name, unique_id)

src/dbt_mcp/discovery/client.py:454-471 (helper)

Core helper function in ModelsFetcher that constructs GraphQL variables, executes the GET_MODEL_PARENTS query, and extracts the parents from the response.

async def fetch_model_parents(
    self, model_name: str | None = None, unique_id: str | None = None
) -> list[dict]:
    model_filters = self._get_model_filters(model_name, unique_id)
    variables = {
        "environmentId": await self._paginator.get_environment_id(),
        "modelsFilter": model_filters,
        "first": 1,
    }
    result = await self.api_client.execute_query(
        GraphQLQueries.GET_MODEL_PARENTS, variables
    )
    raise_gql_error(result)
    edges = result["data"]["environment"]["applied"]["models"]["edges"]
    if not edges:
        return []
    return edges[0]["node"]["parents"]

src/dbt_mcp/discovery/client.py:186-214 (schema)

GraphQL query schema definition for retrieving model parents, including common fields fragment for various node types.

GET_MODEL_PARENTS = (
    textwrap.dedent("""
    query GetModelParents(
        $environmentId: BigInt!,
        $modelsFilter: ModelAppliedFilter
        $first: Int,
    ) {
        environment(id: $environmentId) {
            applied {
                models(filter: $modelsFilter, first: $first) {
                    pageInfo {
                        endCursor
                    }
                    edges {
                        node {
                            parents
""")
    + COMMON_FIELDS_PARENTS_CHILDREN
    + textwrap.dedent("""
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
""")
)

src/dbt_mcp/discovery/tools.py:336-352 (registration)

Registration of get_model_parents (line 340) in the DISCOVERY_TOOLS list, which is bound and registered via register_discovery_tools function.

DISCOVERY_TOOLS = [
    get_mart_models,
    get_all_models,
    get_model_details,
    get_model_parents,
    get_model_children,
    get_model_health,
    get_exposures,
    get_exposure_details,
    get_all_sources,
    get_source_details,
    get_macro_details,
    get_seed_details,
    get_semantic_model_details,
    get_snapshot_details,
    get_test_details,
]

src/dbt_mcp/tools/tool_names.py:29-29 (registration)
Tool name constant definition in ToolName enum.
```
GET_MODEL_PARENTS = "get_model_parents"
```

dbt-mcp