Qlik MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that connects AI assistants like Claude to your Qlik Cloud and Qlik Sense Enterprise environments. This enables natural language interactions with your analytics platform.

Own your AI. Create your own way to interact with your data.

Features

• 34 MCP Tools across 12 categories

• Dual Platform Support - Qlik Cloud and Qlik Sense Enterprise (On-Premise)

• Natural Language Analytics - Ask questions about your data in plain English

• Full Lifecycle Management - Apps, reloads, users, spaces, and more

• AI/ML Integration - AutoML experiments, Qlik Answers assistants

• Enterprise Governance - Users, roles, permissions, compliance

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+ - Download from nodejs.org

• Claude Desktop - Download from claude.ai/download

• Qlik Cloud tenant OR Qlik Sense Enterprise server

Step 1: Download the MCP Server

Windows (Recommended)

1. Download the ZIP file from GitHub:

   • Go to: https://github.com/undsoul/qlik-claude-mcp

   • Click green "Code" button → "Download ZIP"

2. *Extract to C:* (recommended for simple paths):

   • Right-click the downloaded ZIP → Extract All

   • Extract to: C:\

   • You should now have: C:\qlik-claude-mcp-main\

3. Open PowerShell and install dependencies:

   cd C:\qlik-claude-mcp-main npm install

macOS / Linux

Step 2: Install Claude Desktop

1. Download Claude Desktop from claude.ai/download

2. Install and sign in with your Anthropic account

Step 3: Get Your Qlik API Key

For Qlik Cloud:

1. Log in to your Qlik Cloud tenant

2. Click your profile icon (top right) → Profile settings

3. Go to API keys section

4. Click Generate new key

5. Copy and save the API key (you won't see it again!)

For Qlik Sense Enterprise (On-Premise):

1. Open QMC → Start → Certificates

2. Add a machine name (e.g., MCP-Client)

3. Click Export certificates

4. Important settings:

   • Certificate file format: Choose PEM format (not Windows format)

   • Check Include secret key

5. Export and save the files:

   • client.pem - Client certificate

   • client_key.pem - Private key

6. Note the paths where you saved these files

Step 4: Configure Claude Desktop

Open Config File (Easiest Way)

1. Open Claude Desktop

2. Click Settings (gear icon) or File menu

3. Click "Edit Config" or "Settings" → "Developer" → "Edit Config"

4. This opens claude_desktop_config.json in your default text editor

5. Paste the configuration below and Save (Ctrl+S)

Config file location:

• Windows: C:\Users\{YourName}\AppData\Roaming\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Qlik Cloud Examples

Windows:

macOS:

Qlik Sense Enterprise (On-Premise) Examples

Step 1: Export Certificates from QMC

1. Open Qlik Management Console (QMC)

2. Go to Certificates under Configure System

3. Click Export certificates

4. Enter machine name (e.g., your server hostname)

5. Check Include secret key

6. Export format: Platform independent PEM-format

7. Click Export - saves to: C:\ProgramData\Qlik\Sense\Repository\Exported Certificates\<machinename>\

The folder will contain:

• client.pem - Client certificate

• client_key.pem - Client private key

• root.pem - Root CA certificate

Step 2: Configure Claude Desktop

Windows:

macOS/Linux:

Note:

• QLIK_CERT_PATH is the folder containing client.pem, client_key.pem, and root.pem

• QLIK_USER_DIRECTORY and QLIK_USER_ID specify which user to act as (e.g., DOMAIN\administrator)

• The user must have appropriate access rights in QMC

Multi-Tenant & Hybrid Configurations

You can configure multiple MCP servers in the same config file to connect to different Qlik environments simultaneously. This supports:

• Multiple Qlik Cloud tenants (e.g., Dev, Test, Prod)

• Multiple On-Premise servers

• Hybrid setups (Cloud + On-Premise together)

Example: Two Cloud Tenants + One On-Premise:

Each server appears as a separate MCP connection in Claude Desktop. You can specify which environment to use when asking questions:

• "Using qlik-cloud-dev, list all apps"

• "On qlik-onprem, trigger reload for Sales Dashboard"

Step 5: Build the MCP Server

After saving your config, go back to PowerShell (Windows) or Terminal (macOS) and run:

Windows

macOS / Linux

Verify build succeeded - you should see dist/index.js created.

Step 6: Restart Claude Desktop

1. Quit Claude Desktop completely (not just close the window)

   • macOS: Right-click Claude in menu bar → Quit

   • Windows: Right-click Claude in system tray → Exit

2. Reopen Claude Desktop

3. Start a new conversation and try: "Check my Qlik health"

Verify It's Working

In Claude Desktop, type:

You should see Claude use the qlik_health_check tool and return your tenant status.

Tool Capabilities (33 Tools)

1. Search Tools (1)

Unified search across all resources.

Example prompts:

• "Search for apps containing 'Sales'"

• "Find all datasets in the Finance space"

• "List apps modified in the last week"

2. Governance Tools (5)

Manage users, tenants, and licenses.

Example prompts:

• "Check the health of my Qlik environment"

• "Search for users with 'admin' in their name"

• "Show me the license information"

3. Reload Tools (3)

Manage app reloads.

Example prompts:

• "Reload the Sales Dashboard app"

• "What's the status of reload task abc123?"

• "Cancel the current reload"

4. Catalog Tools (1)

Browse spaces and streams.

Example prompts:

• "List all spaces in my tenant"

• "Show me the catalog of available spaces"

5. Lineage Tools (1) - Cloud Only

Track data lineage.

Example prompts:

• "Show me the data lineage for dataset xyz"

6. Data Tools (5)

Interact with data and selections.

Example prompts:

• "What fields are available in app xyz?"

• "Select 'USA' in the Country field"

• "Clear all selections in the app"

7. Misc Tools (2)

Natural language and reload info.

Example prompts:

• "Ask Sales app: What were total sales last year?"

• "Show me the reload history for app xyz"

Note: On-premise qlik_insight_advisor requires Insight Advisor Chat license enabled in QMC.

8. App Tools (1)

Create, update apps and manage data connections.

Example prompts:

• "Create a new app called Sales Report"

• "Update the load script for app xyz"

Cloud Workflow

On Qlik Cloud, qlik_generate_app uses REST APIs to create apps and trigger reloads asynchronously.

Cloud Example Prompts:

Typical Cloud Workflow:

1. Create app with inline data:

   "Create a Qlik app called 'Sales Analysis' with sample data for products, regions, and sales amounts"

2. Create app using existing dataset:

   "Create a Qlik app that loads from the 'Sales.qvd' dataset in my Data space"

3. Update existing app:

   "Update app abc-123 with a new load script that adds a calculated field for profit margin"

Cloud Data Connection Note: On Cloud, data connections are managed via the Qlik Cloud hub or Spaces. Use qlik_search with types: ["dataconnection"] to find existing connections, then reference them in your load script using LIB CONNECT TO.

On-Premise Workflow (Engine API)

On Qlik Sense Enterprise, the tool uses the Engine API via WebSocket (port 4747) with certificate authentication:

1. Create App - Global.CreateApp()

2. Create Data Connection (optional) - Doc.CreateConnection()

3. Set Load Script - Doc.SetScript()

4. Execute Reload - Doc.DoReload()

5. Save App - Doc.DoSave()

On-Premise Example Prompts:

Typical On-Premise Workflow:

1. Discover data sources:

   "What ODBC data sources are available on the Qlik server?"

2. Explore existing app connections:

   "List the data connections in the Sales Dashboard app"

3. Create app with data:

   "Create a new Qlik app called 'Customer Analysis' that connects to the folder C:\QlikData and loads customers.csv"

Discovery Parameters:

On-Premise Data Connection Examples:

Folder Connection:

ODBC Connection:

Note: On-premise uses Engine API (port 4747) with certificate auth. Ensure certificates are properly exported from QMC.

9. Automation Tools (4) - Cloud Only

Manage automations.

Example prompts:

• "List all automations"

• "Run the daily ETL automation"

• "Show me the run history for automation xyz"

10. Alerts Tools (4) - Cloud Only

Data alerting and notifications.

Example prompts:

• "List all data alerts"

• "Show me the details of alert xyz"

• "Trigger the inventory alert"

11. Qlik Answers Tools (3) - Cloud Only

AI assistants with Q&A capabilities.

Example prompts:

• "List all Qlik Answers assistants"

• "Show me the details of the Sales Assistant"

• "Ask the Sales Assistant: What were our top products last quarter?"

12. AutoML Tools (4) - Cloud Only

Machine learning experiments and deployments.

Example prompts:

• "List all AutoML experiments"

• "Show me the deployments"

• "Get details for experiment xyz"

Usage Examples

Basic Queries

Data Analysis

Reload Management

AI/ML Features

Platform Support

Qlik Cloud

All 34 tools are available on Qlik Cloud.

Qlik Sense Enterprise (On-Premise)

17 tools work on-premise. Cloud-only features return informative messages:

Cloud-Only Features (16 tools)

• Qlik Answers (2 tools)

• AutoML (4 tools)

• Data Alerts (4 tools)

• Automation (4 tools)

• Lineage (1 tool)

• Dataset Details (1 tool)

On-Premise Equivalents

Testing

Quick Smoke Test

Full Handler Test

Environment Variables

For Qlik Cloud:

For Qlik Sense Enterprise (On-Premise):

Troubleshooting

"Tool not found" Error

Ensure the MCP server is running and Claude Desktop was restarted after configuration.

Authentication Errors

Qlik Cloud:

• Verify your API key is valid and not expired

• Ensure the API key has appropriate permissions

Qlik Sense Enterprise (On-Premise):

• Verify certificate paths are correct and files exist

• Ensure certificates were exported with the private key

• Check that the certificate hasn't expired

• Verify the machine name in the certificate matches your setup

"Cloud-only feature" Message

Some tools are only available on Qlik Cloud. The error message will suggest alternatives.

Connection Timeout

Check network connectivity to your Qlik server. Ensure firewalls allow the connection.

Empty MCP Server / Tools Not Showing

If Claude Desktop shows empty MCP server with no tools:

1. Check if dist/ folder exists:

   dir C:\qlik-claude-mcp-main\dist\

   If not, run npm run build first.

2. Check MCP server logs:

   type "$env:APPDATA\Claude\logs\mcp-server-qlik-mcp-os.log"

3. Fully restart Claude Desktop:

   • Close Claude Desktop

   • Open Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc)

   • Find "Claude" and click End Task

   • Reopen Claude Desktop

4. Verify config file location:

   type "$env:APPDATA\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json"

Server Hangs or Slow Response

If the server hangs or responds slowly, use optimized config with memory settings:

"Cannot find module" Error

This means npm run build was not executed:

Then restart Claude Desktop.

Architecture

Cloud: REST APIs (/api/v1/*) with API key authentication

On-Premise:

• QRS API (port 4242) - Management operations

• Engine API (port 4747) - App creation, scripts, data connections via WebSocket

Contributing

1. Fork the repository

2. Create a feature branch

3. Make your changes

4. Run tests: npm test

5. Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details.

Support

• Issues: GitHub Issues

• Documentation: See /docs folder

• Qlik Community: community.qlik.com

Built with the Model Context Protocol (MCP) for seamless AI-analytics integration.