Gramps Web MCP

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Update Citation

update_citation

DestructiveIdempotent

Change an existing citation’s source, page, date, confidence, attributes, or links to notes, media, and tags; use record update tools to attach or detach it from records.

Instructions

Change an existing citation's source, page, date, confidence, attributes or links to notes, media and tags. Which people, events and other records it supports is stored on them: attach or detach it with their update tool (citationHandles), not here. A change shows on every record that cites it: to cite another page or entry for one record, create a new citation with create_citation; to remove one, delete_object. sourceHandle moves the citation to another source, an empty string clears date, and attributes replace the whole list whatever linkMode says. Pass only what changes; omitted arguments stay as they are. Link lists (…Handles, …Refs) follow linkMode: replace (default) sets the whole list, add appends, remove drops the given handles; in replace mode [] REMOVES every link of that kind, though the linked records themselves stay in the tree. Returns the handle and Gramps ID; a missing citation returns a not-found message. Writes run one at a time and need a Gramps Web account allowed to edit the tree; a locked or rate-limited write fails with the delay to wait before retrying it. Formats of every argument: get_reference(topic: "input-guide").

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`date`	No	New date. Omit to keep the current date; pass an empty string to remove it. Date text: 1856-07-20, 1920-05, 1920, 1 Jul 1919, about/before/after 1920, 1800-1850, between … and …; append the calendar for other calendars, e.g. 1856-07-20 (Julian). Unreadable dates are rejected.
`page`	No	New page, act or entry number. Omit to leave unchanged. Text value. JSON strings are accepted; JSON numbers are also accepted and sent as text.
`handle`	Yes	The citation to change. Handle or Gramps ID (e.g. I0001), resolved automatically; find it with search or list_objects.
`linkMode`	No	How to apply all supplied link lists: replace (default) replaces each full list, and a link it keeps keeps its stored privacy, citations, notes and crop unless the call sends new values; add appends missing handles and preserves existing link metadata; remove removes all links matching supplied handles (reference metadata is ignored). Omitted lists stay unchanged; empty lists clear only in replace mode. Does not affect attributes, names, addresses or URLs. Use separate calls to add and remove, or replace to edit existing link metadata.	replace
`isPrivate`	No	true makes the record private, false public. Omit to leave unchanged.
`attributes`	No	Attributes. Omit to keep; a value replaces the whole list and [] clears it, whatever linkMode says. Attributes: JSON array of objects {type,value,...}, or strings "Type: Value" (first colon), or one string with lines or \| between entries. A type must be a standard Gramps attribute type or a custom one the tree already uses; anything else is rejected with suggestions. Full grammar: gramps://input-guide. Each attribute takes only type, value and private.
`confidence`	No	New confidence: Very Low, Low, Normal, High or Very High. Omit to leave unchanged.
`tagHandles`	No	Tags. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array ["h1","h2"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string; entries may also be objects {"ref":"…"}.
`noteHandles`	No	Notes. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array ["h1","h2"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string; entries may also be objects {"ref":"…"}.
`mediaHandles`	No	Media. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Media handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array ["h1","h2"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string. To show only part of an image, such as one record on a page scan, give an object {"ref":"…","region":[left, top, right, bottom]} in place of the handle. A region is [left, top, right, bottom]: its edges in percent of the image width and height, 0 to 100, measured from the top-left corner; [10, 20, 60, 45] runs from 10% to 60% across and from 20% to 45% down. [0, 0, 100, 100] shows the whole image again; read_media with the same region shows what it covers. A plain handle keeps the region its link has. In add mode a media already shown keeps its link and takes the region given; to show two regions of one image, list it twice, each with its region.
`sourceHandle`	No	Another source to cite instead. Omit to leave unchanged. Handle or Gramps ID (e.g. I0001), resolved automatically; find it with search or list_objects.

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed1 schema field changedv2.5.1Oct 15, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / mediaHandles / description

Previous value: -"Media. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string; entries may also be objects {\"ref\":\"…\"}."New value: +"Media. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Media handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string. To show only part of an image, such as one record on a page scan, give an object {\"ref\":\"…\",\"region\":[left, top, right, bottom]} in place of the handle. A region is [left, top, right, bottom]: its edges in percent of the image width and height, 0 to 100, measured from the top-left corner; [10, 20, 60, 45] runs from 10% to 60% across and from 20% to 45% down. [0, 0, 100, 100] shows the whole image again; read_media with the same region shows what it covers. A plain handle keeps the region its link has. In add mode a media already shown keeps its link and takes the region given; to show two regions of one image, list it twice, each with its region."

Changed1 schema field changedv2.3.2Oct 13, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / attributes / description

Previous value: -"Attributes. Omit to keep; a value replaces the whole list and [] clears it, whatever linkMode says. Attributes: JSON array of objects {type,value,...}, or strings \"Type: Value\" (first colon), or one string with lines or | between entries. Full grammar: gramps://input-guide. Each attribute takes only type, value and private."New value: +"Attributes. Omit to keep; a value replaces the whole list and [] clears it, whatever linkMode says. Attributes: JSON array of objects {type,value,...}, or strings \"Type: Value\" (first colon), or one string with lines or | between entries. A type must be a standard Gramps attribute type or a custom one the tree already uses; anything else is rejected with suggestions. Full grammar: gramps://input-guide. Each attribute takes only type, value and private."

Changed3 schema fields changedv2.3.1Oct 7, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / attributes / description

Previous value: -"Attributes. Omit to keep; a value replaces the whole list and [] clears it, whatever linkMode says. Attributes: JSON array of objects {type,value,...}, or strings \"Type: Value\" (first colon), or one string with lines or | between entries. Full grammar: gramps://input-guide."New value: +"Attributes. Omit to keep; a value replaces the whole list and [] clears it, whatever linkMode says. Attributes: JSON array of objects {type,value,...}, or strings \"Type: Value\" (first colon), or one string with lines or | between entries. Full grammar: gramps://input-guide. Each attribute takes only type, value and private."

changedInput schema / properties / linkMode / description

Previous value: -"How to apply all supplied link lists: replace (default) replaces each full list; add appends missing handles and preserves existing link metadata; remove removes all links matching supplied handles (reference metadata is ignored). Omitted lists stay unchanged; empty lists clear only in replace mode. Does not affect attributes, names, addresses or URLs. Use separate calls to add and remove, or replace to edit existing link metadata."New value: +"How to apply all supplied link lists: replace (default) replaces each full list, and a link it keeps keeps its stored privacy, citations, notes and crop unless the call sends new values; add appends missing handles and preserves existing link metadata; remove removes all links matching supplied handles (reference metadata is ignored). Omitted lists stay unchanged; empty lists clear only in replace mode. Does not affect attributes, names, addresses or URLs. Use separate calls to add and remove, or replace to edit existing link metadata."

removedInput schema / properties / text

Removed value: -{
-  "default": null,
-  "description": "New citation text or transcript. Omit to leave unchanged.",
-  "type": [
-    "string",
-    "null"
-  ]
-}

Changed11 schema fields changedv2.3.0Oct 6, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / attributes / description

Previous value: -"Replace attributes. Omit to leave unchanged. For link lists, linkMode controls replace/add/remove; [] clears in replace mode and does nothing in add/remove. Other lists always use replacement. Attributes: JSON array of objects {type,value,...}, or strings \"Type: Value\" (first colon), or one string with lines or | between entries. Full grammar: gramps://input-guide."New value: +"Attributes. Omit to keep; a value replaces the whole list and [] clears it, whatever linkMode says. Attributes: JSON array of objects {type,value,...}, or strings \"Type: Value\" (first colon), or one string with lines or | between entries. Full grammar: gramps://input-guide."

changedInput schema / properties / confidence / description

Previous value: -"Confidence: Very Low, Low, Normal, High, Very High. Omit to leave unchanged."New value: +"New confidence: Very Low, Low, Normal, High or Very High. Omit to leave unchanged."

changedInput schema / properties / date / description

Previous value: -"Date text. Omit to keep the current date; pass an empty string to remove it. Date format: use ISO dates (1990-03-15), year-only (1920), or modifiers (before 1920, about 1950). Add the calendar at the end for Old Style and other calendars: 1856-07-20 (Julian). See gramps://input-guide resource or call get_reference(topic: \"input-guide\", section: \"dates\") for full syntax."New value: +"New date. Omit to keep the current date; pass an empty string to remove it. Date text: 1856-07-20, 1920-05, 1920, 1 Jul 1919, about/before/after 1920, 1800-1850, between … and …; append the calendar for other calendars, e.g. 1856-07-20 (Julian). Unreadable dates are rejected."

changedInput schema / properties / handle / description

Previous value: -"Citation handle. Handle or Gramps ID (e.g. I0001). Handles are opaque strings from the API. Gramps IDs (like I0001, F0023) are auto-resolved to handles. Find handles with search() or list_objects()."New value: +"The citation to change. Handle or Gramps ID (e.g. I0001), resolved automatically; find it with search or list_objects."

changedInput schema / properties / isPrivate / description

Previous value: -"Private flag. Omit to leave unchanged."New value: +"true makes the record private, false public. Omit to leave unchanged."

changedInput schema / properties / mediaHandles / description

Previous value: -"Linked media. Omit to leave unchanged. For link lists, linkMode controls replace/add/remove; [] clears in replace mode and does nothing in add/remove. Other lists always use replacement. Handles: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], a single handle as a plain string, comma/semicolon/newline-separated list, or a JSON-array string. Array entries may be strings or objects {\"ref\":\"…\"} / {\"handle\":\"…\"}."New value: +"Media. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string; entries may also be objects {\"ref\":\"…\"}."

changedInput schema / properties / noteHandles / description

Previous value: -"Linked notes. Omit to leave unchanged. For link lists, linkMode controls replace/add/remove; [] clears in replace mode and does nothing in add/remove. Other lists always use replacement. Handles: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], a single handle as a plain string, comma/semicolon/newline-separated list, or a JSON-array string. Array entries may be strings or objects {\"ref\":\"…\"} / {\"handle\":\"…\"}."New value: +"Notes. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string; entries may also be objects {\"ref\":\"…\"}."

changedInput schema / properties / page / description

Previous value: -"Page within source. Text value. JSON strings are accepted; JSON numbers are also accepted and sent as text. Omit to leave unchanged."New value: +"New page, act or entry number. Omit to leave unchanged. Text value. JSON strings are accepted; JSON numbers are also accepted and sent as text."

changedInput schema / properties / sourceHandle / description

Previous value: -"Source handle. Omit to leave unchanged. Handle or Gramps ID (e.g. I0001). Handles are opaque strings from the API. Gramps IDs (like I0001, F0023) are auto-resolved to handles. Find handles with search() or list_objects()."New value: +"Another source to cite instead. Omit to leave unchanged. Handle or Gramps ID (e.g. I0001), resolved automatically; find it with search or list_objects."

changedInput schema / properties / tagHandles / description

Previous value: -"Linked tags. Omit to leave unchanged. For link lists, linkMode controls replace/add/remove; [] clears in replace mode and does nothing in add/remove. Other lists always use replacement. Handles: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], a single handle as a plain string, comma/semicolon/newline-separated list, or a JSON-array string. Array entries may be strings or objects {\"ref\":\"…\"} / {\"handle\":\"…\"}."New value: +"Tags. Omit to keep; applied per linkMode. Handles, not Gramps IDs: JSON array [\"h1\",\"h2\"], one handle, or a comma/semicolon/newline-separated string; entries may also be objects {\"ref\":\"…\"}."

changedInput schema / properties / text / description

Previous value: -"Transcript or citation text. Omit to leave unchanged."New value: +"New citation text or transcript. Omit to leave unchanged."

First observedv2.2.0Oct 3, 2026

TDQS

A4.8/5.0

Behavior5/5

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

Goes well beyond the destructive/idempotent annotations: it warns that replace mode with [] deletes every link of that kind while the linked records survive, that attributes always replace wholesale regardless of linkMode, that edits propagate to every citing record, and that writes serialize and need edit rights with a retry delay on lock/rate-limit.

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?

Front-loaded and dense with real content, but it repeats several facts already carried in the schema (empty string clears date, sourceHandle semantics, linkMode rules) and packs four distinct topics into a single paragraph. Trimming the duplicated clauses would make it easier to scan.

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

Completeness5/5

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

For an 11-parameter destructive mutation with no output schema, it covers everything an agent needs: return value (handle and Gramps ID), not-found behavior, auth/rate-limit failure mode, partial-update defaults, and where to find argument formats.

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 coverage is already 100%, yet the description adds cross-parameter meaning the per-property docs cannot: omitted arguments are preserved, empty string clears date, sourceHandle relocates the citation, and linkMode governs all …Handles lists. It largely restates schema-level detail (region, handle formats) rather than extending it, keeping it below a 5.

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?

States a specific verb and resource plus the exact field set it can change (source, page, date, confidence, attributes, note/media/tag links). It also distinguishes citation-level editing from the record-side citationHandles path, so an agent can route correctly 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 Guidelines5/5

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

Explicitly names the alternatives and the conditions that select them: use a record's update tool for attaching/detaching support links, create_citation to cite another page for one record, delete_object to remove. It also states the out-of-scope case inline ('not here').

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

Update Citation

Instructions

Input Schema

Schema Changelog

TDQS

Other Tools