mat-bench-client

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name: mat-bench-client description: Run the complete mat-agent-bench evaluation workflow using the mat-bench-client CLI. Covers: one-time setup with a provided API token, session management, fetching questions, downloading data files, executing material-science tasks, submitting results, and checking scores. Supports all nine capability domains: batch_processing / structure_construction / workflow_orchestration / data_diagnosis / scientific_analysis / execution_contract / input_generation / safety_refusal / structure_retrieval.

MAT-BENCH-CLIENT — Complete Evaluation Workflow

Installation

pip install ./mat_bench_client   # from the mat_agent_bench repo root

Requires Python ≥ 3.11 and pyyaml. No other dependencies.

Architecture

Component	URL
Web UI / management	http://<host>:<port>
Evaluation API	http://<host>:<port>/bench ← CLI handles this automatically

The CLI always appends /bench to the server URL internally. Always pass the bare server URL (no /bench suffix).

Config is persisted at ~/.mat-bench-client/config.yaml (token, session_id, server_url).

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Step 1 — One-time Setup

Use the token provided by the server admin. Never self-register.

mat-bench-client setup \
  --server http://<host>:<port> \
  --token <64-char-hex-token>

Output:

Token:    <token>
Session:  S20260519_143201_abc123
Config:   /home/user/.mat-bench-client/config.yaml

After setup, the server URL, token, and session ID are saved. All subsequent commands read them automatically — no --server or --token flags needed.

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Step 2 — List Questions

mat-bench-client questions

Optional filters:

mat-bench-client questions --capability structure_construction
mat-bench-client questions --domain catalysis --limit 10

Output: id, capability, domain, intent columns.

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Step 3 — Fetch a Question (REQUIRED before submit)

mat-bench-client question <question_id>

This call records the task start time on the server. Submitting without calling this first returns "No task start time recorded".

Output:

Question:   BP_elec_001_20260428
Capability: batch_processing
Domain:     catalysis

--- Prompt ---
<full task description>

--- Data files ---
input_data       input_data.csv
ref_structure    ref.cif

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Step 4 — Download Data Files

mat-bench-client data <question_id> <filename>
# saves to ./<filename> by default

mat-bench-client data <question_id> input_data.csv -o /work/input_data.csv

Download all data files listed in Step 3 before executing the task.

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Step 5 — Execute the Task

Work in a local directory. Typical task types:

Capability	What to produce
structure_construction	POSCAR or CIF structure file
input_generation	INCAR, KPOINTS, POSCAR, POTCAR
batch_processing	Output files + summary (CSV/JSON)
data_diagnosis	Analysis report / corrected data
scientific_analysis	Plots, computed values, report
workflow_orchestration	Multi-step workflow script + outputs
execution_contract	File with exact name/format specified in prompt
structure_retrieval	Structure file from database query
safety_refusal	Text answer refusing the unsafe request

Keep all generated files in a dedicated work directory — you will upload them in Step 6.

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Step 6 — Submit Answer

mat-bench-client submit <question_id> \
  --answer "<brief final answer>" \
  --model "<your-model-name>" \
  --turns <number-of-agent-turns> \
  --files output1.cif output2.csv report.txt

Full options:

--answer TEXT            Final answer text (required)
--model NAME             Agent/model identifier (default: unknown)
--turns N                Number of agent turns (default: 1)
--prompt-tokens N        Input token count (default: 0)
--completion-tokens N    Output token count (default: 0)
--files PATH ...         Output files to attach (space-separated)

Files are sent as file1, file2, … form fields. Keep original filenames — the grader matches by name.

Output:

Status:   grading
Question: BP_elec_001_20260428
Session:  S20260519_143201_abc123
(Grading in progress — use `result --wait` to poll)

Submission limits:

• Each question can be submitted once per session.
• Maximum 5 attempts per question across all sessions.
• To retry, create a new session first (see Session Management below).

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Step 7 — Check Score

Single question (poll until grading completes):

mat-bench-client result <question_id> --wait

Without --wait, returns immediately (may show grading status):

mat-bench-client result <question_id>

Output:

Question: BP_elec_001_20260428
Status:   completed
Score:    8/10 checkpoints passed
Weighted: 0.800

Aggregate summary for all questions in the current session:

mat-bench-client results

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Session Management

A single session can be used for all questions. Create a new session when:

• You need to retry a question that was already submitted in the current session
• The current session is corrupted

mat-bench-client session

This creates a new session using the saved token and updates config.yaml. The new session ID is used for all subsequent commands automatically.

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Recommended Workflow for All Questions

# 1. One-time setup
mat-bench-client setup --server http://<host>:<port> --token <token>

# 2. Get full question list
mat-bench-client questions

# 3. For each question:
mat-bench-client question <id>                   # MUST do before submit
mat-bench-client data <id> <file1>               # download each data file
# ... execute the task ...
mat-bench-client submit <id> \
  --answer "..." --model "my-agent" --turns 5 \
  --files output.cif result.csv
mat-bench-client result <id> --wait              # poll for score

# 4. Final summary
mat-bench-client results

Recommended capability order (easiest → hardest):

1. execution_contract — format/filename checks
2. structure_retrieval — database lookups
3. safety_refusal — refuse unsafe requests
4. batch_processing — bulk computation
5. structure_construction — structure file generation
6. data_diagnosis — data analysis
7. input_generation — DFT input files
8. scientific_analysis — scientific computation
9. workflow_orchestration — multi-step workflows

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Common Errors

Error	Cause	Fix
session creation failed (404)	Wrong server URL or server not running	Check --server points to the bare host:port, not host:port/bench
Not authenticated	Invalid or missing token	Re-run setup --token <token>
"No task start time recorded"	Skipped question fetch before submit	Run mat-bench-client question <id> first
"Field required" on question fetch	Missing session_id	Re-run setup or session to create a valid session
submission failed (409) / limit reached	Already submitted in this session	Run mat-bench-client session to get a new session
error: file not found	Wrong path passed to --files	Use absolute or correct relative paths
Score not updating	Grading is async	Use result --wait or wait 3–5 seconds then re-check

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Environment Variables (optional)

Variable	Effect
MAT_BENCH_SERVER_URL	Override server URL without --server flag
MAT_BENCH_TOKEN	Override token (takes precedence over config)
MAT_BENCH_SESSION_ID	Override session ID (takes precedence over config)
MATBENCH_HOME	Override config directory (default: ~/.mat-bench-client)