data-join

name	data-join
description	Join two datasets with automatic strategy selection (joinp vs join vs sqlp)
user-invocable	true
argument-hint	<file1> <file2>
allowed-tools	["mcp__qsv__qsv_sniff","mcp__qsv__qsv_count","mcp__qsv__qsv_headers","mcp__qsv__qsv_index","mcp__qsv__qsv_stats","mcp__qsv__qsv_select","mcp__qsv__qsv_sqlp","mcp__qsv__qsv_joinp","mcp__qsv__qsv_command","mcp__qsv__qsv_list_files","mcp__qsv__qsv_search_tools","mcp__qsv__qsv_get_working_dir","mcp__qsv__qsv_set_working_dir"]

Data Join

Join two tabular data files on common columns.

Cowork note: If relative paths don't resolve, call mcp__qsv__qsv_get_working_dir and mcp__qsv__qsv_set_working_dir to sync the working directory.

Strategy Selection

Scenario	Best Tool	Why
Standard equi-join	mcp__qsv__qsv_joinp	Polars engine, fastest
Non-equi join (>, <, BETWEEN)	mcp__qsv__qsv_sqlp	SQL supports complex conditions
Cross join / cartesian	mcp__qsv__qsv_sqlp	CROSS JOIN syntax
Memory-constrained	mcp__qsv__qsv_command with command: "join"	Streaming, lower memory
Fuzzy/approximate match	mcp__qsv__qsv_joinp with asof: true	Nearest-match join

Steps

1. Index both files: Run mcp__qsv__qsv_index on both files for fast random access.

2. Inspect both files: Run mcp__qsv__qsv_headers on both files to identify column names. Determine which columns to join on.

3. Profile join columns: Run mcp__qsv__qsv_stats with cardinality: true, stats_jsonl: true on both files. Check the cardinality of join columns to determine optimal table order.

4. Choose strategy:

   • If cardinality of join column in file1 > file2, put file1 on the left
   • For joinp: smaller cardinality table should be on the right for best performance
   • If join condition is complex (non-equi), use mcp__qsv__qsv_sqlp
   • If join involves date/time matching where exact dates won't align (e.g., quarterly to monthly, event dates to nearest reporting period), use mcp__qsv__qsv_joinp with asof: true

5. Execute join: Use mcp__qsv__qsv_joinp for standard joins:

   joinp
     columns1: "id"
     input1: "file1.csv"
     columns2: "id"
     input2: "file2.csv"
     # Join type: omit for inner (default), or set one of:
     # left: true, full: true, cross: true
   

   Or use mcp__qsv__qsv_sqlp for complex joins:

   SELECT a.*, b.col1, b.col2
   FROM file1 a
   JOIN file2 b ON a.id = b.id AND a.date BETWEEN b.start_date AND b.end_date
   

   For ASOF (nearest-match) joins, use mcp__qsv__qsv_joinp with asof: true:

   joinp
     columns1: "date"
     input1: "events.csv"
     columns2: "date"
     input2: "reference.csv"
     asof: true
     strategy: "backward"
     allow_exact_matches: true
   

   • strategy: "backward" (default) — match to the last right row with key < left key
   • strategy: "forward" — match to the first right row with key > left key
   • — match to the numerically closest row (supports parameter)

Join Column Validation Checklist

Before executing a join, read .stats.csv for both files and validate:

Check	Stats Column	Red Flag	Action
Type match	type	Join columns have different types (e.g., Integer vs String)	Cast one column before joining: sqlp with CAST(col AS INTEGER)
Null density	nullcount, sparsity	sparsity > 0.3 on join column	Nulls don't match — expect unmatched rows; consider filtering nulls first
Value overlap	min, max	Non-overlapping ranges across files	No rows will match — verify correct join column
Skew detection	mode, mode_count	One value dominates (mode_count > 50% of rows)	Join will be heavily skewed many-to-one; verify this is expected
Uniqueness	uniqueness_ratio	Both files have uniqueness_ratio < 1.0 on join column	Many-to-many join risk — expect row explosion; verify with mcp__qsv__qsv_count after
Outlier keys	outliers_percentage	outliers_percentage > 5% on numeric join column	Outlier keys may not match across files; consider trimming first

Join Types

Type	joinp Flag	SQL	Behavior
Inner	(default)	JOIN	Only matching rows
Left	--left	LEFT JOIN	All left + matching right
Full outer	--full	FULL OUTER JOIN	All rows from both
Cross	--cross	CROSS JOIN	Cartesian product
Left Anti	--left-anti	NOT IN / NOT EXISTS	Left rows without match
Left Semi	--left-semi	EXISTS	Left rows with match (no right cols)
ASOF	--asof	(use joinp)	Nearest-key match (temporal/numeric)

Notes

• joinp uses the Polars engine and is significantly faster than join for large files
• The stats cache helps joinp optimize join execution
• For joining on multiple columns, separate column names with commas: columns1: "col1,col2"
• Column names must match exactly (case-sensitive)
• If join columns have different names, specify separately: columns1: "id", columns2: "customer_id"
• For one-to-many joins, the result will have more rows than either input
• joinp handles null values in join columns (nulls don't match by default)
• ASOF joins implicitly enable --try-parsedates — no need to pass it explicitly
• For ASOF joins with subgroups, use --left_by and --right_by (e.g., match nearest date per jurisdiction)
• The --tolerance option (nearest strategy only) limits how far the nearest match can be: use duration strings for dates (1d, 30d, 365d) or positive integers for numeric keys
• ASOF joins require sorted join columns; both datasets are auto-sorted unless --no-sort is set