wolfbook

name

wolfbook

description

Playbook for the Wolfbook MCP tools — driving the LIVE Wolfram kernel and a .wb/.nb notebook in VS Code from Claude Code (read/search/edit/run cells, evaluate expressions, checkpoint/restore kernel state, step-debug, look up symbols, find paclets, search INSPIRE/arXiv papers). Use whenever working through the Wolfbook MCP (mcp__wolfbook__*) instead of headless wolframscript: pick the right tool, avoid the multi-statement reparse and runCell bridge bugs, and use kernel checkpoints for safe rollbacks. Complements the wolfram-headless skill (which covers headless .wls runs).

wolfbook — driving the live Wolfram kernel + notebook via MCP

The mcp__wolfbook__* tools talk to a running Wolfram kernel inside a VS Code window, editing and evaluating a live .wb/.nb notebook. This is the opposite end from wolfram-headless (one-shot wolframscript): here state persists, cells have stable IDs, and you can checkpoint/restore.

Requires the Wolfbook extension with the MCP enabled ("wolfbook.mcpEnabled": true); without it the mcp__wolfbook__* tools are not available — use wolfram-headless for .wls runs instead. Tool schemas are deferred — fetch them with ToolSearch "select:mcp__wolfbook__<name>" before first use.

Decision: MCP live kernel vs headless wolframscript

• Live kernel (MCP) — interactive work on the project notebook: read/edit/run cells, probe state, small-to-medium evaluations, debugging, building up definitions incrementally. State is preserved between calls; kernelControl gives real checkpoint/restore.
• Headless (wolframscript, see wolfram-headless) — heavy batch jobs (a big symbolic solve) that would block or OOM the interactive kernel, or that you want to run in the background and poll a result file. The live kernel in VS Code contends for the license seat with headless jobs — close/idle the Wolfbook window before a long headless run, or target a worker client.
• Both report a kernel crash as "The product exited because of a license error" — it is almost never licensing (see wolfram-headless RULE 2). On the MCP side use wolfbook_kernelCrashLog (source:"debug"/"crash") to get the real stack/cause.

Tool map (right tool for the job)

Orient before touching anything

• wolfbook_list_clients — list VS Code windows, their open notebooks, primary/worker role. wolfbook_setTarget {client_id, notebook} — pin a default so you stop passing them every call (set it once at session start and omit notebook from subsequent calls).
• wolfbook_getNotebookContext action:"read" (or brief:true / action:"summary") — full or one-line-per-cell view. Always read first; cell numbers shift after structural edits, so grab the stable CellId and use that. (Its outputs are a CACHED snapshot — see "Read kernel errors" below.)
• wolfbook_searchCells {query, regex} — locate a symbol/def/error in a long notebook without reading it whole; returns CellId + whether the hit was in source or output.
• wolfbook_getKernelState {pattern} — list defined Global*` symbols (values / DownValue counts) before editing, to avoid clobbering an existing definition (watch for name-collision hazards; record known ones in your CLAUDE.md).
• wolfbook_getCellOutput {cellId} — read a cell's existing (stored) output without re-running it.

Evaluate / run

• wolfbook_evaluateExpression {expression, multiLine, outputForm, timeoutSeconds} — eval WL in the live kernel. ⚠ Multi-statement pitfall: several newline-separated subexpressions WITHOUT semicolons are parsed as Times[...], not sequential statements. Either put ; between statements or set multiLine:true (each complete statement eval'd separately, ; suppresses its output). This is the safe way to run multi-statement code that runCell would mis-split. outputForm:"TeXForm" for LaTeX, "Short" to preview a huge result, "MatrixForm"/"TableForm" for structure.
• wolfbook_runCell {cellId | startCell,endCell} — re-run EXISTING cell source (no code param). ⚠ It splits a cell at top-level newlines, so a single statement that spans a soft-wrapped line can be torn in two (classically: a factor silently dropped, a definition turned into a product). Keep cells one physical line per statement (the /nb-to-wolfbook skill enforces this); prefer evaluateExpression for anything multi-line. Range mode runs a block (stopOnError, errorsOnly). It re-executes and surfaces a ⚠ Kernel messages section — read it (see below).
• wolfbook_validateSyntax {cellId | startCell,endCell} — kernel SyntaxQ (offline bracket-match fallback). Run on an edited cell before executing.

Edit the notebook

• wolfbook_editCell — replace cell source (single or batch cells:[{cellId,content}]; batch evaluates by default — catches errors immediately). Pass real newlines, not literal \n.
• wolfbook_insertCells — add code/markdown cells (single or contiguous block); evaluates by default. Use afterCellId, not a number.
• wolfbook_deleteCell / wolfbook_restoreDeletedCells — delete (logged) and undo. wolfbook_moveCell — reorder, or copy/move a cell between open notebooks (handy for promoting a generated/ cell into the main notebook — but for .wb↔.nb mirroring use the /sync-wb-nb skill, which verifies box-equality).
• After any .wb edit, run /sync-wb-nb to mirror into the .nb (standing rule if you keep a paired .nb).

Kernel lifecycle — use checkpoints instead of hand-rolled .mx

• wolfbook_kernelControl action:"checkpoint" tag:"..." saves all Global`` defs to an .mx; action:"restore" [path]doesClearAll+Get. This is the *live-kernel* equivalent of the manual DumpSave/Get["/tmp/...mx"]dance — use it for safe rollback points **before a risky refactor or a long rebuild**, and to recover after an abort.action:"abort"stops a hung evaluation without nuking state;action:"restart"is the destructive last resort. (For *headless* jobs there is nokernelControl— keep usingDumpSave/Putto a file, perwolfram-headless`.)
• wolfbook_debugCell — step-through debugger (analyze → start → stepOver/Into/Out → continue), breakpoints, watch variables, inline timings. Reach for it on a complex cell that returns garbage rather than peppering it with Print.

Lookup / discovery

• wolfbook_lookupSymbol {symbol, fetchWeb} — usage message + signature + options for a built-in OR user symbol; fetchWeb:true pulls the full reference page (use for e.g. NDSolve Method details).
• wolfbook_findPackage {query} — search Paclet Server + GitHub; returns the exact PacletInstall[...] command (then run it via evaluateExpression with timeoutSeconds>=120 — do not guess install syntax).
• wolfbook_paperSearch — INSPIRE-HEP (arXiv fallback): search (title/author/abstract/ID), bibtex, bibitem, references, citations. For HEP/physics work INSPIRE is the canonical source, so this is a good citation-verification path and gives ready \bibitem/BibTeX (pair with /verify-citation).
• wolfbook_fileOps (read/write/list) and wolfbook_runTerminal — file + shell on the notebook's machine. From Claude Code you usually already have Bash/Read/Write; these matter when targeting a remote client. wolfbook_latex (latexmk build) exists, but for .tex prefer the /latex-compile skill — it forces a real pdflatex pass and reads warnings from stdout, dodging latexmk's stale-log trap.

Common gotchas

• NotebookDirectory[] fails under Wolfbook/headless — use an explicit absolute path.
• Greek literals are fine in the live kernel/notebook but corrupt in headless .wls (wolfram-headless RULE 1) — don't copy notebook Greek into a .wls without escaping.
• Add project-specific gotchas (known symbol collisions, required sanity checks before trusting numbers, memory references for recurring bugs) to your project's CLAUDE.md. Claude reads them at session start and applies them throughout.

Read kernel errors — they are signal, not noise

A human running cells interactively fixes an undefined-symbol error the instant they see it. Do the same — one undefined symbol silently invalidates everything downstream. (Full write-up: docs/wolfbook-kernel-errors.md.)

• Treat these as STOP-AND-FIX (an undefined symbol / cell-order forward-reference / typo, NOT a benign warning): ReplaceAll::reps ("X is neither a list of replacement rules") — a stray /. then poisons the symbol and propagates downstream; Set::shape; Part::partd; Set::write/Protected; any "not defined". Forward-references (a symbol defined LATER than the cell that uses it) are normal in working notebooks — one top-to-bottom pass breaks it; fix = define it first, then re-run the dependent cell (a 2nd pass).
• runCell surfaces messages; getNotebookContext is a cached snapshot. (Verified against the v2.7.14 source.) runCell re-executes and prints a dedicated ⚠ Kernel messages section (with a Syntax:: flag) — READ and act on it, don't judge from the result line. getNotebookContext re-shows each cell's STORED output and does NOT re-evaluate, so never read its outputs as a fresh result. Confirm state by EVALUATING: Head[sym], ValueQ[sym], FreeQ[sym, ReplaceAll] — pick a check that survives evaluation (FreeQ[_,ReplaceAll], Head===Plus); FreeQ[_,foo] is bogus because foo[] evaluates away.
• Sanity-sweep after any multi-cell setup, before trusting a build: Select[{<your key symbols>}, ! FreeQ[#, ReplaceAll] &] must be {}, and ValueQ /@ {<your data lists>} all True.

Quick start

1. wolfbook_list_clients → wolfbook_setTarget your project notebook.
2. wolfbook_getNotebookContext brief:true to map cells; searchCells to find the target; grab CellIds.
3. getKernelState before editing; kernelControl checkpoint before anything risky.
4. Edit with editCell/insertCells; validateSyntax; run with evaluateExpression (multiLine for multi-statement) or runCell.
5. /sync-wb-nb to mirror .wb→.nb (if paired); checkpoint the good state.