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execute_sql tool not working

Symptoms: The execute_sql tool returns an authentication error or is unavailable.

Cause: How you fix this depends on how you connected:

  • Remote MCP with OAuth: Sign in through your MCP client when prompted. You don't need a personal access token.
  • Remote MCP with token-based auth: You need a personal access token (PAT). Service tokens won't work. You also need x-dbt-dev-environment-id and x-dbt-user-id headers. The user ID must match the user who created the PAT.
  • Local MCP: Set DBT_TOKEN to a personal access token (PAT). Service tokens won't work.

Solution:

  1. If you use OAuth for remote MCP, confirm you completed sign-in and consent in your MCP client.
  2. If you use token-based auth or local MCP, create a personal access token (PAT) in Account settings → API tokens → Personal tokens.
  3. For token-based remote MCP, add the PAT to the Authorization header as Token YOUR_PAT. For local MCP, set the PAT as your DBT_TOKEN value.
  4. Also ensure DBT_DEV_ENV_ID and DBT_USER_ID are set (local MCP) or x-dbt-dev-environment-id and x-dbt-user-id headers are set (remote MCP). Refer to Finding your IDs for details.

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