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platform-lsp-integrate

forcedotcom/sf-skills

Reference for Salesforce LSP MCP tools, error codes, and fallback patterns.

What is platform-lsp-integrate?

Documents the Salesforce Language Server (LSP) MCP tools available in the salesforce-lsp plugin, including Apex and SOQL semantic capabilities. Use this skill to understand what each LSP tool does, how to interpret results and error codes, and how to degrade gracefully when the LSP is unavailable or returns errors.

  • Explains all available LSP tools: apex.diagnostics, apex.hover, apex.documentSymbol, apex.completion, validate_soql, complete_soql, extract_soql_from_apex, check_soql_selectivity, refresh_org_schema, and lsp.health
  • Defines error codes and recovery strategies (lsp_disabled, spawn_timeout, circuit_open, no_apex_workspace, no_org_connected)
  • Provides fallback paths for each tool when the LSP is unavailable or returns errors
  • Documents coordinate systems (one-based line/column) and output formats for each tool
  • Clarifies that LWC tools are registered but unavailable in this plugin build
  • Specifies the call/fallback contract that other skills must follow when invoking LSP tools

How to install platform-lsp-integrate

npx skills add https://github.com/forcedotcom/sf-skills --skill platform-lsp-integrate
Prerequisites
  • Salesforce LSP plugin (salesforce-lsp MCP server) installed and running
  • Salesforce CLI (sf) >=2.0.0 for fallback paths
  • Active Salesforce org connection for schema-aware tools like complete_soql
Claude Code
Cursor
Windsurf
Cline

How to use platform-lsp-integrate

  1. 1.Identify which LSP tool matches your task (e.g., apex.diagnostics for compile-checking, validate_soql for syntax validation)
  2. 2.Call the tool with required inputs (filePath, line, character, or query string as appropriate)
  3. 3.Check the response for an error envelope; if present, record the error code and proceed to the documented fallback
  4. 4.If the tool succeeds, parse the result according to the output format documented in the Tools table
  5. 5.For schema-dependent tools after a deploy, call refresh_org_schema first if results seem stale

Use cases

Good for
  • Debugging why an Apex file won't compile or a SOQL query fails validation via the LSP
  • Understanding what to do when a tool returns an error envelope instead of a result
  • Implementing fallback logic in another skill that calls apex.diagnostics or validate_soql
  • Refreshing stale org schema after deploying new fields or objects
  • Determining which LSP tool to use for a given semantic task (completion, diagnostics, hover, etc.)
Who it's for
  • Skill authors writing code that calls LSP MCP tools
  • Developers troubleshooting LSP errors or unavailability
  • Users asking how to use Salesforce language features in their IDE

platform-lsp-integrate FAQ

What does it mean when a tool returns lsp_disabled or no_org_connected?

lsp_disabled means the LSP host has been disabled via the kill switch; no_org_connected means no Salesforce org is currently authenticated. Both are error envelopes—treat the tool as unavailable and use the documented fallback path for that tool.

Why doesn't complete_soql show a field I just deployed?

The cached org schema is stale. Call refresh_org_schema to invalidate the local cache, then re-run complete_soql. If the field still doesn't appear, the org itself may not have finished publishing it—wait a moment and try again.

Are LWC tools available in this plugin?

No. The lwc.* tools (lwc.diagnostics, lwc.hover, etc.) are registered but the LWC language server is not vendored in this build. Every lwc.* call returns unavailable. Fall back to reading component source directly or deploy-compiling.

What is the difference between validate_soql and complete_soql?

validate_soql checks a SOQL string for syntax errors only and does not require an org connection. complete_soql provides schema-aware code completion (SObjects, fields, picklist values) and requires an active org connection.

How do I know if the LSP host is absent entirely?

If the MCP tools are not registered at all, a call to any LSP tool will not resolve (the tool won't exist). Detect this the same way you detect an error envelope and use the documented fallback—e.g., use sf project deploy for apex.diagnostics or sf data query for validate_soql.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from forcedotcom/sf-skills.


name: platform-lsp-integrate description: "Reference/contract for the Salesforce LSP MCP tools and unavailability handling. Use when asking how to use the LSP, which tools exist, what apex.diagnostics / validate_soql / complete_soql do, why a tool errors with lsp_disabled, no_apex_workspace, or no_org_connected, or how to debug/disable it. DO NOT TRIGGER for editing Apex/LWC/metadata (platform-apex-generate), deploys (platform-metadata-deploy), or SOQL authoring (platform-soql-query); scoped to LSP-layer/MCP-tool questions only." allowed-tools: Bash Read mcp__plugin_salesforce-development_salesforce-lsp__lsp_health metadata: mcpTools: # Native salesforce-lsp server tool ID (the bundled LSP host registers it # dotted as lsp.health). In allowed-tools it appears in Claude Code's # sanitized form: mcp__plugin_salesforce-development_salesforce-lsp__lsp_health. salesforce-lsp: tools: ["lsp.health"] semver: ">=0.1.0" cliTools: - tool: ["sf"] semver: ">=2.0.0" relatedSkills: - "platform-apex-generate" - "platform-metadata-deploy" - "platform-soql-query"

Using the Salesforce LSP

The salesforce-development plugin hosts a local MCP server named salesforce-lsp that lazily spawns Salesforce Language Server children and exposes their semantic capabilities as MCP tools. This skill is the contract other skills follow when they call those tools, and the answer to "how do I use the Salesforce LSP?" — what each tool does, how to read its result, what every error code means, and how to fall back when the host is absent.

This is a documentation/reference skill. It does not author or deploy code; it tells you (and other skills) how to drive the LSP tools correctly.

This plugin build vendors Apex + SOQL only. The salesforce-lsp host ships the Apex language server (@salesforce/apex-ls) and the SOQL language server. The LWC language server is intentionally not bundled in this plugin — the lwc.* tools are registered by the host but will always return an unavailable-class envelope here. Treat any lwc.* call as unavailable and use the fallback (read the component source / deploy-compile).

When to Use This Skill

  • A user asks how to use the Salesforce LSP, or which LSP/MCP tools are available.
  • A user asks what a specific tool does (apex.diagnostics, validate_soql, complete_soql, etc.) or how to read its output.
  • An LSP tool returned an error envelope (lsp_disabled, spawn_timeout, circuit_open, no_apex_workspace, no_org_connected) and you need to know what it means and how to recover.
  • You're authoring or reviewing another skill that calls an LSP tool and need the canonical call/fallback pattern.
  • The LSP seems broken and you need to debug it (lsp.health, ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/bin/lsp-doctor, the kill switch).

The Tools

All tools are served by the MCP server salesforce-lsp (invoke names follow the plugin-prefixed pattern: mcp__plugin_salesforce-development_salesforce-lsp__<tool_name>, where dots in tool names become underscores — e.g. apex.diagnostics becomes mcp__plugin_salesforce-development_salesforce-lsp__apex_diagnostics). Spawning is lazy: a tool that needs a language server brings the child up on first call (a one-time cold start of a few seconds for Apex), then reuses it. The pure static-analysis tools never spawn anything.

Apex (spawns the Apex LSP)

ToolPurposeKey inputKey output
apex.diagnosticsCompile-check a .cls/.trigger; surface errors/warnings{ filePath }{ ok, diagnostics: [{ line, column, severity, message }] }
apex.hoverType/signature at a position{ filePath, line, character }hover markdown
apex.documentSymbolOutline of a file's symbols{ filePath }symbol tree
apex.completionCode-completion at a position{ filePath, line, character }completion items

SOQL

ToolPurposeSpawns?Key output
validate_soqlParse a SOQL string for syntax errorsSOQL LSP{ ok, diagnostics: [{ line, column, severity, message }] }
complete_soqlSchema-aware completion at a cursor (SObjects, fields, picklist values resolved against the org)SOQL LSP{ ok, items, expanded, unresolved, hint? }
extract_soql_from_apexStatically pull every inline [SELECT …] out of ApexNo (pure static){ ok, totalQueries, totalDynamic, files }
check_soql_selectivitySelectivity heuristics (optional org LIMIT-0 probe)No by defaultselectivity report
refresh_org_schemaInvalidate the cached org describe so completion re-fetchesNo{ ok, removed }

Just deployed a field/object and it won't resolve? When a SOQL or Apex reference to a freshly-deployed field fails (e.g. No such column 'Foo__c', or complete_soql doesn't offer it) right after a deploy, the cached org describe is stale — call refresh_org_schema to invalidate it, then re-run the check before assuming a code error or renaming anything. This is the lever for post-deploy schema lag; reach for it before treating the failure as a bug in your query/class. (It only clears the local cache; it can't speed up server-side propagation, so if the org itself hasn't finished publishing the field, re-running after a moment is the fallback.)

LWC — not available in this build

The lwc.* tools (lwc.diagnostics, lwc.hover, lwc.definition, lwc.completion, lwc.workspace_symbols) are registered by the host but the LWC language server is not vendored in this plugin. Every lwc.* call returns an unavailable envelope. For LWC work, fall back to reading the component source/templates directly or deploy-compiling and reading the CLI errors.

Diagnostics / health

ToolPurposeSpawns?
lsp.healthRead-only view of kill-switch mode, workspace, per-server state, circuit-breaker state, cold-spawn timing, apex-ls versionNo — never spawns

Coordinates everywhere are one-based (line/column). validate_soql diagnostic coordinates are relative to the query string, not a file — when a query came from extract_soql_from_apex, translate back using that query's range.

The Call / Fallback Contract

Every skill that calls an LSP tool follows the same three rules:

  1. Prefer the LSP tool over guessing. If a tool exists for the step (validate a query, compile-check a class, complete against the org schema), call it before falling back to hand-analysis.
  2. Treat an error envelope as "unavailable," never as "passed." A tool may return { error: <code> } instead of a result (see Error Codes). On any such code, record <tool>=unavailable: <code> in your report and continue down the fallback path — never report the input as valid/clean just because the check didn't run.
  3. Degrade, don't fail. The LSP is an accelerator, not a hard dependency. If the host isn't available at all, the salesforce-lsp tools simply won't exist — fall back to the CLI/manual path for that step and say so.

When the LSP host is absent

If the plugin/host isn't available, the MCP tools above are not registered, so a call to (e.g.) validate_soql will not resolve. Detect this the same way you detect an error envelope — the tool is unavailable — and use the documented fallback:

LSP tool unavailableFallback
apex.diagnosticsDeploy/compile via sf project deploy and read CLI errors
validate_soqlSmoke-check by running the query read-only via sf data query --json (a parse error surfaces in the CLI error)
complete_soqlsf sobject describe --sobject <O> --json for fields; author from the user's stated names
extract_soql_from_apexRead the file(s) and locate [SELECT … ] by hand
apex.completion / apex.hoverRead the source directly
lwc.* (always unavailable here)Read the component source/templates directly, or deploy-compile and read CLI errors

Error Codes

A tool returns { error: <code> } (or, for complete_soql, a hint) instead of a result. Each maps to a recovery:

CodeMeaningWhat to do
lsp_disabledThe kill switch (SFDX_LSP) forbids this languageUse the non-LSP fallback; or re-enable the LSP (see Debugging)
spawn_timeoutThe language server didn't come up in timeRetry once; if it persists, fall back and run ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/bin/lsp-doctor
circuit_openRepeated spawn failures tripped the breaker; calls are short-circuitedFall back now; investigate with lsp.health / ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/bin/lsp-doctor
no_apex_workspaceNo classes/*.cls under any package dir — Apex tools won't spawnExpected in a non-Apex project; nothing to check
no_org_connected(complete_soql hint) org schema couldn't be resolvedKeyword completion still works; ask for exact field/object names or connect an org. Do not surface __…_PLACEHOLDER labels as real fields

The first three are transient/config states shared by every spawning tool; the rest are expected, healthy states for a particular workspace/org/file context — not signs of a broken install. (no_lwc_bundles / unsupported_lwc_file are LWC-only codes; in this build the LWC server is not vendored, so lwc.* returns unavailable regardless.)

Debugging the LSP

Three layers, cheapest first:

  1. lsp.health (MCP tool). The fastest check — never spawns a child. Reports the kill-switch mode, resolved workspace, per-server status, circuit-breaker state, last cold-spawn timing, and the vendored apex-ls version. Ask Claude to "run lsp.health," or call the lsp.health tool directly.

  2. bin/lsp-doctor (CLI). A deeper, install-level diagnostic for support and onboarding. Verifies the committed bundles exist, the vendored apex-ls artifacts resolve, the org-schema cache is parseable, and each LSP child can actually spawn. Exits 0 when healthy, 1 with structured per-check output when something is wrong.

    "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}"/bin/lsp-doctor            # human-readable report
    "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}"/bin/lsp-doctor --json     # machine-readable
    "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}"/bin/lsp-doctor --no-spawn # skip child-spawn probes (CI/restricted)
    

    (In this build lsp-doctor will report the LWC server as missing — that is expected; only Apex + SOQL are vendored here.)

  3. SFDX_LSP_DEBUG=1. Emits single-line JSON telemetry (spawn timing, cache hits, circuit events, per-tool latency) to stderr. Off by default (zero overhead).

The kill switch — SFDX_LSP

The fast way to control or disable the LSP. Set the environment variable:

SFDX_LSPEffect
unset / allEvery vendored LSP may spawn (default)
apex-onlyOnly the Apex LSP may spawn; SOQL tools return lsp_disabled
disabledNo LSP spawns; every LSP tool returns lsp_disabled

To rule the LSP in or out of a problem, set SFDX_LSP=disabled and re-run: if the issue persists it isn't the LSP, and skills will have fallen back to their non-LSP paths automatically. An unknown value defaults to all (with a warning) so a typo never silently disables the feature.

Pre-deploy diagnostics gate

A PreToolUse hook (bin/lsp-precheck) runs Apex diagnostics on the .cls/.trigger files a sf project deploy start/validate is about to push, and emits a decision. It is fail-open: any error (including a missing/slow LSP) allows the deploy. Mode is controlled by SFDX_LSP_DEPLOY_GATE (off | warn | block, default warn) — warn surfaces diagnostics without blocking; block denies a deploy that has Apex compile errors.

Verification

  • Asked "how do I use the Salesforce LSP tools?", this skill is the match and lists the tools, their inputs/outputs, and the fallback contract.
  • Appears in the /skills listing as platform-lsp-integrate.
  • Given an error code (e.g. no_apex_workspace), it explains the meaning and the correct recovery without treating the unrun check as a pass.

Cross-Skill Integration

NeedDelegate to
Compile-check + analyze Apex you just wroteplatform-apex-generate
Validate inline SOQL in .cls/.triggervalidate_soql (this skill); fallback: run read-only via sf data query --json
Author & run a SOQL query against the orgcomplete_soql + sf data query
Pre-deploy diagnostics gate behaviorsee "Pre-deploy diagnostics gate" above