Heard of MCP?

Test SQLcl MCP Server in just 5 minutes and see AI chatting with your database.

Here's a quick intro.

Warning

Try the below steps only on your sandbox environments - free tiers, sample schemas, etc.

Please don’t do it on real databases! (until you learn more)

Step 1 - get tools

You need these:

• Sample database schema to use - I use the HR schema in my Oracle OCI Free Tier

• SQLcl - minimum 25.2.2 ( read here how to install)

• Account at github.com with a Github Copilot Pro - you can give it a try with a 30-day free trial.

• Visual Studio Code (latest)

  • Github Copilot extensions installed and enabled in VS Code ( log in with your account at Github)

    

  • Oracle SQL Developer Extension for VS Code

Step 2 - set DB connection

Set a connection to the HR schema (or any other you have) in SQL Developer Extension in VS Code:

Step 3 - start MCP server

• Open VS Code

• Click View → Command Palette

• Type “MCP” and choose “List Servers”

  

• Click on “SQLcl Stopped”

• Then click “Start server”

• You will see something like this, saying that SQLcl MCP Server started:

Step 4 - configure your AI

• Open GitHub Copilot chat in VS Code by clicking “Open Chat”

• It will open a chat window. Choose “Agent” mode and preferred AI Model. I will pick “Agent” and “GPT-4.1”

Step 5 - ask AI to talk with your database

• In the chat window, I typed: “Connect to my SQLcl HR database” (make sure to use a connection name you created in step 2)

• AI Agent shows you what command it would like to execute. I chose “Continue” → “Always Allow” ( be careful with it and select “Use in this session” to check every command)

I got this:

Ok, let’s ask AI for something fancy (I have an HR schema with tables like countries, departments, employees, jobs, jobs_history)

Give me the average of employees’ salaries and group them by the country that employees come from

• “Continue”

Ok, improve previous query and group salaries by departments

Show me the exact SQL query required to achieve those results.

Create a file with the API package for the EMPLOYEES table.

Summary

That’s it. 5 minutes as I promised :)

Try it on your own now.

Extras

Now, if you want to know more about MCP and are thinking about using it in more real scenarios, consider reading those articles:

First, read this “MCP Oracle Database Integration: Balancing Opportunity and Risk”

Then go with some of these:

https://docs.oracle.com/en/database/oracle/sql-developer-command-line/25.2/sqcug/starting-and-managing-sqlcl-mcp-server.html#GUID-42167832-B364-4A3E-8A17-9FAE1F6CCFD3

https://dev.to/demasy/ai-meets-oracle-database-mcp-integration-with-oracle-sqlcl-4fn6

https://connor-mcdonald.com/2025/07/14/first-dabblings-with-sqlcl-mcp-server/

https://www.thatjeffsmith.com/archive/2025/07/getting-started-with-our-mcp-server-for-oracle-database/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hj6WoZVGUBg&t=1740s

https://blogs.oracle.com/database/post/introducing-mcp-server-for-oracle-database

https://medium.com/@hamzaeraoui2000/sqlcl-mcp-server-tips-tricks-and-use-cases-aada55cdfbc2