q-knowledge

Claude Code plugin for kdb+/q development. Two skills:

• q — kdb+/q language support: idiomatic q, qsql, IPC, common errors, Python-to-q translation. Pure knowledge, auto-triggered when Claude detects q-related work. No external dependencies.
• qlint-snippet — wrapper around KX qlint. Lint a single q/kdb+ snippet. Slash command /qlint-snippet plus auto-trigger on phrases like "lint this q code". Requires QLINT_DIR env var and q on PATH — see Prerequisites below.

Documentation search (MCP)

This plugin bundles the kx-docs-mcp server (registered automatically on install as plugin:q-knowledge:kx-docs-mcp). Claude uses it to search KX product documentation and technical content sources. It needs no setup or authentication on your part — the connection is preconfigured. Confirm it after install with /mcp.

Install

From inside Claude Code, with the kx-skills marketplace already added:

/plugin install q-knowledge@kx-skills

If you haven't added the marketplace yet:

/plugin marketplace add KxSystems/kx-skills
/plugin install q-knowledge@kx-skills

After install, the q skill works immediately. /qlint-snippet also appears in the slash-command list, but only runs successfully once the prerequisites below are satisfied.

Prerequisites (for qlint-snippet only)

The q skill needs nothing. The qlint-snippet wrapper, however, shells out to KX qlint and needs:

Recommended setup

If you don't already have KX Developer installed, follow https://code.kx.com/developer/getting-started/ and install it under ~/developer/. After installing, verify that ~/developer/ws/qlint.q_ exists, then set:

export QLINT_DIR="$HOME/developer/ws"

Add the line to your ~/.bashrc so the wrapper picks it up in every shell.

Usage

As a Claude Code skill

Both skills are described in their own SKILL.md:

• skills/q/SKILL.md — the q knowledge skill (auto-triggers on q work).
• skills/qlint-snippet/SKILL.md — the qlint wrapper (/qlint-snippet slash command, also auto-triggers on lint-related phrasing).

Just write or paste q code in Claude Code and Claude will pick the right skill. To explicitly lint a snippet, type /qlint-snippet and provide the code.

Direct shell invocation of the qlint wrapper

The wrapper script lands under your installed plugins cache. To find it:

RUN_SH=$(find ~/.claude/plugins -path '*q-knowledge/skills/qlint-snippet/scripts/run.sh' | head -1)

# Preferred for multi-line (quoted heredoc — no shell expansion)
"$RUN_SH" <<'EOF'
getTrades:{[sym;d] select from trades where sym=sym, date=d};
getTrades[`AAPL; .z.d]
EOF

# Single-line argument form
"$RUN_SH" 'select sum size by sym from trades'

Do not write '... \n ...' as a multi-line argument — bash single quotes treat \n as two literal characters and q's parser will error on the bare \. Use a heredoc, a real newline inside '...', or $'...\n...' (ANSI-C quoting).

Output (qlint wrapper)

The wrapper prints the raw .qlint.lintItem table to stdout (one row per finding) with columns: label, errorClass, description, problemText, errorMessage, startLine, startCol, endLine, endCol.

Exit codes:

Optional: pre-approving the wrapper in your settings

Plugins cannot ship a Claude Code permissions allowlist — that is by design (a plugin shouldn't be able to self-authorise). By default you'll be prompted the first time Claude tries to run the wrapper. If you'd like to skip that prompt, add the following to your own ~/.claude/settings.json (the path glob covers wherever the plugin actually lives in the cache):

{
  "permissions": {
    "allow": [
      "Skill(qlint-snippet)",
      "Bash(*/q-knowledge/skills/qlint-snippet/scripts/run.sh)"
    ]
  }
}

Notes

• The qlint wrapper runs KX qlint only and shows every finding raw — no policy filtering. If you want to suppress specific rules, filter the output yourself.
• The q skill loads no external resources; it works entirely from the SKILL.md and its sibling reference files.