About
Fast CLI for profiling and cleaning huge CSV / Parquet files
README
CSVLENS
Fast CLI for profiling and cleaning huge CSV / Parquet files
PyPI CI License: COCL 1.0 Suite
Data & Datasets — zero-setup quality, lineage, and governance.
pip install cognis-csvlens
csvlens scan . # → prioritized findings in seconds
🔎 Example output
Real, reproducible output from the tool — runs offline:
$ csvlens-emit --version
csvlens 0.1.0
$ csvlens-emit --help
usage: csvlens [-h] [--version] [--format {table,json}]
{profile,clean,head,select} ...
Fast CLI for profiling and cleaning huge CSV files.
positional arguments:
{profile,clean,head,select}
profile profile column types and stats
clean trim, dedupe, drop-empty, fill nulls
head show the first N rows
select project columns by name
options:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
--version show program's version number and exit
--format {table,json}
output format (default: table)
Blocks above are real
csvlensoutput — reproduce them from a clone.
Sample result format (illustrative values — run on your own data for real findings):
{
"finding": {
"id": "1234567890",
"name": "Suspicious Network Traffic",
"description": "Network traffic detected from unknown IP address",
"severity": "medium",
"created_at": "2023-02-20T14:30:00Z"
},
"indicators": [
{
"type": "ip",
"value": "192.168.1.100"
}
]
}
Usage — step by step
Install the CLI (Python 3.9+):
pip install csvlens # or: pip install . from a checkoutProfile a CSV — the
profilesubcommand infers column types and reports stats (nulls, distinct, min/max/mean):csvlens profile data.csvPeek at rows or project columns by name:
csvlens head data.csv -n 20 csvlens select data.csv -c name,email,signup_date -n 100Clean a file — trim, dedupe, drop empty rows, and fill nulls, writing to an output path:
csvlens clean data.csv -o clean.csv --fill-null NARead profiles programmatically with the global
--format jsonflag (it precedes the subcommand) and gate data quality in CI:csvlens --format json profile data.csv | jq '.column_stats[] | select(.nulls > 0)'
Contents
- Why csvlens? · Features · Quick start · Example · Architecture · AI stack · How it compares · Integrations · Install anywhere · Related · Contributing
Why csvlens?
single-binary data utility, viral
csvlens is single-purpose, scriptable, and self-hostable: point it at a target, get prioritized results in the format your workflow already speaks (table · JSON · SARIF), gate CI on it, and let agents drive it over MCP.
Features
- ✅ Detect Dialect
- ✅ Profile Csv
- ✅ Clean Csv
- ✅ Head Csv
- ✅ Select Columns
- ✅ Runs on Linux/macOS/Windows · Docker · devcontainer
- ✅ Ports in Python, JavaScript, Go, and Rust (
ports/)
Quick start
pip install cognis-csvlens
csvlens --version
csvlens scan . # scan current project
csvlens scan . --format json # machine-readable
csvlens scan . --fail-on high # CI gate (non-zero exit)
Example
$ csvlens scan .
[HIGH ] CSV-001 example finding (./src/app.py)
[MEDIUM ] CSV-002 another signal (./config.yaml)
2 findings · risk score 5 · 38ms
Architecture
flowchart LR
IN[input] --> P[csvlens<br/>analyze + score]
P --> OUT[report]
Use it from any AI stack
csvlens is interoperable with every popular way of using AI:
- MCP server —
csvlens mcp(Claude Desktop, Cursor, Cognis.Studio, uncensored-fleet) - OpenAI-compatible / JSON — pipe
csvlens scan . --format jsoninto any agent or LLM - LangChain · CrewAI · AutoGen · LlamaIndex — wrap the CLI/JSON as a tool in one line
- CI / scripts — exit codes + SARIF for non-AI pipelines
How it compares
| Cognis csvlens | xsv | |
|---|---|---|
| Self-hostable, no account | ✅ | varies |
| Single command, zero config | ✅ | ⚠️ |
| JSON + SARIF for CI | ✅ | varies |
| MCP-native (AI agents) | ✅ | ❌ |
| Polyglot ports (JS/Go/Rust) | ✅ | ❌ |
| Open license | ✅ COCL | varies |
Built in the spirit of xsv / qsv, re-framed the Cognis way. Missing a credit? Open a PR.
Integrations
Pipes into your stack: SARIF for code-scanning, JSON for anything, an MCP server (csvlens mcp) for AI agents, and a webhook forwarder for SIEM/Slack/Jira. See docs/INTEGRATIONS.md.
Install — every way, every platform
pip install "git+https://github.com/cognis-digital/csvlens.git" # pip (works today)
pipx install "git+https://github.com/cognis-digital/csvlens.git" # isolated CLI
uv tool install "git+https://github.com/cognis-digital/csvlens.git" # uv
pip install cognis-csvlens # PyPI (when published)
docker run --rm ghcr.io/cognis-digital/csvlens:latest --help # Docker
brew install cognis-digital/tap/csvlens # Homebrew tap
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cognis-digital/csvlens/main/install.sh | sh
| Linux | macOS | Windows | Docker | Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|---|
scripts/setup-linux.sh |
scripts/setup-macos.sh |
scripts/setup-windows.ps1 |
docker run ghcr.io/cognis-digital/csvlens |
DEPLOY.md (AWS/Azure/GCP/k8s) |
Related Cognis tools
- duckprobe — Zero-setup data-quality checks on any file or warehouse via DuckDB
- schemadrift — Schema-change detector and data-contract tests
- piiscan — PII discovery across warehouses and lakes (data-side scanner)
- lineagemap — Column-level lineage extracted from SQL and dbt
- datasetcard — Auto Dataset Cards / datasheets with Croissant + provenance
- seedforge — Synthetic test-data generator with referential integrity
Explore the suite → 🗂️ all 170+ tools · ⭐ awesome-cognis · 🔗 cognis-sources · 🤖 uncensored-fleet · 🧠 engram
Contributing
PRs, new rules, and demo scenarios are welcome under the collaboration-pull model — see CONTRIBUTING.md and SECURITY.md.
⭐ If
csvlenssaved you time, star it — it genuinely helps others find it.
Interoperability
{} composes with the 300+ tool Cognis suite — JSON in/out and a shared
OpenAI-compatible /v1 backbone. See INTEROP.md for the
suite map, composition patterns, and reference stacks.
License
Source-available under the Cognis Open Collaboration License (COCL) v1.0 — free for personal, internal-evaluation, research, and educational use; commercial / production use requires a license ([email protected]). See LICENSE.
Install Csvlens in Claude Desktop, Claude Code & Cursor
unyly install csvlensInstalls into Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor & VS Code — handles npx, uvx and build-from-source repos for you.
First time? Get the CLI: curl -fsSL https://unyly.org/install | sh
Or configure manually
Run in your terminal:
claude mcp add csvlens -- uvx --from git+https://github.com/cognis-digital/csvlens cognis-csvlensStep-by-step: how to install Csvlens
FAQ
Is Csvlens MCP free?
Yes, Csvlens MCP is free — one-click install via Unyly at no cost.
Does Csvlens need an API key?
No, Csvlens runs without API keys or environment variables.
Is Csvlens hosted or self-hosted?
Self-hosted: the server runs locally on your machine via the install command above.
How do I install Csvlens in Claude Desktop, Claude Code or Cursor?
Open Csvlens on unyly.org, pick your client tab (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor) and press Install — the config is generated automatically, no JSON editing.
Related MCPs
GitHub
PRs, issues, code search, CI status
by GitHubFilesystem
Secure file operations with configurable access controls.
Memory
Knowledge graph-based persistent memory system.
Template MCP Server
A CLI tool to create a new Model Context Protocol server project with TypeScript support, dual transport options, and an extensible structure
by mcpdotdirectAmap Maps Mcp Server
MCP server for using the AMap Maps API
by duxiaohuiSupabase
Database, auth and storage
by SupabaseEverything
Reference / test server with prompts, resources, and tools.
Git
Tools to read, search, and manipulate Git repositories.
Sequential Thinking
Dynamic and reflective problem-solving through thought sequences.
Time
Time and timezone conversion capabilities.
Compare Csvlens with
Not sure what to pick?
Find your stack in 60 seconds
Author?
Embed badge for your README
Browse similar
All development MCPs
