AI agents invoke sam_build to trigger actions in AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server. What it does depends on the arguments the agent supplies, and its effects often reach beyond the immediate call — builds kicked off, notifications sent, workflows started.
SAM build is a build/compilation command that executes code transformation and packaging operations. While not destructive in itself, it triggers external operations (compilation, dependency resolution, artifact generation) whose effects depend on the project configuration and arguments provided.
From the tool's definition Tool name 'sam_build' indicates AWS Serverless Application Model build execution. The description is empty, but based on the context of an AWS Lambda MCP server and the naming convention, this tool executes the SAM build process, which compiles and packages…
Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access sam_build gives an agent:
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for sam_build:
{
"version": "1",
"default": "deny",
"tools": {
"sam_build": {
"limits": [
{
"counter": "sam_build_rate",
"window": "minute",
"max": 10,
"scope": "grant"
}
]
}
}
} sam_build stays usable, but rate-capped — a runaway agent can't fire it dozens of times a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
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sam_build. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.
Register the AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for sam_build: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server. Nothing to install.
sam_build is a Execute tool with high risk. Execute tools should be rate-limited and have argument validation enabled.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the sam_build rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for sam_build. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
sam_build is provided by the AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server MCP server (awslabs.lambda-tool-mcp-server). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Start from AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.
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805 AWS Lambda Tool MCP Server tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.