explain_tx
Narrative analysis of a single confirmed transaction. AGENT BEHAVIOR: when the user pastes a tx hash (or an Etherscan / Arbiscan / Polygonscan / Basescan / Optimistic-Etherscan / Tronscan / Solscan URL containing one) and asks 'why did this fail / what does this do / what happened', call THIS too...
This record as markdown: /tools/io-github-szhygulin-vaultpilot-mcp/explain-tx.md
What explain_tx does on VaultPilot MCP
AI agents call explain_tx to retrieve information from VaultPilot MCP without modifying anything. It is typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
hash | string | Yes | Transaction identifier. EVM: 32-byte hex (with or without `0x`). TRON: 32-byte bare hex. Solana: 64-byte signature as base58 (86–88 chars). |
chain | string | Yes | Which chain the tx lives on. Required because EVM / TRON / Solana post-mortems use different RPC paths and payload shapes. |
format | string | — | "structured" returns the JSON envelope only. "narrative" returns only the pre-rendered string. "both" (default) returns both — agents typically use the narrativ |
wallet | object | — | Optional. When supplied, balance + approval changes are computed FROM THIS WALLET'S PERSPECTIVE — outflows are negative, inflows positive. When omitted, default |
Parameters from the server's own tool schema.
Why explain_tx is rated Low
This tool reads and analyzes already-confirmed blockchain transactions, decoding their data and returning a narrative explanation. It performs no writes, executions, or financial operations — it is purely a read/query tool that retrieves and interprets existing on-chain data.
From the tool's definition Narrative analysis of a single confirmed transaction... Walks what actually happened: top-level method/instruction call, decodes the same data structurally and returns a verbatim-relayable narrative
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs explain_tx safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and VaultPilot MCP, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For explain_tx, this is the rule to start with:
explain_tx is read-only, so it stays allowed. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect VaultPilot MCP, apply this rule, and every explain_tx call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about explain_tx
Narrative analysis of a single confirmed transaction. AGENT BEHAVIOR: when the user pastes a tx hash (or an Etherscan / Arbiscan / Polygonscan / Basescan / Optimistic-Etherscan / Tronscan / Solscan URL containing one) and asks 'why did this fail / what does this do / what happened', call THIS tool — do NOT WebFetch the explorer or a Tenderly/Phalcon dashboard URL. Those pages are JS SPAs that render an empty shell when fetched server-side; this tool decodes the same data structurally and returns a verbatim-relayable narrative. Walks what actually happened: top-level method/instruction call, decoded ERC-20/TRC-20 Transfer + Approval events (or Solana SPL balance deltas), per-token balance changes for the wallet, fee paid, and a heuristics block flagging surprises (failed status, unlimited approval, dust outflow, transfer-to-zero burn, high-gas vs. moved value, unexpected no-state-change). Returns BOTH a structured envelope and a pre-rendered narrative string for verbatim relay (control via format). Distinct from get_transaction_status (just confirmation status) and the prepare→preview→send pipeline (forward-looking). Useful for debugging ("why did this swap return less than the quote?"), learning ("what does this contract call actually do?"), forensics ("what addresses did this tx touch?"), and address-poisoning triage. v1 covers EVM (Ethereum/Arbitrum/Polygon/Base/Optimism), TRON, and Solana — Bitcoin is deferred. v1 reads top-level execution only; internal calls / CPI / DeFi compositions surface via balance & event effects rather than as separate step rows. Pricing is current spot via DefiLlama (not historical at tx time). Optional wallet arg recomputes balance/approval changes from THAT wallet's perspective — defaults to tx sender. Read-only — no signing, no broadcast. It is categorised as a Read tool in the VaultPilot MCP MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
explain_tx accepts 4 parameters: hash, chain, format, wallet. Required: hash, chain. The full parameter table on this page comes from the server's own tool schema.
Register the VaultPilot MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for explain_tx: 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 VaultPilot MCP. Nothing to install.
explain_tx is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the explain_tx 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 explain_tx. 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.
explain_tx is provided by the VaultPilot MCP server (vaultpilot-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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