Plan (dryRun, default true) or execute an upgrade for one provider CLI using its native update mechanism.
AI agents invoke cli_upgrade to trigger actions in LLM CLI Gateway. 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.
This tool triggers external operations (CLI upgrades) whose effects depend on arguments (which provider, whether dryRun is disabled). While nominally reversible via downgrade, CLI upgrades can introduce breaking changes, incompatibilities, or system-wide impacts. The ability to execute (not merely plan) system-level upgrades without explicit user confirmation per invocation represents an Execute-category risk.
From the tool's definition Tool description states it 'execute[s] an upgrade for one provider CLI using its native update mechanism' with a dryRun parameter that 'default[s] true', indicating actual execution capability beyond planning.
Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access cli_upgrade gives an agent:
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and LLM CLI Gateway, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for cli_upgrade:
{
"version": "1",
"default": "deny",
"tools": {
"cli_upgrade": {
"limits": [
{
"counter": "cli_upgrade_rate",
"window": "minute",
"max": 10,
"scope": "grant"
}
]
}
}
}cli_upgrade 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.
Free to start. No card required.
Plan (dryRun, default true) or execute an upgrade for one provider CLI using its native update mechanism. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the LLM CLI Gateway MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.
Register the LLM CLI Gateway MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for cli_upgrade: 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 LLM CLI Gateway. Nothing to install.
cli_upgrade 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 cli_upgrade 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 cli_upgrade. 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.
cli_upgrade is provided by the LLM CLI Gateway MCP server (llm-cli-gateway). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Start from LLM CLI Gateway, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.
Free to start. No card required.
46 LLM CLI Gateway tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.