This page describes Calíope 1.5, the version we are building right now. 1.4 is finished and in App Review, and the store serves 1.3 on the Mac and 1.2 on iPad. The changelog says which version each feature landed in.
Adds an “Open in Calíope” button to every topic. It only works with the app installed.
Control Calíope with Siri or the Shortcuts app on macOS, iPad and iPhone.
Calíope includes four App Intents actions available in the system Shortcuts app and via Siri, on macOS, iPad and iPhone.
Available actions:
- Connect to server — Connects to the server profile of your choice.
- Run SQL query — Executes SQL against the active session and returns the result.
- List databases — Returns the list of databases available in the active session.
- Open panel — Navigates directly to any of the 9 workspace panels.
How to find them:
Open the Shortcuts app, create a new shortcut, and search for Calíope in the actions panel. All four actions will appear grouped together.
Important requirement:
The actions require Calíope to be open and active when the shortcut runs. Automatically scheduled shortcuts running in the background cannot access the system keychain to read passwords, so they only work when triggered manually by the user (Siri, widget, shortcut button, etc.).
Open Calíope and establish a connection with a voice phrase.
Where it is: Siri / Shortcuts › Action: Connect to server
The Connect to server action connects Calíope to the MySQL or MariaDB profile of your choice, without needing to open the connection manager.
Siri phrase:
> "Connect Calíope to [profile name]"
> "Connect Calíope"
When Siri does not recognise the profile in the phrase, it shows a picker with all saved profiles.
What the action does:
1. Reads the selected profile from local storage (without asking the user for a password).
2. Retrieves the credentials from the system Keychain — accessible because the device is already unlocked.
3. Establishes the MySQL/MariaDB connection.
4. Brings Calíope to the foreground with the active workspace.
Parameter:Server profile — picker with all profiles saved in Calíope.
If Calíope is not open: Siri will show the message "Open Calíope to use this shortcut" and will not attempt to access the keychain in the background.
Execute SQL against the active session and get the result as text.
Where it is: Siri / Shortcuts › Action: Run SQL query
The Run SQL query action sends an SQL statement to the active Calíope session and returns the result as plain text, ready to use in subsequent shortcut steps.
Siri phrase:
> "Run query in Calíope"
> "Query database with Calíope"
Parameter:SQL — the query to execute. Accepts the output of a previous shortcut step (for example, text generated by the Calíope AI Assistant or entered manually).
Result format:
- SELECT: tab-separated values, one row per line. The first line contains column names.
- INSERT / UPDATE / DELETE: text with the number of affected rows.
- Error: the shortcut throws an error with the MySQL message, stopping or continuing based on the shortcut's error-handling setting.
Useful shortcut example:
1. Text action with the query SELECT table_name FROM information_schema.tables WHERE table_schema = 'my_db'
2. Run SQL query in Calíope action
3. Split text action (separator: new line) to get the table list
4. Show result action
Requirement: there must be an active session in Calíope (already connected to a server).
Get the list of databases from the active session to use in other steps.
Where it is: Siri / Shortcuts › Action: List databases
The List databases action queries the active server and returns the names of all accessible databases, separated by line breaks.
Siri phrase:
> "List databases in Calíope"
> "What databases are there in Calíope?"
Result: text with one database per line. Combine it with the Split text Shortcuts action to get an iterable list.
Useful shortcut example:
1. List databases in Calíope action
2. Split text action (separator: new line)
3. Choose from list action so the user selects a database
4. Run SQL query in Calíope action with SHOW TABLES IN [chosen result]
Requirement: there must be an active session in Calíope (already connected to a server).
Keywords: list, databases, shortcuts, siri, show, available
Navigate directly to any of the 9 panels with a Siri phrase.
Where it is: Siri / Shortcuts › Action: Open panel
The Open panel in Calíope action brings the app to the foreground and activates the panel of your choice, avoiding manual navigation through the tab bar.
Siri phrase:
> "Open [panel] in Calíope"
> "Show [panel] in Calíope"
Available panels:
Panel
Description
Dashboard
Real-time server metrics
Backup
Export and import databases
Manage users
MySQL account management
Process list
Running queries and kill
Query log
Complete statement history
SQL snippets
Saved query library
AI Assistant
SQL generation with natural language
Catalogs
Schema object explorer
Server info
Server variables and status
Example phrases:
> "Hey Siri, open Dashboard in Calíope"
> "Hey Siri, show Backup in Calíope"
Requirement: there must be an active session in Calíope (already connected to a server). If Calíope is not open, Siri will show the message "Open Calíope to use this shortcut".
Combine Calíope's actions to automate a complete workflow.
Calíope's four actions can be combined with each other and with other system actions to create complete workflows in the Shortcuts app.
Example: "Good morning, database"
Create a shortcut that, in a single tap, connects to the server and opens the dashboard:
1. Connect to server in Calíope action → choose the production profile
2. Open panel in Calíope action → choose Dashboard
Name it "Open Calíope production" and add it to Control Center or as a widget on the iPad home screen.
Example: "Quick table report"
1. Connect to server in Calíope action → choose the profile
2. Run SQL query in Calíope action → SQL: SELECT table_name, table_rows FROM information_schema.tables WHERE table_schema = DATABASE() ORDER BY table_rows DESC LIMIT 10
3. Show result action
Tip: enable the "Add to Siri" option in the shortcut to assign a custom phrase and activate it by voice with Siri instead of the default phrases.
Limitation: Calíope shortcuts do not work in scheduled automations (time-based, alarm, arrival at a location). They only work when triggered interactively by the user.
Predefined actions that appear automatically without needing to build a shortcut from scratch.
Where it is: Spotlight › Calíope shortcuts
Beyond the AppIntents you can use manually from the Shortcuts app, Calíope publishes a set of preinstalled AppShortcuts through CaliopeShortcuts. They appear automatically in Spotlight and in the Suggested shortcuts section of the Shortcuts app, without you having to create anything.
How to invoke them
- Spotlight (macOS / iPad): open Spotlight (⌘ Space on macOS, swipe down on iPad) and start typing the shortcut name: Connect, Run query, List databases, Open panel…. You'll see the shortcut in the results, with the Calíope icon.
- Siri (iPad): speak the phrase assigned to the shortcut. Default phrases are "Connect to server with Calíope", "Run a query in Calíope", etc.
- Shortcuts app: you'll find them under App Shortcuts inside the Calíope entry, ready to be added to your personal gallery.
Predefined shortcuts
1. Connect to server — opens Calíope and connects to the chosen profile.
2. Run SQL query — runs a query in the active session.
3. List databases — returns the database names from the selected server.
4. Open panel in Calíope — navigates directly to a Workspace panel (Dashboard, Catalogs, Backup, etc.).
Customize the phrase
- Open the Shortcuts app, find the Calíope shortcut, and tap the "Add to Siri" button. There you can record a custom phrase in your language so Siri recognizes it.
Difference from manual Intents
- AppShortcuts are packaged shortcuts that the system suggests automatically.
- Standalone AppIntents are added by you as actions inside a more complex shortcut (see Create a chained shortcut).