Edit

Compile AL project - al_compile

Applies to: AL Language extension 17.0 and later | Available in: AL MCP Server only

The al_compile tool compiles the AL workspace and returns diagnostics without generating an .app package. Because it skips the packaging step, it's faster than al_build and is the preferred choice for validation-only scenarios such as pull-request checks, precommit gates, and quick iterative feedback loops.

Use al_build instead when you need the .app file—for example, before publishing.

Note

al_compile is available on the AL MCP Server only. In Visual Studio Code, use al_build with scope="current" for an equivalent result.

Parameters

All parameters are optional and are passed as properties of a single options object.

Parameter Type Default Description
onlyErrors boolean true When true (the default), only error-severity diagnostics are returned. Set to false to also receive warnings, informational messages, and hints.
maxDiagnosticsPerCompilation integer 100 Maximum number of diagnostics to return per compilation. Increase this value if you expect a large number of issues.
enableCodeAnalysis boolean (server default) Enable AL code analyzers during compilation. When enabled, the analyzers listed in codeAnalyzers are run.
codeAnalyzers string[] (server default) List of code analyzers to run. Supported values: ${CodeCop}, ${AppSourceCop}, ${PerTenantExtensionCop}, ${UICop}.

Return value

The tool returns a compilation result object with the following properties:

Property Type Description
Succeeded boolean true if the compilation completed with no errors.
Diagnostics array List of diagnostic items. Each item contains Severity, Code (for example, AL0118), Location (file and line), and Description (human-readable message).
Message string Optional extra context about the compilation result.

Examples

Validate the current workspace (errors only)

{}

The default behavior returns only errors, which is suitable for pass/fail gates.

Validate with all diagnostics and code analysis

{
  "onlyErrors": false,
  "enableCodeAnalysis": true,
  "codeAnalyzers": ["${CodeCop}", "${AppSourceCop}"]
}

Limit output in a large workspace

{
  "maxDiagnosticsPerCompilation": 50
}

Diagnostics format

Each item in the Diagnostics array has the following structure:

{
  "Severity": "Error",
  "Code": "AL0118",
  "Location": "MyCodeunit.al(42,15)",
  "Description": "The name 'MyVariable' does not exist in the current context."
}

Suggested next steps

Outcome Suggested action
No errors Proceed with al_build to generate the .app package.
Errors reported Fix the reported issues and rerun al_compile.
Symbols not found Run al_downloadsymbols to refresh the symbol packages.

AI agent tools overview
AL MCP Server reference

  • Last updated on