Docs

User Guide

A practical guide for teams using Schift through the dashboard, API, SDK, CLI, and MCP surface.

Schift is a managed RAG infrastructure product. You upload documents, search or chat against them, and integrate the same data surface into apps through the API, SDK, CLI, or MCP server.

Choose the right surface

SurfaceUse it whenEntry point
DashboardYou want to create API keys, manage billing, and inspect buckets in a browserhttps://schift.io/app
REST APIYou need the thinnest integration from your own backend or servicehttps://api.schift.io
Python SDKYou want fast scripting, ingestion, search, or migration workflowspip install schift
TypeScript SDKYou are integrating Schift from a TS or Node environmentnpm install @schift-io/sdk
CLIYou want repeatable terminal commands and ops-friendly workflowsnpm install -g @schift-io/clischift
MCPYou want ChatGPT or another MCP client to search Schift directlyhttps://mcp.schift.io/mcp

Typical flow

  • Create or copy an API key from the dashboard.
  • Upload files into a bucket or write documents into a hosted collection.
  • Use bucket search, query, or RAG chat depending on the product flow you need.
  • Wire the same key into your SDK, CLI, or MCP setup so local tooling and production use the same account.

Integration checklist

bash# REST API
export SCHIFT_API_KEY=sch_your_key_here

# Python SDK
pip install schift

# TypeScript SDK
npm install @schift-io/sdk

# CLI
npm install -g @schift-io/cli
schift --help

# MCP
# Remote MCP server URL: https://mcp.schift.io/mcp
# Authorization header: Bearer sch_your_key_here

Most common operations

GoalRecommended path
Upload raw files and let Schift process OCR, chunking, and embeddingsPOST /v2/buckets/{id}/documents or the bucket helpers in the SDK
Run answer-ready knowledge search across uploaded documentsPOST /v2/buckets/{id}/search
Return an answer with source citations in one callPOST /v1/chat
Use Schift as an OpenAI-compatible LLM routerPOST /v1/chat/completions