Load M-Files data in Python using dltHub

M-Files Web Service (MFWS) is a REST-like API that provides access to M-Files document vault content and operations through a web interface. The REST API base URL is http://<server-address>/<mfiles-web-instance>/REST/ and all requests require an authentication token or credentials provided via HTTP headers or query parameters.

dlt is an open-source Python library that handles authentication, pagination, and schema evolution automatically. dlthub provides AI context files that enable code assistants to generate production-ready pipelines. Install with uv add "dlt[hub]" and start loading M-Files data in under 10 minutes.

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What data can I load from M-Files?

Here are some of the endpoints you can load from M-Files:

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How do I authenticate with the M-Files API?

Authentication is performed by obtaining a token via a POST request to the /server/authenticationtokens endpoint using user credentials, then including this token in the X-Authentication HTTP header for subsequent requests. Alternatively, basic credentials can be passed directly in X-Username and X-Password headers.

1. Get your credentials

M-Files does not use traditional "API keys" generated in a developer dashboard. Access is configured via the M-Files Classic Web component. To obtain credentials: 1. Contact your M-Files administrator to request a valid username, password, and the specific vault GUID. 2. Ensure your M-Files Classic Web is correctly configured; the REST API endpoint is typically available at http://example.org/m-files/REST. 3. Authenticate by making a POST request to the /REST/server/authenticationtokens resource with your credentials to receive an authentication token, which should then be used in the X-Authentication header for subsequent requests.

2. Add them to .dlt/secrets.toml

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[sources.m_files_source]
username = "your_username_here"
password = "your_password_here"
vault_guid = "{XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX}"
api_base_url = "http://your-mfiles-server/m-files/REST"

dlt reads this automatically at runtime — never hardcode tokens in your pipeline script. For production environments, see setting up credentials with dlt for environment variable and vault-based options.

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How do I set up and run the pipeline?

Set up a virtual environment and install dlt:

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uv init
uv add "dlt[hub]"

1. Install the dlt AI harness:

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uv run dlthub ai init --agent <your-agent> # <agent>: claude | cursor | codex

This installs project rules, a secrets management skill, appropriate ignore files, and configures the dlt MCP server for your agent. Learn more →

2. Install the rest-api-pipeline toolkit:

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uv run dlthub ai toolkit install rest-api-pipeline

This loads the skills and context about dlt the agent uses to build the pipeline iteratively, efficiently, and safely. The agent uses MCP tools to inspect credentials — it never needs to read your secrets.toml directly. Learn more →

3. Start LLM-assisted coding:

Use /find-source to load data from the M-Files API into DuckDB.

The rest-api-pipeline toolkit takes over from here — it reads relevant API documentation, presents you with options for which endpoints to load, and follows a structured workflow to scaffold, debug, and validate the pipeline step by step.

4. Run the pipeline:

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uv run python m_files_pipeline.py

If everything is configured correctly, you'll see output like this:

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Pipeline m_files_pipeline load step completed in 0.26 seconds
1 load package(s) were loaded to destination duckdb and into dataset m_files_data
The duckdb destination used duckdb:/m_files.duckdb location to store data
Load package 1749667187.541553 is LOADED and contains no failed jobs

Inspect your pipeline and data:

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uv run dlthub show

This opens the Pipeline Dashboard where you can verify pipeline state, load metrics, schema (tables, columns, types), and query the loaded data directly.

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Python pipeline example

This example loads /server/authenticationtokens and /session from the M-Files API into DuckDB. It mirrors the endpoint and data selector configuration from the table above:

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import dlt
from dlt.sources.rest_api import RESTAPIConfig, rest_api_resources

@dlt.source
def m_files_source(auth_token=dlt.secrets.value):
    config: RESTAPIConfig = {
        "client": {
            "base_url": "http://<server-address>/<mfiles-web-instance>/REST/",
            "auth": {"type": "api_key", "api_key": auth_token, "name": "X-Authentication", "location": "header"},
        },
        "resources": [
            {"name": "objects", "endpoint": {"path": "objects", "data_selector": "Items"}},
            {"name": "object_types", "endpoint": {"path": "objecttypes"}}
        ],
    }
    yield from rest_api_resources(config)


def get_data() -> None:
    pipeline = dlt.pipeline(
        pipeline_name="m_files_pipeline",
        destination="duckdb",
        dataset_name="m_files_data",
    )
    load_info = pipeline.run(m_files_source())
    print(load_info)

To add more endpoints, append entries from the resource table to the "resources" list using the same name, path, and data_selector pattern.

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How do I query the loaded data?

Once the pipeline runs, dlt creates one table per resource. You can query with Python or SQL.

Python (pandas DataFrame):

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import dlt

data = dlt.pipeline("m_files_pipeline").dataset()
sessions_df = data.objects.df()
print(sessions_df.head())

SQL (DuckDB example):

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SELECT * FROM m_files_data.objects LIMIT 10;

In a marimo or Jupyter notebook:

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import dlt

data = dlt.pipeline("m_files_pipeline").dataset()
data.objects.df().head()

See how to explore your data in marimo Notebooks and how to query your data in Python with dataset.

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What destinations can I load M-Files data to?

dlt supports loading into any of these destinations — only the destination parameter changes:

Change the destination in dlt.pipeline(destination="snowflake") and add credentials in .dlt/secrets.toml. See the full destinations list.

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Next steps

Continue your data engineering journey with the other toolkits of the dltHub AI harness:

• data-exploration — Build custom notebooks, charts, and dashboards for deeper analysis with marimo notebooks.
• dlthub-platform — Deploy, schedule, and monitor your pipeline in production.

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uv run dlthub ai toolkit install data-exploration
uv run dlthub ai toolkit install dlthub-platform

• How to deploy a pipeline
• How to explore your data in marimo Notebooks
• How to query your data in Python with dataset
• Join the dlt community on Slack