content/code-security/codeql-cli/codeql-cli-manual/dataset-check.md

---
title: dataset check
versions: # DO NOT MANUALLY EDIT. CHANGES WILL BE OVERWRITTEN BY A 🤖
  fpt: '*'
  ghec: '*'
  ghes: '*'
topics:
  - Code Security
  - Code scanning
  - CodeQL
type: reference
product: '{% data reusables.gated-features.codeql %}'
autogenerated: codeql-cli
intro: '[Plumbing] Check a particular dataset for internal consistency.'
redirect_from:
  - /code-security/codeql-cli/manual/dataset-check
---

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{% data reusables.codeql-cli.man-pages-version-note %}

## Synopsis

```shell copy
codeql dataset check <options>... -- <dataset>
```

## Description

\[Plumbing] Check a particular dataset for internal consistency.

This command is most commonly useful to developers of CodeQL extractors,
as it validates the data produced by the extractor. It may also be
useful if queries against a database are giving inconsistent results, to
rule out issues in the underlying data as the cause.

## Options

### Primary Options

#### `<dataset>`

\[Mandatory] Path to the raw QL dataset to check.

#### `--failing-exitcode=<code>`

\[Advanced] Set the exit code to produce if any failures are
encountered. Usually 1, but tooling that parses the output may find it
useful to set it to 0.

#### `--format=<fmt>`

Select output format. Possible choices:

`text` _(default)_: A human-readable textual rendering.

`json`: A streamed JSON array of objects.

`jsonz`: A stream of zero-terminated JSON objects.

#### `--[no-]precise-locations`

\[Advanced] Expend extra effort to compute precise locations for
inconsistencies. This will take more time, but may make it easier to
debug extractor behavior.

#### `--max-resolve-depth=<n>`

\[Advanced] The maximum depth to which IDs should be resolved to
explain inconsistencies. (Default: 3)

#### `--max-errors-per-checker=<n>`

The maximum number of inconsistency errors of each kind that should be
reported explicitly. (Default: 5)

### Common options

#### `-h, --help`

Show this help text.

#### `-J=<opt>`

\[Advanced] Give option to the JVM running the command.

(Beware that options containing spaces will not be handled correctly.)

#### `-v, --verbose`

Incrementally increase the number of progress messages printed.

#### `-q, --quiet`

Incrementally decrease the number of progress messages printed.

#### `--verbosity=<level>`

\[Advanced] Explicitly set the verbosity level to one of errors,
warnings, progress, progress+, progress++, progress+++. Overrides `-v`
and `-q`.

#### `--logdir=<dir>`

\[Advanced] Write detailed logs to one or more files in the given
directory, with generated names that include timestamps and the name of
the running subcommand.

(To write a log file with a name you have full control over, instead
give `--log-to-stderr` and redirect stderr as desired.)

#### `--common-caches=<dir>`

\[Advanced] Controls the location of cached data on disk that will
persist between several runs of the CLI, such as downloaded QL packs and
compiled query plans. If not set explicitly, this defaults to a
directory named `.codeql` in the user's home directory; it will be
created if it doesn't already exist.

Available since `v2.15.2`.