Pi-hole CLI wrapper (if SSH access available)

pihole_cmd() { ssh "$PIHOLE_HOST" "pihole $*" 2>/dev/null }


## MANDATORY: Discovery-First Pattern

### Phase 1: Discovery

```bash
#!/bin/bash

echo "=== Pi-hole Summary ==="
pihole_api "summaryRaw" | jq '{
    domains_being_blocked, dns_queries_today,
    ads_blocked_today, ads_percentage_today,
    unique_domains, queries_forwarded,
    queries_cached, clients_ever_seen,
    unique_clients, status
}'

echo ""
echo "=== Top Blocked Domains ==="
pihole_api "topItems=15" | jq -r '
    .top_ads | to_entries[] | "\(.value)\t\(.key)"
' | sort -rn | column -t | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Top Permitted Domains ==="
pihole_api "topItems=10" | jq -r '
    .top_queries | to_entries[] | "\(.value)\t\(.key)"
' | sort -rn | column -t | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Top Clients ==="
pihole_api "getQuerySources=10" | jq -r '
    .top_sources | to_entries[] | "\(.value)\t\(.key)"
' | sort -rn | column -t | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Upstream DNS Servers ==="
pihole_api "getForwardDestinations" | jq -r '
    .forward_destinations | to_entries[] | "\(.key)\t\(.value)%"
' | column -t | head -10

Phase 2: Analysis

#!/bin/bash

echo "=== Query Types Distribution ==="
pihole_api "getQueryTypes" | jq -r '
    .querytypes | to_entries[] | "\(.key)\t\(.value)%"
' | column -t | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Queries Over Time (24h) ==="
pihole_api "overTimeData10mins" | jq -r '
    .domains_over_time | to_entries | sort_by(.key) | last(10) | .[] |
    "\(.key | tonumber | todate)\t\(.value) queries"
' | column -t 2>/dev/null | tail -10

echo ""
echo "=== Recent Blocked Queries ==="
pihole_api "getAllQueries=50" | jq -r '
    .data[] | select(.[2] | test("Pi-holed|Blocked")) |
    "\(.[0] | tonumber | todate)\t\(.[2])\t\(.[3])\t\(.[4])"
' | tail -15 | column -t

echo ""
echo "=== Gravity Database Status ==="
pihole_api "getGravity" | jq '{
    file_exists: .file_exists, last_update: .absolute,
    domains_in_gravity: .domains_being_blocked
}' 2>/dev/null
pihole_cmd "-g -l" 2>/dev/null | tail -5

echo ""
echo "=== Blocklist Sources ==="
pihole_cmd "adlist" 2>/dev/null || \
    curl -s "http://$PIHOLE_HOST/admin/api.php?list=adlist&auth=$PIHOLE_API_TOKEN" | jq -r '
    .data[]? | "\(.enabled)\t\(.address[:60])\t\(.number // 0) domains"
' | column -t | head -15

Output Rules

TOKEN EFFICIENCY: Target <=50 lines per output
Use jq to parse Pi-hole API JSON responses
Show percentages for blocked vs allowed traffic

Safety Rules

Read-only by default: Use query/summary endpoints for inspection
Never disable Pi-hole without confirmation -- disables network-wide ad blocking
Whitelist changes take effect after gravity rebuild
Blacklist additions block domains for all clients on the network

Output Format

Present results as a structured report:

Managing Pi Hole Report
═══════════════════════
Resources discovered: [count]

Resource       Status    Key Metric    Issues
──────────────────────────────────────────────
[name]         [ok/warn] [value]       [findings]

Summary: [total] resources | [ok] healthy | [warn] warnings | [crit] critical
Action Items: [list of prioritized findings]

Target ≤50 lines of output. Use tables for multi-resource comparisons.

Anti-Hallucination Rules

NEVER assume resource names — always discover via CLI/API in Phase 1 before referencing in Phase 2.
NEVER fabricate metric names or dimensions — verify against the service documentation or --help output.
NEVER mix CLI commands between service versions — confirm which version/API you are targeting.
ALWAYS use the discovery → verify → analyze chain — every resource referenced must have been discovered first.
ALWAYS handle empty results gracefully — an empty response is valid data, not an error to retry.

Counter-Rationalizations

Shortcut	Counter	Why
"I'll skip discovery and check known resources"	Always run Phase 1 discovery first	Resource names change, new resources appear — assumed names cause errors
"The user only asked for a quick check"	Follow the full discovery → analysis flow	Quick checks miss critical issues; structured analysis catches silent failures
"Default configuration is probably fine"	Audit configuration explicitly	Defaults often leave logging, security, and optimization features disabled
"Metrics aren't needed for this"	Always check relevant metrics when available	API/CLI responses show current state; metrics reveal trends and intermittent issues
"I don't have access to that"	Try the command and report the actual error	Assumed permission failures prevent useful investigation; actual errors are informative

Common Pitfalls

API token required: Most endpoints need the auth parameter with the web password hash
Gravity updates: Adding blocklists requires pihole -g to rebuild the gravity database
Client groups: Pi-hole v5+ supports per-client group management for different filter lists
CNAME cloaking: Some trackers use CNAME cloaking to bypass Pi-hole; needs deep CNAME inspection
DNS cache: Pi-hole caches responses; recently unblocked domains may still be cached as blocked

managing-pi-hole

Pi-hole DNS Skill

Core Helper Functions