# describe_api
URL: https://lsd.tools/docs/api-describe
Updated: 2026-07-18

`describe_api()` returns a machine-readable snapshot of everything currently registered — the public
surface plus every step and entity type. It is the single source of truth that editors and AI
assistants read, and it powers the [`lsd api describe`](/docs/api-cli) command. The text and markdown
renderers of the same data live in [`lsdtools.advanced`](/docs/api-advanced).

## Usage

```python
from lsdtools import describe_api

api = describe_api()
print(api["api_version"], len(api["steps"]))
# → "2.1" 12
```

## Where to start

**Learn** — [CLI commands](/docs/api-cli) · [lsdtools API reference](/docs/api-index)

**API** — [Runtime](/docs/api-runtime) · [lsdtools.advanced](/docs/api-advanced)

**Examples** — [A complete package](/docs/ex-full-package)