MCP Server for VS Code

A VS Code extension that provides a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, enabling AI assistants to interact with your VS Code environment for language intelligence, debugging, and code execution.

Features

• Language Intelligence: Access VS Code’s language server features including:

  • Go to definition
  • Find references
  • Diagnostics (errors and warnings)
  • Symbol search
  • Call hierarchy

• Debugging Support: Control VS Code’s debugger programmatically:

  • Start/stop debug sessions
  • Set and manage breakpoints
  • Step through code (into/over/out)
  • Inspect variables and call stacks
  • Evaluate expressions in debug context

Installation

Alpha Testing

Step 1: Install VS Code Extension

Download the .vsix file from Releases and install:

• In VS Code: Extensions → ... menu → Install from VSIX
• Or via command line: code --install-extension mcp-server-vscode-*.vsix

Step 2: Configure Claude Desktop

The MCP server runs directly from GitHub using npx. Add this to your Claude config:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "vscode": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["github:malvex/mcp-server-vscode"]
    }
  }
}

Step 3: Restart Claude Desktop

That’s it! The VS Code tools are now available in Claude.

Configure Claude Code (CLI)

For Claude Code users, run this one-liner:

claude mcp add-json vscode '{"type":"stdio","command":"npx","args":["github:malvex/mcp-server-vscode"]}' -s user

Usage

Once installed, the extension shows the MCP server status in the VS Code status bar (bottom right).

To start the MCP server: Click on “VS Code MCP: Stopped” in the status bar. It will change to “VS Code MCP: 8991” when running.

The status bar indicates:

• VS Code MCP: 8991 - Server is running on port 8991
• VS Code MCP: Stopped - Server is not running

Click the status bar item to toggle the server on/off.

How It Works

┌─────────────┐     stdio      ┌──────────────────┐     HTTP      ┌─────────────┐
│   Claude    │ ◄────────────► │  MCP Standalone  │ ◄───────────► │   VS Code   │
│   Desktop   │                │      Server      │    :8991      │  Extension  │
└─────────────┘                └──────────────────┘               └─────────────┘

1. VS Code Extension provides an HTTP API on port 8991
2. MCP Standalone Server acts as a bridge, converting stdio ↔ HTTP
3. Claude Desktop communicates with the standalone server via stdio

Troubleshooting

If Claude can’t connect to VS Code:

1. Check VS Code is running with the extension active
2. Check the status bar shows “VS Code MCP: 8991”
3. Test the MCP server: Run npx github:malvex/mcp-server-vscode in terminal
4. Check firewall isn’t blocking localhost:8991