VS Code MCP Server

A VS Code extension that exposes VS Code's capabilities via the Model Context Protocol (MCP), enabling AI assistants like Claude Code to fully control VS Code.

Features

38+ MCP Tools across 7 categories
HTTP Server on localhost:9002
Status Bar Toggle for easy control
Auto-start on VS Code launch

Installation

From Source

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/vscode-mcp-server.git
cd vscode-mcp-server

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build
npm run build

# Install in VS Code (press F5 to test, or package for production)

From VSIX (when published)

code --install-extension vscode-mcp-server-0.1.0.vsix

Usage

Start the Server

Open VS Code
The server auto-starts (configurable)
Look for MCP :9002 in the status bar
Click to toggle on/off

Connect from Claude Code

Add to your MCP configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "vscode": {
      "url": "http://localhost:9002/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Available Tools (36)

File Operations (6)

Tool	Description
`vscode_open_file`	Open file in editor
`vscode_close_file`	Close file/tab
`vscode_save_file`	Save file(s)
`vscode_get_open_files`	List open files
`vscode_read_file`	Read file contents
`vscode_create_file`	Create new file

Editor Operations (8)

Tool	Description
`vscode_goto_line`	Navigate to line/column
`vscode_goto_symbol`	Navigate to symbol
`vscode_get_selection`	Get selected text
`vscode_insert_text`	Insert text at position
`vscode_replace_text`	Replace text in range
`vscode_get_active_editor`	Get editor state
`vscode_get_live_content`	Get live content (including unsaved)
`vscode_watch_changes`	Watch real-time keystrokes/edits

Code Intelligence (5)

Tool	Description
`vscode_get_diagnostics`	Get errors/warnings
`vscode_get_symbols`	Get document symbols
`vscode_find_references`	Find all references
`vscode_get_definition`	Go to definition
`vscode_search_symbols`	Search workspace symbols

Terminal (6)

Tool	Description
`vscode_terminal_create`	Create new terminal
`vscode_terminal_send`	Send command
`vscode_terminal_execute`	Execute command & capture output (with completion detection)
`vscode_terminal_read_output`	Read output file with pagination/grep
`vscode_terminal_list`	List terminals
`vscode_terminal_close`	Close terminal

Workspace & Tasks (4)

Tool	Description
`vscode_run_command`	Execute VS Code command
`vscode_run_task`	Run configured task
`vscode_get_tasks`	List available tasks
`vscode_get_workspace_info`	Get workspace info

Debug (6)

Tool	Description
`vscode_debug_start`	Start debug session
`vscode_debug_stop`	Stop debugging
`vscode_debug_pause`	Pause execution
`vscode_debug_continue`	Continue/step
`vscode_set_breakpoint`	Set breakpoint
`vscode_get_breakpoints`	List breakpoints

Dashboard (9)

Tool	Description
`vscode_dashboard_list_projects`	List all tracked projects with status
`vscode_dashboard_add_project`	Add a project to the dashboard
`vscode_dashboard_remove_project`	Remove a project from tracking
`vscode_dashboard_get_project`	Get detailed project info
`vscode_dashboard_create_terminal`	Create tmux-backed terminal for project
`vscode_dashboard_reorder_projects`	Reorder projects in dashboard
`vscode_dashboard_set_project_color`	Set project accent color
`vscode_dashboard_get_state`	Get full dashboard state with terminal output
`vscode_get_webviews`	List all active webviews

Info (1)

Tool	Description
`vscode_info`	Get VS Code info

Configuration

Setting	Default	Description
`vscode-mcp-server.port`	`9002`	Server port
`vscode-mcp-server.host`	`127.0.0.1`	Server host
`vscode-mcp-server.autoStart`	`true`	Auto-start on launch

Commands

MCP Server: Start - Start the server
MCP Server: Stop - Stop the server
MCP Server: Toggle - Toggle server on/off

API Endpoints

GET /health - Health check
POST /mcp - MCP protocol endpoint

MCP Automation Runbook (for AI agents)

Use these steps to drive the dashboard and terminals programmatically.

1) Verify server

curl -s http://127.0.0.1:9002/health

2) List dashboard projects

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"vscode_dashboard_list_projects","arguments":{"sortBy":"order","includeTerminals":true}}}'

3) Create a project terminal (tmux‑backed)

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":2,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"vscode_dashboard_create_terminal","arguments":{"projectPath":"/path/to/project","name":"Claude","show":true}}}'

4) Send a command to a terminal

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":3,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"vscode_terminal_send","arguments":{"name":"Claude","text":"pwd","addNewLine":true}}}'

5) Execute a command and capture output

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":4,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"vscode_terminal_execute","arguments":{"name":"Claude","command":"git status -sb","tailLines":20}}}'

6) Launch Claude inside a terminal

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":5,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"vscode_terminal_send","arguments":{"name":"Claude","text":"claude","addNewLine":true}}}'

Interacting with Dashboard Terminals (tmux)

The dashboard uses tmux-backed embedded terminals. You can interact with them programmatically using tmux commands.

Get Dashboard State

# Get full dashboard state including projects, terminals, and output previews
curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"vscode_dashboard_get_state","arguments":{"includeTerminalOutput":true,"outputLines":20}}}'

List Active Webviews

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"vscode_get_webviews","arguments":{}}}'

List Embedded Terminal Sessions (tmux)

# List all dashboard terminal sessions
tmux list-sessions

# Example output:
# xvsc_2292df_1769577975165: 1 windows (created Wed Jan 28 14:26:15 2026)
# xvsc_2292df_1769578556182: 1 windows (created Wed Jan 28 14:35:56 2026)

Read Terminal Content

# Read the last 20 lines from a terminal
tmux capture-pane -t SESSION_NAME -p | tail -20

# Read full terminal content
tmux capture-pane -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 -p

Send Keystrokes to a Terminal

# Send text and press Enter
tmux send-keys -t SESSION_NAME 'your command here' Enter

# Send special keys
tmux send-keys -t SESSION_NAME Up        # Arrow up
tmux send-keys -t SESSION_NAME Down      # Arrow down
tmux send-keys -t SESSION_NAME Escape    # Escape key
tmux send-keys -t SESSION_NAME Enter     # Enter key
tmux send-keys -t SESSION_NAME C-c       # Ctrl+C
tmux send-keys -t SESSION_NAME C-a       # Ctrl+A

Example: Resume a Claude Code Session

This workflow demonstrates using /resume in a Claude Code terminal:

# 1. Find the Claude Code terminal session
tmux list-sessions | grep xvsc

# 2. Send /resume command
tmux send-keys -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 '/resume' Enter

# 3. Wait and read the session list
sleep 2
tmux capture-pane -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 -p | tail -20

# 4. Navigate the list (Down arrow)
tmux send-keys -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 Down

# 5. Select a session (Enter)
tmux send-keys -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 Enter

# 6. Read the resumed conversation
sleep 2
tmux capture-pane -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 -p | tail -30

Example: Send a Prompt to Claude Code

# Send a message to Claude Code
tmux send-keys -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 'explain how the auth system works' Enter

# Wait for response and read it
sleep 10
tmux capture-pane -t xvsc_2292df_1769577975165 -p | tail -50

Check What's Running in All Terminals

# Loop through all dashboard terminals and show their content
for session in $(tmux list-sessions -F "#{session_name}" | grep xvsc); do
  echo "=== $session ==="
  tmux capture-pane -t "$session" -p | tail -10
  echo ""
done

Clean Up Orphaned Sessions

# Kill all dashboard tmux sessions (use with caution!)
tmux list-sessions -F "#{session_name}" | grep xvsc | while read session; do
  tmux kill-session -t "$session"
done

Known Issues

Terminal sessions may accumulate if windows are not closed properly. Use the cleanup command above to remove orphaned sessions.

Testing

# Run the test script (requires server running)
./test-server.sh

# Or manually test
curl http://localhost:9002/health

curl -X POST http://localhost:9002/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/list"}'

AI Integration Guide

See AI_GUIDE.md for a comprehensive guide on what AI assistants can do with this MCP server, including:

All 40 available tools with descriptions
Common workflows (code review, debugging, testing)
Tips for effective AI assistance

Security

Server binds to localhost only (127.0.0.1)
No authentication (relies on localhost security)
Be cautious with terminal commands

Development

# Watch mode
npm run watch

# Debug in VS Code
Press F5

License

MIT

Credits

Inspired by:

Operator

Xerebro