Date MCP Server

# Date MCP Server - VS Code Configuration This document explains how to configure the Date MCP server to work with GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio Code. ## Overview The Date MCP server provides two tools to GitHub Copilot: - **get_day_name**: Returns the current day of the week (e.g., "Wednesday") - **get_iso_date**: Returns the current date in ISO 8601 format (e.g., "2025-11-12") This allows Copilot to reliably know the current date when working on notes, documentation, or other files that need accurate date information. ## Installation ### 1. Build the Project First, install dependencies using `uv`: ```bash cd /path/to/DateMCP uv sync ``` ### 2. Find the UV Executable Path Get the absolute path to your `uv` executable (you'll need this in the next step): ```bash which uv ``` On macOS, this typically returns something like `/Users/your-username/.cargo/bin/uv` or `/opt/homebrew/bin/uv` depending on your installation method. ### 3. Configure VS Code Copilot Chat VS Code Copilot Chat uses the `vs-code-config.json` file located in: ``` ~/.vscode/copilot-chat/vs-code-config.json ``` If this file doesn't exist, create it. Add or update the `mcpServers` section with: ```json { "mcpServers": { "date": { "command": "uv", "args": [ "--directory", "/Users/your-username/source/DateMCP", "run", "--", "date-mcp" ] } } } ``` **Important**: Replace: - `/path/to/uv` with the output from `which uv` - `/Users/your-username/source/DateMCP` with your actual absolute path to the DateMCP directory You can verify the DateMCP path by running: ```bash pwd # from within the DateMCP directory ``` ### 4. Restart VS Code Close and reopen VS Code completely to ensure the Copilot Chat extension reloads the configuration. ## Testing Once configured, you can test the server by: 1. Open Copilot Chat in VS Code (Cmd+Shift+L on macOS) 2. Ask a question that requires the current date or day: - "What day is today?" - "What's the current date?" - "Add today's date to my notes" - "Create a log entry for today" Copilot should now have access to the accurate current date and day name through these MCP tools. ## Development To run the server standalone (for debugging): ```bash cd /Users/your-username/source/DateMCP uv run -- date-mcp ``` The server communicates using stdio, so you won't see interactive output. It's designed to be controlled by MCP clients like VS Code's Copilot Chat. You can also test interactively using the MCP Inspector: ```bash npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector uv run -- date-mcp ``` This will open a web interface at http://localhost:5173 where you can test the tools interactively. ## Troubleshooting ### Server not appearing in Copilot Chat 1. **Verify the path**: Make sure your `vs-code-config.json` has the correct absolute path to both the `uv` executable and the DateMCP directory. 2. **Check file syntax**: Ensure the JSON is valid (no trailing commas, proper quotes, etc.). 3. **Restart VS Code**: The config is loaded at startup. Close and reopen VS Code. 4. **Check the path to `uv`**: Run `which uv` and ensure the path matches exactly. ### Permission issues If you get permission errors, ensure the server files are readable: ```bash chmod +r /Users/your-username/source/DateMCP/src/date_mcp.py ``` ### Verify UV installation Ensure `uv` is installed and working: ```bash uv --version ``` ## Next Steps You can extend this MCP server by: - Adding more date/time tools (timezone conversion, date arithmetic, etc.) - Adding calendar utilities - Integrating with other services For more information about MCP servers, see the [Model Context Protocol documentation](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/).