# Claude Desktop Bridge - Installation and Usage Guide
This guide explains how to set up and use the Claude Desktop Bridge system, which enables automation and integration with Claude Desktop.
## Prerequisites
- Python 3.7 or higher
- Claude Desktop installed
- Administrative access (for installing Python packages)
## Installation
1. **Install Required Python Packages**
Open a command prompt or PowerShell window and navigate to the project directory:
```powershell
cd C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\Claude_Automation-main
pip install -r requirements.txt
```
For development environments or specialized installations, see the README in the `requirements/` directory.
2. **Verify Claude Desktop Configuration**
Ensure that your Claude Desktop configuration is properly set up at:
```
%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
```
## Starting the Bridge
1. **Start the Bridge Service**
Open a command prompt or PowerShell window and run:
```powershell
python C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\claude-desktop-bridge.py
```
This will start the bridge service, which will monitor for configuration changes and process pending actions.
2. **Verify Bridge Status**
You can check if the bridge is running by using the client:
```powershell
python C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\claude-desktop-client.py status
```
## Using the Client
The client script provides a command-line interface to interact with the bridge.
### Adding an MCP Server
```powershell
python C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\claude-desktop-client.py add-server my-server 4323 localhost auto
```
This adds a new MCP server named "my-server" on port 4323, and configures it to auto-start with Claude Desktop.
### Removing an MCP Server
```powershell
python C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\claude-desktop-client.py remove-server my-server
```
### Reloading Claude Desktop Configuration
```powershell
python C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\claude-desktop-client.py reload
```
### Checking Bridge Status
```powershell
python C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\claude-desktop-client.py status
```
## Running as a Background Service (Windows)
To run the bridge as a background service on Windows:
1. **Create a Batch File**
Create a file named `start-claude-bridge.bat` with the following content:
```batch
@echo off
start /min pythonw C:\Users\dimas\Desktop\claude-desktop-bridge.py
```
2. **Add to Startup**
Press `Win+R`, type `shell:startup`, and press Enter.
Copy the batch file to this folder to run the bridge at system startup.
## Troubleshooting
1. **Bridge Not Running**
- Ensure Python and required packages are installed
- Check for errors in the log file at `%APPDATA%\Claude\bridge.log`
- Verify that the bridge process is not already running
2. **Actions Not Processing**
- Ensure Claude Desktop is running
- Check bridge status using the client
- Verify that the `pending_actions.json` file exists
- Restart the bridge service
3. **Permission Errors**
- Ensure you have write permissions to the Claude directory
- Run the bridge with administrator privileges if necessary
## Limitations
- The bridge can only modify configuration files, not control Claude Desktop directly
- Some actions may require Claude Desktop to be restarted
- There is no authentication between client and bridge
- This is an unofficial extension and may break with Claude Desktop updates
