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Attri-Inc

Basecamp MCP Server

by Attri-Inc

Basecamp MCP Server

CI License: MIT Python 3.10+

The first open-source MCP server for Basecamp 3 with multi-user and enterprise hosting support. Gives AI clients (Claude Desktop, Cursor, Codex, etc.) direct access to Basecamp via 148+ tools.

Why this project?

Every existing Basecamp MCP integration was single-user only — you had to run a local process per user with your own credentials. That doesn't work for teams or enterprise deployments.

This project solves that with a streamable-http mode: one server, one port, multiple users — each authenticating with their own Basecamp account via OAuth. Deploy it once for your entire organization.

Related MCP server: production-grade-mcp-agentic-system

Modes

Mode

Use case

stdio

Single-user, local process. Standard MCP transport.

streamable-http

Multi-tenant HTTP server. One deployment for your whole org.


Quick Start

Prerequisites

Install

git clone https://github.com/Attri-Inc/basecamp-mcp-server.git
cd Basecamp-MCP-Server

# Using uv (recommended)
uv venv --python 3.12 venv && source venv/bin/activate
uv pip install -r requirements.txt && uv pip install mcp

# Or using pip
python setup.py

Configure

Copy .env.example to .env and fill in your credentials:

cp .env.example .env

Your Basecamp account ID is in the URL: https://3.basecamp.com/{account_id}/projects


Mode 1: stdio (Single-user)

Step 1 — Authenticate with Basecamp (one-time):

MCP_TRANSPORT=streamable-http ./venv/bin/python basecamp_fastmcp.py

Visit http://localhost:8001, click Connect Basecamp, complete OAuth. Tokens are saved to oauth_tokens.json. Stop the server.

Step 2 — Add to your MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "basecamp": {
      "command": "/full/path/to/venv/bin/python",
      "args": ["/full/path/to/basecamp_fastmcp.py"],
      "env": {
        "PYTHONPATH": "/full/path/to/project",
        "BASECAMP_ACCOUNT_ID": "your_account_id"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop — auto-generate config:

python generate_claude_desktop_config.py

Then restart Claude Desktop completely.


Mode 2: streamable-http (Multi-tenant)

This is the core feature that makes this project different. A single server instance handles any number of users, each connected to their own Basecamp account. No per-user processes, no shared credentials.

How it works

User A ──► POST /mcp  (Bearer api_key_A) ──► validates key ──► uses User A's Basecamp tokens
User B ──► POST /mcp  (Bearer api_key_B) ──► validates key ──► uses User B's Basecamp tokens
User C ──► POST /mcp  (Bearer api_key_C) ──► validates key ──► uses User C's Basecamp tokens

Each user authenticates once via OAuth and receives a unique API key. From that point on, every MCP request they make is scoped to their own Basecamp account. Tokens are stored in PostgreSQL and auto-refreshed transparently.

Setup

Requires PostgreSQL. Add to .env:

MCP_TRANSPORT=streamable-http
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:pass@localhost:5432/basecamp_mcp
MCP_SERVER_URL=http://your-server:8001
MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0
MCP_PORT=8001

Start the server:

MCP_TRANSPORT=streamable-http ./venv/bin/python basecamp_fastmcp.py

User onboarding (per user, one-time)

  1. User visits http://your-server:8001/

  2. Clicks Connect Basecamp → redirected to 37signals OAuth

  3. Authorizes the app → redirected back to your server

  4. Server stores their Basecamp tokens in PostgreSQL and generates a unique API key

  5. User copies their API key and adds it to their MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "basecamp": {
      "url": "http://your-server:8001/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer <their_api_key>" }
    }
  }
}

After this, the user's AI client has full access to their own Basecamp — and only their Basecamp. No other user's data is accessible.


Available Tools (148 total)

Category

Tools

Projects

get_projects, get_project

Todos

get_todolists, get_todolist, create_todolist, update_todolist, trash_todolist, get_todos, get_todo, create_todo, update_todo, delete_todo, complete_todo, uncomplete_todo, reposition_todo, archive_todo

Todo Groups

get_todolist_groups, create_todolist_group, reposition_todolist_group

Card Tables

get_card_tables, get_card_table, get_columns, get_column, create_column, update_column, move_column, update_column_color, put_column_on_hold, remove_column_hold, watch_column, unwatch_column, get_cards, get_card, create_card, update_card, move_card, complete_card, uncomplete_card

Card Steps

get_card_steps, get_card_step, create_card_step, update_card_step, delete_card_step, complete_card_step, uncomplete_card_step

Messages

get_message_board, get_messages, get_message, get_message_categories, create_message

Comments

get_comments, create_comment

Campfire

get_campfire_lines

Documents

get_documents, get_document, create_document, update_document, trash_document

Inbox

get_inbox, get_forwards, get_forward, get_inbox_replies, get_inbox_reply, trash_forward

Uploads

get_uploads, get_upload, create_attachment

Search

search_basecamp, global_search

Check-ins

get_daily_check_ins, get_question_answers

Events & Webhooks

get_events, get_webhooks, create_webhook, delete_webhook


Architecture

File

Purpose

basecamp_fastmcp.py

Main MCP server — stdio and streamable-http transport

basecamp_client.py

Basecamp 3 API client

basecamp_oauth.py

OAuth 2.0 for 37signals Launchpad

search_utils.py

Cross-project search

auth_manager.py

Auto token refresh (stdio)

token_storage.py

OAuth token persistence (stdio)

user_store.py

PostgreSQL per-user credential store (HTTP)

api_key_verifier.py

API key validation (HTTP)

multi_auth_manager.py

Per-user token refresh (HTTP)

auth_routes.py

OAuth portal routes (HTTP)


Troubleshooting

Problem

Fix

Tools not appearing

Restart MCP client completely

0 tools available

Run python setup.py to reinstall dependencies

Token expired (stdio)

Re-run HTTP server, visit auth portal, stop server

Basecamp not linked (HTTP)

Visit http://your-server:8001/ and connect

Logs:

tail -f basecamp_fastmcp.log
tail -f ~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp-server-basecamp.log  # Claude Desktop (macOS)

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md.

License

MIT — see LICENSE.


Created and open-sourced by Attri

A
license - permissive license
-
quality - not tested
-
maintenance - not tested

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