Universal Change Review

Local, read-only Git change review for Codex, Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible client. Version 0.4 adds one-click Changes entry points: a Cursor activity-bar extension and an MCP Apps launcher card for compatible Codex/ChatGPT hosts.

It provides total workspace diffs, staged/unstaged views, file-level inspection, and task-scoped snapshots that isolate only the changes made after a task begins. Source files and the real Git index are never modified by the review tools.

Requirements

Node.js 20+
Git 2.30+
A Git repository

Tools

Tool	Purpose
`changes_summary`	Status, diff stat, and per-file additions/deletions
`changes_diff`	Full or file-scoped diff for all/staged/unstaged changes
`changes_begin`	Capture a task baseline without changing the real index
`changes_since`	Compare the current repository with a task baseline
`changes_snapshots`	List saved baselines for the current repository
`changes_open_panel`	Start a live, read-only Changes panel on localhost

The MCP server also exposes two reusable prompts when the client supports MCP prompts:

Prompt	Purpose
`review-changes`	Run a findings-first review of the current Changes
`begin-change-task`	Capture a baseline before implementation begins

Task snapshots use a temporary Git index and store only a Git tree id plus metadata under .git/universal-change-review/. Ignored files are not captured. No source code is uploaded.

Codex

Clone the repository, register its marketplace, then install the plugin:

git clone https://github.com/IP-DZ/universal-change-review.git
codex plugin marketplace add ./universal-change-review
codex plugin install universal-change-review@ip-dz

The Codex package includes the change-review skill, UI metadata, starter prompts, the MCP server definition, and an MCP Apps launcher card. Invoke the skill explicitly with $change-review, or ask Codex to open the current Changes. Compatible hosts render a clickable Open Changes card; other hosts receive the same localhost URL as text.

Claude Code

Install from the repository as a Claude Code plugin to get its skill and /review-changes command, or add the MCP server directly:

claude mcp add universal-change-review --scope user -- npx -y github:IP-DZ/universal-change-review mcp

Cursor

For the closest DSH-style experience, install the bundled Cursor extension:

npm run build:cursor
cursor --install-extension dist/universal-change-review-cursor-0.4.0.vsix --force

After reloading Cursor, click Changes Review in the bottom status bar, or use the Changes Review activity-bar icon. The extension automatically follows the first open workspace and opens the live panel in a Cursor editor tab. It runs the same local, read-only panel code bundled inside the extension.

For a project-scoped setup, copy .cursor/mcp.json, .cursor/rules/change-review.mdc, and .cursor/commands/review-changes.md into a project. Then use /review-changes in Cursor chat.

For a global MCP setup, merge this server into ~/.cursor/mcp.json without replacing existing entries:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "universal-change-review": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "github:IP-DZ/universal-change-review", "mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor's global MCP configuration makes the tools available in every repository. Cursor rules and custom commands are project-scoped, so copy the provided rule and command into repositories where you want the guided workflow.

Recommended workflow

Before a substantial task, ask the agent to start a change baseline.
Implement and validate the requested behavior.
Run $change-review, /review-changes, or the MCP review-changes prompt depending on the client.
Review findings ordered by P0-P3 severity, followed by changed behavior, validation, and remaining risks.

Live Changes panel

Ask the agent to “open Changes”, call the changes_open_panel MCP tool, or run:

npx -y github:IP-DZ/universal-change-review web --cwd /path/to/repo

The returned localhost page provides live file counts, All/Staged/Unstaged filters, task-baseline selection, and line-level per-file diffs. It binds only to 127.0.0.1, uses a random access token, and exposes no write or revert endpoint.

CLI

Run directly from GitHub:

npx -y github:IP-DZ/universal-change-review summary --cwd /path/to/repo
npx -y github:IP-DZ/universal-change-review begin --cwd /path/to/repo --label feature
npx -y github:IP-DZ/universal-change-review since --cwd /path/to/repo --id SNAPSHOT_ID

Safety

No undo, reset, checkout, commit, push, or file-write tool is exposed.
The worktree and real Git index are not changed.
Snapshot capture writes normal Git blob/tree objects and metadata inside .git.
Diff output is capped by default and can be limited to one file.
Clients should still request user approval before launching third-party MCP servers.

Development

npm test
npm run check
npm run build:cursor