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DevMCP

by git-lakshy
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DevMCP

A single-file MCP server that turns any folder on your machine into a workspace an AI agent can work in: read and edit files, search code, run shell commands, manage background jobs, test HTTP endpoints, browse pages in headless Chromium, extract PDFs, and capture the screen.

It speaks streamable HTTP, so any remote MCP client can connect through an ngrok tunnel.

How it works

  1. dev_server.py runs an MCP server on 127.0.0.1:8787. The folder it is launched from becomes the workspace root — file tools are sandboxed to it; shell tools are not.

  2. ngrok exposes the port publicly so your MCP client can reach it.

  3. The client calls the tools to read/edit files, run commands, and inspect images or screenshots.

Related MCP server: MCP Server

Tools

Tool

Purpose

workspace_info

Project path plus system details: OS, architecture, shell, Python

project_overview

Manifests (package.json, pyproject.toml, ...) and README head

project_tree

Depth-limited directory tree

view_dir

Single-directory listing with sizes

list_files

Recursive file list (capped, junk dirs skipped)

read_file

Read a file slice with line numbers

file_outline

Class/function/export lines with line numbers

write_file

Create or overwrite a file (UTF-8)

edit_file

Exact-match single replacement

search_code

ripgrep search with a pure-Python fallback

run_cmd

Shell command in the project folder (blocking)

run_powershell

PowerShell in the project folder (blocking)

git

Git wrapper (status, diff, log, commit, ...)

start_process

Run a long command in the background, returns a job id

check_process

Job status plus the tail of its output

stop_process

Kill a background job's process tree

http_request

Test HTTP/API endpoints, including localhost

fetch_page

Load a URL in headless Chromium (JS-rendered text or HTML)

browser_screenshot

Screenshot of a URL rendered in headless Chromium

view_image

Send an image file from the project to the client

screenshot

Capture a monitor

read_pdf

Extract text from a PDF

view_pdf_page

Render one PDF page as an image

restart_server

Restart to pick up dev_server.py changes

stop_server

Shut down; the launcher cleans up ngrok

Requirements

  • Python 3.11+

  • ngrok (a free account with a reserved domain is recommended)

  • Optional, for faster code search: ripgrep (e.g. winget install BurntSushi.ripgrep.MSVC)

Launchers: devmcp.ps1 / devmcp.bat (Windows) and devmcp.sh (Linux; run chmod +x devmcp.sh after cloning).

Setup

  1. Clone the repository and install dependencies:

    pip install -r requirements.txt
playwright install chromium

  2. Reserve a domain in the ngrok dashboard and point the launcher at it:

    setx DEVMCP_NGROK_URL "https://your-domain.ngrok-free.dev"

    If unset, ngrok assigns a random URL each run (check the inspector at http://127.0.0.1:4040).

  3. Add this folder to your PATH so devmcp works from anywhere.

  4. Start it from a project folder:

    cd path/to/project
devmcp

  5. In your MCP client, add a server with:

    • URL: https://your-domain.ngrok-free.dev/mcp (the path must end in /mcp)

    • Transport: streamable HTTP

    • Auth: bearer token with any value (the server does no authentication itself)

Ctrl+C stops the server and the tunnel.

Configuration

Variable

Default

Meaning

DEVMCP_NGROK_URL

(unset)

Reserved ngrok domain used by the launcher

DEVMCP_PORT

8787

Local port for the server and tunnel

DEVMCP_HOST

127.0.0.1

Bind address for the server

All variables are optional — the server runs fine with the defaults. Instead of setting them globally, you can copy .env.example to .env next to the launcher and edit it there; both launchers load it automatically (.env is gitignored).

Output caps, ignored directories, and the browser user agent are constants at the top of dev_server.py.

Security

  • File tools reject paths that escape the launch folder. Shell tools are not sandboxed — they run arbitrary commands with your user's privileges.

  • There is no real authentication. Anyone with the tunnel URL can control your machine: keep the URL private and stop the tunnel when not in use.

Notes

  • Commands that may run longer than ~60 seconds (dev servers, builds) should use start_process + check_process, not a blocking run_cmd.

  • Every tool returns a readable ERROR (...) string instead of raising; a transport-level connection failure means the server or tunnel is down.

  • After editing dev_server.py, call restart_server and retry tools after ~10 seconds.

  • Most MCP clients cache the tool list at connect time — refresh the connection after adding or renaming tools.

Troubleshooting

Symptom

Fix

421 error on connect

ngrok is missing --host-header=localhost:<port> (the launcher sets it)

"Failed to connect" / timeouts

Server or tunnel not running (or mid-restart); wait ~10 s and retry, or rerun devmcp

Stray ngrok process

taskkill /F /IM ngrok.exe

Editor import warnings

Wrong Python interpreter selected, not a real error

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