Skip to main content
Glama
sidebutton

SideButton

Official
by sidebutton

SideButton

Open-source AI agent platform for agentic coding — MCP server, knowledge packs, and AI workflow automation.

npm License

sidebutton.com · docs.sidebutton.com

Run AI coding agents with agentic workflows, knowledge packs, and real browser control. Connect Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, ChatGPT, or any MCP client.

npx sidebutton@latest
# Dashboard at http://localhost:9876

What you get

MCP Server

AI agent tools for browser control, workflow execution, and knowledge pack access. Stdio and SSE transports.

REST API

Trigger workflows remotely from webhooks, cron jobs, mobile apps, or other agents.

Workflow Engine

AI workflow automation with browser, git, issue-tracking, LLM, shell, and control-flow steps. Define agentic workflows in YAML.

Knowledge Packs

Installable domain knowledge — CSS selectors, data models, state machines. Role playbooks turn coding agents into an AI software engineer, QA, or PM.

Chrome Extension

Browser commands with real DOM access via WebSocket, not screenshots. Recording mode.

Dashboard

Svelte UI — workflow browser, run logs, skill pack manager, system status.

Related MCP server: OpenTabs

Quick Start

# Install and start
npx sidebutton@latest

# Or from source
pnpm install && pnpm build && pnpm start

# Open http://localhost:9876

CLI

pnpm cli serve          # Start server with dashboard
pnpm cli serve --stdio  # Start with stdio transport (for Claude Desktop)
pnpm cli list           # List available workflows
pnpm cli status         # Check server status

# Skill pack management
pnpm cli registry add <path|url>   # Install skill packs from a registry
pnpm cli registry update [name]    # Update installed packs
pnpm cli registry remove <name>    # Uninstall packs and remove registry
pnpm cli search [query]            # Search available skill packs

# Creating skill packs
pnpm cli init [domain]             # Scaffold a new skill pack
pnpm cli validate [path]           # Validate pack structure
pnpm cli publish [source]          # Publish to a registry

MCP Server

SideButton is an open-source MCP server for AI coding agents. Agents connect to it directly for browser control, workflow automation, and domain knowledge.

Works with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Claude Desktop, VS Code, Windsurf, ChatGPT — any MCP client.

Claude Code

claude mcp add sidebutton --transport http http://localhost:9876/mcp

Persists to ~/.claude.json; add --scope project to write ./.mcp.json instead. Full guide: Claude Code SideButton MCP setup.

Codex

Add to ~/.codex/config.toml:

[mcp_servers.sidebutton]
command = "sidebutton"
args = ["serve", "--stdio"]

Full guide: OpenAI Codex SideButton MCP setup.

Claude Desktop

Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sidebutton": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["sidebutton", "--stdio"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Add to ~/.cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sidebutton": {
      "url": "http://localhost:9876/mcp"
    }
  }
}

MCP Tools

Tool

Description

run_workflow

Execute a workflow by ID

get_run_log

Get execution log for a run

list_workflows

List all available workflows

get_workflow

Get workflow YAML definition

list_run_logs

List recent workflow executions

publish_artifact

Publish evidence (screenshots, reports) from a session

get_browser_status

Check browser extension connection

capture_page

Capture selectors from current page

navigate

Navigate browser to URL

snapshot

Get page accessibility snapshot

click

Click an element

type

Type text into an element

press_key

Send keyboard keys

scroll

Scroll the page

extract

Extract text from element

screenshot

Capture page screenshot

select_option

Select dropdown option

fill

Fill input value (React-compatible)

wait

Wait for element or delay

exists

Check if element exists

extract_all

Extract all matching elements

extract_map

Extract structured data from repeated elements

scroll_into_view

Scroll element into viewport

hover

Hover over element

evaluate

Execute JavaScript in browser

browser_batch

Run a sequence of browser actions in one call

set_basic_auth

Set HTTP Basic Auth credentials for the connected tab

clear_basic_auth

Clear stored HTTP Basic Auth credentials

REST API

JSON endpoints for external integrations. The same workflows are available via MCP locally and via REST remotely.

# Run a workflow
curl -X POST http://localhost:9876/api/workflows/check_ticket/run \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"params": {"ticket_id": "PROJ-123"}}'

# List workflows
curl http://localhost:9876/api/workflows

# Get run log
curl http://localhost:9876/api/runs/latest

Trigger workflows from webhooks, cron jobs, mobile apps, or other agents on different machines.

Workflow Engine

YAML-first orchestration for agentic workflows. Step types by family:

Step Types

Family

Steps

browser.*

navigate, click, type, fill, extract, extractAll, extractMap, snapshot, wait, exists, hover, key, scroll, scrollIntoView, select_option, injectCSS, injectJS

git.*

createPR, getPR, listPRs, getIssue, listIssues

issues.*

create, get, search, comment, attach, transition

llm.*

classify, decide, generate

control.*

if, foreach, retry, stop

shell / terminal

shell.run, terminal.open, terminal.run

data.*

first, get

workflow.call

Call another workflow with parameters

LLM steps work with Ollama (local), OpenAI, and Anthropic.

Example

id: check_ticket_status
title: "Check Jira ticket and classify"
steps:
  - type: browser.navigate
    url: "https://your-org.atlassian.net/browse/{{ticket_id}}"
  - type: browser.extract
    selector: "[data-testid='status-field']"
    as: current_status
  - type: control.if
    condition: "{{current_status}} != 'Done'"
    then:
      - type: llm.classify
        prompt: "Should this ticket be closed? Context: {{current_status}}"
        classes: [close, keep_open]
        as: decision

Variable Interpolation

Use {{variable}} syntax to reference extracted values or parameters:

steps:
  - type: browser.extract
    selector: ".username"
    as: user
  - type: shell.run
    cmd: "echo 'Hello, {{user}}!'"

Knowledge Packs

Installable domain knowledge (skill packs) per web app or domain. Knowledge packs power AI code review, automated testing, and enterprise AI agent deployments.

Also referred to as skill packs in code and CLI commands.

  • Selectors — CSS selectors for UI elements

  • Data models — entity types, fields, relationships, valid states

  • State machines — valid transitions per state

  • Role playbooks — role-specific procedures (QA, SE, PM, SD)

  • Common tasks — step-by-step procedures, gotchas, edge cases

sidebutton install github.com
sidebutton install atlassian.net

Open registry with published packs for popular web apps. Build and share packs for any domain.

Chrome Extension

Install the SideButton Chrome Extension from the Chrome Web Store.

  • Browser commands — navigate, click, type, extract, scroll, wait, snapshot

  • Real DOM access via CSS selectors — not pixel coordinates, not screenshots

  • Recording mode — capture manual actions as workflows

  • Embed buttons — inject action buttons into any web page

  • WebSocket connection — stable reconnection, works with local or remote server

After installing:

  1. Navigate to any website

  2. Click the SideButton extension icon

  3. Click "Connect This Tab"

Dashboard & Observability

Svelte UI at http://localhost:9876:

  • Workflow browser — list, search, run

  • Run logs — step-by-step execution traces with timing, variables, errors

  • Skill pack manager — install, browse, inspect

  • System status — extension connection, LLM config, server health

SideButton handles multi-agent orchestration — from workflow execution to knowledge injection.

Architecture

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                          @sidebutton/server                               │
│                                                                          │
│  ┌─────────────────────┐   ┌──────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │  stdio Transport    │   │    Fastify HTTP + WebSocket (port 9876)  │  │
│  │  ─────────────────  │   │    ────────────────────────────────────  │  │
│  │  stdin → JSON-RPC   │   │  GET  /        → Dashboard (Svelte)      │  │
│  │  stdout ← JSON-RPC  │   │  GET  /ws      → Chrome Extension WS     │  │
│  │  (Claude Desktop)   │   │  POST /mcp     → MCP JSON-RPC (SSE)      │  │
│  └──────────┬──────────┘   │  GET  /api/*   → REST API                │  │
│             │              └──────────────────────┬───────────────────┘  │
│             │                                     │                      │
│             └──────────────────┬──────────────────┘                      │
│                                ▼                                         │
│  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │                       @sidebutton/core                              │  │
│  │                                                                     │  │
│  │  - Workflow types & parser (YAML)                                  │  │
│  │  - Step executors (YAML step types)                                │  │
│  │  - Variable interpolation                                          │  │
│  │  - Execution context & events                                      │  │
│  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
      ▲                ▲                      ▲                      ▲
      │ stdio          │ WebSocket            │ HTTP POST            │ REST
      ▼                ▼                      ▼                      ▼
┌──────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐ ┌───────────────────┐
│Claude Desktop│ │ Chrome Extension│ │   Claude Code   │ │   Mobile App      │
│ (MCP stdio)  │ │ (Browser Auto)  │ │   (MCP SSE)     │ │   (REST Client)   │
└──────────────┘ └─────────────────┘ └─────────────────┘ └───────────────────┘

Project Structure

sidebutton/
├── packages/
│   ├── core/              # @sidebutton/core — workflow engine
│   │   └── src/
│   │       ├── types.ts       # Workflow types
│   │       ├── parser.ts      # YAML loader
│   │       ├── executor.ts    # Workflow runner
│   │       └── steps/         # Step implementations
│   ├── server/            # @sidebutton/server — MCP + HTTP + CLI
│   │   ├── bin/               # CLI entry point
│   │   └── src/
│   │       ├── server.ts      # Fastify HTTP server
│   │       ├── stdio-mode.ts  # stdio transport entry point
│   │       ├── extension.ts   # WebSocket client
│   │       ├── mcp/           # MCP handlers
│   │       │   ├── handler.ts    # MCP JSON-RPC logic
│   │       │   ├── stdio.ts      # stdio transport adapter
│   │       │   └── tools.ts      # Tool definitions
│   │       └── cli.ts         # Commander CLI
│   └── dashboard/         # Svelte web UI
│       └── src/
│           ├── App.svelte
│           └── lib/
├── extension/             # Chrome extension
├── workflows/             # Public workflow library
├── actions/               # User-created workflows
├── skills/                # Installed skill packs
└── run_logs/              # Execution history

Environment Variables

Variable

Required For

Description

OPENAI_API_KEY

llm.* steps

OpenAI API key for LLM workflows

ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

llm.* steps

Anthropic API key (alternative)

Development

pnpm install       # Install dependencies
pnpm build         # Build all packages
pnpm start         # Start server
pnpm cli list      # List workflows
pnpm cli status    # Check status

Watch Mode

pnpm dev              # Full dev mode (all packages)
pnpm dev:server       # Server with auto-restart on :9876
pnpm dev:dashboard    # Dashboard watch build
pnpm dev:core         # Core library watch build

Platform Automation Disclaimer

SideButton is a general-purpose browser automation framework. When automating third-party platforms:

  • Review Terms of Service: Many platforms prohibit or restrict automation. You are responsible for complying with the terms of any platform you automate.

  • Account Risk: Automation may result in account restrictions or suspension on some platforms.

  • Use Responsibly: Only automate actions you would perform manually. Respect rate limits and platform guidelines.

The authors do not endorse or encourage violations of third-party terms of service.

License

This project uses mixed licensing — see LICENSING.md:

  • Engine, server, CLI, dashboard — Apache-2.0

  • Browser extension — FSL-1.1-Apache-2.0 (converts to Apache-2.0 on 2029-03-15)

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

Maintenance

Maintainers
153dResponse time
3wRelease cycle
7Releases (12mo)
Commit activity
Issues opened vs closed

Resources

Unclaimed servers have limited discoverability.

Looking for Admin?

If you are the server author, to access and configure the admin panel.

Related MCP Servers

  • A
    license
    A
    quality
    A
    maintenance
    Open-source MCP server that gives AI agents access to 100+ web applications through the user's authenticated browser session. No API keys, no screenshots, no DOM scraping — talks directly to web app internal APIs via a Chrome extension. Supports Slack, Discord, GitHub, Jira, Notion, Reddit, X, and 100+ more services with ~2,000 tools. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, and any MCP client.
    42
    888
    MIT
  • A
    license
    -
    quality
    B
    maintenance
    Unified knowledge management and agent orchestration MCP server for Claude Code that remembers project patterns, assigns specialist agents, loads relevant knowledge into prompts, and tracks work across sessions to save time and reduce costs.
    1
    GPL 3.0
  • A
    license
    -
    quality
    B
    maintenance
    MCP server that enables AI tools to control local browser sessions for ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI services, supporting querying, navigation, file uploads, and artifact management.
    65
    529
    Mozilla Public 2.0

View all related MCP servers

Related MCP Connectors

  • MCP server for AI agents to plan, verify, and deploy Cloudflare-native apps.

  • Free public MCP for AI agents — 193 tools, 44 workflows. No API key.

  • Real-time chat hub for AI agents — Claude Code, Cursor, Cline, Codex over MCP or REST.

View all MCP Connectors

Latest Blog Posts

MCP directory API

We provide all the information about MCP servers via our MCP API.

curl -X GET 'https://glama.ai/api/mcp/v1/servers/sidebutton/sidebutton'

If you have feedback or need assistance with the MCP directory API, please join our Discord server