Code Research MCP server

This MCP server provides tools for searching and accessing programming resources across multiple platforms like Stack Overflow, MDN Web Docs, GitHub, npm, and PyPI. It helps LLMs find relevant code examples, documentation, and packages from these popular developer resources.

Features

Integrated Platforms

• Stack Overflow - Programming Q&A
• MDN Web Docs - Web development documentation
• GitHub - Code and repository search
• npm - JavaScript package registry
• PyPI - Python package index

Available Tools

search_stackoverflow

Search Stack Overflow for programming questions and answers.

• Parameters:
  • query (required): Search query string
  • limit (optional): Maximum results (1-10, default: 5)
• Returns: Formatted list of questions with scores, answer counts, and excerpts
• Results are cached for 1 hour

search_mdn

Search MDN Web Docs for web development documentation.

• Parameters:
  • query (required): Search query string
• Returns: Top 5 MDN documentation matches with summaries and links
• Results are cached for 1 hour

search_github

Search GitHub for both repositories and code examples.

• Parameters:
  • query (required): Search query string
  • language (optional): Filter by programming language
  • limit (optional): Maximum results per category (1-10, default: 5)
• Returns: Two sections:
  1. Top repositories sorted by stars
  2. Relevant code files with repository context
• Results are cached for 1 hour

search_npm

Search npm registry for JavaScript packages.

• Parameters:
  • query (required): Search query string
  • limit (optional): Maximum results (1-10, default: 5)
• Returns: Package information including version, description, and download stats
• Results are cached for 1 hour

search_pypi

Search PyPI for Python packages.

• Parameters:
  • query (required): Search query string
• Returns: Detailed package information including version, author, and links
• Results are cached for 1 hour

search_all

Search all platforms simultaneously for comprehensive results.

• Parameters:
  • query (required): Search query string
  • limit (optional): Maximum results per platform (1-5, default: 3)
• Returns: Combined results from all platforms in parallel for faster response
• Results are cached for 1 hour

Requirements

• Node.js >= 20.11.0
• npm >= 10.0.0
• Optional: GitHub personal access token for higher API rate limits

Installation

Via Smithery

The easiest way to install Code Research Server for Claude Desktop is automatically via Smithery:

npx -y @smithery/cli install @nahmanmate/code-research-mcp-server --client claude

Manual Installation

1. Clone the repository and install dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/nahmanmate/code-research-mcp-server.git
cd code-research-server
npm install

2. Build the server:

npm run build

3. Configure MCP Settings:

Add the server configuration to your MCP settings file:

• For VSCode: ~/.vscode-server/data/User/globalStorage/rooveterinaryinc.roo-cline/settings/cline_mcp_settings.json
• For Claude Desktop:
  • MacOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
  • Windows: %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "code-research": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/code-research-mcp-server/build/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "GITHUB_TOKEN": "your_github_token"  // Optional: Prevents rate limiting
      },
      "disabled": false,
      "alwaysAllow": []
    }
  }
}

Note: Replace /absolute/path/to with the actual path where you cloned the repository.

Usage

Once installed, the MCP server will be available to your Claude instance. The tools can be used by Claude without explicit commands from you. Here are some example prompts you might use with Claude:

• "Find me examples of React hooks on Stack Overflow"
• "Search for Express.js routing documentation on MDN"
• "What are the most popular Python data visualization libraries on PyPI?"
• "Find GitHub repositories for serverless frameworks"
• "Search for popular npm packages for date manipulation"

The MCP server will handle these requests by executing the appropriate search tools and returning formatted results that Claude can interpret and present to you.

How to add this MCP server to Cursor

There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.

If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > MCP and click "Add new global MCP server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "cursor-rules-mcp": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "cursor-rules-mcp"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.

How to use the MCP server

Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.

The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.

You can also explictly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.