Xcodebuild MCP server

The mcpxcodebuild MCP server provides a Model Context Protocol implementation that enables seamless iOS development within Visual Studio Code editors. It allows you to build and test iOS Xcode workspaces or projects directly from editors like Cline or Roo Code.

Available Tools

This MCP server provides two main tools:

• build - Builds iOS Xcode workspace/project
  • Requires folder parameter (string): The full path to the iOS Xcode workspace/project
• test - Runs tests for iOS Xcode workspace/project
  • Requires folder parameter (string): The full path to the iOS Xcode workspace/project

Installation

Using uv (Recommended)

When using uv, no specific installation is needed. You can use uvx to directly run mcpxcodebuild:

# No installation required with uvx

Using pip

Alternatively, install mcpxcodebuild using pip:

pip install mcpxcodebuild

After installation, you can run it as a Python module:

python -m mcpxcodebuild

Configuration

Configure for Claude.app

To set up the server with Claude.app, add the appropriate configuration to your Claude settings:

Using uvx

"mcpServers": {
  "mcpxcodebuild": {
    "command": "uvx",
    "args": ["mcpxcodebuild"]
  }
}

Using pip installation

"mcpServers": {
  "mcpxcodebuild": {
    "command": "python",
    "args": ["-m", "mcpxcodebuild"]
  }
}

Usage

Once configured, the MCP server integrates with your editor and enables you to:

1. Build your iOS projects directly from your editor by providing the folder path
2. Run tests on your iOS projects by providing the folder path

The server handles the communication between your editor and Xcode, allowing for a smoother development workflow without constantly switching between applications.

How to install this MCP server

For Claude Code

To add this MCP server to Claude Code, run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add-json "mcpxcodebuild" '{"command":"python","args":["-m","mcpxcodebuild"]}'

See the official Claude Code MCP documentation for more details.

For 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 > Tools & Integrations and click "New MCP Server".

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

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "mcpxcodebuild": {
            "command": "python",
            "args": [
                "-m",
                "mcpxcodebuild"
            ]
        }
    }
}

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 explicitly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.

For Claude Desktop

To add this MCP server to Claude Desktop:

1. Find your configuration file:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

2. Add this to your configuration file:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "mcpxcodebuild": {
            "command": "python",
            "args": [
                "-m",
                "mcpxcodebuild"
            ]
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect