Unified Diff Generator MCP server

This MCP server provides unified diff generation capabilities, allowing you to compare two text strings and see the differences in a standardized format. It's built using TypeScript and implements the Model Context Protocol standard for integration with AI assistants like Claude.

Installation Options

Global Installation

Install the server globally to make it available from any directory on your system:

npm install -g mcp-server-diff-typescript

Project-Specific Installation

Add the server as a dependency to your current project:

npm install mcp-server-diff-typescript

Configuring with Claude Desktop

Adding Server Configuration

To use this MCP server with Claude Desktop, you'll need to add a server configuration to your Claude Desktop config file:

On MacOS: Edit the file at ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

On Windows: Edit the file at %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Configuration Method 1: Using npx

Add the following configuration to your Claude Desktop config file:

"mcpServers": {
  "mcp-server-diff-typescript": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": [
      "-y",
      "mcp-server-diff-typescript"
    ]
  }
}

Configuration Method 2: Using a Local Installation

Alternatively, you can clone the repository and build it locally:

git clone https://github.com/tatn/mcp-server-diff-typescript.git
cd mcp-server-diff-typescript
npm install
npm run build

Then add this configuration to your Claude Desktop config file:

"mcpServers": {
  "mcp-server-diff-typescript": {
    "command": "node",
    "args": [
      "/path/to/mcp-server-diff-typescript/build/index.js"
    ]
  }
}

Available Tools

get-unified-diff

This tool generates a unified diff between two text strings.

Parameters:

• oldString (required): The original text string
• newString (required): The new text string to compare against

Returns:

• A unified diff format showing the differences between the strings
• Includes 3 lines of context around any changes

Debugging

If you need to troubleshoot the server, you can use the MCP inspector:

When using the npx method:

npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector npx -y mcp-server-diff-typescript

When using the local installation method:

npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node /path/to/mcp-server-diff-typescript/build/index.js

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 "mcp-server-diff-typescript" '{"command":"npx","args":["-y","mcp-server-diff-typescript"]}'

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": {
        "mcp-server-diff-typescript": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "mcp-server-diff-typescript"
            ]
        }
    }
}

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": {
        "mcp-server-diff-typescript": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "mcp-server-diff-typescript"
            ]
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect