mcp-filepuff

A Go-based MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for Claude Code providing intelligent file operations with fast search, AST-aware querying, LSP integration, and safe editing capabilities.

Features

• Fast Text Search: Powered by ripgrep for blazing-fast code search with regex support
• AST-Aware File Reading: Read files with symbol extraction using Tree-sitter
• Code Pattern Matching: Query code using patterns with capture placeholders
• LSP Integration: Go-to-definition, find references, and symbol info via language servers
• Safe Editing: AST-aware file editing with syntax validation and preview
• Multi-Language Support: Go, TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, C, C++, HTML, Vue, React
• Token Efficient: Optimized for minimal token usage with symbols-only mode and output limiting

Installation

Quick Install (Recommended)

Install the latest version with a single command:

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp/main/scripts/install.sh | bash

This script will:

• Automatically detect your platform (OS and architecture)
• Download the latest release
• Verify checksums
• Install to ~/.local/bin (or /usr/local/bin if needed)
• Make the binary executable

Manual Installation

Download pre-built binaries from the releases page:

# macOS (ARM64)
curl -L https://github.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp/releases/latest/download/mcp-filepuff_<version>_darwin_arm64.tar.gz | tar xz
mv mcp-filepuff ~/.local/bin/

# macOS (AMD64)
curl -L https://github.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp/releases/latest/download/mcp-filepuff_<version>_darwin_amd64.tar.gz | tar xz
mv mcp-filepuff ~/.local/bin/

# Linux (ARM64)
curl -L https://github.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp/releases/latest/download/mcp-filepuff_<version>_linux_arm64.tar.gz | tar xz
mv mcp-filepuff ~/.local/bin/

# Linux (AMD64)
curl -L https://github.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp/releases/latest/download/mcp-filepuff_<version>_linux_amd64.tar.gz | tar xz
mv mcp-filepuff ~/.local/bin/

# Windows (PowerShell)
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://github.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp/releases/latest/download/mcp-filepuff_<version>_windows_amd64.zip" -OutFile mcp-filepuff.zip
Expand-Archive mcp-filepuff.zip -DestinationPath $env:USERPROFILE\.local\bin

Replace <version> with the actual version (e.g., v1.0.0).

Prerequisites

• ripgrep (rg) installed and in PATH

Optional Dependencies (for LSP features)

• gopls - Go language server
• typescript-language-server - TypeScript/JavaScript language server
• pylsp - Python language server
• clangd - C/C++ language server

Build from Source

git clone https://github.com/lukaszraczylo/filepuff-mcp.git
cd filepuff-mcp
make build

The binary will be available at bin/mcp-filepuff.

Install via Claude Code

After downloading or building the binary, configure it in Claude Code:

1. Create or edit ~/.config/claude-code/claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "filepuff": {
      "command": "/usr/local/bin/mcp-filepuff",
      "args": ["-workspace", "/path/to/your/workspace"],
      "env": {
        "MCP_LOG_LEVEL": "info"
      }
    }
  }
}

2. Restart Claude Code to load the MCP server

3. Verify by asking Claude: "Can you ping the filepuff server?"

See the Claude Code MCP documentation for more details.

Usage

Running the Server (Standalone)

./bin/mcp-filepuff -workspace /path/to/workspace

Command Line Options

• -workspace string: Workspace root directory (default: current directory)
• -log-level string: Log level - debug, info, warn, error (default: "info")
• -log-file string: Log file path (default: stderr)

Configuration

The server can be configured via:

1. Environment Variables:

   • MCP_WORKSPACE_ROOT: Workspace root directory
   • MCP_LSP_TIMEOUT: LSP timeout duration (e.g., "10m")
   • MCP_SEARCH_TIMEOUT: Search timeout duration (e.g., "1m")
   • MCP_ENABLE_LSP: Enable LSP features ("true"/"false")
   • MCP_FOLLOW_SYMLINKS: Follow symbolic links ("true"/"false")
   • MCP_RESPECT_GITIGNORE: Respect .gitignore files ("true"/"false")

2. Config File: Create .mcp-filepuff.json in the workspace root:

   {
     "enable_lsp": true,
     "follow_symlinks": true,
     "respect_gitignore": true
   }
   

Claude Code Integration

To use mcp-filepuff with Claude Code, add it to your MCP server configuration:

1. Global Configuration (~/.config/claude-code/mcp_servers.json):

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "filepuff": {
         "command": "/path/to/mcp-filepuff",
         "args": ["-workspace", "/path/to/your/workspace"]
       }
     }
   }
   

2. Project-specific Configuration (.claude/mcp_servers.json in your project):

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "filepuff": {
         "command": "mcp-filepuff",
         "args": ["-workspace", "."]
       }
     }
   }
   

After configuration, Claude Code will have access to all mcp-filepuff tools for enhanced file operations.

Making Claude Code Prefer Filepuff Tools

By default, Claude Code uses its built-in file operation tools. To make it prefer filepuff's enhanced tools, add instructions to your CLAUDE.md file:

Global Configuration (~/.claude/CLAUDE.md):

# MCP Tool Preferences

When performing file operations, prefer filepuff MCP tools over built-in equivalents:

| Operation | Use This | Instead Of |
|-----------|----------|------------|
| Read files | `mcp__filepuff__file_read` | Read |
| Search content | `mcp__filepuff__file_search` | Grep |
| AST pattern search | `mcp__filepuff__ast_query` | Grep/Glob |
| Edit files | `mcp__filepuff__edit_preview` + `mcp__filepuff__edit_apply` | Edit |
| Find definitions | `mcp__filepuff__find_definition` | Grep |
| Find references | `mcp__filepuff__find_references` | Grep |
| Symbol info | `mcp__filepuff__symbol_at` | - |

Benefits of filepuff tools:
- AST-aware operations that understand code structure
- LSP integration for accurate symbol navigation
- Syntax validation before applying edits

You can also place this in a project-specific CLAUDE.md or .claude/CLAUDE.md file.

Optional: Restrict Built-in Tools

To enforce filepuff usage, add permission restrictions in .claude/settings.json:

{
  "permissions": {
    "deny": ["Read", "Edit", "Grep"]
  }
}

Available Tools

ping

Health check tool to verify the server is running.

Returns: "pong"

---

file_search

Search for text patterns in files using ripgrep.

Parameters:

• pattern (required): The search pattern (regex by default)
• paths: Paths to search in (defaults to workspace root)
• file_types: File types to search (e.g., ["go", "ts", "py"])
• ignore_case: Case insensitive search
• regex: Treat pattern as regex (default: true)
• context_lines: Number of context lines around matches (default: 2)
• max_results: Maximum number of results to return

---

file_read

Read a file's contents with optional line range and AST symbol summary. Supports token-efficient modes for AI assistants.

Parameters:

• path (required): Path to the file to read
• line_start: Starting line number (1-indexed)
• line_end: Ending line number (inclusive)
• include_ast: Include AST symbol summary (functions, classes, types, etc.)
• symbols_only: [Token Efficient] Return only symbol summary without file content. Requires include_ast=true. Reduces token usage by ~90-98%.
• max_lines: [Token Efficient] Maximum number of lines to return. Useful for large files where you only need a preview.

Example Output with AST:

**server.go** (245 lines, go)

Symbols:
  func NewServer  L12
  func (Server).Start  L45
  struct Server  L5
  type Config  L150

---

   12│ func NewServer(config Config) *Server {
   13│     return &Server{config: config}
   14│ }

Token-Efficient Example (symbols_only):

{"path": "server.go", "include_ast": true, "symbols_only": true}

Returns only the symbol summary (~500 tokens instead of ~8,000 tokens for the full file):

**server.go** (245 lines, go)

Symbols:
  func NewServer  L12
  func (Server).Start  L45
  struct Server  L5
  type Config  L150

Token-Efficient Example (max_lines):

{"path": "server.go", "max_lines": 50}

Returns first 50 lines with a truncation notice if the file is longer.

---

ast_query

Search for AST patterns in code files using structural pattern matching.

Parameters:

• pattern (required): Code pattern with placeholders
  • $NAME - capture single node
  • $$$ARGS - capture multiple nodes
  • $_ - wildcard (match but don't capture)
• language (required): Target language (go, typescript, javascript, python, c, cpp)
• paths: Paths to search in
• name_matches: Regex pattern to filter by name
• name_exact: Exact name to match
• kind_in: Node types to match (e.g., function_declaration)
• max_results: Maximum number of results (default: 100)

Examples:

// Find all Go functions returning error
{"pattern": "func $NAME($$$ARGS) error", "language": "go"}

// Find all Python classes
{"pattern": "class $NAME: $$$BODY", "language": "python"}

// Find React components (functions starting with uppercase)
{"pattern": "function $NAME($PROPS) { $$$BODY }", "language": "javascript", "name_matches": "^[A-Z]"}

---

symbol_at

Get information about the symbol at a specific position. Uses LSP when available, falls back to AST.

Parameters:

• file (required): Path to the file
• line (required): Line number (1-indexed)
• column (required): Column number (1-indexed)

---

find_definition

Find the definition of the symbol at a specific position.

Parameters:

• file (required): Path to the file
• line (required): Line number (1-indexed)
• column (required): Column number (1-indexed)

---

find_references

Find all references to the symbol at a specific position.

Parameters:

• file (required): Path to the file
• line (required): Line number (1-indexed)
• column (required): Column number (1-indexed)
• include_declaration: Include the declaration in results (default: true)

---

edit_preview

Preview an edit without applying it. Uses AST-aware editing for code files (Go, TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, C, C++), and text-based editing for other files (Markdown, JSON, YAML, config files, etc.).

Parameters:

• file (required): Path to the file to edit
• operation (required): Edit operation (replace, insert_before, insert_after, delete)
• new_content: New content (required for replace/insert operations)

AST-mode selectors (for code files):

• selector_kind: Node type to match (e.g., function_declaration)
• selector_name: Name of the symbol to match

Shared selectors:

• selector_line: Line number (1-indexed). For AST mode: narrows search. For text mode: start of line range.
• selector_index: Index of the match to use if multiple matches found (default: 0)

Text-mode selectors (for non-code files or explicit text matching):

• selector_line_end: End line number for range selection
• selector_text: Exact text to match (must be unique or use selector_index)
• selector_pattern: Regex pattern to match

---

edit_apply

Apply an edit to a file. Uses AST-aware editing for code files with syntax validation, and text-based editing for other files.

Parameters: Same as edit_preview

Example (AST mode - Go file):

{
  "file": "server.go",
  "operation": "replace",
  "selector_kind": "function_declaration",
  "selector_name": "Hello",
  "new_content": "func Hello() {\n\tprintln(\"New Hello\")\n}"
}

Example (Text mode - Markdown file):

{
  "file": "README.md",
  "operation": "replace",
  "selector_text": "## Installation",
  "new_content": "## Getting Started"
}

Example (Text mode - JSON with regex):

{
  "file": "package.json",
  "operation": "replace",
  "selector_pattern": "\"version\":\\s*\"[^\"]+\"",
  "new_content": "\"version\": \"2.0.0\""
}

Example (Text mode - Line range):

{
  "file": "config.yaml",
  "operation": "replace",
  "selector_line": 5,
  "selector_line_end": 10,
  "new_content": "database:\n  host: production.db.example.com\n  port: 5432"
}

Supported Languages

Language	Extensions	Search	AST	LSP	Edit
Go	.go	Yes	Yes	gopls	Yes
TypeScript	.ts, .tsx	Yes	Yes	typescript-language-server	Yes
JavaScript	.js, .jsx, .mjs, .cjs	Yes	Yes	typescript-language-server	Yes
Python	.py, .pyw	Yes	Yes	pylsp	Yes
C	.c, .h	Yes	Yes	clangd	Yes
C++	.cpp, .cc, .cxx, .hpp, .hxx	Yes	Yes	clangd	Yes
HTML	.html, .htm	Yes	Yes	-	Yes
Vue	.vue	Yes	Yes*	-	Yes
React	.jsx, .tsx	Yes	Yes	typescript-language-server	Yes
Elixir	.ex, .exs	Yes	Yes	elixir-ls	Yes

* Vue uses HTML parser for template sections

Development

Build

make build

Run Tests

make test

Lint

make lint

Clean

make clean

Project Structure

.
├── cmd/
│   └── mcp-filepuff/       # Main entry point
├── internal/
│   ├── config/             # Configuration management
│   ├── edit/               # AST-aware editing engine
│   ├── lsp/                # LSP client and manager
│   ├── parser/             # Tree-sitter integration
│   ├── query/              # AST pattern matching
│   ├── search/             # Ripgrep wrapper
│   └── server/             # MCP server implementation
├── pkg/
│   └── protocol/           # Shared types
├── .github/
│   └── workflows/          # CI configuration
├── Makefile               # Build automation
├── .goreleaser.yaml       # Release configuration
└── TODO.md                # Implementation roadmap

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    MCP Server                           │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  Tools: file_search, file_read, ast_query, symbol_at,  │
│         find_definition, find_references,              │
│         edit_preview, edit_apply, ping                 │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                    Core Engines                         │
├───────────┬─────────────┬────────────┬─────────────────┤
│  Search   │   Parser    │    LSP     │     Edit        │
│ (ripgrep) │(tree-sitter)│  Manager   │    Engine       │
└───────────┴─────────────┴────────────┴─────────────────┘

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

"ripgrep not found" Error

The file_search tool requires ripgrep (rg) to be installed and in your PATH.

Solution: Install ripgrep:

# macOS
brew install ripgrep

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install ripgrep

# Windows (with Chocolatey)
choco install ripgrep

LSP Features Not Working

LSP features (go-to-definition, find-references, symbol-at) require language servers to be installed.

Solution: Install the appropriate language server:

# Go
go install golang.org/x/tools/gopls@latest

# TypeScript/JavaScript
npm install -g typescript-language-server typescript

# Python
pip install python-lsp-server

# C/C++
# macOS: brew install llvm
# Ubuntu: sudo apt install clangd

AST Parsing Fails for Valid Code

If AST parsing fails for code that compiles correctly, it may be a Tree-sitter grammar limitation.

Solution:

• Ensure the file has the correct extension for its language
• Check for unusual syntax that may not be supported by the Tree-sitter grammar
• Try using the file_search tool instead for text-based operations

Edit Operations Fail with "syntax error"

The edit engine validates syntax before and after edits.

Solution:

• Ensure new_content is syntactically valid for the target language
• Use edit_preview first to see the proposed changes
• Check that the selector matches exactly one node

Timeout Errors

Long-running operations may timeout.

Solution: Configure timeout values via environment variables:

export MCP_LSP_TIMEOUT="10m"      # LSP operations (default: 5m)
export MCP_SEARCH_TIMEOUT="2m"    # Search operations (default: 30s)

Permission Denied Errors

The server needs read/write access to workspace files.

Solution:

• Ensure the user running the server has appropriate file permissions
• Check that the workspace path is correct and accessible
• On macOS, grant terminal/IDE full disk access if needed

Debug Logging

Enable debug logging to troubleshoot issues:

./bin/mcp-filepuff -workspace /path/to/workspace -log-level debug -log-file /tmp/mcp-filepuff.log

Verifying Installation

Use the ping tool to verify the server is running correctly:

{"tool": "ping"}

Expected response: "pong"

License

MIT License