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docs/02-usage/030_clients.md
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# Connecting Your MCP Client
In the following, we provide default configurations for popular MCP-enabled clients.
In the following, we provide general instructions on how to connect Serena to your MCP-enabled client,
as well as specific instructions for popular clients.
Depending on your needs, you might want to customize Serena's behaviour by
* [adding command-line arguments](mcp-args)
* [adjusting configuration](050_configuration).
(clients-general-instructions)=
## General Instructions
While you may be able to turn off tools through your client's interface (e.g., in VSCode or Claude Desktop),
we **highly** recommend selecting your toolset through the
Serena configuration instead, since Serena's prompts automatically
adjust based on which tools are enabled/disabled.
In general, Serena can be used with any MCP-enabled client.
To connect Serena to your favourite client, simply
## General
1. determine how to add a custom MCP server to your client (refer to the client's documentation).
2. add a new MCP server entry by specifying either
* a [run command](start-mcp-server) that allows the client to start the MCP server in stdio mode as a subprocess, or
* the URL of the HTTP/SSE endpoint, having started the [Serena MCP server in HTTP/SSE mode](streamable-http) beforehand.
> Please make sure to read these general instructions before proceeding to the client-specific sections below!
Depending on your needs, you might want to further customize Serena's behaviour by
* [adding command-line arguments](mcp-args)
* [adjusting configuration](050_configuration).
In the section on [running the MCP server](020_running), we described various ways of starting the Serena server. For
brevity, here we present only commands that use the `uvx` way and the `stdio` protocol. You can easily adapt the
commands to your preferred way of running Serena.
**Mode of Operation**.
Note that some clients have a per-workspace MCP configuration (e.g, VSCode and Claude Code),
while others have a global MCP configuration (e.g. Codex and Claude Desktop).
Some clients have a per-workspace MCP configuration (e.g., VSCode and Claude Code), while others have a global MCP
configuration (e.g., Codex and Claude Desktop).
- In the per-workspace case, you typically want Serena to start
within the project directory and never switch to a different project, which is achieved by specifying the
`--project <path>` argument when starting the MCP server. This also disables the `activate_project` tool.
- In the per-workspace case, you typically want to start Serena with your workspace directory as the project directory
and never switch to a different project. This is achieved by specifying the
`--project <path>` argument with a single-project [context](#contexts) (e.g. `ide` or `claude-code`).
- In the global configuration case, you must first activate the project you want to work on, which you can do by asking
the LLM to do so (e.g., "Activate the current dir as project using serena"). In such settings, the `activate_project`
tool is required.
**Tool Selection**.
While you may be able to turn off tools through your client's interface (e.g., in VSCode or Claude Desktop),
we recommend selecting your base tool set through Serena's configuration, as Serena's prompts automatically
adjust based on which tools are enabled/disabled.
A key mechanism for this is to use the appropriate [context](#contexts) when starting Serena.
(clients-common-pitfalls)=
### Common Pitfalls
Your client may not escape backslashes on Windows (e.g., Claude Desktop does not).
If you are using paths containing backslashes for paths on Windows
**Escaping Paths Correctly**.
Note that if your client configuration uses JSON, special characters (like backslashes) need to be escaped properly.
In particular, if you are specifying paths containing backslashes on Windows
(note that you can also just use forward slashes), be sure to escape them correctly (`\\`).
**Discoverability of `uvx`**.
Your client may not find the `uvx` command, even if it is on your system PATH.
In this case, you should provide the full path to the `uvx` executable.
In this case, a workaround is to provide the full path to the `uvx` executable.
**Environment Variables**.
Some language servers may require additional environment variables to be set (e.g. F# on macOS with Homebrew),
which you may need to explicitly add to the MCP server configuration.
Note that for some clients (including Claude Desktop), the spawned processes may not inherit environment variables that
are only configured in your shell
profile (e.g. `.bashrc`, `.zshrc`, etc.); they would need to be set system-wide instead.
An easy fix is to add them explicitly to the MCP server entry: many clients allow adding an `env` key to the `serena`
Note that for some clients (e.g. Claude Desktop), the spawned MCP server process may not inherit environment variables that
are only configured in your shell profile (e.g. `.bashrc`, `.zshrc`, etc.); they would need to be set system-wide instead.
An easy fix is to add them explicitly to the MCP server entry.
For example, in Claude Desktop and other clients, you can simply add an `env` key to the `serena`
object, e.g.
```
@@ -52,7 +62,16 @@ object, e.g.
}
```
## Claude Code
## Specific Clients
:::{note}
In this section, we present example configurations that run the latest version of Serena
using the `stdio` protocol with `uvx`.
Adapt the commands to your preferred way of [running Serena](020_running), adding any additional
command-line arguments as needed.
:::
### Claude Code
Serena is a great way to make Claude Code both cheaper and more powerful!
@@ -70,7 +89,7 @@ Note:
Claude Code's mode of operation.
## VSCode
### VSCode
While serena can be directly installed from the GitHub MCP server registry, we recommend to set it up manually
(at least for now, until the configuration there has been improved). Just paste the following into
@@ -98,7 +117,7 @@ While serena can be directly installed from the GitHub MCP server registry, we r
}
```
## Codex
### Codex
Serena works with OpenAI's Codex CLI out of the box, but you have to use the `codex` context for it to work properly. (The technical reason is that Codex doesn't fully support the MCP specifications, so some massaging of tools is required.).
@@ -126,9 +145,9 @@ that was already taken).
> Codex will often show the tools as `failed` even though they are successfully executed. This is not a problem, seems to be a bug in Codex. Despite the error message, everything works as expected.
## Claude Desktop
### Claude Desktop
On Windows and macOS there are official [Claude Desktop applications by Anthropic](https://claude.ai/download), for Linux there is an [open-source
On Windows and macOS, there are official [Claude Desktop applications by Anthropic](https://claude.ai/download); for Linux, there is an [open-source
community version](https://github.com/aaddrick/claude-desktop-debian).
To configure MCP server settings, go to File / Settings / Developer / MCP Servers / Edit Config,
@@ -152,6 +171,9 @@ Add the `serena` MCP server configuration
}
```
If your language server requires specific environment variables to be set (e.g. F# on macOS with Homebrew),
you can add them via an `env` key (see [above](#clients-common-pitfalls)).
Once you have created the new MCP server entry, save the config and then restart Claude Desktop.
:::{attention}
@@ -164,7 +186,7 @@ After restarting, you should see Serena's tools in your chat interface (notice t
For more information on MCP servers with Claude Desktop,
see [the official quick start guide](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/quickstart/user).
## JetBrains Junie
### JetBrains Junie
Open Junie, go to the three dots in the top right corner, then Settings / MCP Settings and add Serena to Junie's global
MCP server configuration:
@@ -190,7 +212,7 @@ MCP server configuration:
You will have to prompt Junie to "Activate the current project using serena's activation tool" at the
start of each session.
## JetBrains AI Assistant
### JetBrains AI Assistant
Here you can set up the more convenient per-project MCP server configuration, as the AI assistant supports specifying
the launch working directory.
@@ -219,9 +241,16 @@ Go to Settings / Tools / AI Assistant / MCP and add a new **local** configuratio
Then make sure to configure the working directory to be the project root.
## Antigravity
### Antigravity
Add this configuration
:::{warning}
At the time of writing (12/2025), Antigravity does not seem to work with Serena due to schema validation issues
which are beyond our control.
The client starts Serena but then crashes with `[internal] marshal message: string field contains invalid UTF-8`.
Nevertheless, we provide a configuration that should work once the issue is resolved.
:::
Add this configuration:
```json
{
@@ -241,22 +270,11 @@ Add this configuration
}
```
At the time of writing (12.2025), it does **not seem to work** due to schema validation issues in Antigravity.
The client starts Serena and then crashes with `[internal] marshal message: string field contains invalid UTF-8`.
### Other Clients
## Other Clients
For other clients, follow the [general instructions](#clients-general-instructions) above to set up Serena as an MCP server.
In general, Serena can be used with any MCP-enabled client.
To connect Serena to your favourite client, simply
1. determine how to add a custom MCP server to your client (refer to the client's documentation).
2. add a new MCP server entry by specifying either
* a [run command](start-mcp-server) that allows the client to start the MCP server in stdio mode as a subprocess, or
* the URL of the HTTP/SSE endpoint, having started the [Serena MCP server in HTTP/SSE mode](streamable-http) beforehand.
Below, we list some popular categories of clients that Serena can be used with.
### Terminal-Based Clients
#### Terminal-Based Clients
There are many terminal-based coding assistants that support MCP servers, such as
@@ -269,15 +287,18 @@ There are many terminal-based coding assistants that support MCP servers, such a
They generally benefit from the symbolic tools provided by Serena. You might want to customize some aspects of Serena
by writing your own context, modes or prompts to adjust it to the client's respective internal capabilities (and your general workflow).
### MCP-Enabled IDEs and Coding Clients (Cline, Roo-Code, Cursor, Windsurf, etc.)
In most cases, the `ide` context is likely to be appropriate for such clients, i.e. add the arguments `--context ide`
in order to reduce tool duplication.
#### MCP-Enabled IDEs and Coding Clients (Cline, Roo-Code, Cursor, Windsurf, etc.)
Most of the popular existing coding assistants (e.g. IDE extensions) and AI-enabled IDEs themselves support connections
to MCP Servers. Serena generally boosts performance by providing efficient tools for symbolic operations.
We generally **recommend to use the `ide` context** for these integrations by adding the arguments `--context ide`
We generally recommend to use the `ide` context for these integrations by adding the arguments `--context ide`
in order to reduce tool duplication.
### Local GUIs and Agent Frameworks
#### Local GUIs and Agent Frameworks
Over the last months, several technologies have emerged that allow you to run a local GUI client
and connect it to an MCP server. The respective applications will typically work with Serena out of the box.