ShadowGit
A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides AI assistants with secure, read-only access to your ShadowGit repositories. This enables powerful debugging and code analysis capabilities by giving AI access to your project's fine-grained git hist
What is ShadowGit?
ShadowGit is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to model context protocol (mcp) server that provides ai assistants with secure, read-only access to your shadowgit repositories. this enables powerful debugging and code analysis capabilities by giving a...
A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides AI assistants with secure, read-only access to your ShadowGit repositories. This enables powerful debugging and code analysis capabilities by giving AI access to your project's fine-grained git hist
This server falls under the Version Control category on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.
Features
- A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides AI assis
Use Cases
Maintainer
Works with
Installation
Manual Installation
npx shadowgit-mcp-serverConfiguration
Configuration Details
claude_desktop_config.json
Performance
Response Metrics
Resource Usage
How to Set Up and Use ShadowGit
ShadowGit MCP Server provides AI assistants with secure, read-only access to repositories tracked by the ShadowGit desktop app, which auto-commits fine-grained checkpoints of your work every few seconds. By exposing this rich checkpoint history to your AI assistant, the server enables detailed debugging, code archaeology, and change analysis that normal git logs cannot provide. It also supports session-based workflows where the AI can pause ShadowGit's auto-commits, create named checkpoints, and resume tracking — giving AI-driven coding sessions a clean, organized commit history.
Prerequisites
- Node.js 18 or later
- Git installed and available in your system PATH
- ShadowGit desktop app v0.3.0 or later installed and running (provides the local Session API)
- An MCP client such as Claude Desktop or Claude Code
- npm (for global installation of the MCP server package)
Install the ShadowGit MCP server
Install the shadowgit-mcp-server package globally via npm.
npm install -g shadowgit-mcp-serverAdd to Claude Code
The quickest way to register the server in Claude Code is with the mcp add command.
claude mcp add shadowgit -- shadowgit-mcp-serverOr add to Claude Desktop config
For Claude Desktop, add the server block to your claude_desktop_config.json. No API keys are needed — the server talks to the ShadowGit local API.
{
"mcpServers": {
"shadowgit": {
"command": "shadowgit-mcp-server",
"env": {
"SHADOWGIT_SESSION_API": "http://localhost:45289/api",
"SHADOWGIT_TIMEOUT": "10000",
"SHADOWGIT_LOG_LEVEL": "info"
}
}
}
}Ensure ShadowGit app is running
Start the ShadowGit desktop application and add the repositories you want the AI to access. The app must be running for the MCP server to communicate with the Session API at http://localhost:45289/api.
Verify connectivity
In your MCP client, ask the AI to list tracked repositories. If ShadowGit is running and the config is correct, you should see your repos listed.
ShadowGit Examples
Client configuration
Claude Desktop configuration for ShadowGit MCP server with optional environment variable overrides.
{
"mcpServers": {
"shadowgit": {
"command": "shadowgit-mcp-server",
"env": {
"SHADOWGIT_SESSION_API": "http://localhost:45289/api",
"SHADOWGIT_TIMEOUT": "10000",
"SHADOWGIT_LOG_LEVEL": "info",
"SHADOWGIT_HINTS": "1"
}
}
}
}Prompts to try
These prompts exercise ShadowGit's session management and history inspection tools.
- "List all repositories currently tracked by ShadowGit."
- "Show me the recent checkpoint history for the my-app repository."
- "Start a session in my-app to fix the authentication bug."
- "Create a checkpoint titled 'Fix null pointer exception in auth handler'."
- "End the current session and resume ShadowGit auto-commits."
- "Run git log --oneline -20 on the my-app repository."Troubleshooting ShadowGit
list_repos returns an empty list or 'connection refused' error.
The ShadowGit desktop app must be running for the MCP server to work. Launch ShadowGit and ensure at least one repository is being tracked. The default Session API endpoint is http://localhost:45289/api — verify this with 'curl http://localhost:45289/api/repos' in a terminal.
shadowgit-mcp-server command not found after npm install.
Ensure the global npm bin directory is in your PATH. Run 'npm bin -g' to find it and add it to your shell profile. Alternatively, use the full path to the binary or install with 'sudo npm install -g shadowgit-mcp-server' on macOS/Linux.
Checkpoint or session commands fail with a timeout error.
Increase the SHADOWGIT_TIMEOUT environment variable beyond the default 10000ms (e.g., set it to 30000). This can help on slower machines or when ShadowGit is processing a large repository. Also confirm the ShadowGit app version is v0.3.0 or later, which is required for the Session API.
Frequently Asked Questions about ShadowGit
What is ShadowGit?
ShadowGit is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that model context protocol (mcp) server that provides ai assistants with secure, read-only access to your shadowgit repositories. this enables powerful debugging and code analysis capabilities by giving ai access to your project's fine-grained git hist It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.
How do I install ShadowGit?
Follow the installation instructions on the ShadowGit GitHub repository. Clone the repo, install dependencies, and add the server config to your AI client.
Which AI clients work with ShadowGit?
ShadowGit works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.
Is ShadowGit free to use?
Yes, ShadowGit is open source and available under the MIT License license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
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Set Up ShadowGit in Your Editor
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Quick Config Preview
Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json or .cursor/mcp.json
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