Vera Code Search
Local code search combining BM25, vector similarity, and cross-encoder reranking. Parses 60+ languages with tree-sitter, runs entirely offline, and returns structured results with file paths, line ranges, and symbol metadata. Built in Rust.
What is Vera Code Search?
Vera Code Search is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to local code search combining bm25, vector similarity, and cross-encoder reranking. parses 60+ languages with tree-sitter, runs entirely offline, and returns structured results with file paths, line ran...
Local code search combining BM25, vector similarity, and cross-encoder reranking. Parses 60+ languages with tree-sitter, runs entirely offline, and returns structured results with file paths, line ranges, and symbol metadata. Built in Rust.
This server falls under the Search & Data Extraction category on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.
Features
- Local code search combining BM25, vector similarity, and cro
Use Cases
Maintainer
Works with
Installation
Manual Installation
npx veraConfiguration
Configuration Details
claude_desktop_config.json
Performance
Response Metrics
Resource Usage
How to Set Up and Use Vera Code Search
Vera is a high-performance, offline-first code search MCP server built in Rust that combines BM25 keyword matching, vector similarity embeddings, and cross-encoder reranking to deliver precise code search results across 60+ programming languages parsed with tree-sitter. It runs entirely on your local machine with no data sent to external services, returning structured results that include file paths, exact line ranges, and symbol metadata. Software engineers with large codebases use Vera to give Claude a semantic understanding of their entire project — finding functions, tracing references, detecting dead code, and navigating complex repositories without uploading anything to the cloud.
Prerequisites
- Rust 1.85 or higher (only needed for source builds; pre-built binaries available)
- Bun, npx, or uvx for the CLI installer
- Sufficient disk space for the .vera index (scales with codebase size)
- GPU recommended for local embedding mode; API mode works on any hardware
- An MCP-compatible client such as Claude Desktop or Claude Code
Install the Vera CLI
Install the Vera CLI using Bun, npx, or uvx. The installer sets up the vera binary and downloads the appropriate embedding backend.
bunx @vera-ai/cli install
# or: npx -y @vera-ai/cli install
# or: uvx vera-ai installChoose and set up an embedding backend
Run vera setup to configure the embedding backend for your hardware. Use --api for cloud-based embeddings (no GPU required) or pick your hardware-specific ONNX option.
vera setup --api
# Apple Silicon: vera setup --onnx-jina-coreml
# NVIDIA GPU: vera setup --onnx-jina-cudaIndex your codebase
Navigate to your project root and run vera index to build the search index. A .vera/ directory will be created. Files in .gitignore are automatically excluded.
cd /path/to/your/project
vera index .Add Vera to your MCP client configuration
Register the Vera MCP server in your client's config. The `vera mcp` command starts the server exposing search_code, regex_search, get_stats, and get_overview tools.
Keep the index updated
Run vera update after making significant code changes, or use vera watch to automatically reindex on file changes during active development.
vera update .
# or for continuous watching:
vera watch .Vera Code Search Examples
Client configuration
Claude Desktop configuration for the Vera code search MCP server.
{
"mcpServers": {
"vera": {
"command": "vera",
"args": ["mcp"]
}
}
}Prompts to try
Example prompts for semantic and structural code search with Vera.
- "Search the codebase for functions that handle authentication token validation"
- "Find all places in the code that call the database connection pool"
- "Use regex to find all TODO comments in the TypeScript files"
- "Give me an overview of the project structure and main components"
- "Find dead code: functions that are defined but never called"
- "Search for error handling patterns related to network timeouts"Troubleshooting Vera Code Search
vera index is slow or runs out of memory on large codebases
Use a .veraignore file (gitignore syntax) to exclude build artifacts, node_modules, vendor directories, and generated files. This dramatically reduces index size and build time.
Embedding backend fails to initialize on Apple Silicon
Run `vera setup --onnx-jina-coreml` specifically for Apple Silicon Macs. The generic setup may select an incompatible backend. If issues persist, use `vera setup --api` to fall back to cloud embeddings.
Search results are stale after code changes
Run `vera update .` from your project root to refresh the index incrementally. For ongoing development sessions, use `vera watch .` to keep the index automatically synchronized.
Frequently Asked Questions about Vera Code Search
What is Vera Code Search?
Vera Code Search is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that local code search combining bm25, vector similarity, and cross-encoder reranking. parses 60+ languages with tree-sitter, runs entirely offline, and returns structured results with file paths, line ranges, and symbol metadata. built in rust. It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.
How do I install Vera Code Search?
Follow the installation instructions on the Vera Code Search GitHub repository. Clone the repo, install dependencies, and add the server config to your AI client.
Which AI clients work with Vera Code Search?
Vera Code Search works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.
Is Vera Code Search free to use?
Yes, Vera Code Search is open source and available under the MIT license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
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Set Up Vera Code Search in Your Editor
Choose your AI client for step-by-step setup instructions.
Quick Config Preview
Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json or .cursor/mcp.json
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