Context Engine MCP Server

A local-first, agent-agnostic Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for workspace indexing, retrieval, planning, and review workflows.

New here? Check out INDEX.md for a complete documentation guide.

Quick Start: QUICKSTART.md -> GET_STARTED.md -> API_REFERENCE.md

Windows Deployment: docs/WINDOWS_DEPLOYMENT_GUIDE.md

Architecture: TECHNICAL_ARCHITECTURE.md for deep technical dive

Architecture

This implementation follows a clean 5-layer architecture:

┌────────────────────────────┐
│ Coding Agents (Clients)    │  Layer 4: Codex, Claude, Cursor, etc.
│ Codex | Claude | Cursor    │
└────────────▲───────────────┘
             │ MCP (tools)
┌────────────┴───────────────┐
│ MCP Interface Layer        │  Layer 3: server.ts, tools/
│ (standardized tool API)    │
└────────────▲───────────────┘
             │ internal API
┌────────────┴───────────────┐
│ Context Service Layer      │  Layer 2: serviceClient.ts
│ (query orchestration)      │
└────────────▲───────────────┘
             │ domain calls
┌────────────┴───────────────┐
│ Retrieval + Review Engine  │  Layer 1: local-native runtime
│ (indexing, retrieval)      │
└────────────▲───────────────┘
             │ storage/state
┌────────────┴───────────────┐
│ Local State / Artifacts    │  Layer 5: workspace state + evidence
│ (index, cache, receipts)   │
└────────────────────────────┘

Layer Responsibilities

• Layer 1: local-native indexing, retrieval, review support, and provider orchestration
• Layer 2: context assembly, snippet formatting, deduplication, limits, and caching
• Layer 3: MCP tools, validation, and request/response contracts
• Layer 4: coding agents and MCP clients that consume the tools
• Layer 5: persisted index state, caches, rollout receipts, and generated artifacts

Features

MCP Tools

The server exposes tools across these areas:

• Core context and retrieval
• Memory
• Planning and execution
• Plan management
• Code review
• Reactive review

Use tool_manifest() in the MCP server to inspect the current tool inventory directly.

Key Characteristics

• Local-first runtime with no legacy provider SDK dependency in the active path
• Agent-agnostic MCP interface
• Local-native retrieval provider as the active runtime
• Persistent state and evidence artifacts for rollout-proof workflows
• Planning, review, and validation workflows built into the server
• Optional benchmarking, parity, and governance gates for safer changes

Quick Start

npm install
npm run build
npm run verify
node dist/index.js --workspace .

Optional validation commands:

npm run ci:check:no-legacy-provider
npm run ci:check:legacy-capability-parity
npm run ci:check:legacy-capability-parity:strict

Documentation Quick Links

• Setup: QUICKSTART.md
• MCP Clients: docs/MCP_CLIENT_SETUP.md
• Getting Started: GET_STARTED.md
• Troubleshooting: TROUBLESHOOTING.md
• Testing: TESTING.md
• Architecture: ARCHITECTURE.md
• All Docs: INDEX.md

Current Status

• Active runtime is local-native only
• Legacy-provider references that remain are historical docs, tests, or migration guardrails
• Removal and parity proof tracking lives in docs/LEGACY_PROVIDER_ADOPTION_AND_REMOVAL_TRACKER.md