Adding an MCP Server from GitHub

Most open-source MCP servers live on GitHub. This guide walks through finding one, building it locally, and connecting it to Kodik.

Finding an MCP server

Good places to look:

Official MCP servers repo: github.com/modelcontextprotocol/servers — reference implementations for common tools
Awesome MCP Servers: github.com/punkpeye/awesome-mcp-servers — community-curated list
Online directories: mcpservers.org, mcp.so, glama.ai/mcp/servers, mcp.composio.dev
PulseMCP: pulsemcp.com

Each listing typically shows what tools the server exposes, what runtime it needs (Node.js, Python, etc.), and what credentials it requires.

Building with Kodik’s help

You can ask Kodik to handle the entire setup. Give it the repository URL (and optionally paste the README) and it will clone the repo, install dependencies, build the server, and write the mcp.json entry for you.

Example conversation:

User: "I want to add the Brave Search MCP server.
       Here is the repo: @https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/servers/tree/main/src/brave-search"

Kodik: "Cloning into the MCP directory. It has a package.json — should I run npm run build?"

User: "Yes."

Kodik: "Build complete. This server needs a BRAVE_API_KEY. Where should I add it?"

User: "Add it to the env block in mcp.json."

Kodik: "Done. I've added the server to mcp.json with the env variable placeholder. Paste your key there."

Manual setup

If you prefer to do it yourself:

Clone the repository somewhere on your machine:

git clone https://github.com/example/my-mcp-server ~/.kodik/mcp-servers/my-mcp-server

Install dependencies and build (Node.js example):
Окно терминала
```
cd ~/.kodik/mcp-servers/my-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build
```

Open mcp.json (MCP Servers → Installed → Configure MCP Servers) and add the server entry under "servers":

{
  "servers": {
    "my-mcp-server": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/full/path/to/my-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "API_KEY": "your-key-here",
      },
    },
  },
}

Save the file. Kodik detects the change and connects automatically.

For a full reference of all config fields (timeout, autoApprove, enabledTools, etc.) see Configuring MCP Servers.

Testing and troubleshooting

Check the status dot next to the server in the Installed tab. Hover a red dot to read the error.
Run the command manually in a terminal to see error output directly:
Окно терминала
```
node /full/path/to/server.js
```
Use MCP Inspector (npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector) to interactively test tool calls against the server.
If the server needs environment variables, make sure they are set in env (not just in your shell).

Best practices

Read the README before configuring: it lists required env vars, supported tools, and any extra setup steps.
Pin to a specific commit or tag when stability matters. main may break.
Keep servers updated — git pull and rebuild to get security patches and new tools.
Use ${input:...} variables in mcp.json for secrets instead of pasting them in plain text. See Configuring MCP Servers.