Claude Code Explorer — MCP Server

A standalone Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that lets any MCP-compatible client explore the Claude Code source code.

What It Does

Exposes 7 tools, 3 resources, and 5 prompts for navigating the ~1,900-file, 512K+ line Claude Code codebase:

Tools

Tool	Description
`list_tools`	List all 40+ agent tools (BashTool, FileEditTool, etc.)
`list_commands`	List all 50+ slash commands (/commit, /review, etc.)
`get_tool_source`	Read a specific tool's implementation
`get_command_source`	Read a specific command's implementation
`read_source_file`	Read any file from `src/` by relative path
`search_source`	Regex search across the entire source tree
`list_directory`	List contents of any directory under `src/`
`get_architecture`	Get a full architecture overview

Resources

URI	Description
`claude-code://architecture`	README / architecture overview
`claude-code://tools`	Tool registry (JSON)
`claude-code://commands`	Command registry (JSON)
`claude-code://source/{path}`	Any source file (template)

Prompts

Prompt	Description
`explain_tool`	Deep-dive explanation of a specific tool's purpose, schema, permissions, and flow
`explain_command`	Explanation of a specific slash command's behavior and implementation
`architecture_overview`	Guided tour of the full Claude Code architecture
`how_does_it_work`	Explain a feature/subsystem (permissions, MCP, bridge, etc.)
`compare_tools`	Side-by-side comparison of two tools

Setup

cd mcp-server
npm install
npm run build

Configuration

Claude Desktop

Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "claude-code-explorer": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/claude-code/mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "CLAUDE_CODE_SRC_ROOT": "/absolute/path/to/claude-code/src"
      }
    }
  }
}

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

Add to .vscode/mcp.json in your workspace:

{
  "servers": {
    "claude-code-explorer": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["${workspaceFolder}/mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "CLAUDE_CODE_SRC_ROOT": "${workspaceFolder}/src"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Add to ~/.cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "claude-code-explorer": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/claude-code/mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "CLAUDE_CODE_SRC_ROOT": "/absolute/path/to/claude-code/src"
      }
    }
  }
}

Environment Variables

Variable	Default	Description
`CLAUDE_CODE_SRC_ROOT`	`../src` (relative to dist/)	Path to the Claude Code `src/` directory

Prompts

The server also exposes prompt templates for guided exploration:

Prompt	Description
`explain_tool`	Deep-dive explanation of a specific tool (input schema, permissions, execution flow)
`explain_command`	Explain how a slash command works
`architecture_overview`	Guided tour of the entire Claude Code architecture
`how_does_it_work`	Explain a feature or subsystem (e.g. "permission system", "MCP client", "query engine")
`compare_tools`	Side-by-side comparison of two tools

Example Usage

Once connected, you can ask your AI assistant things like:

"List all Claude Code tools"
"Show me the BashTool implementation"
"Search for how permissions are checked"
"What files are in the bridge directory?"
"Read the QueryEngine.ts file, lines 1-100"
"How does the MCP client connection work?"
Use the explain_tool prompt with "FileEditTool" to get a full breakdown
Use how_does_it_work with "bridge" to understand IDE integration

Development

npm install
npm run dev    # Run directly with tsx (no build needed)
npm run build  # Compile TypeScript to dist/
npm start      # Run compiled server