MCP Server Configuration

The Renamify MCP server enables AI assistants like Claude Desktop, Cursor, and other MCP-compatible tools to perform intelligent renaming operations on your codebase.

Prerequisites

Install Renamify CLI - The MCP server requires the renamify binary to be available:

# Quick install (Linux/macOS)
curl -fsSL https://docspring.github.io/renamify/install.sh | bash

# Verify installation
renamify --version

Node.js 18+ - Required to run the MCP server via npx

Configuration

Claude Code

Run the following command to add the Renamify MCP server:

claude mcp add renamify -- npx -y @renamify/mcp-server

Claude Code loads MCP server settings from ~/.claude.json or from .mcp.json in the project root.

Cursor

For Cursor, add to your workspace .mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "renamify": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@renamify/mcp-server"]
    }
  }
}

Codex CLI

Location: ~/.codex/config.toml

OpenAI’s Codex CLI reads MCP configuration from this file.

[mcp_servers.renamify]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "@renamify/mcp-server"]

Restart Codex after saving the configuration file so the new MCP server is detected.

Local Development

For day-to-day development we prefer running the TypeScript entrypoint through Bun so you get fast startup without rebuilding the dist bundle. Make sure Bun is installed (brew install bun or see https://bun.sh/) and that you have already run task mcp:deps to install project dependencies.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "renamify": {
      "command": "bun",
      "args": ["run", "renamify-mcp/src/index.ts"]
    }
  }
}

If you want to test the published build, point your configuration at the compiled JavaScript instead:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "renamify": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["path/to/renamify-mcp/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Environment Variables

The MCP server supports one environment variable:

`RENAMIFY_PATH`

Specify a custom path to the renamify binary if it’s not in your system PATH:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "renamify": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@renamify/mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "RENAMIFY_PATH": "/path/to/renamify"
      }
    }
  }
}

Verification

After configuration, restart your AI assistant and verify the connection:

Claude Desktop: Look for “renamify” in the MCP tools list
Cursor: Check the MCP panel for available tools
Test the connection: Ask the AI to “Check renamify status”

The AI should be able to call:

Tool: renamify_status
Arguments: {}

And receive information about the current renamify installation.

Troubleshooting

”Renamify CLI is not available”

The MCP server cannot find the renamify binary. Solutions:

Install renamify:

curl -fsSL https://docspring.github.io/renamify/install.sh | bash

Set RENAMIFY_PATH in your MCP configuration:

"env": {
  "RENAMIFY_PATH": "/usr/local/bin/renamify"
}

Verify installation:
Terminal window
```
which renamify
renamify --version
```

“MCP server not connecting”

Check Node.js version:

node --version  # Should be 18.0.0 or higher

Test npx directly:
Terminal window
```
npx @renamify/mcp-server
```
You should see no output (the server waits for stdio input).
Check configuration file location - Ensure you’re editing the correct config file for your platform.

”Permission denied”

On Unix systems, ensure the renamify binary is executable:

chmod +x /path/to/renamify

Security Considerations

The MCP server:

Only executes renamify CLI commands
Cannot execute arbitrary shell commands
Respects all renamify safety features (atomic operations, undo/redo)
Uses the summary output format by default (minimal data exposure)

Advanced Configuration

Multiple Workspaces

You can configure different renamify instances for different projects:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "renamify-project1": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@renamify/mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "RENAMIFY_PATH": "/projects/project1/bin/renamify"
      }
    },
    "renamify-project2": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@renamify/mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "RENAMIFY_PATH": "/projects/project2/bin/renamify"
      }
    }
  }
}

Debug Mode

To debug MCP server issues, you can enable verbose logging in your AI assistant’s developer tools or console output. The server uses stdio for communication, so errors will appear in the assistant’s logs.