Set up mcp-local-rag in Claude Desktop

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Local-first RAG server for developers. Semantic + keyword search for code and technical docs. Works with MCP or CLI. Fully private, zero setup.

01Configuration

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-local-rag": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-local-rag"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Add this to claude_desktop_config.json. Generated from the captured install method (npx); the mcpServers shape is shared across Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, and VS Code.

02Steps

Make sure Claude Desktop is installed and up to date.
Open claude_desktop_config.json and add the block above (merge into any existing mcpServers).
Provide any required API keys/credentials as environment variables.
Restart Claude Desktop and confirm mcp-local-rag’s tools appear.

03Other runtimes

Cursor Windsurf Cline Continue Goose VS Code OpenAI Agents SDK LangGraph CrewAI

04Provenance

config_sourcegenerated from captured install method

last_checked2026-08-21 14:31Z

sourcesGitHub repo search [p4]

Next step

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