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mcp-digger

Progressive on-demand access to .NET NuGet package source for AI coding agents.

Open source Open in the app JSON README (API)

About

Progressive on-demand access to .NET NuGet package source for AI coding agents.

Details

Kind
MCP servers
Topic
No topic detected
Publisher
janeksm
Origin
official
Category
ferramentas
Transport
local
Version
1.1.3
Last push
2026-05-26T16:20:43Z
Repository state
ativo
Language
TypeScript
License
MIT
Added
2026-08-29 04:00:14
Updated
2026-08-29 04:00:14
Origin id
io.github.janeksm/mcp-digger

README

# mcp-digger

> **Code context for AI coding agents.** Progressive, on-demand access to your internal .NET / NuGet package source — agents browse, search, and read private C# libraries autonomously, with zero workspace pollution.

> ⚠ **Scope: .NET / C# only.** mcp-digger indexes NuGet-style repos containing `.csproj` packages and `.cs` source files. It is not a general-purpose source indexer — other languages (TypeScript, Python, Java, Go, etc.) are out of scope.

---

## ✨ Why

Public NuGet packages have documentation ecosystems — API references, tutorials, community Q&A. Tools like `context7` serve that well.

Internal .NET packages often have source code as their primary documentation. mcp-digger turns that source into structured, searchable, token-efficient context that any MCP-compatible agent can consume — bridging the documentation gap in private C# library ecosystems.

**Without it:**

- 🐢 **Slow context gathering** — `git clone` + `find` + `grep` + `cat` chains burn tokens on infrastructure before useful context is retrieved.
- 🔍 **No semantic search** — file system tools find text, not API surfaces. "Every type implementing this interface" means writing extraction scripts on demand.
- 💸 **Token waste** — agents read whole files when a single method signature would do.
- 🖱 **Permission click fatigue** — dozens of shell-command approvals per session.
- 🧹 **Workspace noise** — referenced repos pollute file search, git status, and the agent's context window.

**With it:**

- ✅ **Correct code on the first try** — real signatures, generic constraints, interface contracts, base class patterns.
- ⚡ **Self-service context** — point the agent at your NuGet repos once; it browses, searches, and reads autonomously.
- 🪙 **Progressive disclosure** — 200-token overview before 5,000 tokens of source. Most questions resolve at L1 or L2.
- 🧼 **Zero workspace pollution** — managed clones live outside your project tree.
- 🌐 **Any Git host** — GitHub, GitLab, Azure DevOps, Bitbucket, self-hosted — HTTPS or SSH.

---

## 🛠 How it works

Ten purpose-built tools, escalating from broad to deep. The agent picks the cheapest tool that answers its question.

```
                                                           ┌─→ 📦 dig_package_overview ─┐
                                                           │   (docs, key types)        │
   🩺 dig_status  →  📋 dig_list  →  📖 dig_repo_overview  ┤                            ├─→  🔎 dig_lookup     →  📄 dig_file
   (health)          (discover)      (README + summaries)  │                            │   (symbol → file)       (full source)
                                                           ├─→ 📁 dig_package_files ────┤
                                                           │   (file listing)           │
                                                           └────────────────────────────┴─→  📝 dig_signatures
                                                                                            (stripped API)

   Operational:  🔄 dig_refresh   (force cache invalidation, on demand)
   Bootstrap:    🌱 dig_init      (only when no config exists)
```

---

## 🧰 Tools (10)

| Tier | Tool | What it does |
|------|------|-------------|
| **Health** | 🩺 `dig_status` | Config summary, connectivity check per repo, index health stats |
| **Discovery** | 📋 `dig_list` | Lists configured repos + their packages with one-line `.csproj` summaries |
| **L1 Overview** | 📖 `dig_repo_overview` | Repo `README.md` (filtered to architecture sections) + package count |
| **L1 Overview** | 📦 `dig_package_overview` | Package docs, key interfaces, abstract classes, file count |
| **L1 Overview** | 📁 `dig_package_files` | `.cs` file listing for a package, with directory summary header |
| **L2 Search** | 🔎 `dig_lookup` | Indexed symbol search — `symbol`, `implements`, or `references` mode. Cross-package supported. |
| **L2 Search** | 📝 `dig_signatures` | Stripped C# public API surface filtered by keyword (no method bodies) |
| **L3 Source** | 📄 `dig_file` | Full source of a single file (capped at 1 MB) |
| **Operational** | 🔄 `dig_refresh` | Force-rebuild caches for one or all repos |
| **Bootstrap** | 🌱 `dig_init` | Creates starter `.digger/config.json` (registered only when no config is found) |

**Search modes for `dig_lookup`:**

| Mode | Finds |
|------|-------|
| `symbol` (default) | Type/method declarations matching a name substring |
| `implements` | Classes/structs implementing an interface or extending a base class |
| `references` | Files referencing a given type name (word-boundary, case-sensitive) |

---

## 🚀 Quick start

### Install

```bash
npm install -g mcp-digger
# or run directly
npx mcp-digger
```

Requires Node.js 20+, `git` on `PATH`, and a .NET / C# source repo (NuGet packages with `.csproj` + `.cs` sources).

### Minimal config

Create `.digger/config.json` in your workspace root:

```jsonc
{
  "repos": [
    {
      "name": "my-libraries",
      "url": "https://github.com/org/shared-libs.git",
      "packageFilter": "MyCompany.*",
      "auth": {
        "strategy": "pat",
        "PAT-EnvVarName": "GIT_PAT"
      }
    }
  ]
}
```

Don't have a config yet? Start the server, then call `dig_init` to scaffold one.

### Agent setup

<details>
<summary><strong>Claude Code</strong></summary>

Add to `.claude/settings.json` or project settings:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "digger": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-digger"]
    }
  }
}
```
</details>

<details>
<summary><strong>Codex CLI</strong></summary>

Add to `~/.codex/config.toml` (or `.codex/config.toml` for project-scoped):

```toml
[mcp_servers.mcp-digger]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "mcp-digger"]
```
</details>

<details>
<summary><strong>Claude Desktop</strong></summary>

Add to `claude_desktop_config.json`:

- Windows: `%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json`
- macOS: `~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "digger": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-digger"]
    }
  }
}
```
</details>

<details>
<summary><strong>VS Code</strong></summary>

Add to `.vscode/mcp.json` (workspace) or your user `mcp.json`:

```json
{
  "servers": {
    "digger": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-digger"]
    }
  }
}
```
</details>

<details>
<summary><strong>Cursor</strong></summary>

Add to `.cursor/mcp.json` (project) or `~/.cursor/mcp.json` (global):

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "digger": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-digger"]
    }
  }
}
```
</details>

### Verify

Once connected, ask your agent to call `dig_status` — it reports config validation, per-repo connectivity, and index health.

---

## ⚙ Configuration

### Repos & packages

A `repos[]` entry has three ways to declare packages:

| Option | Behavior |
|--------|----------|
| `"packages": ["A", "B"]` | Explicit list — these packages plus any local sibling project they pull in via `<ProjectReference>` (transitive, sibling-only). |
| `"packageFilter": "MyCompany.*"` | Wildcard — narrows to packages matching the prefix, found via `.sln`/`.slnx`/`Directory.Packages.props` workspace scan. Follows transitive `ProjectReference` links automatically. |
| *(omit both)* | Auto-discover all non-test `.csproj` directories under `sourceRoot` (recursive — nested layouts supported). |

`sourceRoot` defaults to `"src"` — set it to whichever directory holds your package folders. The walk is recursive, so nested layouts like `src/Group/Foo/Foo.csproj` are picked up.

<details>
<summary><strong>Branch tracking</strong></summary>

By default, managed clones use the repo's default branch. Pin to a specific one:

```jsonc
{
  "repos": [
    {
      "name": "my-libraries",
      "url": "https://github.com/org/shared-libs.git",
      "branch": "develop"
    }
  ]
}
```

The branch is used for both initial clone and subsequent fetches. Only applies to managed clones — for local repos, you control the checked-out branch yourself.
</details>

<details>
<summary><strong>Local repos (Mode B)</strong></summary>

Skip managed cloning when the repo is already on disk. The local path is read-only — mcp-digger never fetches or modifies it.

```jsonc
{
  "localRepos": {
    "my-libraries": "C:/repos/shared-libs"
  },
  "repos": [
    {
      "name": "my-libraries",
      "sourceRoot": "src"
    }
  ]
}
```
</details>

<details>
<summary><strong>Auth strategies</strong></summary>

| Strategy | Behavior |
|----------|----------|
| `auto` *(default)* | Try unauthenticated, fall back to PAT if set |
| `pat` | Always use PAT (fatal if not set) |
| `none` | Never authenticate |

PATs can be inline (`"PAT": "..."`) or via environment variable indirection (`"PAT-EnvVarName": "MY_TOKEN"`). The `.env` file in your workspace root is loaded automatically — values containing ` #` should be quoted.
</details>

<details>
<summary><strong>Environment variables</strong></summary>

| Variable | Default | Purpose |
|----------|---------|---------|
| `DIGGER_CONFIG` | `.digger/config.json` | Override config file path |
| `MANAGED_SOURCE_DIR` | `.digger/source` | Override managed clone directory |
| `CACHE_DIR` | `.digger/cache` | Override cache directory |

Secrets (PAT values) belong in `.env` or the real environment — never as env vars in this table.
</details>

---

## 🩺 Diagnostics & recovery

| Symptom | First call | Then |
|---------|-----------|------|
| Connection / auth issues | `dig_status` | Reports auth attempts, exact error, actionable hints |
| "No matches" but you expect some | `dig_refresh <repo>` | Force-rebuilds index, picks up new extraction logic |
| Server starts but no tools visible | `dig_status` | If unconfigured, only `dig_status` + `dig_init` are registered |
| Need a config from scratch | `dig_init` | Scaffolds `.digger/config.json` (atomic — won't overwrite existing) |

### Debug log

Enable debug logging in your config:

```jsonc
{ "debug": true, "repos": [...] }
```

Logs go to `.digger/debug.log` (capped at 5 MB, auto-truncated). Critical errors and crash output land in `.digger/error.log`.

---

## 💬 Feedback

Tried mcp-digger on your codebase? Share what worked, what broke, what's missing in [GitHub Discussions](https://github.com/janeksm/mcp-digger/discussions). Bug reports go in [Issues](https://github.com/janeksm/mcp-digger/issues).

---

## 📜 License

MIT License — see [LICENSE](LICENSE).

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