Toolentry CLI - MCP Server Configuration Manager

A powerful CLI for installing and managing Model Context Protocol (MCP) server configurations across 14+ AI clients.

Features

• Autoinstall - Smart installation that preserves existing configs
• Read - View current MCP configurations
• Write - Manual configuration management
• Test - Validate server configs before installing
• Flexible - Works with 17+ predefined clients OR custom config paths

Installation

npm install -g @grebyn/toolentry-cli

Or use with npx (no install needed):

npx @grebyn/toolentry-cli@latest --version

Quick Start

1. Install an MCP server using base64 JSON:

# Generate base64 from your MCP server config JSON
echo '{"your-server":{"command":"npx","args":["your-mcp-server"]}}' | base64

# Install using the generated base64
npx @grebyn/toolentry-cli@latest autoinstall claude-desktop --json-base64 <your-base64-here>

2. Check what's configured:

toolentry read claude-desktop

3. Restart your AI client to activate the server.

Commands

Autoinstall (Recommended)

Smart installation that merges new servers into existing configs without overwriting. Automatically creates backups.

Using Base64 JSON (Primary Method):

toolentry autoinstall <client> --json-base64 <encoded>         # Use with known client
toolentry autoinstall --json-base64 <encoded> --path <file>    # Use with custom path

Easy CLI Command Generation: Visit toolentry.io/json-to-cli to convert your MCP server JSON configuration into a ready-to-use CLI command with base64 encoding automatically handled.

Using Templates (Alternative Method):

toolentry autoinstall <client> --template <name>     # Use built-in template
toolentry autoinstall --template <name> --path <file> # Use template with custom path
toolentry autoinstall --list-templates               # Show available templates

Base64 JSON Examples:

# Install with known client
toolentry autoinstall claude-desktop --json-base64 eyJzZXJ2ZXIiOnsiY29tbWFuZCI6Im5weCIsImFyZ3MiOlsieW91ci1tY3Atc2VydmVyIl19fQ==

# Install to custom path with base64 JSON
toolentry autoinstall --json-base64 eyJzZXJ2ZXIiOnsiY29tbWFuZCI6Im5weCIsImFyZ3MiOlsieW91ci1zZXJ2ZXIiXX19 --path ./config.json

# How to generate base64 in JavaScript:
# const config = {"server-name": {"command": "npx", "args": ["your-mcp-server"]}}
# const base64 = btoa(JSON.stringify(config))

# How to generate base64 in bash:
# echo '{"server":{"command":"python","args":["server.py"]}}' | base64

# Use the online converter for easy CLI command generation:
# Visit https://www.toolentry.io/json-to-cli
# Paste your MCP server JSON config
# Get a ready-to-use CLI command with base64 encoding

Template Examples:

# Install filesystem server
toolentry autoinstall cline --template filesystem

# Install git server
toolentry autoinstall claude-desktop --template git

# Install to custom path (no client needed)
toolentry autoinstall --template filesystem --path ~/.config/my-client/config.json

# List all available templates
toolentry autoinstall --list-templates

Options:

• --force - Create directories if needed
• --path - Use custom config file path (makes client optional)

Read Configuration

Read the current configuration from an AI client or custom path:

toolentry read <client>          # Use known client (auto-detect path)
toolentry read --path <file>     # Use custom path

Examples:

# Read from known clients (auto-detect config path)
toolentry read claude-desktop
toolentry read cline
toolentry read windsurf

# Read from custom paths
toolentry read --path /custom/path/config.json
toolentry read --path ~/.config/my-ai/settings.json

Write Configuration

Warning: Overwrites entire config file. Use autoinstall instead to preserve existing servers.

toolentry write <client> '<json>'        # Overwrite known client config
toolentry write '<json>' --path <file>   # Overwrite custom path

Test MCP Server Configuration

Test if an MCP server configuration works before installing:

toolentry test '<config-json>' [--type startup|protocol|full] [--timeout ms]

Examples:

# Basic test
toolentry test '{"command": "npx", "args": ["your-mcp-server"]}'

# Full protocol test
toolentry test '{"command": "python", "args": ["server.py"]}' --type protocol

Supported AI Clients & Platforms

Toolentry CLI automatically detects config paths for these popular AI clients:

| Client | Description | Platform Support | |--------|-------------|------------------| | claude-desktop | Claude Desktop app | Windows, macOS, Linux | | cline | Cline VS Code extension | Cross-platform | | windsurf | Windsurf AI code editor | Cross-platform | | cursor | Cursor AI code editor | Windows, macOS, Linux | | vscode | VS Code with MCP | Cross-platform | | vscode-insiders | VS Code Insiders | Cross-platform | | roocode | Roo Code extension | Cross-platform | | witsy | Witsy AI assistant | Cross-platform | | enconvo | Enconvo application | Cross-platform | | boltai | Bolt AI | Cross-platform | | amazon-bedrock | Amazon Bedrock | Cross-platform | | amazonq | Amazon Q | Cross-platform | | librechat | LibreChat | Cross-platform | | gemini-cli | Gemini CLI | Cross-platform |

Don't see your client? Use the --path option to specify custom configuration paths.

Global Options

• -v, --verbose - Enable verbose logging
• -d, --debug - Enable debug logging
• --version - Show version number
• --help - Show help information

Examples

Install servers (preserves existing config):

# Using base64 JSON (recommended for automation and scripting)
toolentry autoinstall claude-desktop --json-base64 eyJzZXJ2ZXIiOnsiY29tbWFuZCI6Im5weCIsImFyZ3MiOlsieW91ci1zZXJ2ZXIiXX19

# Using templates (convenient for common servers)
toolentry autoinstall cline --template filesystem
toolentry autoinstall windsurf --template git

# Using custom paths (no client needed)
toolentry autoinstall --json-base64 <base64> --path ~/.config/my-app/config.json

Check configurations:

toolentry read claude-desktop
toolentry read --path ~/.config/my-client/config.json

Troubleshooting

MCP server not appearing?

1. Test first: toolentry test '{"command": "npx", "args": ["your-server"]}'
2. Restart your AI client completely
3. Check config: toolentry read claude-desktop

Common fixes:

• Use --path for unsupported clients
• Use --force to create missing directories
• Use --verbose or --debug for detailed logging

Keywords

MCP server manager, Model Context Protocol CLI, Claude Desktop configuration, VS Code MCP setup, AI assistant tools, MCP server installation, Claude MCP config, AI client configuration, MCP JSON config, command line MCP tool, MCP server testing, MCP protocol validation