GitLab MCP Server (noqta-gitlab-server)

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides tools for interacting with the GitLab API.

This server allows AI assistants (like Claude via the MCP integration) to perform various actions on GitLab, such as searching repositories, managing issues, creating branches, and more, directly through natural language commands.

Features / Available Tools

This server exposes the following tools for use by MCP clients:

• search_repositories: Search for GitLab projects by name.
• get_project_from_git_url: Get GitLab project details from a git remote URL.
• list_issues: List issues for a specific GitLab project (filterable by state, labels, assignee, scope).
• get_my_issues: List issues assigned to or created by the authenticated user across all projects (filterable by state, scope).
• get_issue: Get details of a specific issue within a project by its IID.
• create_issue_note: Add a comment (note) to a specific issue.
• update_issue: Update attributes of an issue (e.g., description, labels, state).
• create_branch: Create a new branch in a project from a specified ref.
• create_issue: Create a new issue in a project.
• create_merge_request: Create a new merge request.
• list_issue_notes: List comments (notes) for a specific issue.
• create_merge_request_note: Add a comment (note) to a specific merge request.
• search_user: Search for GitLab users by email or username.
• create_repository: Create a new GitLab project (repository) under a user or group namespace.

(Refer to the server's ListTools response or the source code (src/index.ts) for detailed input schemas for each tool.)

Prerequisites

• Node.js (LTS version recommended)
• npm (usually included with Node.js)
• A GitLab account (gitlab.com or self-hosted)
• A GitLab Personal Access Token with api and read_api scopes.

Installation & Setup

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/nooqta/noqta-gitlab-server.git # Replace with actual URL after creation
   cd noqta-gitlab-server

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

3. Configure Environment Variables:

   • Copy the example environment file:

     cp .env.example .env

   • Edit the .env file:
     • Generate a GitLab Personal Access Token: Go to your GitLab profile -> Settings -> Access Tokens. Create a token with api and read_api scopes.
     • Paste the generated token into .env for the GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN variable.
     • (Optional) If you use a self-hosted GitLab instance, update GITLAB_API_URL to point to your instance's API endpoint (e.g., https://gitlab.yourcompany.com/api/v4). Otherwise, leave it as the default for gitlab.com.

4. Build the server:

   npm run build

   This compiles the TypeScript code to JavaScript in the build/ directory.

Running the Server

Directly with Node.js (After Cloning and Building)

If you have cloned the repository and built the project (npm run build), you can run the server directly:

node build/index.js

Using npx (After Publishing to npm)

Once the package is published to npm (as @nooqta/gitlab-mcp-server), you can run it directly using npx without cloning or installing manually. npx will download and execute the package.

npx @nooqta/gitlab-mcp-server

Note: When running via npx, the server still requires the environment variables (GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN and optionally GITLAB_API_URL) to be set in the environment where you execute the npx command, or available via a .env file in the directory where you run npx.

The server communicates over standard input/output (stdio). For persistent use, consider running it with a process manager like pm2 or systemd.

Integration (Example: Claude Desktop)

To use this server with an MCP client like Claude Desktop, add its configuration to the client's settings file.

Configuration File Locations:

• MacOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Example claude_desktop_config.json entry (using npx):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "@nooqta/gitlab-mcp-server": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@nooqta/gitlab-mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "...",
        "GITLAB_API_URL": "..."
      }
    }
  }
  // Potentially other configurations...
}

Example claude_desktop_config.json entry (using local build):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "@nooqta/gitlab-mcp-server": {
      // Use the package name for consistency, even if running locally
      "command": "/full/path/to/your/custom-gitlab-server/build/index.js"
      // Note: The server reads secrets from the .env file in its own project directory.
      // Ensure the .env file is correctly configured in the cloned repository.
      // DO NOT add secrets directly to this configuration file using an "env" block.
    }
  }
  // Potentially other configurations...
}

Important Security Note: This server uses dotenv to load GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN and GITLAB_API_URL from a .env file. Never put your actual token or sensitive URLs directly into the MCP client configuration file (like claude_desktop_config.json) using the env property. Always use a .env file (located either in the server's project directory for local runs, or in the directory where npx is executed) or provide the variables through the operating system's environment.

Development

• Build: npm run build (Compiles TypeScript and sets executable permissions)
• Watch Mode: npm run watch (Automatically recompiles on file changes)

Debugging

Since MCP servers communicate over stdio, direct debugging can be tricky. Use the MCP Inspector for easier debugging:

npm run inspector

This command starts the server with the inspector attached. Open the URL provided in the console output in your browser to view MCP messages and server logs.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please see the CONTRIBUTING.md file for guidelines.