@opensourceops/canny-mcp

v1.3.0

Published

23 days ago

MCP server for Canny feedback management with Jira integration

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ompragashv

mcp canny feedback product-management jira

Canny MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Canny feedback management. Connect Canny to any MCP-compatible AI client to manage customer feedback, prioritize features, and streamline product development through natural language.

Features

37 Tools — Full Canny API coverage: posts, comments, votes, users, categories, tags, changelog, status changes, ideas, insights, groups, opportunities, and Jira integration
Token-Optimized — 70–90% smaller responses than the raw API
Jira Integration — Link posts to Jira issues
PM Workflows — Built-in prompts for weekly triage, sprint planning, and executive reporting
Smart Pagination — Automatic cursor/skip handling
Batch Operations — Bulk status changes
Configurable Toolsets — Readonly by default; enable write tools selectively

Prerequisites

Node.js v20.9+, v22+, or v24+ (LTS versions)
npm v9+
MCP Client — Claude Code, Continue.dev, or any MCP-compatible client
Canny API Key — Get one at canny.io/admin/settings/api

Quick Start with Claude Code

The fastest way to start: run npx directly through Claude Code. No clone, no build.

Step 1: Get Your Canny Credentials

API Key — Visit canny.io/admin/settings/api
Subdomain — Your Canny workspace URL: https://<subdomain>.canny.io
Board ID (optional) — Find it via the Canny admin URL or by running canny_list_boards after setup

Step 2: Add the MCP Server

claude mcp add --transport stdio canny \
  --scope user \
  --env CANNY_SUBDOMAIN=<COMPANY_SUBDOMAIN> \
  --env CANNY_API_KEY=<CANNY_API_KEY> \
  --env CANNY_DEFAULT_BOARD=<BOARD_ID> \
  --env CANNY_TOOL_MODE=readonly \
  -- npx -y @opensourceops/canny-mcp

Replace <COMPANY_SUBDOMAIN>, <CANNY_API_KEY>, and <BOARD_ID> with your values.

Step 3: Restart Claude Code

Quit and reopen Claude Code for the new server to load.

Step 4: Verify

Ask Claude:

List the available Canny tools.

You should see 37 tools, including canny_list_posts, canny_get_post, and canny_list_ideas.

Global Install

To install the package globally:

npm install -g @opensourceops/canny-mcp

Then configure your MCP client to run canny-mcp-server instead of npx:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "canny": {
      "command": "canny-mcp-server",
      "env": {
        "CANNY_API_KEY": "your_api_key",
        "CANNY_SUBDOMAIN": "your_subdomain",
        "CANNY_DEFAULT_BOARD": "your_board_id",
        "CANNY_TOOL_MODE": "readonly"
      }
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

Discovery (9 tools: 8 read-only, 1 write)

canny_list_boards — List all boards
canny_list_tags — List tags (optionally by board)
canny_create_tag — Create a new tag on a board
canny_list_categories — List categories
canny_list_posts — List posts with filters (status, author, company, tags)
canny_filter_posts — Filter by category, company, segment, tag slugs, and date ranges
canny_get_post — Get full post details with comments and votes
canny_list_status_changes — List post status change history for auditing
canny_create_category — Create a board category

Posts (6 write tools)

canny_create_post — Create a post (supports images, ETA, owner)
canny_update_post — Update title, description, ETA, or images
canny_update_post_status — Change status with optional voter notification
canny_change_category — Move a post to a different category
canny_add_post_tag — Add a tag to a post
canny_remove_post_tag — Remove a tag from a post

Engagement (6 tools: 2 read-only, 4 write)

canny_list_comments — List comments (filterable by company)
canny_list_votes — List votes
canny_create_comment — Add a comment (supports images, internal flag)
canny_delete_comment — Remove a comment
canny_add_vote — Add a vote
canny_remove_vote — Remove a vote

Users & Companies (4 tools: 2 read-only, 2 write)

canny_get_user_details — Look up a user by ID, email, or custom userID
canny_list_companies — List companies with MRR data
canny_find_or_create_user — Find or create a user with company associations
canny_link_company — Link a user to a company

Jira (2 write tools)

canny_link_jira_issue — Link a Jira issue to a post
canny_unlink_jira_issue — Unlink a Jira issue

Changelog (2 tools: 1 read-only, 1 write)

canny_list_changelog_entries — List changelog entries
canny_create_changelog_entry — Create a changelog entry to communicate product updates

Ideas Ecosystem (7 read-only tools)

canny_list_groups — List groups (cursor-based pagination)
canny_get_group — Get a group by ID or URL name
canny_list_ideas — List ideas with filtering, search, and sorting
canny_get_idea — Get an idea by ID or URL name
canny_list_insights — List insights, optionally filtered by idea
canny_get_insight — Get an insight by ID
canny_list_opportunities — List Salesforce opportunities linked to Canny

Batch (1 write tool)

canny_batch_update_status — Update multiple post statuses at once

Configuration

Tool Modes

The server runs in readonly mode by default (19 read-only tools). To enable write operations, set CANNY_TOOL_MODE:

| Mode | Tools | Description | |------|-------|-------------| | readonly | 19 | Read-only tools only (default) | | all | 37 | All tools, including writes | | discovery,posts | varies | Specific toolsets (comma-separated) |

Set via environment variable or config/default.json:

{
  "server": {
    "toolMode": "all"
  }
}

Rebuild after changing config/default.json:

npm run build

Environment Variables

Canny API (required)

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | CANNY_API_KEY | -- | Your Canny API key (required) | | CANNY_BASE_URL | https://canny.io/api/v1 | Canny API base URL | | CANNY_SUBDOMAIN | auto-detected | Your Canny subdomain; auto-detected from CANNY_BASE_URL if *.canny.io | | CANNY_CONFIG_PATH | config/default.json | Path to the JSON config file |

Workspace

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | CANNY_DEFAULT_BOARD | -- | Default board ID | | CANNY_WORKSPACE_NAME | Default | Workspace display name | | CANNY_CUSTOM_STATUSES | open,under review,planned,in progress,complete,closed | Comma-separated list of valid statuses |

Jira Integration

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | CANNY_JIRA_ENABLED | false | Enable Jira integration (true/false) | | CANNY_JIRA_PROJECT_KEY | -- | Jira project key (e.g., PROJ) |

Pagination & Display

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | CANNY_PAGINATION_LIMIT | 10 | Results per page | | CANNY_PAGINATION_MAX | 50 | Maximum total results | | CANNY_COMPACT_MODE | true | Return compact responses (true/false) |

Cache

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | CANNY_CACHE_ENABLED | true | Enable response caching (true/false) | | CANNY_CACHE_MAX_SIZE | 100 | Maximum cache entries |

Rate Limiting

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | CANNY_RATE_LIMIT_REQUESTS | 100 | Maximum requests per window | | CANNY_RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW | 60000 | Rate limit window in milliseconds |

Server

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | CANNY_TOOL_MODE | readonly | readonly, all, or comma-separated toolsets | | SERVER_TRANSPORT | stdio | Transport mode: stdio, http, or both | | SERVER_HTTP_PORT | 3000 | HTTP server port (when transport includes http) | | SERVER_HTTP_HOST | 0.0.0.0 | HTTP server bind address |

Logging

| Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | LOG_LEVEL | info | Log level: debug, info, warn, error | | LOG_FORMAT | json | Log format: json or pretty |

Custom Prompts

The server ships with 5 built-in prompts (weekly_triage, sprint_planning, executive_summary, jira_sync_status, customer_impact). Add your own in config/default.json:

{
  "prompts": [
    {
      "name": "my_workflow",
      "description": "Custom triage workflow",
      "template": "Analyze feedback and..."
    }
  ]
}

See Prompt Configuration for the full guide and Custom Prompts for advanced examples.

Local Development Environment

Clone the repository to modify the server, run tests, or contribute.

Step 1: Clone and Build

git clone https://github.com/opensourceops/canny-mcp-server.git
cd canny-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build

Step 2: Configure Your MCP Client

Option A: Claude Code (via CLI)

claude mcp add --transport stdio canny \
  --env CANNY_API_KEY=your_api_key \
  --env CANNY_SUBDOMAIN=your_subdomain \
  --env CANNY_DEFAULT_BOARD=your_board_id \
  --env CANNY_CONFIG_PATH=$(pwd)/config/default.json \
  -- $(which node) $(pwd)/dist/index.js

Option B: Manual JSON Configuration

Add to your MCP client's config file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "canny": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/canny-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "CANNY_API_KEY": "your_api_key",
        "CANNY_SUBDOMAIN": "your_subdomain",
        "CANNY_DEFAULT_BOARD": "your_board_id",
        "CANNY_CONFIG_PATH": "/absolute/path/to/canny-mcp-server/config/default.json"
      }
    }
  }
}

Step 3: Restart and Verify

Restart your MCP client, then ask:

Show me the latest feature requests from Canny.

Documentation

Troubleshooting

API Key Issues

Test your key directly:

curl https://canny.io/api/v1/boards/list --data apiKey=YOUR_API_KEY

This should return your boards.

Tools Not Appearing

Rebuild after config changes: npm run build
Restart your MCP client (quit and reopen)
Check CANNY_TOOL_MODE — readonly excludes write tools
Use absolute paths in manual JSON configuration

Node.js Version Warnings

Use Node.js LTS versions (20.9+, 22+, or 24+). Odd-numbered releases (23, 25) are non-LTS and unsupported. Switch with nvm use 20 or nvm use 22.

Deprecated package warnings (ESLint, glob) affect only devDependencies and do not affect production runtime.

Security

Never commit .env files or API keys
Use readonly mode for general use
Enable write tools only when needed
Keep CANNY_API_KEY secret

Project Structure

canny-mcp-server/
├── src/                 # TypeScript source
│   ├── index.ts         # Entry point
│   ├── server.ts        # MCP server
│   ├── api/             # Canny API client
│   ├── tools/           # MCP tools
│   ├── prompts/         # Built-in prompts
│   └── types/           # Type definitions
├── config/
│   └── default.json     # Server configuration
├── docs/                # Documentation
├── dist/                # Compiled output (generated)
├── package.json
└── tsconfig.json

Contributing

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch
Make your changes
Add tests
Submit a pull request

License

Apache 2.0 — See LICENSE.

Support

Issues — GitHub Issues
API Reference — Canny API Documentation