Sparrow MCP - Security Code Analysis Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that automatically analyzes security vulnerabilities in your code and generates secure code alternatives. This server integrates with Cursor IDE to provide real-time security analysis and secure code generation capabilities.

✨ Features

• File Security Analysis: Automatically analyze security vulnerabilities in Java code
• AI-Powered Briefing: Get easy-to-understand explanations of analysis results
• Secure Code Generation: Automatically generate secure code that fixes discovered vulnerabilities
• Diff Generation: Visualize differences between original and secure code
• Real-time Status Monitoring: Track analysis progress in real-time
• Multi-file Analysis: Analyze multiple files, folders, or ZIP archives at once
• Progress Tracking: Monitor analysis progress with detailed notifications

🛠️ Technology Stack

• TypeScript: Main development language
• MCP SDK: Model Context Protocol implementation
• Ollama: LLM integration (gemma2:27b model)
• Sparrow OnDemand API: SAST security analysis
• Winston: Logging

📦 Installation

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+ and npm
• Sparrow OnDemand API key
• (Optional) Ollama for LLM features

Install from npm

npm install -g @sparrowai/sparrow-mcp

Or install locally in your project:

npm install @sparrowai/sparrow-mcp

Verify Installation

After installation, verify that the package is installed correctly by checking if the server file exists:

For local installation:

# Check if the package is installed
ls node_modules/@sparrowai/sparrow-mcp/dist/server.js

# Or verify the package version
npm list @sparrowai/sparrow-mcp

For global installation:

# Check if the package is installed globally
npm list -g @sparrowai/sparrow-mcp

# Find the exact global installation path
npm root -g

# Verify the server file exists (path may vary by system)
# Windows: %APPDATA%\npm\node_modules\@sparrowai\sparrow-mcp\dist\server.js
#   (typically: C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\@sparrowai\sparrow-mcp\dist\server.js)
# macOS/Linux: /usr/local/lib/node_modules/@sparrowai/sparrow-mcp/dist/server.js
#   (or ~/.npm-global/lib/node_modules/@sparrowai/sparrow-mcp/dist/server.js if using custom prefix)

Note: This package is an MCP server, not a CLI tool. It doesn't provide a direct command-line executable. The server is meant to be run by Cursor IDE through the MCP configuration (see Cursor IDE Configuration section below).

⚙️ Configuration

Sparrow OnDemand API Setup

1. Sign up for Sparrow OnDemand service
2. Obtain your API key from the dashboard
3. Set the SPARROW_API_KEY environment variable in your MCP configuration (see below)

🔧 Cursor IDE Configuration

Configure the MCP server in Cursor IDE. The server requires environment variables to be set in the MCP configuration:

Location: ~/.cursor/mcp.json (macOS/Linux) or %APPDATA%\Cursor\mcp.json (Windows)

For Local Installation

If you installed the package locally in your project:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sparrow-mcp": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["./node_modules/@sparrowai/sparrow-mcp/dist/server.js"],
      "env": {
        "SPARROW_API_KEY": "your-ondemand-token",
        "SPARROW_API_URL": "https://ondemand.sparrowcloud.ai",
        "OLLAMA_BASE_URL": "http://localhost:11434",
        "OLLAMA_MODEL": "gpt-oss:20b",
        "NODE_ENV": "development"
      }
    }
  }
}

For Global Installation

If you installed the package globally with npm install -g, use the absolute path. First, find your global installation path:

npm root -g

Then use the full path in your configuration:

Windows example:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sparrow-mcp": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["C:\\Users\\<username>\\AppData\\Roaming\\npm\\node_modules\\@sparrowai\\sparrow-mcp\\dist\\server.js"],
      "env": {
        "SPARROW_API_KEY": "your-ondemand-token",
        "SPARROW_API_URL": "https://ondemand.sparrowcloud.ai",
        "OLLAMA_BASE_URL": "http://localhost:11434",
        "OLLAMA_MODEL": "gpt-oss:20b",
        "NODE_ENV": "development"
      }
    }
  }
}

macOS/Linux example:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sparrow-mcp": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/usr/local/lib/node_modules/@sparrowai/sparrow-mcp/dist/server.js"],
      "env": {
        "SPARROW_API_KEY": "your-ondemand-token",
        "SPARROW_API_URL": "https://ondemand.sparrowcloud.ai",
        "OLLAMA_BASE_URL": "http://localhost:11434",
        "OLLAMA_MODEL": "gpt-oss:20b",
        "NODE_ENV": "development"
      }
    }
  }
}

Note:

• If you're using a local development build, replace ./node_modules/@sparrowai/sparrow-mcp/dist/server.js with dist/server.js and add "cwd" pointing to your project root.
• Replace "OLLAMA_BASE_URL" with your actual Ollama server URL (e.g., http://192.168.30.169:11434 for remote servers).
• Replace "your-ondemand-token" with your actual Sparrow OnDemand API key.
• For global installation, replace <username> in the Windows path with your actual username, or use npm root -g to get the exact path.

Restart Cursor

After updating the MCP configuration:

1. Save the mcp.json file
2. Restart Cursor IDE completely
3. The MCP server should connect automatically

Verify Connection

To verify that the MCP server is connected:

1. Open Cursor IDE
2. Check the MCP server status in the status bar or settings
3. Try using one of the MCP tools (see Usage section below)

🚀 Usage

Available MCP Tools

The server provides the following MCP tools:

1. analyze_file_security

Analyze a single file for security vulnerabilities.

Parameters:

• fileContent (string): The content of the file to analyze
• fileName (string): The name of the file

Returns:

• analysisId: Unique identifier for the analysis
• status: Current analysis status

Example Usage in Cursor:

Analyze this file for security vulnerabilities:
[file content]

2. get_analysis_status

Check the progress of an ongoing analysis.

Parameters:

• analysisId (string): The analysis ID returned from analyze_file_security

Returns:

• status: Current status (pending, processing, completed, failed)
• progress: Progress percentage (0-100)
• message: Status message

3. get_analysis_results

Get detailed results from a completed analysis.

Parameters:

• analysisId (string): The analysis ID
• fileContent (string): The original file content

Returns:

• vulnerabilities: List of discovered vulnerabilities
• analysisBrief: AI-generated analysis briefing
• secureCode: Generated secure code
• secureCodeBrief: Explanation of the secure code
• diff: Unified diff showing changes

4. analyze_files_security

Analyze multiple files at once. Files are automatically zipped and analyzed.

Parameters:

• filePaths (array of strings): List of file paths to analyze (absolute or relative to working directory)
• zipFileName (optional string): Name for the generated ZIP file

Returns:

• analysisId: Unique identifier for the analysis
• status: Current analysis status
• filePathCount: Number of files being analyzed

5. analyze_zip_security

Analyze a ZIP file for security vulnerabilities.

Parameters:

• zipFilePath (string): Path to the ZIP file to analyze
• zipFileName (optional string): Name for the ZIP file

Returns:

• analysisId: Unique identifier for the analysis
• status: Current analysis status

6. analyze_folder_security

Analyze an entire folder for security vulnerabilities. The folder is automatically zipped before analysis.

Parameters:

• folderPath (string): Path to the folder to analyze
• zipFileName (optional string): Name for the generated ZIP file

Returns:

• analysisId: Unique identifier for the analysis
• status: Current analysis status

7. track_analysis_progress

Track the progress of an analysis with real-time notifications.

Parameters:

• analysisId (string): The analysis ID
• intervalMs (optional number): Status check interval in milliseconds (default: 3000)

Returns:

• Progress notifications sent via MCP progress notifications
• Final status when analysis completes

Analysis Stages:

• INIT: Initialization
• READY: Ready to start
• PRE_PROCESS: Pre-processing
• ANALYSIS: Analysis in progress (progress percentage available)
• POST_PROCESS: Post-processing
• COMPLETE: Analysis complete

Typical Workflow

1. Write Code: Write your Java code in Cursor
2. Request Analysis: Use the analyze_file_security tool to request analysis
3. Track Progress: Use track_analysis_progress to monitor the analysis
4. Get Results: Use get_analysis_results to retrieve detailed results
5. Review: Review the vulnerabilities, secure code, and diff
6. Apply Changes: Apply the suggested secure code changes

🐛 Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. MCP Server Not Connecting

Symptoms: The MCP server doesn't appear in Cursor or shows as disconnected.

Solutions:

• Verify the mcp.json file is in the correct location
• Check that all environment variables are set correctly
• Ensure Node.js is installed and accessible in PATH
• Restart Cursor IDE completely
• Check Cursor's MCP server logs for error messages

2. Ollama Connection Failed

Symptoms: LLM features are not working, errors about Ollama connection.

Solutions:

• Verify Ollama is installed and running: ollama serve
• Check that OLLAMA_BASE_URL is correct (default: http://localhost:11434)
• Verify the model is downloaded: ollama list
• Check firewall settings if using a remote Ollama instance

3. Sparrow API Errors

Symptoms: Analysis requests fail with API errors.

Solutions:

• Verify SPARROW_API_KEY is correct and not expired
• Check SPARROW_API_URL is correct
• Verify your API key has sufficient permissions
• Check network connectivity to Sparrow API

4. Analysis Timeout

Symptoms: Analysis takes too long or times out.

Solutions:

• Large files may take longer to analyze
• Check network connectivity
• Verify Sparrow API service status
• Consider analyzing smaller files or folders separately

Logging

The server logs to both console and log files:

• Console: Real-time logs during development
• Log Files:
  • logs/combined.log: All logs
  • logs/error.log: Error logs only

To enable more detailed logging, add "LOG_LEVEL": "debug" to the "env" section in your MCP configuration.

📝 License

ISC

🔗 Related Links

• Model Context Protocol Documentation
• Cursor IDE Documentation
• Sparrow OnDemand API Documentation
• Ollama Documentation