Bridge Suite MCP Server

Give AI agents full access to your IntelliJ IDE.

Bridge Suite is a free, open-source MCP server that connects AI coding assistants to IntelliJ IDEA through four specialized plugins. Run commands in terminals, trigger builds, push notifications into the IDE, and query project context — all through a single MCP server.

Works with Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, Continue, and any MCP-compatible client.

Why Bridge Suite?

JetBrains' built-in MCP server handles file operations and basic code inspection, but it doesn't expose what makes IntelliJ powerful for AI workflows:

| Capability | JetBrains Built-in | Bridge Suite | |---|:---:|:---:| | Read/write files | Yes | - | | Run terminal commands with live output | - | Yes | | Trigger specific run configurations | - | Yes | | Push notifications into the IDE | - | Yes | | Show progress bars for long tasks | - | Yes | | Get full project context (SDK, frameworks, deps) | - | Yes | | Stream real-time output via WebSocket | - | Yes | | Multi-terminal management | - | Yes |

Bridge Suite and the built-in MCP are complementary — install both for complete IDE control.

Quick Start

1. Install the MCP server

Add to your MCP client configuration:

Claude Code (.mcp.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "bridge-suite": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@llitd/bridge-suite-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop (claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "bridge-suite": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@llitd/bridge-suite-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor (Settings > MCP Servers):

Name: bridge-suite
Command: npx -y @llitd/bridge-suite-mcp

2. Install at least one plugin

The MCP server connects to plugins running inside IntelliJ. Install them from the JetBrains Marketplace:

| Plugin | What It Does | Free Tier | Marketplace | |---|---|---|---| | Terminal Bridge | List, create, send commands to IDE terminals | List, read, send | Install | | Run Configuration Bridge | Execute run/debug configs, track processes | List, run | Install | | Notification Bridge | Push notifications, progress bars, status widgets | Send notifications, history | Install | | Project Intelligence | Project context, dependencies, frameworks | Full context snapshot | Install |

Each plugin runs a lightweight HTTP server on localhost. The MCP server auto-discovers which plugins are running.

3. Verify

Ask your AI assistant:

"Check which Bridge Suite plugins are available"

It will call bridge_status and show you what's running.

Tools

bridge_status

Check which plugins are installed, running, and licensed. Call this first to see what's available.

bridge_status()

Returns:

{
  "terminal-bridge": {
    "name": "Terminal Bridge",
    "running": true,
    "version": "2.4.2",
    "licensed": true
  },
  "notification-bridge": {
    "name": "Notification Bridge",
    "running": true,
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "licensed": false
  },
  ...
}

terminal — Terminal Bridge

Manage IntelliJ terminal tabs. Create terminals, send commands, read output.

| Action | Description | Tier | |---|---|---| | status | Plugin health | Free | | list | List all terminal tabs | Free | | read | Read recent output (id required) | Free | | send | Send command to terminal (id, command required) | Free | | create | Create new terminal tab | Pro | | close | Close terminal tab (id required) | Pro | | focus | Focus terminal in IDE (id required) | Pro | | rename | Rename terminal tab (id, name required) | Pro |

Examples:

// List terminals
terminal({ action: "list" })

// Run a command
terminal({ action: "send", id: "terminal-1", command: "npm test" })

// Read output
terminal({ action: "read", id: "terminal-1", max_lines: 50 })

run_config — Run Configuration Bridge

Execute IntelliJ run/debug configurations. Start builds, run tests, launch servers — any run config defined in your project.

| Action | Description | Tier | |---|---|---| | status | Plugin health | Free | | list | List all run configurations | Free | | types | List configuration types | Free | | details | Get config details (id required) | Free | | run | Start a configuration (id required) | Free | | processes | List running processes | Free | | debug | Start with debugger (id required) | Pro | | stop | Stop process (id required) | Pro | | restart | Restart process (id required) | Pro | | output | Read process output (id required) | Pro | | wait | Wait for process to finish (id required) | Pro | | env | Get environment variables (id required) | Pro | | refresh | Force cache refresh | Pro |

Examples:

// List all run configurations
run_config({ action: "list" })

// Run "Backend Server" configuration
run_config({ action: "run", id: "backend-server" })

// Check process output
run_config({ action: "output", id: "process-1", max_lines: 100 })

notify — Notification Bridge

Push notifications, progress bars, and status bar widgets directly into the IDE. Perfect for long-running AI tasks, CI/CD results, or monitoring alerts.

| Action | Description | Tier | |---|---|---| | status | Plugin health | Free | | channels | List notification channels | Free | | send | Send balloon notification (title, content required) | Free | | history | Read notification history | Free | | sticky | Sticky notification (stays until dismissed) | Pro | | action | Notification with clickable buttons | Pro | | channel_create | Register notification channel | Pro | | channel_delete | Remove channel (id required) | Pro | | progress_create | Create IDE progress bar (title required) | Pro | | progress_update | Update progress (id, fraction required) | Pro | | progress_complete | Complete/cancel progress bar (id required) | Pro | | statusbar_create | Create status bar widget (id, text required) | Pro | | statusbar_update | Update widget text (id required) | Pro | | statusbar_remove | Remove widget (id required) | Pro |

Examples:

// Send a notification
notify({ action: "send", title: "Build Complete", content: "All 42 tests pass", type: "INFORMATION" })

// Warning notification
notify({ action: "send", title: "Memory High", content: "Heap usage at 89%", type: "WARNING" })

// Create a progress bar (Pro)
notify({ action: "progress_create", title: "Deploying to Production", fraction: 0.0 })

// Update progress
notify({ action: "progress_update", id: "abc123", text: "Stage 2/3", fraction: 0.66 })

// Complete it
notify({ action: "progress_complete", id: "abc123" })

// Notification with action buttons (Pro)
notify({
  action: "action",
  title: "PR #42 Ready",
  content: "All checks pass. Merge?",
  type: "INFORMATION",
  actions: [
    { label: "Open PR", id: "open", url: "https://github.com/org/repo/pull/42" },
    { label: "Merge", id: "merge" }
  ]
})

// Status bar widget (Pro)
notify({ action: "statusbar_create", id: "api-health", text: "API: 200ms", tooltip: "Average response time" })

project_intel — Project Intelligence Bridge

Get rich project context — SDK version, detected frameworks, dependency tree, file structure. Useful for AI agents that need to understand the project before making changes.

| Action | Description | Tier | |---|---|---| | status | Plugin health | Free | | context | Full project snapshot (SDK, frameworks, VCS, deps) | Free | | dependencies | Dependency tree with conflicts | Free | | file_tree | Source/test/resource file classification | Free | | frameworks | Detected frameworks and versions | Free | | summary | LLM-optimized text summary | Free | | refresh | Force refresh cached data | Free |

Examples:

// Get full project context
project_intel({ action: "context" })

// Quick summary for LLM context windows
project_intel({ action: "summary" })

// Check frameworks
project_intel({ action: "frameworks" })

Architecture

┌──────────────────────────────────┐
│   AI Assistant (Claude, Cursor)  │
│   Uses MCP tools to control IDE  │
└──────────────┬───────────────────┘
               │ MCP Protocol (stdio)
┌──────────────▼───────────────────┐
│   Bridge Suite MCP Server        │
│   Free, open-source (this repo)  │
│   Auto-discovers running plugins │
└──────────────┬───────────────────┘
               │ HTTP (localhost)
   ┌───────────┼───────────┬───────────────┐
   ▼           ▼           ▼               ▼
┌──────┐  ┌──────┐   ┌──────────┐   ┌──────────┐
│:9876 │  │:9877 │   │  :9878   │   │  :9885   │
│Term  │  │ Run  │   │  Notif   │   │  Project │
│Bridge│  │Config│   │  Bridge  │   │  Intel   │
└──┬───┘  └──┬───┘   └────┬─────┘   └────┬─────┘
   │         │            │              │
   └─────────┴────────────┴──────────────┘
                    │
          IntelliJ IDEA (IDE APIs)

Each plugin runs an embedded HTTP server on localhost. The MCP server probes ports to discover which plugins are available. If a plugin isn't installed, its tools return a helpful message with an install link.

Security: Everything runs on localhost. No data leaves your machine. No authentication needed for local-only access.

Plugin Availability

When a tool targets a plugin that isn't running, you get a clear message:

{
  "success": false,
  "error": "Notification Bridge is not running. Install it from JetBrains Marketplace: https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/30984-notification-bridge — then restart IntelliJ IDEA.",
  "code": "PLUGIN_NOT_AVAILABLE"
}

When a tool requires a paid feature on the free tier:

{
  "success": false,
  "error": "This feature requires a paid Notification Bridge license. Upgrade at: https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/30984-notification-bridge",
  "code": "LICENSE_REQUIRED"
}

Configuration

Custom Ports

If your plugins run on non-standard ports, set environment variables:

TERMINAL_BRIDGE_PORT=9876       # default
RUN_CONFIG_BRIDGE_PORT=9877     # default
NOTIFICATION_BRIDGE_PORT=9878   # default
PROJECT_INTELLIGENCE_PORT=9885  # default

Plugin Settings

Each plugin has its own settings in IntelliJ: Settings > Tools > [Plugin Name]

Common settings across all plugins:

• Port — HTTP server port
• Auto-start — Start server when IDE opens
• CORS Origins — Allowed origins for cross-origin requests

Use Cases

AI-Driven Development Workflow

1. project_intel({ action: "context" })     → Understand the project
2. terminal({ action: "send", ... })        → Run commands
3. run_config({ action: "run", ... })       → Build/test
4. run_config({ action: "output", ... })    → Check results
5. notify({ action: "send", ... })          → Report completion

CI/CD Notification Pipeline

1. notify({ action: "channel_create", id: "ci", name: "CI Pipeline" })
2. notify({ action: "progress_create", title: "Deploying v2.1" })
3. notify({ action: "progress_update", id: "...", fraction: 0.5 })
4. notify({ action: "progress_complete", id: "..." })
5. notify({ action: "action", title: "Deploy Complete", actions: [...] })

Multi-Terminal Orchestration

1. terminal({ action: "create", name: "backend" })
2. terminal({ action: "create", name: "frontend" })
3. terminal({ action: "send", id: "backend", command: "mvn spring-boot:run" })
4. terminal({ action: "send", id: "frontend", command: "npm run dev" })
5. terminal({ action: "read", id: "backend" })  → Check startup

Requirements

• IntelliJ IDEA 2025.3+ (Ultimate or Community)
• Node.js 18+ (for the MCP server)
• At least one Bridge Suite plugin installed

Pricing

The MCP server is free and open-source (MIT license).

Each plugin uses a freemium model on the JetBrains Marketplace:

| | Personal | Commercial | |---|---|---| | Monthly | $1.90/mo | $4.90/mo | | Annual | $19/yr | $49/yr |

Free tiers include essential read/execute operations. Pro tiers unlock creation, streaming, and advanced features. See the tool tables above for tier details.

JetBrains community programs (students, open-source, startups) provide free licenses.

Development

git clone https://github.com/llitd/bridge-suite-mcp.git
cd bridge-suite-mcp
npm install
npm run build

Run locally:

node dist/index.js

Project Structure

src/
  index.ts              Entry point (stdio transport)
  discovery.ts          Plugin auto-discovery (port probing)
  http-client.ts        Shared HTTP client with error handling
  tools/
    bridge-status.ts    Meta tool: plugin discovery
    terminal.ts         Terminal Bridge proxy
    run-config.ts       Run Configuration Bridge proxy
    notify.ts           Notification Bridge proxy
    project.ts          Project Intelligence Bridge proxy
    registry.ts         Tool registration

Links

• LLITD on JetBrains Marketplace
• Terminal Bridge
• Run Configuration Bridge
• Notification Bridge
• Project Intelligence Bridge
• Model Context Protocol
• Report Issues

License

MIT — see LICENSE