iStdBMAD

BMAD-METHOD MCP server for local network — serves all 42 BMAD AI development skills to every project on your machine (or team network) from a single installation.

Works with Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, Cline, Codex, Gemini CLI, and more.

Support this project

If iStdBMAD saves you time, consider buying me a coffee ☕

What it does

• Runs a local MCP server that connects to Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, and more
• Serves all BMAD-METHOD skills (create PRD, architecture, stories, dev story, code review, etc.)
• Reads your project's docs/ and CLAUDE.md automatically — every skill gets your project context injected
• Shows a live web dashboard to see connected sessions and skill activity
• Works across your whole local network — one server, every developer and every tool

Prerequisites

• Node.js 20+
• At least one supported AI tool (Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, Cline, Codex, Gemini CLI, etc.)
• Git

Installation

The fastest path uses npx — no clone, no npm install. Skills install into a stable home directory (~/.istd-bmad/) so the server can find them on every run.

npx istd-bmad setup       # interactive: pick which tools to install for
npx istd-bmad start       # start the MCP server

Or install globally so the istd-bmad command is always available:

npm install -g istd-bmad
istd-bmad setup
istd-bmad start

Setup options

npx istd-bmad setup --yes                          # recommended defaults
npx istd-bmad setup --tools claude-code,cursor     # explicit tool list
npx istd-bmad setup --force                        # reinstall / upgrade BMAD

Supported tools: claude-code, cursor, windsurf, github-copilot, cline, roo, codex, gemini, replit

Where skills are installed

Default: ~/.istd-bmad/ (and ~/.istd-bmad/.claude/skills/ for the BMAD skill files).

Override with the ISTD_BMAD_HOME env var:

ISTD_BMAD_HOME=/opt/istd-bmad npx istd-bmad setup
ISTD_BMAD_HOME=/opt/istd-bmad npx istd-bmad start

Starting the server

npx istd-bmad start
# or, if installed globally:
istd-bmad start

You will see:

✅ Loaded 42 BMAD skills

╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║                 iStdBMAD — MCP Server                        ║
╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║  Web Dashboard:  http://localhost:3000/                      ║
║                  http://192.168.1.x:3000/                    ║
║  MCP endpoint:   http://localhost:3000/sse                   ║
║                  http://192.168.1.x:3000/sse                 ║
╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Keep this terminal open while you work. The server must be running for Claude Code to use BMAD skills.

Connect your AI tool (one-time per machine)

Claude Code

Register the server globally so it's available in every Claude Code session:

claude mcp add --transport sse --scope user iStdBMAD http://localhost:3000/sse

Verify it's registered:

claude mcp list

You should see iStdBMAD in the list. Restart Claude Code after registering.

Cursor / Windsurf / GitHub Copilot

These tools discover MCP servers via the config file in the project directory (created by istd-bmad init). No global registration needed — open the project and the connection is automatic.

Cline / Roo Code

Open VS Code → sidebar → MCP Servers → Add → SSE → http://localhost:3000/sse

Codex / Gemini CLI / Replit

BMAD skills are installed as local files (.agents/skills/). No server connection needed — the tool reads them directly from your project.

Set up a project

Every project needs a .mcp.json so Claude Code knows to use iStdBMAD, plus a docs/ folder for your project-specific documents.

Option A — Use istd-bmad init (recommended)

cd my-project
npx istd-bmad init --yes

By default, init prompts you to choose which AI tools to configure. Pass --tools to skip the prompt:

npx istd-bmad init --yes --tools claude-code,cursor
npx istd-bmad init --yes --tools cursor,windsurf,github-copilot

This creates the appropriate MCP config file(s) for each selected tool:

| Tool | Config file created | |------|---------------------| | Claude Code | .mcp.json | | Cursor | .cursor/mcp.json | | Windsurf | .windsurf/mcp.json | | GitHub Copilot (VS Code) | .vscode/mcp.json | | Cline / Roo / Codex / Gemini | (printed as manual instructions) |

Plus the full project scaffold:

my-project/
├── .mcp.json              ← Claude Code config (if selected)
├── .cursor/mcp.json       ← Cursor config (if selected)
├── CLAUDE.md              ← project rules (fill in before starting)
├── docs/
│   ├── project-brief.md   ← describe your project here first
│   ├── prd.md
│   ├── architecture.md
│   └── stories/
└── .gitignore

Option B — Manual (existing projects)

Create the MCP config file for your tool:

Claude Code — .mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "iStdBMAD": { "type": "sse", "url": "http://localhost:3000/sse" }
  }
}

Cursor — .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "iStdBMAD": { "url": "http://localhost:3000/sse" }
  }
}

Windsurf — .windsurf/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "iStdBMAD": { "serverUrl": "http://localhost:3000/sse" }
  }
}

GitHub Copilot (VS Code) — .vscode/mcp.json:

{
  "inputs": [],
  "servers": {
    "iStdBMAD": { "type": "sse", "url": "http://localhost:3000/sse" }
  }
}

Cline / Roo Code: Open VS Code → sidebar → MCP Servers → Add → SSE → http://localhost:3000/sse

Codex / Gemini CLI / Replit: BMAD skills are installed directly (no MCP config needed — skills live in .agents/skills/).

Create docs/ folder and CLAUDE.md manually (see templates below).

First use in a project

1. Fill in docs/project-brief.md

This is the most important step. iStdBMAD reads this to understand your project before injecting context into any skill.

# My Project — Project Brief

## What is this?
A web app that lets restaurant owners manage their menu and orders in real time.

## Key Goals
- [ ] Menu management (add, edit, delete items)
- [ ] Real-time order tracking
- [ ] Role-based access (owner, staff)

## Tech Stack
- Language: TypeScript
- Framework: Next.js 14
- Database: PostgreSQL + Prisma

## Constraints
- Must work offline for staff tablets
- Must handle 100 concurrent orders

## Success Looks Like
Staff can take orders without paper. Owner can update menu instantly.

2. Fill in CLAUDE.md

Rules Claude Code will follow in every conversation in this project:

# My Project — Claude Rules

## Project Overview
Restaurant management web app. TypeScript + Next.js + PostgreSQL.

## Required Reading (before any code change)
- docs/prd.md           — requirements
- docs/architecture.md  — technical decisions

## Hard Rules
### MUST NOT
- Never skip tests
- Never use `any` in TypeScript
- Never commit directly to main

### MUST
- Follow architecture in docs/architecture.md
- Run `npm test` before marking a story done

## BMAD Workflow
1. bmad-help                     → get oriented
2. bmad-create-prd               → write docs/prd.md
3. bmad-create-architecture      → write docs/architecture.md
4. bmad-create-epics-and-stories → write docs/stories/
5. bmad-dev-story                → implement a story
6. bmad-code-review              → review before merge

3. Open Claude Code in your project

cd my-project
claude

Claude Code will connect to iStdBMAD automatically when it sees .mcp.json.

BMAD Workflow (after setup)

Getting started

use bmad-help

BMAD will look at your project state and tell you exactly what to do next.

Full development cycle

| Step | Skill | Output | |------|-------|--------| | 1. Define the product | bmad-create-prd | docs/prd.md | | 2. Design the system | bmad-create-architecture | docs/architecture.md | | 3. Break into stories | bmad-create-epics-and-stories | docs/stories/ | | 4. Implement a story | bmad-dev-story | code | | 5. Review code | bmad-code-review | review notes | | 6. Plan the sprint | bmad-sprint-planning | sprint plan |

Saving skill output to docs

After a skill runs and Claude produces a document, save it:

Save this as docs/prd.md using write_project_doc

Claude will call write_project_doc to save directly to your docs/ folder.

Reading project docs

Read docs/prd.md using read_project_doc

Or just invoke any skill — iStdBMAD injects the relevant docs automatically.

Available BMAD Skills (42 total)

Agents (specialists)

| Skill | Role | |-------|------| | bmad-agent-pm | Product Manager — requirements, priorities | | bmad-agent-architect | System Architect — technical design | | bmad-agent-dev | Senior Engineer — implementation | | bmad-agent-analyst | Business Analyst — research, analysis | | bmad-agent-ux-designer | UX Designer — user flows, wireframes | | bmad-agent-tech-writer | Technical Writer — documentation |

Planning & Documentation

| Skill | What it does | |-------|-------------| | bmad-create-prd | Write the Product Requirements Document | | bmad-create-architecture | Design the system architecture | | bmad-create-epics-and-stories | Break PRD into epics and user stories | | bmad-create-story | Write a single detailed user story | | bmad-create-ux-design | Create UX design specifications | | bmad-product-brief | Write a concise product brief | | bmad-prfaq | Write a PR/FAQ document (Amazon-style) | | bmad-document-project | Generate project documentation |

Development

| Skill | What it does | |-------|-------------| | bmad-dev-story | Implement a user story (full TDD flow) | | bmad-quick-dev | Fast implementation for small tasks | | bmad-code-review | Review code for quality and correctness | | bmad-check-implementation-readiness | Check if ready to start a story | | bmad-correct-course | Fix a story that went off track |

Research & Analysis

| Skill | What it does | |-------|-------------| | bmad-domain-research | Research a domain or technology | | bmad-market-research | Research the market and competitors | | bmad-technical-research | Deep technical research | | bmad-brainstorming | Structured brainstorming session |

Sprint & Project Management

| Skill | What it does | |-------|-------------| | bmad-sprint-planning | Plan the next sprint | | bmad-sprint-status | Report current sprint status | | bmad-retrospective | Run a sprint retrospective | | bmad-generate-project-context | Generate a project context summary |

Testing

| Skill | What it does | |-------|-------------| | bmad-qa-generate-e2e-tests | Generate end-to-end tests | | bmad-validate-prd | Validate PRD for completeness |

Reviews & Editing

| Skill | What it does | |-------|-------------| | bmad-review-adversarial-general | Adversarial review of documents | | bmad-review-edge-case-hunter | Find edge cases | | bmad-editorial-review-prose | Review writing quality | | bmad-editorial-review-structure | Review document structure | | bmad-edit-prd | Edit and improve an existing PRD |

Utilities

| Skill | What it does | |-------|-------------| | bmad-help | Get oriented — what to do next | | bmad-party-mode | Creative brainstorming with multiple personas | | bmad-customize | Customize BMAD for your team | | bmad-index-docs | Index all project documentation | | bmad-shard-doc | Split large documents into smaller parts | | bmad-distillator | Summarize and distill content |

MCP Tools (available to Claude)

Beyond skills, iStdBMAD exposes tools Claude can call directly:

| Tool | Description | |------|-------------| | list_project_docs | List all files in docs/ | | read_project_doc | Read a specific doc file | | write_project_doc | Save content to docs/<file> | | get_project_rules | Read CLAUDE.md | | update_project_rules | Update CLAUDE.md |

Web Dashboard

Open in any browser while the server is running:

http://localhost:3000/

Shows:

• Active sessions — which projects are connected right now
• Live activity feed — every skill call as it happens
• Skills available — all 42 BMAD skills
• Stats — uptime, session count, docs written

Team / Network Usage

To share one server across multiple developers on the same network:

On the server machine (run once):

npx istd-bmad start
# Note the Network URL: http://192.168.x.x:3000/sse

On each developer's machine — register the server:

claude mcp add --transport sse --scope user iStdBMAD http://192.168.x.x:3000/sse

In each project's .mcp.json — use the network IP:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "iStdBMAD": {
      "type": "sse",
      "url": "http://192.168.x.x:3000/sse"
    }
  }
}

Updating BMAD Skills

To get the latest BMAD-METHOD skills:

npx istd-bmad setup --force
npx istd-bmad start

All connected developers get the updated skills immediately — no action needed on their end.

Troubleshooting

Claude Code doesn't see iStdBMAD tools

• Make sure the server is running (npx istd-bmad start)
• Restart Claude Code after registering with claude mcp add
• Check claude mcp list — iStdBMAD should be listed

"No project root detected" in skill responses

• Your project needs .mcp.json — run npx istd-bmad init --yes or create it manually
• Restart Claude Code after adding .mcp.json

Skills loaded but no project context injected

• Make sure docs/project-brief.md exists and has content
• The server reads docs/ from whichever project Claude Code has open

Server won't start — "Skills directory not found"

• Run npx istd-bmad setup first to install BMAD skills
• Or check ~/.istd-bmad/.claude/skills/ exists (or $ISTD_BMAD_HOME/.claude/skills/ if you set the override)

Project Structure

The npm package itself:

istd-bmad/
├── bin/cli.js         ← CLI entry point (setup / init / start)
├── server.js          ← MCP server (SSE transport + web dashboard)
├── setup.js           ← One-time BMAD skill installer
├── init.js            ← Per-project scaffolder
├── tools.js           ← Supported tools registry
├── paths.js           ← Resolves install location
├── public/
│   └── index.html     ← Web dashboard UI
└── package.json

After running npx istd-bmad setup, BMAD skills live in your home directory (so any npx istd-bmad start invocation can find them):

~/.istd-bmad/                 ← override with $ISTD_BMAD_HOME
├── .claude/
│   └── skills/               ← 42 BMAD skill files
└── _bmad/                    ← BMAD core configuration