mcp-director

A lightweight MCP server that recommends and manages MCP profiles for Claude Code.

Problem

Claude Code loads all configured MCP servers at session start. With 20+ MCPs, startup is slow — but you only use 2-3 per session.

Solution

mcp-director stays as your only always-on MCP. Tell it what you want to do, and it recommends the right MCPs and switches your .mcp.json profile.

Install

Add to your .mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-director": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-director"]
    }
  }
}

Quick Start

1. Initialize — Import your existing MCPs into the director catalog:

   "Run the init tool"

2. Get recommendations — Ask what MCPs you need:

   "I want to create meeting notes" → recommends whisper, notebooklm-mcp

3. Switch profiles — Apply a profile to slim down your .mcp.json:

   "Apply the development profile" → keeps only github, context7, playwright

4. Restart session — Changes take effect on next session start.

Tools

| Tool | Description | |------|-------------| | recommend | Suggest MCPs for a task (supports smart mode for LLM-assisted matching) | | apply_profile | Switch .mcp.json to a profile (with backup and dry-run) | | list_profiles | Show available profiles and current state | | create_profile | Create a custom profile | | update_profile | Add/remove MCPs from a profile | | delete_profile | Remove a custom profile | | init | Import existing .mcp.json into director catalog |

Profiles

Built-in profiles:

• minimal — Director only
• development — GitHub + Context7 + Playwright
• research — Context7 + Sequential Thinking
• communication — Slack + Linear
• design — Figma + Playwright
• full — All MCPs enabled

Create your own with create_profile.

How It Works

• Bundled catalog of popular MCPs with keywords, categories, and capabilities
• init imports your existing MCPs into a local .mcp-director/catalog.json
• recommend scores MCPs against your task description
• apply_profile rewrites .mcp.json (with .mcp.json.bak backup)
• Director always preserves itself in .mcp.json

License

MIT