mcp-shipkit

Production-ready MCP server starter kit. Scaffold, test, and publish MCP servers in minutes.

Features

• 3 Templates: Basic server, REST API wrapper, Database connector
• TypeScript: Full type safety with MCP SDK integration
• Zero Config: Templates compile and run out of the box
• Validation: Check your MCP server before publishing
• Publish: Build + publish to npm in one command

Install

npm install -g mcp-shipkit

Quick Start

# Create a new MCP server
mcp-shipkit create my-server

# Pick a template:
#   basic        — Minimal MCP server with one example tool
#   api-wrapper  — REST API wrapper with HTTP client
#   database     — SQLite database connector

cd my-server
npm install
npm run build
npm start

Templates

basic

A minimal MCP server with a single "hello" tool. Start here if you're new to MCP.

my-server/
  src/
    index.ts          — Server setup + transport
    tools/example.ts  — Example "hello" tool
  package.json
  tsconfig.json
  README.md

api-wrapper

Wraps any REST API as MCP tools. Includes a configurable HTTP client with auth support.

my-server/
  src/
    index.ts              — Server setup
    tools/api-tool.ts     — list_items + get_item tools
    lib/api-client.ts     — Fetch-based REST client
  package.json
  tsconfig.json
  README.md

database

Connects to a SQLite database via better-sqlite3. Provides read-only query and table listing tools.

my-server/
  src/
    index.ts            — Server setup
    tools/query.ts      — query + list_tables tools
    lib/db.ts           — Database connection wrapper
  package.json
  tsconfig.json
  README.md

Commands

mcp-shipkit create <name>

Scaffold a new MCP server project.

| Flag | Description | |------|-------------| | -t, --template <type> | Template: basic, api-wrapper, database (default: interactive) | | -d, --description <desc> | Project description | | -a, --author <name> | Author name | | --no-install | Skip npm install after scaffolding |

mcp-shipkit test [path]

Validate an MCP server project.

Checks:

• package.json exists and has @modelcontextprotocol/sdk dependency
• src/index.ts exists
• TypeScript compiles (tsc --noEmit)
• Build script is defined

| Flag | Description | |------|-------------| | --strict | Fail on warnings too |

mcp-shipkit publish [path]

Build and publish your MCP server to npm.

| Flag | Description | |------|-------------| | --dry-run | Run npm publish --dry-run | | --tag <tag> | npm publish tag (default: latest) |

Adding Tools

After scaffolding, add new tools by creating files in src/tools/:

import { McpServer } from "@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/server/mcp.js";
import { z } from "zod";

export function registerMyTool(server: McpServer) {
  server.tool(
    "my-tool",
    "Description of what the tool does",
    {
      input: z.string().describe("Input parameter"),
    },
    async ({ input }) => ({
      content: [{ type: "text", text: `Result: ${input}` }],
    })
  );
}

Then register it in src/index.ts:

import { registerMyTool } from "./tools/my-tool.js";
registerMyTool(server);

Testing with Claude Desktop

Add your server to claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "my-server": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/my-server/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

License

MIT