gitlab-mcp

GitLab MCP

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for GitLab, enabling Claude to interact directly with your GitLab instance.

💬 Feedback

Please provide feedback in https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/ux-research/-/issues/3495, or (if you don't have access) open a new issue at https://gitlab.com/fforster/gitlab-mcp/-/issues.

Overview

GitLab MCP implements the Model Context Protocol for GitLab, allowing AI assistants like Claude to access and manipulate GitLab resources. This integration enables Claude to work with:

• Discussions and Notes
• Epics
• Issues
• Jobs
• Merge Requests
• Repository Files and Directories
• Snippets
• User information

Installation

Option 1: Build from source

1. Clone this repository
2. Build the binary with go build
3. Set up your GitLab token as an environment variable:

   export GITLAB_TOKEN=your_gitlab_token
   

Option 2: Docker

A pre-built Docker image is available:

docker run -i -e GITLAB_TOKEN=your_gitlab_token registry.gitlab.com/fforster/gitlab-mcp:latest

The Docker image contains the compiled GitLab MCP server and is the simplest way to get started.

Usage with Claude Desktop

To use the GitLab MCP server with Claude Desktop, add the following to your Claude Desktop configuration file:

Using the binary

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "GitLab": {
      "command": "/path/to/gitlab-mcp",
      "env": {
        "GITLAB_TOKEN": "your_gitlab_token"
      }
    }
  }
}

Using Docker

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "GitLab": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "--pull=always",
        "-e", "GITLAB_TOKEN",
        "registry.gitlab.com/fforster/gitlab-mcp:latest"
      ],
      "env": {
        "GITLAB_TOKEN": "your_gitlab_token"
      }
    }
  }
}

Explanation:

• -i is required so Docker keeps STDIN open.
• --rm cleans up the container when gitlab-mcp exits.
• --pull=always ensures that Docker downloads the latest version of gitlab-mcp before running.
• -e GITLAB_TOKEN exports the GITLAB_TOKEN environment variable to gitlab-mcp.

Config file location

The configuration file is typically located at:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Environment Variables

You can provide the GitLab token in one of two ways:

1. Directly in the configuration, by adding an env section. This is what the above examples use.

2. Via shell initialization files, where your .bashrc or similar file sets the GITLAB_TOKEN environment variable:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "GitLab": {
         "command": "/bin/bash",
         "args": [
           "-c",
           "/path/to/gitlab-mcp"
         ]
       }
     }
   }
   

Supported Tools

Example Usage

Once configured, you can ask Claude to interact with your GitLab instance:

• "Prioritize the open issues assigned to me."
• "List the merge requests I need to review."
• "Add a comment to issue #42 suggesting a possible solution."
• "Summarize the discussion of issue #123 in the my-project project."
• "Create a new snippet with the code I just shared."
• "What epics are currently open in the my-group group?"
• "Please explain why the pipeline of merge request !456 failed."
• "How do I use the MCP server according to the README.md file in the fforster/gitlab-mcp GitLab project."
• "On GitLab, what have reprazent and ffoster been working on between 2025-04-28 and 2025-05-02?"

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.