Setup

Pre-computed context

Installed CLI version: !ctx7 --version 2>/dev/null || echo "not installed"

Latest published CLI version: !npm view ctx7 version 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown (npm registry unreachable)"

MCP availability: check your own tool list. If mcp__context7__resolve-library-id / mcp__context7__query-docs are present, the Context7 MCP server is already configured.

Purpose

Bring the local environment to a working state for /context7:lookup. Two independent paths, either alone sufficient: the CLI (ctx7 via npm) and the Context7 MCP server (configured by the consuming project). An optional CONTEXT7_API_KEY raises rate limits for both.

Check-centric per the uniform setup contract (docs/PLUGIN-PHILOSOPHY.md "Setup is explicit and repeatable" in the marketplace repository): check inspects and reports, apply resolves what check found, and the CLI install is a distinct opt-in subaction. Idempotent and transparent: safe to rerun.

Action routing: no argument or check runs the check; apply runs the check first, then the guidance-only remediations (auth, MCP routing); apply install-cli additionally authorizes the global ctx7 install/upgrade below. All actions are non-interactive when the action is given. Never prompt.

check (read-only)

Work top-down from the pre-computed context and report a PASS/FAIL/INFO table with one remediation line per FAIL. Do not install, edit config, or write anything.

1. CLI path. From the pre-computed block: is ctx7 installed, and does it match the latest published version? A working, current CLI is PASS. Installed-but-behind is INFO with remediation apply install-cli. Absent is INFO only when the MCP path is live (below); otherwise it is a FAIL of the "at least one path works" requirement.
2. MCP path. Is the Context7 MCP server present in your tool list? Present is PASS; absent is INFO. The MCP interface is optional; the CLI alone is sufficient.
3. At least one path. FAIL only when neither the CLI nor the MCP server resolves; every lookup would then be blocked. Remediation: apply install-cli, or add the MCP server (routed in apply).
4. Auth. INFO: report whether CONTEXT7_API_KEY is present in the environment ([ -n "$CONTEXT7_API_KEY" ]). Report presence only. Never print or echo the value. Anonymous usage works at low rates, so absence is never a FAIL.
5. Windows Git Bash. INFO: CLI ctx7 docs /org/project "..." calls must be prefixed with MSYS_NO_PATHCONV=1 (a no-op on macOS/Linux, so it is safe to always include), or the /org/project ID gets path-mangled. Full explanation: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/lookup/context/cli.md.

apply (idempotent)

Run check, then resolve each finding. Re-running after both paths are working changes nothing and reports "already configured". State each change before making it, and re-detect before claiming it.

1. apply install-cli installs or upgrades the CLI. Only with this subaction, and only when check found ctx7 missing or behind latest:

   npm install -g ctx7@latest
   

   No global install available? npx ctx7@latest <command> works per-invocation. Version floor, npx trade-offs, and the full command/flag reference: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/lookup/context/cli.md. After installing, re-read the CLI version and report the observed result. Never claim upgraded on the install command's exit code alone.

2. Auth (optional, both paths). Guidance only. For higher limits, direct the user to set CONTEXT7_API_KEY in their own shell profile / secret store:

   export CONTEXT7_API_KEY="<your-key>"
   

   Prefer this over ctx7 login. Never write the key into the repository, Claude Code settings, or an MCP config file, and never print its value. An environment-variable change takes effect in a fresh session; report its presence only and defer verification to that fresh session. Rationale and the ctx7 login caveat: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/lookup/context/cli.md.

3. MCP path (optional). Guidance only. If the user wants the MCP interface (cleaner output, more content per call with the measured ratio in ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/lookup/context/mcp.md, no Windows ceremony), route them to add a context7 server entry to their own MCP configuration. The exact JSON, covering anonymous and API-key forms plus the "unset env var breaks config parsing" caveat, lives in ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/lookup/context/mcp.md. Do not edit their .mcp.json for them.

4. Verify. Re-read the CLI version and your tool list. Confirm at least one path (CLI or MCP) is live before declaring setup complete.

Output

Report what was already in place, what changed, what was skipped, and which lookup path(s) are now available (CLI, MCP, or both).

Boundaries

• Do not run ctx7 setup or ctx7 skills install. This plugin owns the lookup surface; those install a parallel skill that fragments and clobbers it (detail in the CLI and update references).
• Do not run ctx7 setup --mcp or edit the consumer's .mcp.json without consent. Their MCP configuration is theirs to curate.
• Do not write CONTEXT7_API_KEY into the repository, Claude Code settings, or any config file, and never print its value; the key belongs in the environment or a secret store.
• Do not write the plugin cache, Claude Code user settings, or pluginConfigs. This skill brings the local environment to a working state for lookups; machine-wide Claude Code state belongs to the user and the harness, and the installed plugin cache is overwritten on the next plugin update.
• Do not perform library lookups. That is /context7:lookup.