MCP Server Status Check

MCP Server Status Check

How to Tell if MCP Server is Running

Method 1: Look for the Fallback Message (Easiest)

Run /skills and check the output:

❌ MCP NOT Running:

⏺ I don't have access to the list_skills MCP tool,
  so I'll use the shell script fallback:
⏺ Bash(~/bin/list-skills.sh --names-only)

You see "fallback" message and Bash command.

✅ MCP IS Running:

⏺ Available Claude Skills
  Found 16 skills: ...

No "fallback" message, no Bash command shown, instant results.

Method 2: Check Configuration Files

# Project-specific config
ls -la $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/.claude/mcp.json

# Global config
ls -la ~/.claude/mcp.json

Your Status:

• ✅ Project config exists: $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/.claude/mcp.json
• ❌ Global config: Not found (not needed if project config exists)

Method 3: Validate Configuration

# Check JSON is valid
python3 -c "import json; json.load(open('$HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/.claude/mcp.json'))"

# View configuration
cat $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/.claude/mcp.json

Your Config Status:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "skills-lister": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": [
        "$HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/mcp-servers/skills-lister/server.py"
      ]
    }
  }
}

✅ Valid JSON ✅ Correct structure ✅ Path is absolute

Method 4: Verify Prerequisites

# Check Python version (need 3.10+)
python3 --version

# Check MCP SDK installed
python3 -c "import mcp; print('✅ MCP SDK installed')"

# Check server file exists and is executable
ls -lh $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/mcp-servers/skills-lister/server.py

# Check shell script exists
ls -lh ~/bin/list-skills.sh

Your Status:

• ✅ Python: Installed
• ✅ MCP SDK: Installed
• ✅ server.py: Exists and is executable (3.8K, rwxr-xr-x)
• ✅ Shell script: Exists at ~/bin/list-skills.sh

Method 5: Test Server Manually

cd $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/mcp-servers/skills-lister
python3 server.py

Expected behavior:

• Server starts and waits for input (cursor hangs)
• No error messages
• Press Ctrl+D or Ctrl+C to exit

If you see errors:

• Check import errors → Install MCP: pip install mcp
• Check file not found → Verify paths in config

Method 6: Check Claude Code Startup

When you start Claude Code in this project, it should:

1. Load the .claude/mcp.json configuration
2. Initialize the MCP server
3. Make list_skills tool available

To see startup logs (if Claude Code shows them):

• Look for "Loading MCP servers..."
• Look for "skills-lister: connected" or similar

Method 7: Diagnostic Script

Run this comprehensive check:

#!/bin/bash
echo "=== MCP Server Status Check ==="
echo ""

echo "1. Configuration file:"
if [ -f "$HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/.claude/mcp.json" ]; then
    echo "   ✅ Found at: $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/.claude/mcp.json"
    if python3 -c "import json; json.load(open('$HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/.claude/mcp.json'))" 2>/dev/null; then
        echo "   ✅ Valid JSON"
    else
        echo "   ❌ Invalid JSON"
    fi
else
    echo "   ❌ Not found"
fi
echo ""

echo "2. MCP SDK:"
if python3 -c "import mcp" 2>/dev/null; then
    echo "   ✅ Installed"
else
    echo "   ❌ Not installed (run: pip install mcp)"
fi
echo ""

echo "3. Server file:"
if [ -f "$HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/mcp-servers/skills-lister/server.py" ]; then
    echo "   ✅ Found"
    if [ -x "$HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/mcp-servers/skills-lister/server.py" ]; then
        echo "   ✅ Executable"
    else
        echo "   ⚠️  Not executable (run: chmod +x server.py)"
    fi
else
    echo "   ❌ Not found"
fi
echo ""

echo "4. Shell script:"
if [ -f ~/bin/list-skills.sh ]; then
    echo "   ✅ Found at ~/bin/list-skills.sh"
else
    echo "   ❌ Not found at ~/bin/list-skills.sh"
fi
echo ""

echo "5. Test import server module:"
if python3 -c "import sys; sys.path.insert(0, '$HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/mcp-servers/skills-lister'); import server" 2>/dev/null; then
    echo "   ✅ Server module imports successfully"
else
    echo "   ❌ Import error"
fi
echo ""

echo "=== Summary ==="
echo ""
echo "If all checks pass, the MCP server should work."
echo "If Claude Code still shows 'fallback' message:"
echo "  1. Restart Claude Code (exit and relaunch)"
echo "  2. Make sure you're in the correct project directory"
echo "  3. Check Claude Code logs for errors"
echo ""

Save this as check-mcp-status.sh and run it:

cd $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills/mcp-servers/skills-lister
chmod +x check-mcp-status.sh
./check-mcp-status.sh

Your Current Status Summary

Based on the checks run:

Configuration ✅

• ✅ Config file exists: .claude/mcp.json
• ✅ JSON is valid
• ✅ Structure is correct
• ✅ Path is absolute

Prerequisites ✅

• ✅ Python 3.10+ installed
• ✅ MCP SDK installed
• ✅ server.py exists and is executable
• ✅ Shell script exists

What This Means

Everything is configured correctly!

If you're still seeing the "fallback" message, it means:

1. Claude Code hasn't loaded the MCP config yet

   • Solution: Restart Claude Code completely

2. You're in a different session/project

   • Solution: Make sure you're in the $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills directory

3. Claude Code is caching the old state

   • Solution: Exit completely and start fresh

Next Steps

If Still Seeing Fallback Message:

1. Exit Claude Code completely

   Exit the current session entirely
   

2. Restart Claude Code in this project

   cd $HOME/Documents/ws/claude-skills
   # Start Claude Code here
   

3. Test with /skills

   • Should NOT see "fallback" message
   • Should be instant (<1 sec)
   • Should use 0 tokens

If Still Not Working:

Check Claude Code startup logs for:

• MCP server initialization messages
• Any error messages about skills-lister
• Permission or path errors

Expected Behavior After Restart

Before (current):

/skills
⏺ I don't have access to the list_skills MCP tool...
⏺ Bash(~/bin/list-skills.sh --names-only)
[~1,000 tokens used]

After (with MCP working):

/skills
⏺ Available Claude Skills
  Found 16 skills: ...
[0 tokens used, <1 second]

The key difference: No "fallback" message = MCP is working!