Local Utilities

You can run a Local Utilities MCP Server on your machine to access a collection of useful local system utilities through the MCP protocol. This server is designed to work with Cursor and other MCP-compatible clients, enabling quick access to time, hostname, IP, directory contents, and more from your environment.

How to use

Use an MCP client such as Cursor to connect to the Local Utilities MCP Server. You’ll configure the client to reach the MCP endpoint provided by the server, then invoke the available tools to retrieve system information, inspect directories, or monitor ports. The server exposes a set of tools that you can call by name to perform common local tasks.

How to install

Prerequisites: you need Node.js and a modern package manager installed on your system. Node.js provides the runtime for the MCP server, while the package manager handles installation and execution of commands.

Configuration and startup examples

Install and run the server using a single, convenient command with your preferred package manager.

pnpm add -g localutils-mcp-server

npx localutils-mcp-server

Using MCP with Cursor

Configure Cursor to recognize the Local Utilities MCP Server as an MCP endpoint. Add a server entry that points to the MCP package and uses npx to pull the server at runtime.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "localutils": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["github:arjshiv/localutils-mcp-server"]
    }
  }
}

Using the MCP Inspector

You can verify MCP endpoints and available tools by starting the MCP Inspector. This helps you explore the server’s capabilities and test tool calls.

pnpm run inspector

This will start the MCP Inspector at http://localhost:5173.

## Starting the server manually

If you have installed the server globally, start it with the local utilities command. If you prefer using npx, start it with the npx command.

localutils-mcp

```bash
npx localutils-mcp-server

## Notes on runtime and usage

The Local Utilities MCP Server provides a set of tools you can call by name to perform common local tasks. Each tool returns structured data that you can consume in your client applications.

## Tools and capabilities overview

The server exposes a collection of utilities that you can invoke from your MCP client. You will learn the exact tool names in your client interface and can call them to obtain information or perform actions on your host machine.

## Available tools

### get\_time\_and\_date

Returns the current local time and date in multiple formats, including local time, local date, day of the week, ISO 8601, and Unix timestamp.

### get\_hostname

Retrieves the machine's hostname.

### get\_public\_ip

Obtains the machine's public IP address.

### list\_directory

Lists contents of a specified directory. Parameters: path (string, required) — the directory to list.

### get\_node\_version

Returns the Node.js version information of the running environment.

### check\_port

Checks which process is using a given port. Parameters: port (number|string, required) — port to check (1-65535). Strings will be converted to numbers.

### think

Records a new thought with a timestamp for development sessions. Parameters: thought (string, required) — content to record.

### get\_thoughts

Retrieves all recorded thoughts.

### clear\_thoughts

Clears all recorded thoughts.

### get\_thought\_stats

Returns statistics about recorded thoughts, including total count, average length, oldest and newest timestamps.