Redmine

You can connect Claude Code to Redmine project management using the Redmine MCP Server. This setup lets you query and manage issues, projects, and related data directly through MCP endpoints, enabling seamless automation and integration within your workflow.

How to use

There are two transport modes to connect with this MCP server: stdio for local usage and SSE for team sharing and remote access. You can run the server locally and connect Claude Code or VS Code Copilot, or expose it remotely to be consumed by clients.

How to install

Prerequisites you need before installing are a Python 3.12+ runtime and a Redmine instance with REST API enabled.

Steps to install and run the MCP server locally and to connect clients are shown below. Follow these steps in order to have a working MCP server ready for integration.

# 1. Clone the project
git clone https://github.com/snowild/redmine-mcp.git
cd redmine-mcp

# 2. Install dependencies (recommended)
uv sync
# or, if you prefer a editable install
pip install -e .

# 3. Environment configuration
cp .env.example .env
# Edit the .env file to set your Redmine connection details

Configuration and security

The MCP server relies on environment variables to configure the Redmine connection and runtime behavior. Set the following values in your .env file or in your environment.

REDMINE_DOMAIN=https://your-redmine-domain.com
REDMINE_API_KEY=your_api_key_here

# Runtime options (adjust as needed)
REDMINE_MCP_LOG_LEVEL=INFO
REDMINE_MCP_TIMEOUT=30
REDMINE_TIMEOUT=30
LOG_LEVEL=info

# Optional: transport and networking for SSE mode
REDMINE_MCP_TRANSPORT=sse
REDMINE_MCP_HOST=0.0.0.0
REDMINE_MCP_PORT=8000

Starting the server in stdio mode (local usage)

To run the MCP server locally in stdio mode, use the following command. This starts the MCP server so you can connect clients directly on your machine.

uv run python -m redmine_mcp.server

Starting the server in SSE mode (remote/multi-client)

To run the server in SSE mode, which supports multiple clients and remote access, use this command sequence.

uv run redmine-mcp --transport sse
# Optional: specify host and port
uv run redmine-mcp --transport sse --host 127.0.0.1 --port 3000

Connecting Claude Code to SSE server

Configure Claude Code to connect to the SSE server by adding the MCP with SSE transport. You can either provide the URL or edit your Claude Code configuration directly.

# Add MCP with SSE transport from Claude Code
claude mcp add --transport sse redmine http://localhost:8000/sse

Connecting VS Code (GitHub Copilot) to SSE server

If you use VS Code with GitHub Copilot, add the SSE endpoint to your MCP configuration.

{
  "servers": {
    "redmine": {
      "type": "sse",
      "url": "http://localhost:8000/sse"
    }
  }
}

Using HTTP MCP configuration

You can also connect Claude Code to a running SSE server via HTTP by pointing to the server URL.

# Example of adding an HTTP MCP connection from Claude Code
claude mcp add redmine http://localhost:8000/sse

Security and access control

Protect your API key and server endpoints. Do not expose your Redmine API key in public configurations. Use environment variables to keep sensitive credentials out of source code. Limit network exposure for the SSE endpoint and consider enabling TLS in production environments.

Examples and common workflows

You can use the MCP server to perform common project management tasks programmatically, such as querying issues, creating new issues, updating statuses, adding notes, and listing projects. Start by connecting to the server, then issue tasks through your MCP-enabled client.

Troubleshooting and tips

If you run into issues after updating, restart Claude Code and verify your MCP registrations. Ensure the environment variables are correctly loaded from your .env file. When using SSE, verify that the server is reachable at the configured URL.

Testing and validation

Test the MCP server and client integration by performing basic queries like listing projects, fetching issues, and validating connectivity with health checks.

Project and tool overview

The Redmine MCP Server exposes a comprehensive set of tools to interact with Redmine data, including issue management, project queries, search capabilities, and system health tools. See the tool references for exact capabilities.

Notes on updates and maintenance

Keep the MCP server up to date by pulling the latest changes and reinstalling the tool when necessary. Always restart Claude Code after updating to reload the MCP server configuration.

Environment variables reference

The following environment variables influence how the MCP server connects to Redmine and how it runs. Provide values suitable for your deployment.

Supported tools and endpoints

The MCP server provides a set of tools for interacting with Redmine data. Tools include server_info, health_check, refresh_cache, get_issue, create_new_issue, update_issue_status, update_issue_content, add_issue_note, assign_issue, close_issue, list_project_issues, get_my_issues, search_issues, get_projects, get_issue_statuses, get_trackers, get_priorities, get_time_entry_activities, get_document_categories, list_issue_journals, get_journal, get_attachment_info, get_attachment_image, and more as documented in usage scenarios.

Available tools

server_info

Display server information and configuration status

health_check

Check server and Redmine connection health status

refresh_cache

Manually refresh enum values and user cache

get_issue

Get detailed information of a specified issue

create_new_issue

Create a new issue with provided fields

update_issue_status

Update the status of an existing issue

update_issue_content

Update issue content such as title and description

add_issue_note

Add notes to an issue, including time tracking data

assign_issue

Assign or unassign an issue to a user

close_issue

Close an issue and mark it as completed

list_issue_journals

List all journals or notes for an issue

get_journal

Get detailed information for a specific journal

get_attachment_info

Get metadata for an attachment without downloading

get_attachment_image

Download an attachment image for AI analysis

list_project_issues

List all issues within projects

get_my_issues

Get issues assigned to the current user

search_issues

Search issues by keywords in titles or descriptions

get_projects

Get list of accessible projects

get_issue_statuses

Get all available issue statuses

get_trackers

Get all available tracker types

get_priorities

Get all available issue priorities

get_time_entry_activities

Get all available time tracking activities

get_document_categories

Get all available document categories

search_users

Search users by name or login

list_users

List all users

get_user

Get detailed information for a specific user