What is Mcp Thebrain

mcp-thebrain is an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that integrates with TheBrain’s knowledge management system, enabling AI assistants to interact with TheBrain data seamlessly.

Use cases

Use cases for mcp-thebrain include enhancing AI assistant capabilities, managing complex knowledge structures, automating information retrieval, and providing real-time insights into data management.

How to use

To use mcp-thebrain, you can set it up via Docker or install it locally using npm. Configuration is done through environment variables, allowing you to customize transport type, authentication, and other settings.

Key features

Key features include full API integration with TheBrain, complete MCP support, multiple transport options (stdio and HTTP), robust security measures (OAuth 2.1 and API key), real-time performance monitoring, live progress reporting, production readiness, and comprehensive debugging capabilities.

Where to use

mcp-thebrain can be used in various fields such as knowledge management, AI development, and any application requiring integration of AI assistants with a knowledge base.

TheBrain MCP Server

An implementation of the Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that exposes TheBrain’s knowledge management functionality to AI assistants.

Documentation

• API Reference - Complete API endpoint documentation
• Implementation Status - Current implementation status and roadmap
• API Schema Comparison - Schema differences and updates needed
• Attachment API Guide - Attachment operations documentation

Features

• 🧠 TheBrain Integration: Full API integration with TheBrain for managing thoughts, links, and relationships
• 🔌 MCP Support: Complete Model Context Protocol implementation with resources, tools, and prompts
• 🚀 Multiple Transports: Support for both stdio (local) and HTTP (network) communication
• 🔐 Security: OAuth 2.1 and API key authentication with rate limiting and CSRF protection
• 📊 Monitoring: Real-time performance monitoring with CPU, memory, and throughput metrics
• 📈 Progress Reporting: Live progress updates for long-running operations
• 🛡️ Production Ready: Enhanced error handling, security headers, and input validation
• 🔍 Debugging: Correlation IDs, detailed logging, and error tracking

Quick Start

Docker (Recommended)

# Development environment
./scripts/dev.sh

# Production environment
./scripts/prod.sh

Local Installation

npm install
npm run build
npm start

Configuration

The server can be configured through environment variables:

Transport Configuration

TRANSPORT_TYPE=http|stdio     # Default: stdio
HTTP_PORT=3000               # Default: 3000
HTTP_HOST=0.0.0.0           # Default: 0.0.0.0
BASE_PATH=/api/v1           # Default: /api/v1

Authentication Configuration

AUTH_TYPE=oauth|api-key|both|none  # Default: api-key

# OAuth 2.1 Settings
OAUTH_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id
OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret
OAUTH_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:3000/oauth/callback
OAUTH_AUTH_ENDPOINT=/oauth/authorize
OAUTH_TOKEN_ENDPOINT=/oauth/token
OAUTH_SCOPE=read write
OAUTH_ALLOWED_CLIENTS=client1,client2

# API Key Settings
THEBRAIN_API_KEY=your-api-key      # Primary API key
API_KEY_1=name:key:permissions     # Additional keys
ENABLE_API_KEY_MANAGEMENT=true     # Enable management endpoints

Security Configuration

# Rate Limiting
ENABLE_RATE_LIMIT=true           # Default: true
RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS=60000      # Default: 60000 (1 minute)
RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS=100     # Default: 100

# CSRF Protection
ENABLE_CSRF=true                # Default: true
CSRF_COOKIE_NAME=csrf-token     # Default: csrf-token
CSRF_HEADER_NAME=X-CSRF-Token   # Default: X-CSRF-Token

# Security Headers
ENABLE_SECURITY_HEADERS=true    # Default: true

Usage

Docker

Development

# Start development environment with hot reload
docker compose -f docker-compose.dev.yml up

# Or use the convenience script
./scripts/dev.sh

Production

# Start production environment
docker compose --env-file .env.production -f docker-compose.prod.yml up -d

# Or use the convenience script
./scripts/prod.sh

# Deploy with health checks
./scripts/deploy.sh

Local Development

# Stdio Transport (Local)
npm start

# HTTP Transport (Network)
TRANSPORT_TYPE=http npm start

# With Authentication
AUTH_TYPE=api-key THEBRAIN_API_KEY=your-key npm start

# Development with hot reload
npm run dev

API Endpoints

When using HTTP transport, the following endpoints are available:

• GET /health - Health check
• GET /api/v1/info - Server information
• GET /api/v1/resources - List available resources
• GET /api/v1/tools - List available tools
• GET /api/v1/prompts - List available prompts
• POST /api/v1/tools/:toolName - Execute a tool
• GET /api/v1/resources/:type/:id? - Get resource
• POST /api/v1/prompts/:promptName - Execute prompt

Docker Setup

Environment Files

Create environment files for different environments:

# Development
cp .env.docker .env.development

# Production
cp .env.production.example .env.production
# Edit .env.production with your actual values

Available Images

• thebrain-mcp:dev - Development image with hot reload
• thebrain-mcp:latest - Production image (multi-stage, optimized)

Docker Commands

# Build images
docker compose -f docker-compose.dev.yml build    # Development
docker compose -f docker-compose.prod.yml build   # Production

# Start services
docker compose -f docker-compose.dev.yml up       # Development
docker compose -f docker-compose.prod.yml up -d   # Production (detached)

# View logs
docker compose -f docker-compose.dev.yml logs -f  # Development
docker compose -f docker-compose.prod.yml logs -f # Production

# Stop services
docker compose -f docker-compose.dev.yml down     # Development
docker compose -f docker-compose.prod.yml down    # Production

See DOCKER.md for detailed Docker documentation.

Security

The server implements comprehensive security measures:

1. Authentication: OAuth 2.1 and API key support
2. Rate Limiting: Configurable request limits
3. CSRF Protection: Token-based CSRF protection
4. Security Headers: Standard security headers
5. Input Validation: Strict input validation
6. Error Handling: Secure error messages

See SECURITY.md for detailed security documentation.

Advanced Features

The server includes advanced features for production deployments:

• Progress Reporting: Track long-running operations in real-time
• Performance Monitoring: Monitor CPU, memory, and throughput
• Enhanced Error Handling: User-friendly errors with correlation IDs

See ADVANCED_FEATURES.md for detailed documentation on these features.

Available Tools

The server provides comprehensive tools for interacting with TheBrain:

Core Operations

• list_brains: List all brains in the user’s account
• create_thought: Create a new thought with optional parent connection
• update_thought: Update an existing thought
• delete_thought: Delete a thought from the brain
• create_link: Create a link between two thoughts
• create_bulk_thoughts: Create multiple thoughts and relationships in a single operation

Tag & Type Management

• get_tags: Get all tags in a brain
• add_tags_to_thought: Add tags to a thought
• remove_tags_from_thought: Remove tags from a thought
• get_types: Get all types in a brain

Notes Management

• get_notes: Get notes for a thought in various formats (Markdown, HTML, text)
• update_notes: Update notes for a thought
• append_notes: Append content to existing notes

Search & Navigation

• search_advanced: Advanced search with filters (by type, tag, date range)
• get_thought_relationships: Get all relationships for a thought (parents, children, siblings, jumps)

Attachments

• get_thought_attachments: Get all attachments for a thought
• create_attachment: Create a new file attachment
• create_url_attachment: Create a URL attachment

Analytics

• get_brain_statistics: Get comprehensive brain statistics

See TOOLS.md for detailed tool documentation and usage examples.

Available Resources

The server exposes the following resources for AI-assisted navigation:

Basic Resources

• thebrain://brains - List of all available brains
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/thoughts/{thoughtId} - Specific thought details
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/search?q={query} - Search results

Relationship Resources

• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/thoughts/{thoughtId}/children - Child thoughts
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/thoughts/{thoughtId}/parents - Parent thoughts
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/thoughts/{thoughtId}/siblings - Sibling thoughts

Metadata Resources

• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/tags - All tags in a brain
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/types - All types in a brain
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/statistics - Brain statistics

Content Resources

• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/thoughts/{thoughtId}/notes - Thought notes
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/thoughts/{thoughtId}/attachments - Thought attachments
• thebrain://brains/{brainId}/thoughts/{thoughtId}/graph - Thought relationship graph

See RESOURCES.md for detailed resource documentation and formats.

Development

Running Tests

npm test

Linting

npm run lint

Type Checking

npm run typecheck

Building

npm run build

Architecture

The server is structured in a modular way:

thebrain/
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts              # Main entry point
│   ├── capabilities/         # MCP capabilities
│   ├── thebrain/            # TheBrain API integration
│   ├── auth/                # Authentication implementations
│   ├── transport.ts         # Transport layer
│   └── utils/               # Utilities
└── package.json

Contributing

Please read our contributing guidelines before submitting pull requests.

License

[License Type] - See LICENSE file for details