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Configure HoloViz MCP for Claude Desktop

This guide shows you how to configure HoloViz MCP with Claude Desktop application.

Prerequisites

Locate Your Configuration File

Find your Claude Desktop configuration file:

  • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
  • Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
  • Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Add the MCP Server

  1. Open the configuration file in a text editor
  2. Add this configuration:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "holoviz": {
      "command": "holoviz-mcp"
    }
  }
}
  1. Save the file
  2. Restart Claude Desktop

Existing Configuration

If your file already has other MCP servers configured, add "holoviz" to the existing mcpServers object:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "existing-server": {
      "command": "existing-command"
    },
    "holoviz": {
      "command": "holoviz-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Verify the Connection

After restarting Claude Desktop:

  1. Look for the MCP indicator (🔌) in the interface
  2. It should show "holoviz" as a connected server

If you don't see the indicator, check the troubleshooting section below.

Test Your Configuration

Test the configuration by asking Claude about Panel components:

  1. Simple Query:
List available Panel input components
  1. Detailed Query:
What parameters does the Panel TextInput component have?
  1. Code Generation:
Create a simple Panel dashboard with a slider

If Claude provides detailed, accurate responses with specific Panel component information, your configuration is working! 🎉

Advanced Configuration

Set Log Level

For debugging, increase the log level:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "holoviz": {
      "command": "holoviz-mcp",
      "env": {
        "HOLOVIZ_MCP_LOG_LEVEL": "DEBUG"
      }
    }
  }
}

Custom Configuration Directory

Use a custom directory for configuration and data:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "holoviz": {
      "command": "holoviz-mcp",
      "env": {
        "HOLOVIZ_MCP_USER_DIR": "/path/to/custom/dir"
      }
    }
  }
}

Troubleshooting

MCP Indicator Not Showing

Check the configuration file path - ensure you edited the correct file for your operating system.

Verify JSON syntax - ensure there are no trailing commas, missing quotes, or other syntax errors.

Restart Claude Desktop completely - quit and reopen the application.

Server Not Starting

Check that holoviz-mcp is installed:

holoviz-mcp --version

Test the server directly:

holoviz-mcp

Press Ctrl+C to stop it.

Claude Not Recognizing Components

  1. Verify documentation index exists:
ls ~/.holoviz-mcp
  1. Recreate the index:
holoviz-mcp update index
  1. Restart Claude Desktop

Configuration File Not Found

Create the directory if it doesn't exist:

# macOS
mkdir -p ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude

# Linux
mkdir -p ~/.config/Claude

# Windows (PowerShell)
New-Item -Path "$env:APPDATA\Claude" -ItemType Directory -Force

Create the file with the configuration above.

Permission Errors

Linux/macOS: Ensure the configuration file is readable:

chmod 644 ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json  # macOS
chmod 644 ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json  # Linux

Next Steps