Getting Started with HoloViz MCP for Claude Code

This tutorial will guide you through installing and using HoloViz MCP with Claude Code (the command-line interface). By the end, you'll have HoloViz MCP running and be able to ask Claude questions about Panel components directly from your terminal!

What you'll learn

• How to install HoloViz MCP
• How to configure it with Claude Code
• How to verify everything is working correctly
• How to create your first visualizations

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:

• Python 3.11 or newer installed on your system
• uv package installer
• Claude Code CLI installed (Installation guide)
• panel installed and runnable in your terminal

Step 1: Install HoloViz MCP

Open your terminal and install HoloViz MCP as a uv tool:

uv tool install "holoviz-mcp[pydata]"

This command installs HoloViz MCP globally, making it available for Claude Code to reference.

What's happening?

The uv tool manager creates an isolated environment for HoloViz MCP and installs all necessary dependencies.

The extra pydata dependencies are added to install a wide range of python data related packages. We will assume these are installed throughout this guide. You can replace them with your favorite dependencies for your own work.

Step 2: Install Chromium

Install Chromium to enable the holoviz-mcp server to take screenshots:

holoviz-mcp install chromium

📦 This downloads 300MB as it downloads the Chromium and FFMPEG engines.

Step 3: Create the Documentation Index

HoloViz MCP needs to index the HoloViz documentation to provide intelligent answers. Run:

holoviz-mcp update index

⏱️ This will take 5-10 minutes as it downloads and indexes documentation from Panel, hvPlot, and other HoloViz libraries.

Step 4: Configure Claude Code

Now let's configure Claude Code to use the HoloViz MCP server:

claude mcp add holoviz --transport stdio --scope user -- holoviz-mcp

This will update your ~/.claude.json file with the HoloViz MCP server configuration.

Step 5: Install HoloViz Agents

HoloViz MCP includes specialized agents for Claude Code that help with planning and implementing HoloViz applications.

Install the agents for your user:

holoviz-mcp install claude --scope user

This creates a ~/.claude/agents/ directory with:

• holoviz-data-explorer.md - Agent for quick data exploration and data visualization
• holoviz-app-architect.md - Agent for architecting production Panel data applications

Install Project-Level Agents

To make agents available in your current project only:

holoviz-mcp install claude --scope project

This installs agents to .claude/agents/.

Step 6: Install Panel and Dependencies (Optional)

For Claude Code to create and run visualizations in your terminal, it needs access to Panel, hvPlot, and related libraries.

Here's how to install them in a project-specific environment:

uv venv
source .venv/bin/activate  # On Linux/macOS (use `.venv\Scripts\activate` on Windows)
uv pip install panel watchfiles hvplot # Add your own favorite libraries

Step 7: Verify Installation

Let's verify that HoloViz MCP is working correctly!

Check Server Status

Start Claude Code and run the /mcp command to verify the status of the HoloViz MCP server:

/mcp

You should see holoviz listed as an available MCP server.

Press Escape to return to the prompt.

Test with Claude

Open a chat with Claude Code and try these questions:

Component Discovery:

What Panel components are available for user input?

You should see it using the panel_search_components tool:

Component Details:

What parameters does the Panel Button component accept?

If Claude provides detailed, accurate answers with specific Panel component information, congratulations! HoloViz MCP is working correctly! 🎉

Step 8: Build Your First Dashboard

Now that everything is set up, let's build a simple dashboard.

Ask Claude:

Create a Panel dashboard that displays a slider and shows the square of the slider's value. Save it to app.py

Claude will provide code using HoloViz MCP's knowledge of Panel components!

Save the code to app.py and run it:

run it

Your dashboard will open in your default web browser!

Step 9: Displaying Data Visualizations

HoloViz MCP includes a powerful display tool that can render visualizations directly. Ask Claude:

Use the holoviz_display tool to show me a simple hvplot visualization of random data.

Claude will use the display tool to generate and display the visualization. See the Display System tutorial for more details.

What's Next?

Now that you have HoloViz MCP running with Claude Code, explore more:

• Display System: Learn about the display server for visualizations
• Stock Analysis: Create a real-world stock analysis report
• Weather Dashboard: Create an interactive weather visualization

Troubleshooting

Installation Issues

Problem: uv: command not found

Solution: Install uv by following the uv installation guide

Problem: claude: command not found

Solution: Install Claude Code by following the installation guide

Problem: Installation takes too long

Solution: This is normal! The first installation downloads many dependencies. Subsequent updates are much faster.

Configuration Issues

Problem: /mcp command doesn't show holoviz server

Solution:

1. Check that the configuration command completed successfully
2. Verify ~/.claude.json contains the holoviz server configuration
3. Try running the server directly: holoviz-mcp
4. Run claude mcp list to see configured servers

Problem: Claude doesn't recognize Panel components

Solution:

1. Check that the documentation index completed (Step 3)
2. Verify your configuration is correct: claude mcp list
3. Try running the server directly in terminal: holoviz-mcp
4. Check Claude Code logs for errors

Server Issues

Problem: MCP server won't connect

Solution:

1. Verify Python 3.11+ is installed: python --version
2. Check uv installation: uv --version
3. Try running the server directly: holoviz-mcp
4. Check the Claude Code logs for errors

For more help, see the Troubleshooting Guide or join the HoloViz Discord.

Summary

In this tutorial, you:

• ✅ Installed HoloViz MCP using uv
• ✅ Created the documentation index
• ✅ Installed Chromium
• ✅ Configured Claude Code
• ✅ Verified the installation
• ✅ Built your first Panel dashboard
• ✅ Learned about the display tool
• ✅ Learned how to work on projects with Claude Code

You're now ready to use HoloViz MCP with Claude Code to accelerate your Panel development from the command line! Happy coding! 🚀