Installation and setup

To use the MCP tools with your AI assistant, you'll need to install the Snowplow CLI and configure your chosen MCP client. This guide walks you through both steps.

1. Install Snowplow CLI

# Using Homebrew
brew install snowplow/taps/snowplow-cli

# Or download binary directly
curl -L -o snowplow-cli https://github.com/snowplow/snowplow-cli/releases/latest/download/snowplow-cli_linux_x86_64
chmod u+x snowplow-cli

If you have node.js set up then no need to install, you can run via npx.

2. Configure your MCP client

The Snowplow CLI MCP server can be used with any MCP-compatible client. Below are configuration examples for popular clients. For a complete list of supported clients and their configurations, see the MCP reference.

Claude desktop

Config location:

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowplow-cli": {
      "command": "snowplow-cli",
      "args": ["mcp"]
    }
  }
}

VS code

Add to .vscode/mcp.json in your workspace:

{
  "servers": {
    "snowplow-cli": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "snowplow-cli",
      "args": ["mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Add to .cursor/mcp.json in your workspace:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowplow-cli": {
      "command": "snowplow-cli",
      "args": ["mcp", "--base-directory", "."]
    }
  }
}

Using with npx

If using via npx, use this configuration format instead:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowplow-cli": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@snowplow/snowplow-cli", "mcp"]
    }
  }
}

For VS Code, adjust the type field accordingly:

{
  "servers": {
    "snowplow-cli": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@snowplow/snowplow-cli", "mcp"]
    }
  }
}

3. Start using MCP

After configuring your chosen client, start a new conversation or session. The Snowplow CLI MCP tools should be available for use.