Give your AI coding assistant a photographic memory of your codebase.
Code Graph Context is an MCP server that builds a semantic graph of your TypeScript codebase, enabling Claude to understand not just individual files, but how your entire system fits together.
Config-Driven & Extensible: Define custom framework schemas to capture domain-specific patterns beyond the included NestJS support. The parser is fully configurable to recognize your architectural patterns, decorators, and relationships.
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ YOUR CODEBASE │
│ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ │
│ │ Service │ │Controller│ │ Module │ │ Entity │ │
│ └────┬─────┘ └────┬─────┘ └────┬─────┘ └────┬─────┘ │
└───────┼─────────────┼─────────────┼─────────────┼──────────┘
│ │ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼ ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ CODE GRAPH CONTEXT │
│ │
│ AST Parser ──► Neo4j Graph ──► Vector Embeddings │
│ (ts-morph) (Relationships) (OpenAI) │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ CLAUDE CODE │
│ │
│ "What services depend on UserService?" │
│ "What's the blast radius if I change this function?" │
│ "Find all HTTP endpoints that accept a UserDTO" │
│ "Refactor this across all 47 files that use it" │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
| Without Code Graph | With Code Graph |
|---|---|
| Claude reads files one at a time | Claude understands the entire dependency tree |
| "What uses this?" requires manual searching | Instant impact analysis with risk scoring |
| Refactoring misses edge cases | Graph traversal finds every reference |
| Large codebases overwhelm context | Semantic search finds exactly what's relevant |
| Multi-file changes are error-prone | Swarm agents coordinate parallel changes |
- Multi-Project Support: Parse and query multiple projects in a single database with complete isolation
- Semantic Search: Vector-based search using OpenAI embeddings to find relevant code
- Natural Language Querying: Convert questions into Cypher queries
- Framework-Aware: Built-in NestJS schema with ability to define custom framework patterns
- Weighted Graph Traversal: Intelligent traversal scoring paths by importance and relevance
- Workspace Support: Auto-detects Nx, Turborepo, pnpm, Yarn, and npm workspaces
- Parallel & Async Parsing: Multi-threaded parsing with Worker threads for large codebases
- Streaming Import: Chunked processing for projects with 100+ files
- Incremental Parsing: Only reparse changed files
- File Watching: Real-time graph updates on file changes
- Impact Analysis: Assess refactoring risk (LOW/MEDIUM/HIGH/CRITICAL)
- Dead Code Detection: Find unreferenced exports with confidence scoring
- Duplicate Detection: Structural (AST hash) and semantic (embedding similarity) duplicates
- Swarm Coordination: Multi-agent stigmergic coordination with pheromone decay
TypeScript Source → AST Parser (ts-morph) → Neo4j Graph + Vector Embeddings → MCP Tools
Core Components:
src/core/parsers/typescript-parser.ts- AST parsing with ts-morphsrc/storage/neo4j/neo4j.service.ts- Graph storage and queriessrc/core/embeddings/embeddings.service.ts- OpenAI embeddingssrc/mcp/mcp.server.ts- MCP server and tool registration
Dual-Schema System:
- Core Schema: AST-level nodes (ClassDeclaration, MethodDeclaration, ImportDeclaration, etc.)
- Framework Schema: Semantic interpretation (NestController, NestService, HttpEndpoint, etc.)
Nodes have both coreType (AST) and semanticType (framework meaning), enabling queries like "find all controllers" while maintaining AST precision.
- Node.js >= 18
- Docker (for Neo4j)
- OpenAI API Key
npm install -g code-graph-context
code-graph-context init # Sets up Neo4j via DockerAdd to Claude Code with your OpenAI API key:
claude mcp add --scope user code-graph-context \
-e OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-your-key-here \
-- code-graph-contextThat's it. Restart Claude Code and you're ready to go.
In Claude Code, say:
"Parse this project and build the code graph"
Claude will run parse_typescript_project and index your codebase.
Claude Code stores MCP server configs in JSON files. The location depends on scope:
| Scope | File | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| User (global) | ~/.claude.json |
Available in all projects |
| Project | .claude.json in project root |
Project-specific config |
| Local | .mcp.json in project root |
Git-ignored local overrides |
If you prefer to edit the config files directly:
~/.claude.json (user scope - recommended):
{
"mcpServers": {
"code-graph-context": {
"command": "code-graph-context",
"env": {
"OPENAI_API_KEY": "sk-your-key-here"
}
}
}
}From source installation:
{
"mcpServers": {
"code-graph-context": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/absolute/path/to/code-graph-context/dist/cli/cli.js"],
"env": {
"OPENAI_API_KEY": "sk-your-key-here"
}
}
}
}| Variable | Required | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
OPENAI_API_KEY |
Yes | - | For embeddings and NL queries |
NEO4J_URI |
No | bolt://localhost:7687 |
Neo4j connection URI |
NEO4J_USER |
No | neo4j |
Neo4j username |
NEO4J_PASSWORD |
No | PASSWORD |
Neo4j password |
Find code by describing what you need, not by memorizing file paths:
"Find where user authentication tokens are validated"
"Show me the database connection pooling logic"
"What handles webhook signature verification?"
Before you refactor, understand the blast radius:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Impact Analysis: UserService.findById() │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Risk Level: HIGH │
│ │
│ Direct Dependents (12): │
│ └── AuthController.login() │
│ └── ProfileController.getProfile() │
│ └── AdminService.getUserDetails() │
│ └── ... 9 more │
│ │
│ Transitive Dependents (34): │
│ └── 8 controllers, 15 services, 11 tests │
│ │
│ Affected Files: 23 │
│ Recommendation: Add deprecation warning before changing │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Explore relationships in any direction:
UserController
│
├── INJECTS ──► UserService
│ │
│ ├── INJECTS ──► UserRepository
│ │ │
│ │ └── MANAGES ──► User (Entity)
│ │
│ └── INJECTS ──► CacheService
│
└── EXPOSES ──► POST /users
│
└── ACCEPTS ──► CreateUserDTO
Find code that can be safely removed:
Dead Code Analysis: 47 items found
├── HIGH confidence (23): Exported but never imported
│ └── formatLegacyDate() in src/utils/date.ts:45
│ └── UserV1DTO in src/dto/legacy/user.dto.ts:12
│ └── ... 21 more
├── MEDIUM confidence (18): Private, never called
└── LOW confidence (6): May be used dynamically
Identify DRY violations across your codebase:
Duplicate Groups Found: 8
Group 1 (Structural - 100% identical):
├── validateEmail() in src/auth/validation.ts:23
└── validateEmail() in src/user/validation.ts:45
Recommendation: Extract to shared utils
Group 2 (Semantic - 94% similar):
├── parseUserInput() in src/api/parser.ts:78
└── sanitizeInput() in src/webhook/parser.ts:34
Recommendation: Review for consolidation
Execute complex, multi-file changes with parallel AI agents.
The swarm system enables multiple Claude agents to work on your codebase simultaneously, coordinating through the code graph without stepping on each other.
┌──────────────────┐
│ ORCHESTRATOR │
│ │
│ "Add JSDoc to │
│ all services" │
└────────┬─────────┘
│
┌─────────────┼─────────────┐
│ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼
┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐
│ Worker 1 │ │ Worker 2 │ │ Worker 3 │
│ │ │ │ │ │
│ Claiming │ │ Working │ │ Claiming │
│ AuthSvc │ │ UserSvc │ │ PaySvc │
└──────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘
│ │ │
└─────────────┼─────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────┐
│ PHEROMONE TRAILS │
│ │
│ AuthService: [claimed] │
│ UserService: [modifying] │
│ PayService: [claimed] │
│ CacheService: [available] │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────┘
Agents leave markers on code nodes that decay over time—like ants leaving scent trails:
| Pheromone | Half-Life | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
exploring |
2 min | "I'm looking at this" |
claiming |
1 hour | "This is my territory" |
modifying |
10 min | "I'm actively changing this" |
completed |
24 hours | "I finished work here" |
warning |
Never | "Don't touch this" |
blocked |
5 min | "I'm stuck" |
Self-healing: If an agent crashes, its pheromones decay and the work becomes available again.
Explicit task management with dependencies:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ TASK QUEUE │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ [available] Add JSDoc to UserService priority: high │
│ [claimed] Add JSDoc to AuthService agent: worker1 │
│ [blocked] Update API docs ─────────────────► depends on ──┤
│ [in_progress] Add JSDoc to PaymentService agent: worker2 │
│ [completed] Add JSDoc to CacheService ✓ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
swarm_orchestrate |
Decompose a task and spawn worker agents |
swarm_post_task |
Add a task to the queue |
swarm_get_tasks |
Query tasks with filters |
swarm_claim_task |
Claim/start/release a task |
swarm_complete_task |
Complete/fail/request review |
swarm_pheromone |
Leave a marker on a code node |
swarm_sense |
Query what other agents are doing |
swarm_cleanup |
Remove pheromones after completion |
// Orchestrator decomposes and creates tasks
swarm_orchestrate({
projectId: "backend",
task: "Rename getUserById to findUserById across the codebase",
maxAgents: 3
})
// Returns a plan:
{
swarmId: "swarm_abc123",
plan: {
totalTasks: 12,
parallelizable: 8,
sequential: 4, // These have dependencies
tasks: [
{ id: "task_1", title: "Update UserService.findUserById", status: "available" },
{ id: "task_2", title: "Update UserController references", status: "blocked", depends: ["task_1"] },
...
]
},
workerInstructions: "..." // Copy-paste to spawn workers
}For optimal swarm execution, install the included Claude Code skill that teaches agents the coordination protocol:
# Copy to your global skills directory
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cp -r skills/swarm ~/.claude/skills/Or for a specific project:
cp -r skills/swarm .claude/skills/The skill provides:
- Worker agent protocol with step-by-step workflow
- Multi-phase orchestration patterns (discovery, contracts, implementation, validation)
- Common failure modes and how to prevent them
- Complete tool reference
Once installed, just say "swarm" or "parallel agents" and Claude will use the skill automatically.
See skills/swarm/SKILL.md for the full documentation.
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
| Discovery | |
list_projects |
List parsed projects in the database |
search_codebase |
Semantic search using vector embeddings |
traverse_from_node |
Explore relationships from a node |
natural_language_to_cypher |
Convert questions to Cypher queries |
| Analysis | |
impact_analysis |
Assess refactoring risk (LOW/MEDIUM/HIGH/CRITICAL) |
detect_dead_code |
Find unreferenced exports and methods |
detect_duplicate_code |
Find structural and semantic duplicates |
| Parsing | |
parse_typescript_project |
Build the graph from source |
check_parse_status |
Monitor async parsing jobs |
start_watch_project |
Auto-update graph on file changes |
stop_watch_project |
Stop file watching |
list_watchers |
List active file watchers |
| Swarm | |
swarm_orchestrate |
Plan and spawn parallel agents |
swarm_post_task |
Add task to the queue |
swarm_get_tasks |
Query tasks |
swarm_claim_task |
Claim/start/release tasks |
swarm_complete_task |
Complete/fail/review tasks |
swarm_pheromone |
Leave coordination markers |
swarm_sense |
Query what others are doing |
swarm_cleanup |
Clean up after swarm completion |
| Utility | |
test_neo4j_connection |
Verify database connectivity |
Pattern 1: Discovery → Focus → Deep Dive
list_projects → search_codebase → traverse_from_node → traverse (with skip for pagination)
Pattern 2: Pre-Refactoring Safety
search_codebase("function to change") → impact_analysis(nodeId) → review risk level
Pattern 3: Code Health Audit
detect_dead_code → detect_duplicate_code → prioritize cleanup
Pattern 4: Multi-Agent Work
swarm_orchestrate → spawn workers → swarm_get_tasks(includeStats) → swarm_cleanup
All query tools require projectId for isolation. You can use:
- Project ID:
proj_a1b2c3d4e5f6(auto-generated) - Project name:
my-backend(from package.json) - Project path:
/path/to/project(resolved automatically)
// These all work:
search_codebase({ projectId: "my-backend", query: "auth" })
search_codebase({ projectId: "proj_a1b2c3d4e5f6", query: "auth" })
search_codebase({ projectId: "/path/to/my-backend", query: "auth" })Deep understanding of NestJS patterns:
- Controllers with route analysis (
@Controller,@Get,@Post, etc.) - Services with dependency injection mapping (
@Injectable) - Modules with import/export relationships (
@Module) - Guards, Pipes, Interceptors as middleware chains
- DTOs with validation decorators (
@IsString,@IsEmail, etc.) - Entities with TypeORM relationship mapping
NestJS-Specific Relationships:
INJECTS- Dependency injectionEXPOSES- Controller exposes HTTP endpointMODULE_IMPORTS,MODULE_PROVIDES,MODULE_EXPORTS- Module systemGUARDED_BY,TRANSFORMED_BY,INTERCEPTED_BY- Middleware
The parser is config-driven. Define your own framework patterns:
// Example: Custom React schema
const REACT_SCHEMA = {
name: 'react',
decoratorPatterns: [
{ pattern: /^use[A-Z]/, semanticType: 'ReactHook' },
{ pattern: /^with[A-Z]/, semanticType: 'HOC' },
],
nodeTypes: [
{ coreType: 'FunctionDeclaration', condition: (node) => node.name?.endsWith('Provider'), semanticType: 'ContextProvider' },
],
relationships: [
{ type: 'PROVIDES_CONTEXT', from: 'ContextProvider', to: 'ReactHook' },
]
};The dual-schema system means every node has:
coreType: AST-level (ClassDeclaration, FunctionDeclaration)semanticType: Framework meaning (NestController, ReactHook)
This enables queries like "find all hooks that use context" while maintaining AST precision for refactoring.
# Check the server is registered
claude mcp list
# Verify Neo4j is running
docker ps | grep neo4j
# Test manually
code-graph-context statusSymptoms: "Failed to generate embedding" errors
Fix: Ensure the key is in your config file:
# Check current config
cat ~/.claude.json | grep -A5 "code-graph-context"
# Re-add with key
claude mcp remove code-graph-context
claude mcp add --scope user code-graph-context \
-e OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-your-key-here \
-- code-graph-contextFor large codebases, increase memory limits:
# Stop and recreate with more memory
code-graph-context stop
code-graph-context init --memory 4GUse async mode for large projects:
parse_typescript_project({
projectPath: "/path/to/project",
tsconfigPath: "/path/to/project/tsconfig.json",
async: true // Returns immediately, poll with check_parse_status
})code-graph-context init [options] # Set up Neo4j container
code-graph-context status # Check Docker/Neo4j status
code-graph-context stop # Stop Neo4j containerInit options:
-p, --port <port>- Bolt port (default: 7687)--http-port <port>- Browser port (default: 7474)--password <password>- Neo4j password (default: PASSWORD)-m, --memory <size>- Heap memory (default: 2G)-f, --force- Recreate container
git clone https://github.com/drewdrewH/code-graph-context.git
cd code-graph-context
npm install
npm run build
npm run dev # Watch modeConventional Commits: feat|fix|docs|refactor(scope): description
MIT - see LICENSE