Once connected, Claude Desktop can search your StashBase library — every folder you’ve opened, including the extracted text of PDFs, DOCX files, images, and audio/video transcripts — and read or edit files inside those folders, nothing outside them.

Still deciding how Claude should reach your files at all — Cowork, Projects uploads, an MCP server, or an indexed library? Start with the comparison: how to give Claude access to your local files.

What Claude gets

  • library_info — your opened folders and embedder status
  • search_library — keyword and (if configured) semantic search, optionally scoped to a folder or path prefix
  • reindex — pick up external file changes
  • Bounded file helpers: list_directory, read_file, write_file, edit_file, move_file, delete_file — inside opened folders only. MCP access is deliberately not a general filesystem interface.

Prerequisites

  • StashBase installed with at least one folder opened.
  • The StashBase app running — the MCP server lives in the app.
  • Claude Desktop installed.

Copy the config from StashBase

  1. In StashBase, open Settings → MCP.
  2. Copy the MCP JSON configuration block. It already points at the packaged command for your machine.
  3. Paste it into Claude Desktop’s config file (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS, %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json on Windows), merging with any mcpServers entries already there.
  4. Restart Claude Desktop.

StashBase does not write external clients’ configuration for you; only the in-app Chat runtimes are wired automatically.

Manual setup

If you would rather write the file by hand, the packaged MCP command is generated at:

~/.stashbase/bin/stashbase-mcp                    # macOS / Linux
%USERPROFILE%\.stashbase\bin\stashbase-mcp.cmd    # Windows

Add it to Claude Desktop’s config file (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS, %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json on Windows):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "stashbase": {
      "command": "/Users/YOUR_USER/.stashbase/bin/stashbase-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop after changing its MCP configuration.

Verify it works

Ask Claude something like “use stashbase to search my library for …” — you should see it call search_library. New MCP servers appear in Claude Desktop’s tools menu after a restart.

Troubleshooting

  • Tools don’t appear — restart Claude Desktop; MCP config is read at startup.
  • Search returns nothing — check the StashBase app is running, and that the folder you expect is actually opened in the library. In-app search readiness also applies here: files still being prepared aren’t searchable yet.
  • Meaning-based queries fall back to keyword behaviour — search by meaning needs your own OpenAI or OpenRouter key under Settings → Advanced → Search by Meaning; Default Agent credits do not cover it. Keyword search works without a key.
  • Config JSON errors — Claude Desktop silently ignores invalid JSON; validate the file if the server never shows up.

For URL-based clients, Docker access, ports, and token rotation, see Advanced MCP configuration in the main repository. To use Claude Code instead, the short version is:

claude mcp add stashbase -- ~/.stashbase/bin/stashbase-mcp

Frequently asked questions

Does StashBase need to be running for Claude Desktop to use it?

Yes. The MCP server lives in the StashBase app, so the app has to be open while Claude Desktop searches or reads your library.

Can Claude Desktop see my whole computer through StashBase?

No. Claude Desktop reaches only the StashBase project you select and authorize, and the file tools work inside it and nowhere else. The MCP server is not a general filesystem interface.

Can Claude Desktop read my PDFs and recordings through StashBase?

Yes. StashBase serves the text it prepared from PDFs, DOCX files, images and recordings, so Claude can search all of it and read the prepared text of a PDF or DOCX file instead of the raw file.

Do I need search by meaning set up to use StashBase from Claude Desktop?

No. Keyword search works without any key. If you have added your own OpenAI or OpenRouter key in StashBase, searches from Claude Desktop can also match by meaning.