GitLab Documentation MCP Server

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README

# GitLab Documentation MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides searchable access to GitLab's official documentation. This server indexes markdown documentation from multiple GitLab OSS repositories and makes it available for AI assistants and other MCP clients.

## Features

- **Full-text search** across GitLab documentation using SQLite FTS5
- **Version-specific docs** - Build for any GitLab version (e.g., 18.7.2) or latest
- **Multiple repositories** indexed:
  - GitLab CE/EE (main application)
  - GitLab Runner (CI/CD runner)
  - Omnibus GitLab (installation packages)
  - Gitaly (Git RPC service)
  - GitLab Pages (static sites)
  - GitLab Agent (Kubernetes integration, includes KAS)
- **Optimized Docker image** - Uses sparse checkout and filters to minimize size

## Building the Docker Image

### Find the GitLab Version

Look for the latest patch version for your desired GitLab release:
- [GitLab 18.7.x tags](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tags?sort=updated_desc&search=v18.7.)
- [GitLab 18.6.x tags](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tags?sort=updated_desc&search=v18.6.)
- [All GitLab tags](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tags?sort=updated_desc)

### Build for Specific Version

```bash
# Set the GitLab version you want (use full patch version)
GITLAB_VERSION=18.7.2

# Build the image
GITLAB_MINOR=$(echo $GITLAB_VERSION | cut -d. -f1,2)
docker build -f docker/Dockerfile --build-arg GITLAB_VERSION=$GITLAB_VERSION \
    -t gitlab-docs-mcp:$GITLAB_VERSION \
    -t mcp/gitlab-docs-mcp:$GITLAB_VERSION \
    -t gitlab-docs-mcp:$GITLAB_MINOR \
    -t mcp/gitlab-docs-mcp:$GITLAB_MINOR .

# Verify the images were created
echo "\nCreated images:"
docker images | grep gitlab-docs-mcp

# Test the image - initialize and list tools
echo "\nTesting MCP server initialization:"
echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"initialize","params":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{},"clientInfo":{"name":"test","version":"1.0"}}}' | \
  docker run -i --rm mcp/gitlab-docs-mcp:$GITLAB_VERSION | jq .

echo "\nListing available tools:"
(echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"initialize","params":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{},"clientInfo":{"name":"test","version":"1.0"}}}'; \
 echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":2,"method":"tools/list"}') | \
  docker run -i --rm mcp/gitlab-docs-mcp:$GITLAB_VERSION 2>/dev/null | tail -1 | jq .
```

### Build for Latest (Main Branch)

```bash
docker build -f docker/Dockerfile \
    -t gitlab-docs-mcp:latest \
    -t mcp/gitlab-docs-mcp:latest .

# Verify the images were created
echo "\nCreated images:"
docker images | grep gitlab-docs-mcp

# Test the image - initialize and list tools
echo "\nTesting MCP server initialization:"
echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"initialize","params":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{},"clientInfo":{"name":"test","version":"1.0"}}}' | \
  docker run -i --rm mcp/gitlab-docs-mcp:latest | head -20
echo "\nListing available tools:"
(echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"initialize","params":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{},"clientInfo":{"name":"test","version":"1.0"}}}'; \
 echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":2,"method":"tools/list"}') | \
  docker run -i --rm mcp/gitlab-docs-mcp:latest 2>/dev/null | tail -1 | jq .```

## Installation

This server is published to the [MCP Community Registry](https://registry.modelcontextprotocol.io/v0/servers?search=io.github.nunolima/gitlab-docs-mcp).

### Prerequisites

- Docker installed and running
- MCP-compatible client (Claude Desktop, Cline, Cursor, etc.)

### Setup Instructions

#### Claude Desktop

1. **Locate your config file**:
   - macOS: `~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`
   - Windows: `%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json`
   - Linux: `~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`

2. **Add the server configuration**:
   ```json
   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "gitlab-docs": {
         "command": "docker",
         "args": ["run", "-i", "--rm", "nunolima/gitlab-docs-mcp:18.7"]
       }
     }
   }
   ```

3. **Restart Claude Desktop** - The server will appear in the MCP tools menu (🔌 icon)

#### Cline (VS Code Extension)

1. Open Cline settings in VS Code
2. Navigate to **MCP Servers** section
3. Add this configuration:
   ```json
   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "gitlab-docs": {
         "command": "docker",
         "args": ["run", "-i", "--rm", "nunolima/gitlab-docs-mcp:18.7"]
       }
     }
   }
   ```
4. Reload VS Code window

#### Cursor

1. Open Cursor settings
2. Go to **Features** → **Model Context Protocol**
3. Add the server configuration:
   ```json
   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "gitlab-docs": {
         "command": "docker",
         "args": ["run", "-i", "--rm", "nunolima/gitlab-docs-mcp:18.7"]
       }
     }
   }
   ```

### Version Selection

Choose the version that matches your GitLab deployment:

```json
// For GitLab 18.7.x
"args": ["run", "-i", "--rm", "nunolima/gitlab-