Install for Cursor IDE

Complete guide to install and configure ContextForge MCP on Cursor IDE.

Claude Desktop (macOS)Claude Desktop (Windows)Claude Desktop (Linux)ChatGPT Desktop Windsurf IDE

Prerequisites

Node.js 18 or higher
Download from nodejs.org
Cursor IDE
Download from cursor.com
ContextForge Account
Create a free account

Step 1: Install ContextForge MCP

Open your terminal and run:

npm install -g contextforge-mcp

Step 2: Verify Installation

# Check if contextforge-mcp is installed
which contextforge-mcp

# Should output the path to the executable

Step 3: Configure Cursor

1. Locate the MCP config file

Cursor uses a JSON configuration file for MCP servers:

# macOS / Linux
~/.cursor/mcp.json

# Windows
%USERPROFILE%\.cursor\mcp.json

2. Create or edit the config file

Add the following configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "contextforge": {
      "command": "contextforge-mcp",
      "env": {
        "CONTEXTFORGE_API_KEY": "your-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Note: Replace your-api-key-here with your actual API key from your dashboard

3. Restart Cursor

Close and reopen Cursor IDE for the changes to take effect.

Using ContextForge in Cursor

Once configured, you can use ContextForge tools in Cursor's AI chat:

# Save knowledge to memory
"Remember this API endpoint documentation..."

# Query your memory
"What do we know about the authentication flow?"

# Create tasks
"Create a task: Fix the login bug"

# List your tasks
"Show my pending tasks"

Updating ContextForge MCP

When a new version is available, you can update with:

npm install -g contextforge-mcp

If you run into issues or want a clean reinstall:

npm uninstall -g contextforge-mcp && npm install -g contextforge-mcp

After updating, restart Cursor IDE for changes to take effect.

Troubleshooting

MCP not showing in Cursor

Make sure the config file is in the correct location and has valid JSON:

# Validate JSON syntax
cat ~/.cursor/mcp.json | jq .

# Check if contextforge-mcp is accessible
which contextforge-mcp

command not found: contextforge-mcp

Add npm global bin to your PATH or use the full path in the config:

# Find the full path
npm config get prefix

# Use full path in mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "contextforge": {
      "command": "/usr/local/bin/contextforge-mcp",
      "env": {
        "CONTEXTFORGE_API_KEY": "your-api-key"
      }
    }
  }
}

Authentication errors

Verify your API key is correct and hasn't expired. You can generate a new key from your dashboard.

Windows: Path issues

On Windows, you may need to use the full path with .cmd extension:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "contextforge": {
      "command": "C:\\Users\\YourName\\AppData\\Roaming\\npm\\contextforge-mcp.cmd",
      "env": {
        "CONTEXTFORGE_API_KEY": "your-api-key"
      }
    }
  }
}