Bridge Suite MCP Server

Give AI agents full access to your IntelliJ IDE.

Bridge Suite is a free, open-source MCP server that connects AI coding assistants to IntelliJ IDEA through four specialized plugins. Run commands in terminals, trigger builds, push notifications into the IDE, and query project context — all through a single MCP server.

Works with Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, Continue, and any MCP-compatible client.

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Why Bridge Suite?

JetBrains' built-in MCP server handles file operations and basic code inspection, but it doesn't expose what makes IntelliJ powerful for AI workflows:

Capability	JetBrains Built-in	Bridge Suite
Read/write files	Yes	-
Run terminal commands with live output	-	Yes
Trigger specific run configurations	-	Yes
Push notifications into the IDE	-	Yes
Show progress bars for long tasks	-	Yes
Get full project context (SDK, frameworks, deps)	-	Yes
Stream real-time output via WebSocket	-	Yes
Multi-terminal management	-	Yes

Bridge Suite and the built-in MCP are complementary — install both for complete IDE control.

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Quick Start

1. Install the MCP server

Add to your MCP client configuration:

Claude Code (.mcp.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "bridge-suite": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@llitd/bridge-suite-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop (claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "bridge-suite": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@llitd/bridge-suite-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor (Settings > MCP Servers):

Name: bridge-suite
Command: npx -y @llitd/bridge-suite-mcp

2. Install at least one plugin

The MCP server connects to plugins running inside IntelliJ. Install them from the JetBrains Marketplace:

Plugin	What It Does	Free Tier	Marketplace
Terminal Bridge	List, create, send commands to IDE terminals	List, read, send	Install
Run Configuration Bridge	Execute run/debug configs, track processes	List, run	Install
Notification Bridge	Push notifications, progress bars, status widgets	Send notifications, history	Install
Project Intelligence	Project context, dependencies, frameworks	Full context snapshot	Install

Each plugin runs a lightweight HTTP server on localhost. The MCP server auto-discovers which plugins are running.

3. Verify

Ask your AI assistant:

"Check which Bridge Suite plugins are available"

It will call bridge_status and show you what's running.

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Tools

bridge_status

Check which plugins are installed, running, and licensed. Call this first to see what's available.

bridge_status()

Returns:

{
  "terminal-bridge": {
    "name": "Terminal Bridge",
    "running": true,
    "version": "2.4.2",
    "licensed": true
  },
  "notification-bridge": {
    "name": "Notification Bridge",
    "running": true,
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "licensed": false
  },
  ...
}

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terminal — Terminal Bridge

Manage IntelliJ terminal tabs. Create terminals, send commands, read output.

Action	Description	Tier
status	Plugin health	Free
list	List all terminal tabs	Free
read	Read recent output (id required)	Free
send	Send command to terminal (id, command required)	Free
create	Create new terminal tab	Pro
close	Close terminal tab (id required)	Pro
focus	Focus terminal in IDE (id required)	Pro
rename	Rename terminal tab (id, name required)	Pro

Examples:

// List terminals
terminal({ action: "list" })

// Run a command
terminal({ action: "send", id: "terminal-1", command: "npm test" })

// Read output
terminal({ action: "read", id: "terminal-1", max_lines: 50 })

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run_config — Run Configuration Bridge

Execute IntelliJ run/debug configurations. Start builds, run tests, launch servers — any run config defined in your project.

Action	Description	Tier
status	Plugin health	Free
list	List all run configurations	Free
types	List configuration types	Free
details	Get config details (id required)	Free
run	Start a configuration (id required)	Free
processes	List running processes	Free
debug	Start with debugger (id required)	Pro
stop	Stop process (id required)	Pro
restart	Restart process (id required)	Pro
output	Read process output (id required)	Pro
wait	Wait for process to finish (id required)	Pro
env	Get environment variables (id required)	Pro
refresh	Force cache refresh	Pro

Examples:

// List all run configurations
run_config({ action: "list" })

// Run "Backend Server" configuration
run_config({ action: "run", id: "backend-server" })

// Check process output
run_config({ action: "output", id: "process-1", max_lines: 100 })

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notify — Notification Bridge

Push notifications, progress bars, and status bar widgets directly into the IDE. Perfect for long-running AI tasks, CI/CD results, or monitoring alerts.

Action	Description	Tier
status	Plugin health	Free
channels	List notification channels	Free
send	Send balloon notification (title, content required)	Free
history	Read notification history	Free
sticky	Sticky notification (stays until dismissed)	Pro
action	Notification with clickable buttons	Pro
channel_create	Register notification channel	Pro
channel_delete	Remove channel (id required)	Pro
progress_create	Create IDE progress bar (title required)	Pro
progress_update	Update progress (id, fraction required)	Pro
progress_complete	Complete/cancel progress bar (id required)	Pro
statusbar_create	Create status bar widget (id, text required)	Pro
statusbar_update	Update widget text (id required)	Pro
statusbar_remove	Remove widget (id required)	Pro

Examples:

// Send a notification
notify({ action: "send", title: "Build Complete", content: "All 42 tests pass", type: "INFORMATION" })

// Warning notification
notify({ action: "send", title: "Memory High", content: "Heap usage at 89%", type: "WARNING" })

// Create a progress bar (Pro)
notify({ action: "progress_create", title: "Deploying to Production", fraction: 0.0 })

// Update progress
notify({ action: "progress_update", id: "abc123", text: "Stage 2/3", fraction: 0.66 })

// Complete it
notify({ action: "progress_complete", id: "abc123" })

// Notification with action buttons (Pro)
notify({
  action: "action",
  title: "PR #42 Ready",
  content: "All checks pass. Merge?",
  type: "INFORMATION",
  actions: [
    { label: "Open PR", id: "open", url: "https://github.com/org/repo/pull/42" },
    { label: "Merge", id: "merge" }
  ]
})

// Status bar widget (Pro)
notify({ action: "statusbar_create", id: "api-health", text: "API: 200ms", tooltip: "Average response time" })

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project_intel — Project Intelligence Bridge

Get rich project context — SDK version, detected frameworks, dependency tree, file structure. Useful for AI agents that need to understand the project before making changes.

Action	Description	Tier
status	Plugin health	Free
context	Full project snapshot (SDK, frameworks, VCS, deps)	Free
dependencies	Dependency tree with conflicts	Free
file_tree	Source/test/resource file classification	Free
frameworks	Detected frameworks and versions	Free
summary	LLM-optimized text summary	Free
refresh	Force refresh cached data	Free

Examples:

// Get full project context
project_intel({ action: "context" })

// Quick summary for LLM context windows
project_intel({ action: "summary" })

// Check frameworks
project_intel({ action: "frameworks" })

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Architecture

┌──────────────────────────────────┐
│   AI Assistant (Claude, Cursor)  │
│   Uses MCP tools to control IDE  │
└──────────────┬───────────────────┘
               │ MCP Protocol (stdio)
┌──────────────▼───────────────────┐
│   Bridge Suite MCP Server        │
│   Free, open-source (this repo)  │
│   Auto-discovers running plugins │
└──────────────┬───────────────────┘
               │ HTTP (localhost)
   ┌───────────┼───────────┬───────────────┐
   ▼           ▼           ▼               ▼
┌──────┐  ┌──────┐   ┌──────────┐   ┌──────────┐
│:9876 │  │:9877 │   │  :9878   │   │  :9885   │
│Term  │  │ Run  │   │  Notif   │   │  Project │
│Bridge│  │Config│   │  Bridge  │   │  Intel   │
└──┬───┘  └──┬───┘   └────┬─────┘   └────┬─────┘
   │         │            │              │
   └─────────┴────────────┴──────────────┘
                    │
          IntelliJ IDEA (IDE APIs)

Each plugin runs an embedded HTTP server on localhost. The MCP server probes ports to discover which plugins are available. If a plugin isn't installed, its tools return a helpful message with an install link.

Security: Everything runs on localhost. No data leaves your machine. No authentication needed for local-only access.

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Plugin Availability

When a tool targets a plugin that isn't running, you get a clear message:

{
  "success": false,
  "error": "Notification Bridge is not running. Install it from JetBrains Marketplace: https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/30984-notification-bridge — then restart IntelliJ IDEA.",
  "code": "PLUGIN_NOT_AVAILABLE"
}

When a tool requires a paid feature on the free tier:

{
  "success": false,
  "error": "This feature requires a paid Notification Bridge license. Upgrade at: https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/30984-notification-bridge",
  "code": "LICENSE_REQUIRED"
}

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Configuration

Custom Ports

If your plugins run on non-standard ports, set environment variables:

TERMINAL_BRIDGE_PORT=9876       # default
RUN_CONFIG_BRIDGE_PORT=9877     # default
NOTIFICATION_BRIDGE_PORT=9878   # default
PROJECT_INTELLIGENCE_PORT=9885  # default

Plugin Settings

Each plugin has its own settings in IntelliJ: Settings > Tools > [Plugin Name]

Common settings across all plugins:

• Port — HTTP server port
• Auto-start — Start server when IDE opens
• CORS Origins — Allowed origins for cross-origin requests

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Use Cases

AI-Driven Development Workflow

1. project_intel({ action: "context" })     → Understand the project
2. terminal({ action: "send", ... })        → Run commands
3. run_config({ action: "run", ... })       → Build/test
4. run_config({ action: "output", ... })    → Check results
5. notify({ action: "send", ... })          → Report completion

CI/CD Notification Pipeline

1. notify({ action: "channel_create", id: "ci", name: "CI Pipeline" })
2. notify({ action: "progress_create", title: "Deploying v2.1" })
3. notify({ action: "progress_update", id: "...", fraction: 0.5 })
4. notify({ action: "progress_complete", id: "..." })
5. notify({ action: "action", title: "Deploy Complete", actions: [...] })

Multi-Terminal Orchestration

1. terminal({ action: "create", name: "backend" })
2. terminal({ action: "create", name: "frontend" })
3. terminal({ action: "send", id: "backend", command: "mvn spring-boot:run" })
4. terminal({ action: "send", id: "frontend", command: "npm run dev" })
5. terminal({ action: "read", id: "backend" })  → Check startup

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Requirements

• IntelliJ IDEA 2025.3+ (Ultimate or Community)
• Node.js 18+ (for the MCP server)
• At least one Bridge Suite plugin installed

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Pricing

The MCP server is free and open-source (MIT license).

Each plugin uses a freemium model on the JetBrains Marketplace:

	Personal	Commercial
Monthly	$1.90/mo	$4.90/mo
Annual	$19/yr	$49/yr

Free tiers include essential read/execute operations. Pro tiers unlock creation, streaming, and advanced features. See the tool tables above for tier details.

JetBrains community programs (students, open-source, startups) provide free licenses.

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Development

git clone https://github.com/llitd/bridge-suite-mcp.git
cd bridge-suite-mcp
npm install
npm run build

Run locally:

node dist/index.js

Project Structure

src/
  index.ts              Entry point (stdio transport)
  discovery.ts          Plugin auto-discovery (port probing)
  http-client.ts        Shared HTTP client with error handling
  tools/
    bridge-status.ts    Meta tool: plugin discovery
    terminal.ts         Terminal Bridge proxy
    run-config.ts       Run Configuration Bridge proxy
    notify.ts           Notification Bridge proxy
    project.ts          Project Intelligence Bridge proxy
    registry.ts         Tool registration

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Links

• LLITD on JetBrains Marketplace
• Terminal Bridge
• Run Configuration Bridge
• Notification Bridge
• Project Intelligence Bridge
• Model Context Protocol
• Report Issues

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License

MIT — see LICENSE