<img src="https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Rbfinch/hindsight-mcp/main/assets/hindsight-logo.png" alt="Hindsight Logo" width="120">

<!-- mcp-name: io.github.Rbfinch/hindsight-mcp -->

hindsight-mcp

An MCP server for AI-assisted coding that leverages development history.

Overview

hindsight-mcp consolidates development data (git logs, test results, and GitHub Copilot sessions) into a searchable SQLite database, making it accessible to AI assistants through MCP tool calls in VS Code.

Key Features:

• Full-text search across commits and Copilot conversations
• Track test results linked to specific commits
• Activity summaries and timeline views
• Automatic git and Copilot session ingestion

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• VS Code v1.99+ with GitHub Copilot
• cargo-nextest (for test ingestion): cargo install cargo-nextest

Installation

cargo install hindsight-mcp

Configure VS Code

Create .vscode/mcp.json in your project:

{
  "servers": {
    "hindsight": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "hindsight-mcp",
      "args": ["--workspace", "${workspaceFolder}"]
    }
  }
}

Verify Setup

1. Open VS Code Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P)
2. Run "MCP: List Servers"
3. Confirm hindsight is listed
4. In Copilot Chat, switch to Agent mode
5. Ask: "What have I been working on recently?"

That's it! Copilot will use hindsight tools to answer questions about your development history.

MCP Tools

Tool	Purpose	Example Prompt
hindsight_timeline	Chronological activity view	"Show recent commits and test runs"
hindsight_search	Full-text search	"Find commits about authentication"
hindsight_failing_tests	Query test failures	"What tests are failing?"
hindsight_activity_summary	Aggregate stats	"Summarise my week"
hindsight_commit_details	Commit info with tests	"Details for commit abc123"
hindsight_ingest	Trigger data refresh	"Refresh development history"

<details> <summary><strong>Tool Arguments Reference</strong></summary>

hindsight_timeline

• limit (int): Max events, default 50
• workspace (string): Filter by path

hindsight_search

• query (string): Search query (required)
• source (string): "all", "commits", or "messages"
• limit (int): Max results, default 20

hindsight_failing_tests

• limit (int): Max tests, default 50
• workspace (string): Filter by path
• commit (string): Filter by SHA

hindsight_activity_summary

• days (int): Days to summarise, default 7

hindsight_commit_details

• sha (string): Commit SHA (required)

hindsight_ingest

• workspace (string): Path to ingest (required)
• source (string): "git", "copilot", or "all"
• incremental (bool): Only new data, default true
• limit (int): Max items

</details>

Test Ingestion

Run tests and automatically ingest results:

# Run all tests and ingest
hindsight-mcp test

# Test specific package
hindsight-mcp test -p my-crate

# Preview without writing to database
hindsight-mcp test --dry-run

The test command automatically:

• Spawns cargo nextest with correct flags
• Auto-detects the current git commit
• Ingests results to the database

<details> <summary><strong>CI / Advanced Usage</strong></summary>

For CI pipelines or custom nextest invocations:

# Using stdin mode
NEXTEST_EXPERIMENTAL_LIBTEST_JSON=1 cargo nextest run \
  --message-format libtest-json 2>/dev/null | \
  hindsight-mcp test --stdin

# Using ingest command with explicit commit
NEXTEST_EXPERIMENTAL_LIBTEST_JSON=1 cargo nextest run \
  --message-format libtest-json 2>/dev/null | \
  hindsight-mcp ingest --tests --commit $(git rev-parse HEAD)

</details>

Data Sources

Source	Data Collected
Git	Commits (SHA, author, message, timestamp, parents)
Tests	Run metadata, outcomes, durations, failure output
Copilot	Chat sessions, prompts, responses, attached files

Git and Copilot data are ingested automatically. Test results require running hindsight-mcp test.

CLI Reference

hindsight-mcp [OPTIONS] [COMMAND]

Commands:
  ingest    Ingest data from various sources
  test      Run tests and ingest results

Options:
  -d, --database <PATH>   Database path [default: ~/.hindsight/hindsight.db]
  -w, --workspace <PATH>  Workspace path [default: current directory]
  -v, --verbose           Debug logging
  -q, --quiet             Errors only
      --skip-init         Skip database init
  -h, --help              Print help
  -V, --version           Print version

<details> <summary><strong>Test Subcommand Options</strong></summary>

hindsight-mcp test [OPTIONS] [-- <NEXTEST_ARGS>...]

Options:
  -p, --package <PKG>     Package(s) to test
      --bin <BIN>         Binary(ies) to run
  -E, --filter <EXPR>     Filter expression
      --stdin             Read from stdin
      --dry-run           Preview only
      --no-commit         Do not link to commit
      --commit <SHA>      Explicit commit SHA
      --show-output       Show test output

</details>

Environment Variables

Variable	Description
HINDSIGHT_DATABASE	Database path
HINDSIGHT_WORKSPACE	Default workspace

Database Location

Platform	Default Path
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/hindsight/hindsight.db
Linux	~/.local/share/hindsight/hindsight.db
Windows	%LOCALAPPDATA%\hindsight\hindsight.db

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Server does not start	Check binary path; run with --verbose
No data showing	Run hindsight_ingest tool via Copilot
Log interference	Use --quiet in production

Development

<details> <summary><strong>Building from Source</strong></summary>

git clone https://github.com/Rbfinch/hindsight-mcp.git
cd hindsight-mcp
cargo build --release

</details>

<details> <summary><strong>Running Tests</strong></summary>

cargo install cargo-nextest
cargo nextest run --workspace

</details>

<details> <summary><strong>Workspace Structure</strong></summary>

hindsight/
├── crates/
│   ├── hindsight-mcp/      # MCP server binary
│   ├── hindsight-git/      # Git log processing
│   ├── hindsight-tests/    # Test result processing
│   └── hindsight-copilot/  # Copilot session parsing

</details>

<details> <summary><strong>Fuzzing</strong></summary>

cd crates/hindsight-tests
cargo +nightly fuzz run fuzz_nextest_run

cd crates/hindsight-copilot
cargo +nightly fuzz run fuzz_session_json

</details>

License

MIT