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Portability Guide - Using on Other Systems

Quick Answer: Yes! Just copy the MCP server repo and update one config file path.

What You Need on Another System

1. The MCP Server Repository

Option A: Clone from Git (if you push to remote):

cd ~/projects
git clone <your-git-url>/devops-practices-mcp

Option B: Copy Manually (if not in Git yet):

# From original system
cd /home/ukj/work/devops/protean
tar -czf devops-practices-mcp.tar.gz devops-practices-mcp/

# Transfer to new system (USB, scp, email, etc.)
scp devops-practices-mcp.tar.gz user@newsystem:~/

# On new system
cd ~/
tar -xzf devops-practices-mcp.tar.gz

Option C: Cloud Storage:

# Upload to Dropbox, Google Drive, S3, etc.
# Download on new system

2. Python 3

# Verify Python 3 is installed
python3 --version

# Should show: Python 3.8 or higher

No additional dependencies needed - MCP server uses only Python standard library.

Configuration on New System

Step 1: Find Your Claude Config File

# Most likely location (project-specific):
ls ~/.claude.json

# Alternative locations:
ls ~/.config/claude/config.json
ls ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/config.json  # macOS

Step 2: Update Path

If you have ~/.claude.json (project-specific):

vim ~/.claude.json

# Find your project, update the path:
"/path/to/your/project": {
  "mcpServers": {
    "devops-practices": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": ["/NEW/PATH/TO/devops-practices-mcp/mcp-server.py"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

If you have ~/.config/claude/config.json (global):

vim ~/.config/claude/config.json

# Add or update:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "devops-practices": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": ["/NEW/PATH/TO/devops-practices-mcp/mcp-server.py"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Key Point: Only the path changes. Everything else stays the same.

Step 3: Restart Claude Code

# Restart however you normally do
# (CLI, VSCode reload, etc.)

Step 4: Test

User: "Can you list the available DevOps practices?"
Claude: [Should list 7 practices from MCP server]

Example: Three Different Systems

System 1 (Original - Ubuntu WSL)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "devops-practices": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": ["/home/ukj/work/devops/protean/devops-practices-mcp/mcp-server.py"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

System 2 (Work Laptop - macOS)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "devops-practices": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": ["/Users/uttam/devops/devops-practices-mcp/mcp-server.py"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

System 3 (Remote Server - Linux)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "devops-practices": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": ["/opt/devops-tools/devops-practices-mcp/mcp-server.py"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Notice: Only the path changes. Everything else identical.

Project CLAUDE.md Files

Your project CLAUDE.md files don't need to change across systems (if using relative reference):

## MCP Service Integration
**Shared Practices**: `devops-practices` MCP server

Query practices when needed:
- `get_practice("air-gapped-workflow")`
- `get_practice("documentation-standards")`

The path to the MCP server is in ~/.claude.json, not in CLAUDE.md, so projects are portable.

Keeping MCP Server Updated

If Using Git

# On any system
cd devops-practices-mcp
git pull origin main

# Restart Claude Code - changes take effect immediately

If Using Manual Copy

When you update practices:

# System 1 (where you edit)
cd devops-practices-mcp
vim practices/air-gapped-workflow.md
# Make changes
git commit -m "Update workflow"

# Transfer to other systems
tar -czf devops-practices-mcp.tar.gz devops-practices-mcp/
# Copy to other systems

Recommended: Use Git

Best practice: Push MCP server to a Git repository

Benefits:

  1. ✅ Easy sync across systems (git pull)
  2. ✅ Version history
  3. ✅ Team can contribute
  4. ✅ Always get latest practices
  5. ✅ No manual file copying

Setup once:

cd devops-practices-mcp
git remote add origin <your-git-url>
git push -u origin main

Use everywhere:

# On any new system
git clone <your-git-url>/devops-practices-mcp
# Update path in ~/.claude.json
# Done!

Checklist for New System

  • Copy/clone devops-practices-mcp repository
  • Verify Python 3 installed (python3 --version)
  • Find Claude config file (~/.claude.json or similar)
  • Update MCP server path to new location
  • Use absolute path
  • Restart Claude Code
  • Test: Ask Claude to list practices
  • Verify: Claude shows 7 practices from MCP

Time required: 5 minutes

Troubleshooting on New System

"MCP server not found"

  • Check path is absolute (not relative)
  • Verify file exists: ls /path/to/mcp-server.py
  • Make it executable: chmod +x /path/to/mcp-server.py

"Python not found"

  • Check Python 3: which python3
  • Use full path in config: "/usr/bin/python3"

"Permission denied"

  • Make executable: chmod +x mcp-server.py
  • Check ownership: ls -la mcp-server.py

Summary

Portable? ✅ YES - Very easy

What moves? Just the devops-practices-mcp folder

What changes? Only the path in one config file

Dependencies? None (Python 3 standard library only)

Time to setup on new system? 5 minutes

Best practice? Use Git for easy sync

Maintained By: Uttam Jaiswal Last Updated: 2026-02-13