Solution for MCP Servers Connection Issues with NVM/NPM

3 min read4 days ago

Link to my original post

modelcontextprotocol / servers / Issues :

https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/servers/issues/76

Background

This solution is inspired by and builds upon the workaround discussed in [Issue #64](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/servers/issues/64). While the original solution was for macOS, this implementation is specifically for Windows systems using NVM (Node Version Manager).

Problem

When using NVM or standard Node.js installation, the default configuration using npx commands fails to connect MCP servers in Claude Desktop.

Solution Overview

The solution involves:

1. Installing MCP server packages globally instead of using npx

2. Using absolute paths to both the Node executable and server scripts

3. Modifying the configuration file to use these absolute paths

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Locate Node.js and npm paths

Open Command Prompt (CMD) as administrator and run:

where node

This will show your Node.js executable path. Example output:

D:\Program\nvm\node.exe

Then find your global npm packages location:

npm root -g

Example output:

D:\Program\nvm\node_modules

2. Install Required Packages Globally

Run these commands in CMD:

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-github

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-memory

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-puppeteer

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-brave-search

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-google-maps

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres

3. Verify Installations

Check each package installation:

npm list -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem

npm list -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-github

npm list -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-memory

npm list -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-puppeteer

npm list -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-brave-search

npm list -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-google-maps

npm list -g @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres

Expected output format:

D:\Program\nvm -> .\

`-- @modelcontextprotocol/server-[package-name]@0.5.1

4. Update Configuration File

Modify your claude_desktop_config.json with the following content (adjust paths according to your system):

{

  "mcpServers": {

    "sqlite": {

      "command": "uvx",

      "args": [

        "mcp-server-sqlite",

        "--db-path",

        "D:\\github_repository\\test.db"

      ]

    },

    "filesystem": {

      "command": "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node.exe",

      "args": [

        "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node_modules\\@modelcontextprotocol\\server-filesystem\\dist\\index.js",

        "D:\\github_repository",

        "D:\\github_repository\\image-generator"

      ]

    },

    "github": {

      "command": "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node.exe",

      "args": [

        "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node_modules\\@modelcontextprotocol\\server-github\\dist\\index.js"

      ],

      "env": {

        "GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": ""

      }

    },

    "postgres": {

      "command": "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node.exe",

      "args": [

        "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node_modules\\@modelcontextprotocol\\server-postgres\\dist\\index.js",

        "postgresql://localhost/mydb"

      ]

    },

    "memory": {

      "command": "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node.exe",

      "args": [

        "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node_modules\\@modelcontextprotocol\\server-memory\\dist\\index.js"

      ]

    },

    "puppeteer": {

      "command": "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node.exe",

      "args": [

        "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node_modules\\@modelcontextprotocol\\server-puppeteer\\dist\\index.js"

      ]

    },

    "brave-search": {

      "command": "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node.exe",

      "args": [

        "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node_modules\\@modelcontextprotocol\\server-brave-search\\dist\\index.js"

      ],

      "env": {

        "BRAVE_API_KEY": ""

      }

    },

    "google-maps": {

      "command": "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node.exe",

      "args": [

        "D:\\Program\\nvm\\node_modules\\@modelcontextprotocol\\server-google-maps\\dist\\index.js"

      ],

      "env": {

        "GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY": ""

      }

    },

    "fetch": {

      "command": "uvx",

      "args": [

        "mcp-server-fetch"

      ]

    }

  },

  "globalShortcut": "Ctrl+Q"

}

5. Important Notes

1. Replace all path references with your actual Node.js and npm paths

2. Use double backslashes (`\\`) in all Windows paths

3. Keep uvx commands unchanged

4. Make sure to add your API keys in the corresponding env sections if needed

6. Apply Changes

1. Save the modified configuration file

2. Close Claude Desktop completely

3. Restart Claude Desktop as administrator

Verification

After restart, all MCP servers should connect successfully. The uvx-based servers will continue to work as before, and the npm-based servers should now connect properly with the new configuration.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter issues:

1. Verify all paths exist using dir command

2. Check global package installations using npm list -g

3. Ensure Claude Desktop is running with administrator privileges

4. Double-check all backslashes in paths

This solution has been tested on Windows 11 (Build 22631.4460) with Node.js managed by NVM.