CLI Reference

The frontmcp CLI provides commands for development, process management, and package management. Install it globally or use via npx.

frontmcp <command> [options]

Development Commands

Commands for building, testing, and debugging your FrontMCP server.

Command	Description
`dev`	Start in development mode (tsx —watch + async type-check)
`build`	Compile entry with TypeScript (tsc)
`build --exec`	Build distributable executable bundle (esbuild)
`test`	Run E2E tests with auto-injected Jest configuration
`init`	Create or fix a tsconfig.json suitable for FrontMCP
`doctor`	Check Node/npm versions and tsconfig requirements
`inspector`	Launch MCP Inspector (`npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector`)
`create [name]`	Scaffold a new FrontMCP project (interactive if name omitted)
`template <type>`	Scaffold a template by type (e.g., `3rd-party-integration`)
`socket <entry>`	Start Unix socket daemon for local MCP server

Process Manager Commands

Manage long-running MCP servers with automatic supervision, restart policies, and logging.

Command	Description
`start <name>`	Start a named MCP server with supervisor
`stop <name>`	Stop a managed server (graceful by default)
`restart <name>`	Restart a managed server
`status [name]`	Show process status (detail if name given, table if omitted)
`list`	List all managed processes
`logs <name>`	Tail log output for a managed server
`service <action>`	Install/uninstall systemd/launchd service

Package Manager Commands

Install, configure, and manage MCP apps from npm, local paths, or git repositories.

Command	Description
`install <source>`	Install an MCP app from npm, local path, or git
`uninstall <name>`	Remove an installed MCP app
`configure <name>`	Re-run setup questionnaire for an installed app

Options Reference

General Options

Option	Description
`-h, --help`	Show help message
`-o, --out-dir <dir>`	Output directory (default: `./dist`)
`-e, --entry <path>`	Manually specify entry file path

Build Options

Option	Description
`--exec`	Build distributable executable bundle
`-a, --adapter <name>`	Deployment adapter: `node`, `vercel`, `lambda`, `cloudflare`

Start Options

Option	Description
`-e, --entry <path>`	Entry file for the server
`-p, --port <N>`	Port number for the server
`-s, --socket <path>`	Unix socket path
`--db <path>`	SQLite database path
`--max-restarts <N>`	Maximum auto-restart attempts (default: `5`)

Stop Options

Option	Description
`-f, --force`	Force kill (SIGKILL instead of SIGTERM)

Logs Options

Option	Description
`-F, --follow`	Follow log output (like `tail -f`)
`-n, --lines <N>`	Number of lines to show (default: `50`)

Install Options

Option	Description
`--registry <url>`	npm registry URL for private packages
`-y, --yes`	Silent mode (use defaults, skip questionnaire)
`-p, --port <N>`	Override default port

Create Options

Option	Description
`-y, --yes`	Use defaults (non-interactive mode)
`--target <target>`	Deployment target: `node`, `vercel`, `lambda`, `cloudflare`
`--redis <setup>`	Redis setup: `docker`, `existing`, `none` (node target only)
`--pm <pm>`	Package manager: `npm`, `yarn`, `pnpm`
`--cicd`	Enable GitHub Actions CI/CD
`--no-cicd`	Disable GitHub Actions CI/CD
`--nx`	Scaffold an Nx monorepo workspace

Socket Options

Option	Description
`-s, --socket <path>`	Unix socket path (default: `~/.frontmcp/sockets/{app}.sock`)
`--db <path>`	SQLite database path for persistence
`-b, --background`	Run as background daemon (detached process)

Test Options

Option	Description
`-i, --runInBand`	Run tests sequentially (recommended for E2E)
`-w, --watch`	Run tests in watch mode
`-v, --verbose`	Show verbose test output
`-t, --timeout <ms>`	Set test timeout (default: `60000ms`)
`-c, --coverage`	Collect test coverage

Examples

Development

# Start dev server with hot-reload
frontmcp dev

# Build to custom output directory
frontmcp build --out-dir build

# Build distributable executable
frontmcp build --exec

# Run E2E tests sequentially
frontmcp test --runInBand

# Initialize tsconfig
frontmcp init

# Check environment
frontmcp doctor

# Launch MCP Inspector
frontmcp inspector

Project Scaffolding

# Interactive mode
npx frontmcp create

# Use defaults (non-interactive)
npx frontmcp create my-mcp --yes

# Target Vercel deployment
npx frontmcp create my-mcp --target vercel

# Scaffold an Nx monorepo workspace
npx frontmcp create my-workspace --nx

# Scaffold a template
frontmcp template marketplace-3rd-tools

Unix Socket

# Start socket server
frontmcp socket ./src/main.ts --socket /tmp/my-app.sock

# Start with SQLite persistence
frontmcp socket ./src/main.ts --socket /tmp/my-app.sock --db ~/.frontmcp/data/app.sqlite

Process Management

# Start a named server
frontmcp start my-app --entry ./src/main.ts --port 3005

# Stop a server
frontmcp stop my-app

# Tail logs
frontmcp logs my-app --follow

# Install as system service
frontmcp service install my-app

Package Management

# Install from npm (private registry)
frontmcp install @company/my-mcp --registry https://npm.company.com

# Install from local path
frontmcp install ./my-local-app

# Install from GitHub
frontmcp install github:user/repo

# Re-configure an installed app
frontmcp configure my-app

# Uninstall
frontmcp uninstall my-app

Get Started

FrontMCP

Features

Extensibility

Testing

Guides

Development Commands

Process Manager Commands

Package Manager Commands

Options Reference

General Options

Build Options

Start Options

Stop Options

Logs Options

Install Options

Create Options

Socket Options

Test Options

Examples

Development

Project Scaffolding

Unix Socket

Process Management

Package Management

​Development Commands

​Process Manager Commands

​Package Manager Commands

​Options Reference

​General Options

​Build Options

​Start Options

​Stop Options

​Logs Options

​Install Options

​Create Options

​Socket Options

​Test Options

​Examples

​Development

​Project Scaffolding

​Unix Socket

​Process Management

​Package Management

Development Commands

Process Manager Commands

Package Manager Commands

Options Reference

General Options

Build Options

Start Options

Stop Options

Logs Options

Install Options

Create Options

Socket Options

Test Options

Examples

Development

Project Scaffolding

Unix Socket

Process Management

Package Management