WP Manifestindependent plugin directory
manifest / ai / mcp-connection-guide

MCP Connection Guide

Guided WordPress MCP setup for Codex and Claude on the Connectors screen.

by Brian Coords · github.com/bacoords/mcp-connection-guide · website

★ 3stars
0forks

Install

No release zip yet. The repository archive installs, but the folder name will carry the branch suffix and updates will not flow:

wp plugin install https://github.com/bacoords/mcp-connection-guide/archive/refs/heads/main.zip

Readme

MCP Connection Guide

MCP Connection Guide adds a guided setup card to the WordPress Connectors screen. It helps an administrator connect Codex, Claude Code, or Claude Desktop to WordPress through the WordPress MCP Adapter.

The plugin is intentionally an onboarding layer. It does not install the MCP Adapter, register WordPress abilities, or store client credentials in Connector settings.

Status

This is an experimental prototype for WordPress 7.1. Its PHP registration uses the WordPress connector registry, while its custom interface currently relies on the experimental @wordpress/connectors exports __experimentalRegisterConnector and __experimentalConnectorItem. Those JavaScript APIs may change before becoming public.

Requirements

  • WordPress 7.1 or newer.
  • PHP 7.4 or newer.
  • An available WP\MCP\Core\McpAdapter class, supplied either by the standalone MCP Adapter or by another plugin that bundles it.
  • Application Passwords enabled for the current WordPress user.
  • Node.js on the computer running Codex or Claude, because the generated configuration uses @automattic/mcp-wordpress-remote.

Installation

  1. Download a release ZIP or clone this repository into wp-content/plugins/mcp-connection-guide.
  2. Activate MCP Connection Guide in WordPress.
  3. Open Settings → Connectors.

If the MCP Adapter class is unavailable, the guide links to the official MCP Adapter releases. Install or enable the adapter through your normal plugin deployment workflow, then reload the Connectors screen.

Usage

  1. Find WordPress MCP on Settings → Connectors and select Set up.
  2. Confirm that the MCP Adapter is available.
  3. Choose Codex, Claude Code, or Claude Desktop.
  4. Generate a dedicated WordPress Application Password.
  5. Copy the generated command or JSON configuration into the selected client.

Create a separate Application Password for each client. WordPress returns each password only once; the guide keeps it in browser memory only until the page is reloaded. Credentials can be revoked from the current user's WordPress profile.

The generated client configuration targets the adapter's default HTTP endpoint:

/wp-json/mcp/mcp-adapter-default-server

Development

Install the development dependencies:

npm install
composer install
npm run build

Available commands:

Command Purpose
npm run build Compile the connector package and generate its WordPress PHP registration files with @wordpress/build.
npm run dev Watch the connector source and rebuild incrementally.
npm run lint Run JavaScript, CSS, PHP, compatibility, and formatting checks.
npm run lint:js Lint the connector script with WordPress ESLint rules.
npm run lint:js:fix Automatically fix supported JavaScript lint violations.
npm run lint:css Lint styles with WordPress Stylelint rules.
npm run lint:css:fix Automatically fix supported CSS lint violations.
npm run lint:php Run WordPress Coding Standards and PHP 7.4+ compatibility checks.
npm run lint:md Lint the repository documentation.
npm run lint:pkg Validate package.json against WordPress package rules.
npm run format Format JavaScript, CSS, and PHP files.
npm run format:check Check JavaScript and CSS formatting without changing files.
npm run plugin-zip Create an installable plugin ZIP using the package.json file allowlist.
npm test Build the production assets and run the complete lint suite.

The committed package-lock.json and composer.lock files make local installs and CI reproducible.

Architecture

  • mcp-connection-guide.php registers the connector on wp_connectors_init, loads the generated registration files, enqueues the script module, and passes current-site data through the Script Modules API.
  • packages/connector/src/index.js supplies the JSX connector renderer, creates Application Passwords through the authenticated WordPress REST API, and builds client-specific configuration.
  • packages/connector/src/style.scss scopes the setup interface styles to the connector card and is bundled into the script module.
  • build/ contains the browser-ready script module and PHP registration generated by @wordpress/build. Do not edit these files manually.
  • stubs/wordpress-connectors/package.json supplies build-time metadata for Core's private @wordpress/connectors module. The stub contains no runtime implementation; WordPress supplies the actual module through its import map.

The source package declares @mcp-connection-guide/connector as a WordPress script module. @wordpress/build externalizes the Core Connectors import, generates its static module dependency, bundles JSX and SCSS, and registers the resulting module through build/build.php.

The adapter check is deliberately simple: it tests whether WP\MCP\Core\McpAdapter exists. It does not install plugins or probe the adapter endpoint.

Security

  • Generated Application Passwords are not written to plugin options or Connector settings.
  • Passwords exist only in the REST response and the current browser's in-memory component state.
  • Each client receives a separately revocable credential.
  • Configuration output contains the generated secret, so it should be copied only to the intended local MCP client configuration.

License

GPL-2.0-or-later. See LICENSE.md.

Read the full README on GitHub →