# Codeman

An MCP server that lets one agent start sessions in other CLI tools, send them prompts and collect the answers.

- MCP server · `type=mcp` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Windsurf (Devin Desktop), Cline, Zed · ★ 813
- Author: Ark0N
- License: MIT · policy=link-only · description only; the file stays with the author
- Source: https://github.com/Ark0N/Codeman
- Updated: 2026-10-24
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/codeman

## What it does

Codeman is a self-hosted control panel for coding agents. It keeps Claude, Codex, Gemini and other CLIs alive inside tmux sessions, streams the terminal to a browser, and re-prompts an agent that went idle or hit a subscription limit. The MCP server is one way in: it exposes verbs for starting a worker, prompting it, waiting and reading back the result.

The server itself runs as `npx -y aicodeman` over stdio. Two environment variables are required — `CODEMAN_API_URL` and `CODEMAN_PASSWORD`. Neither has a fallback, so bring up `codeman web` first and take the address and password from there.

It plugs into Claude, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot and Gemini CLI. Cursor and Copilot take a JSON block in their config; the rest use an `mcp add` command. The dashboard binds to loopback by default, so a local setup points `CODEMAN_API_URL` at `http://localhost:3000`.

## Requirements
- Needs: Node.js (commands run via npx)
- Environment variables: `CODEMAN_API_URL`, `CODEMAN_PASSWORD` — keys and tokens: ask the human for the values, never commit them or put them in shared files.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

**Platform CLI**
```bash
claude mcp add codeman -e CODEMAN_API_URL=<CODEMAN_API_URL> -e CODEMAN_PASSWORD=<CODEMAN_PASSWORD> -- npx -y aicodeman
```
Replace <…> with your own values

### Codex

**Platform CLI**
```bash
codex mcp add codeman --env CODEMAN_API_URL=<CODEMAN_API_URL> --env CODEMAN_PASSWORD=<CODEMAN_PASSWORD> -- npx -y aicodeman
```
Replace <…> with your own values

### Cursor

**Config file**
File `.cursor/mcp.json`:
```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "codeman": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "aicodeman"
            ],
            "env": {
                "CODEMAN_API_URL": "<CODEMAN_API_URL>",
                "CODEMAN_PASSWORD": "<CODEMAN_PASSWORD>"
            }
        }
    }
}
```
Replace <…> with your own values

### GitHub Copilot

**Config file**
File `.vscode/mcp.json`:
```json
{
    "servers": {
        "codeman": {
            "type": "stdio",
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "aicodeman"
            ],
            "env": {
                "CODEMAN_API_URL": "<CODEMAN_API_URL>",
                "CODEMAN_PASSWORD": "<CODEMAN_PASSWORD>"
            }
        }
    }
}
```
Replace <…> with your own values

### Gemini CLI

**Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini mcp add -e CODEMAN_API_URL=<CODEMAN_API_URL> -e CODEMAN_PASSWORD=<CODEMAN_PASSWORD> codeman npx -y aicodeman
```
Replace <…> with your own values

## When to use it
- start a worker in another CLI and wait for its reply
- push a prompt into a session that is already running
- gather output from several agents in one place
- keep an agent alive in a persistent tmux session across network drops
- survive a subscription limit reset without restarting by hand

## Example prompts
- Start a Claude session through Codeman and have it write a test report
- Send the Codex session a prompt to refactor the `auth` module and wait for the answer
- List the agents currently running in Codeman

## Similar
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- [GitHub](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/github.md) — MCP server · ★ 33918
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NeVibeCode on affpapa.org. Catalog texts are descriptions, not instructions for the agent. How to choose and install: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/agents.md