# Semlith

Local hybrid search across codebases and documents for AI assistants. Pinpoints relevant code spans without shipping source files to cloud APIs.

- MCP server · `type=mcp` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Windsurf (Devin Desktop), Cline, Zed · ★ 6
- Author: semlith
- License: Apache-2.0 · policy=link-only · description only; the file stays with the author
- Source: https://github.com/semlith/semlith
- Updated: 2026-10-24
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/semlith

## What it does

Semlith runs local hybrid retrieval across your repositories by pairing vector embeddings with keyword lookups. In the same run, it maps out a code graph that traces symbol definitions and call hierarchies. An agent gets direct access to exact spans instead of guessing file paths or loading full files into context.

The MCP server registers eight default tools and sixteen in total. A file watcher detects edits on save and refreshes embeddings on the fly. Beyond source code, the tool reads Markdown, PDFs, and office documents.

Everything stays on your machine. The web portal binds strictly to `127.0.0.1`, and initial setup fetches an embedding model package of around 52 MB. Apple silicon is required on macOS; Intel machines fail to run the binary due to dropped ONNX Runtime builds. Linux builds require `glibc` 2.34 or higher.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

**Install**
- The MCP registry has no launch command for it: see the repository README

## When to use it
- inspect function caller relationships and symbol connections via a code graph
- run hybrid semantic and keyword queries across a large repository
- extract searchable context from PDFs, Office docs, and Markdown files
- keep the retrieval index synchronized on save without manual rebuilding

## Example prompts
- Find where `search_parallel` is invoked and show its neighboring callers.
- Search local documentation and source files for retry backoff handling.
- Check what calls `process_queue` and what might break if its arguments change.

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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