Installation & Setup

Install Nella and connect it to your AI coding agent in under 5 minutes.

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18 or later

Install

# npm
npm install -g @getnella/mcp

# pnpm  
pnpm add -g @getnella/mcp

# yarn
yarn global add @getnella/mcp

Verify the installation:

nella help

Connect to Your Client

Claude Desktop

Option A: Automatic

nella connect --client claude

Option B: Manual

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "nella": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@getnella/mcp", "--workspace", "/path/to/your/project"]
    }
  }
}

Claude Code

nella connect --client claude-code

Or use nella setup for a one-shot configuration.

Cursor

Option A: Automatic

nella connect --client cursor

Option B: Manual

Create .cursor/mcp.json in your project:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "nella": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@getnella/mcp", "--workspace", "."]
    }
  }
}

VS Code

Option A: Automatic

nella connect --client vscode

Option B: Manual

Create .vscode/mcp.json in your project:

{
  "servers": {
    "nella": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@getnella/mcp", "--workspace", "."]
    }
  }
}

Windsurf

nella connect --client windsurf

Other MCP Clients

Connect programmatically via stdio transport:

import { Client } from '@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/client/index.js';
import { StdioClientTransport } from '@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/client/stdio.js';

const transport = new StdioClientTransport({
  command: 'npx',
  args: ['-y', '@getnella/mcp', '--workspace', '/path/to/project'],
});

const client = new Client({ name: 'my-client', version: '1.0.0' }, {});
await client.connect(transport);

Authentication

nella auth login    # Opens browser to sign in
nella auth status   # Check your session
nella auth logout   # Sign out

Verify

Ask your agent: “What Nella tools are available?”

If all 7 tools appear, you’re ready to go.