MCP Server Quickstart¶

ZapTrace MCP enables LLMs (Claude, Copilot, Codex, Gemini) to design PCBs through the Model Context Protocol. 87 tools available.

1. Starting the Server¶

# Install from source (pre-1.0, not yet on PyPI)
git clone https://github.com/oaslananka/zaptrace.git && cd zaptrace && uv sync --all-extras

# Start MCP server (stdio transport)
zaptrace mcp

# Or with custom host/port (SSE transport)
zaptrace mcp --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8080

2. Claude Desktop Configuration¶

Add to claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zaptrace": {
      "command": "zaptrace",
      "args": ["mcp"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

3. Testing with MCP Inspector¶

npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector zaptrace mcp

Opens browser UI to test individual tools.

4. Available Tools¶

Tool	Description
`design_parse_file`	Parse a design YAML file
`design_parse_str`	Parse a YAML string
`design_inspect`	Inspect a parsed design
`design_list_nets`	List all nets in a design
`synthesize_design`	Synthesize from intent
`erc_validate`	Run electrical rule checks
`drc_run`	Run design rule checks
`place_components`	Auto-place all components
`route_nets`	Route all nets (MST)
`design_route_smart`	Net-class-aware smart routing
`export_gerber`	Generate Gerber RS-274X files
`export_bom_csv`	Generate BOM as CSV
`board_update`	Update board configuration
`component_add`	Add a component
`footprint_generate`	Generate parametric footprint
`proof_run`	Run a Proof Pack
87 tools total	Full reference: `docs/mcp/tools-reference.md`

Full reference: docs/mcp/tools-reference.md

5. Example Workflow¶

1. design_parse_file("project.yaml")         → load design
2. design_inspect("my_design")               → see what's there
3. place_components("my_design")             → auto-place all components
4. design_route_smart("my_design")           → route with net-class awareness
5. drc_run("my_design")                      → check for violations
6. export_gerber("my_design", "output/")     → generate Gerber files