skill-ninja

Skill Ninja is an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that enables clients to search, install, and manage AI Agent Skills. It acts as a centralized hub for discovering compatible skills, querying their metadata, and orchestrating installation and configuration on behalf of MCP clients such as Claude Desktop, Cursor, and VS Code. The server exposes standard MCP endpoints for listing available skills, retrieving detailed skill information, installing a chosen skill, and updating or removing installed skills. This makes it easier to manage a growing library of AI capabilities from a single, well-defined interface.

To use Skill Ninja, start the MCP server and point your MCP client to its host and port. Once running, you can browse available skills, inspect compatibility notes, and install skills directly from the server. Some MCP clients also offer in-app commands or UI panels to trigger search, install, and manage actions against the connected MCP server, allowing you to streamline workflows like enabling a new AI agent for a project or updating an existing one.

Key capabilities you can expect include: skill discovery with metadata (name, version, author, compatibility), install workflows that fetch and configure skill code, and lifecycle management to update or remove skills. Depending on the client, you may also be able to pin favorite skills, group skills by project, or apply environment-specific configurations as part of the install process.

Prerequisites:

• Node.js (recommended: latest LTS) and npm installed on your machine.
• Basic familiarity with MCP clients and the concept of Skill Packs.

Install options:

1. Run directly with npx (no global install required):

npx -y skill-ninja-mcp-server

2. Install globally and run locally (for repeated use):

npm install -g skill-ninja-mcp-server
skill-ninja-mcp-server

3. Use via a local project (install as a dev dependency):

mkdir my-mcp-project && cd my-mcp-project
npm init -y
npm install --save skill-ninja-mcp-server
node_modules/.bin/skill-ninja-mcp-server

Configuration:

• You can customize how the server runs by setting environment variables (examples below). If you omit them, the server will use sensible defaults.
• Common environment variables to consider:
  • MCP_PORT: Port for the MCP server to listen on.
  • MCP_HOST: Network interface to bind to.
  • MCP_LOG_LEVEL: Logging verbosity (e.g., info, debug).

If you need to run behind a reverse proxy or inside a container, ensure the MCP_PORT is exposed and that network routing is configured accordingly.

Tips and common issues:

• Ensure your Node.js version is compatible with the Skill Ninja MCP Server package (check the package.json or repository for supported versions).
• When running behind a firewall or NAT, open or forward the MCP_PORT used by the server so MCP clients can reach it.
• If the server fails to start, check the MCP_LOG_LEVEL (set to debug) for detailed startup logs, and confirm no other process is occupying the chosen port.
• For production deployments, consider running behind a process manager (e.g., PM2) and configuring proper log rotation.
• Compatible MCP clients may provide in-app commands to discover and install skills from this server; consult client-specific documentation for exact steps to connect to the Skill Ninja server.
• The npm package name is skill-ninja-mcp-server; you can reference it in build/deploy automation or in your documentation as the source of truth for the server.