Mcp daemon isolation

Skill chkim-su/forge-editor/skills/mcp-daemon-isolation

Context isolation for query-type MCP tools (LSP, search, database) via external CLI. Use when MCP query results consume too many context tokens.From its SKILL.md

Install

npx -y skills add chkim-su/forge-editor --skill mcp-daemon-isolation

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SKILL.md

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MCP Daemon Isolation for Query-Type MCPs

External CLI pattern for isolating query-type MCP tool results from main context.

Query-Type MCP Definition

Type	Examples	Characteristics
Query-type	Serena (LSP), Database, Search	Unpredictable result size, potentially thousands of tokens
Action-type	File write, Git, Deploy	Small results, success/failure focused

Identification criteria: Tools with find_*, search_*, get_*, list_* patterns

Problem

Claude Session
├── mcp__serena__find_symbol("UserService")
│   └── Result: 2,500 tokens (full JSON)    ← CONSUMED
└── Context budget: rapidly depleting

Daemon isolates tool definitions (~350 tokens × tools), but results still consume context.

Solution: External CLI + Structured Extraction

Claude Session
├── Bash: serena-query find_symbol UserService
│   └── stdout: "• UserService [Class] @ src/user.py:42"
│       (~50 tokens)                      ← MINIMAL
└── Full result stored: /tmp/serena-result.json

Key insight: Claude IS the LLM. Structured extraction provides 95%+ token savings.

Architecture

┌──────────────┐     ┌──────────────────┐     ┌──────────────┐
│ Claude       │────▶│ serena-query     │────▶│ Serena       │
│ Session      │     │ (external CLI)   │     │ Daemon :8765 │
└──────────────┘     └──────────────────┘     └──────────────┘
     Bash (~50 tok)     SSE + MCP Protocol       29 tools

For protocol details: Read("references/mcp-sse-protocol.md")

Structured Extractors

Tool	Full JSON	Extracted Output	Savings
`list_dir`	~800	`📁 Dirs(12): hooks... 📄 Files(11)`	95%
`get_symbols_overview`	~1,200	`Class(2): Config... Function(5)`	96%
`find_symbol`	~2,000	`• UserService [Class] @ src/user.py:42-98`	97%
`search_for_pattern`	~1,500	`Matches(15) in 8 files`	95%

For formatter code: Read("references/extractors-and-examples.md")

Usage

Output Modes

serena-query find_symbol UserService                    # summary (default)
serena-query find_symbol UserService --mode location    # location only (for Read)
serena-query find_symbol UserService --mode full        # full JSON

Basic Commands

serena-query list_dir .
serena-query get_symbols_overview src/main.py --depth 1
serena-query find_symbol UserService --path src/
serena-query search_for_pattern "class.*Service" --path src/
serena-query find_symbol UserService --output /tmp/result.json

Optimal Workflow: Explore-Locate-Read

1. Explore (--mode summary)   ~25 tokens  "What symbols exist?"
2. Locate (--mode location)   ~15 tokens  "Where exactly is it?"
3. Read (Read tool)           actual size  Only needed code

Scenario	stdio approach	daemon+Read	Savings
Class analysis	~525	~240	54%
11 function analysis	~4,300	~665	85%
Large-scale search	~10,000+	~500	95%

For detailed examples: Read("references/extractors-and-examples.md")

Installation

pip install httpx
cp scripts/serena-query ~/.local/bin/
chmod +x ~/.local/bin/serena-query

Daemon Setup

uvx --from git+https://github.com/oraios/serena \
  serena start-mcp-server --transport sse --port 8765 --project-from-cwd

Decision: Structured vs LLM Summarization

Aspect	LLM Summarization	Structured Extraction
Latency	+2-5 seconds	~0ms
Cost	API call per query	Zero
Consistency	Variable	Deterministic

Claude IS the LLM consuming the output - no need for additional summarization.

Isolation Strategy Guide

Scenario	Recommended	Reason
Single symbol edit	stdio	Immediate modification
Codebase exploration	daemon	Expect large results
Reference tracking	daemon + location	Only need locations
Refactoring planning	daemon + full	Full structure analysis

Common Issues

Symptom	Cause	Solution
"Received request before initialization"	Missing handshake	`initialize` → `notifications/initialized` → `tools/call` sequence
"Connection refused on 8765"	Daemon not running	`systemctl --user start serena-daemon`
"Empty result"	Structure mismatch	Save raw JSON with `--output` and verify

References

Implementation

Protocol & Examples

MCP Gateway Patterns