Model Context Protocol (MCP) development resources for Windows are scarce, so here are some practical tips and troubleshooting methods to enhance your experience.

Outside the MCP Inspector, Claude Desktop is one of the most effective tools to quickly test and demonstrate MCP server operations. However, setting it up on Windows with Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) presents unique challenges. Let’s address these challenges and simplify your workflow.

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Setting Up Claude Desktop for MCP Server Development

Locate Claude Desktop Configuration Files

Press Win + R, type %APPDATA%\Claude, and open the Claude Desktop settings directory. Two key files here are:

  • claude_desktop_config.json
  • developer_setting.json

Claude Desktop Developer Settings

Update developer_setting.json to enable developer tools:

{
  "allowDevTools": true
}

Adding MCP Servers to Claude Desktop

While adding MCP servers directly on Windows is straightforward (see the official documentationdocumentation, doing so within WSL requires additional configuration gynmastics.

Edit claude_desktop_config.json to integrate your MCP server. Follow these guidelines based on your server type:

  • JavaScript/TypeScript servers: locate npx with whereis npx in WSL, then configure: 
    {
"mcpServers": {
  "your_mcp_server_name": {
    "command": "wsl.exe",
    "args": [
      "bash",
      "-c",
      "ENV_VAR_FOR_MCP_SERVER=value /path/to/npx /path/to/your/mcp/server"
    ]
  }
}
}
  • Python Servers: Locate uvx with whereis uvx in WSL, then configure: 
    {
"mcpServers": {
  "your_mcp_server_name": {
    "command": "wsl.exe",
    "args": [
      "bash",
      "-c",
      "ENV_VAR_FOR_MCP_SERVER=value /path/to/uvx /path/to/your/mcp/server"
    ]
  }
}
}

    Alternatively, if your MCP Server has proper pyproject.toml, you may use uv run or python -m instead of uvx.

Claude Desktop Debugging Tools

Accessing Logs

Claude Desktop logs are stored in %APPDATA%\Claude\logs. Relevant files include:

  • mcp.log (console logs from Claude Desktop, the MCP host)
  • <mcp-server-name>-mcp.log (logs specific to your MCP server)

Example mcp.log entry from [bing-seearch-mcp`](https://github.com/leehanchung/bing-search-mcp)

2025-04-02T04:04:09.051Z [info] [bing-search-mcp] Initializing server...
2025-04-02T04:04:09.074Z [info] [bing-search-mcp] Server started and connected successfully
2025-04-02T04:04:09.078Z [info] [bing-search-mcp] Message from client: {"method":"initialize","params":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{},"clientInfo":{"name":"claude-ai","version":"0.1.0"}},"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":0}
2025-04-02T04:04:09.571Z [info] [bing-search-mcp] Message from server: {"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":0,"result":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{"experimental":{},"prompts":{"listChanged":false},"resources":{"subscribe":false,"listChanged":false},"tools":{"listChanged":false}},"serverInfo":{"name":"bing-search","version":"1.6.0"}}}
2025-04-02T04:04:09.642Z [info] [bing-search-mcp] Message from client: {"method":"notifications/initialized","jsonrpc":"2.0"}
2025-04-02T04:04:09.645Z [info] [bing-search-mcp] Message from client: {"method":"tools/list","params":{},"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1}
2025-04-02T04:04:09.651Z [info] [bing-search-mcp] Message from server: {"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"result":{"tools":[{"name":"bing_web_search","description":"Performs a web search using the Bing Search API for general information\n    and websites.\n\n    Args:\n        query: Search query (required)\n        count: Number of results (1-50, default 10)\n        offset: Pagination offset (default 0)\n        market: Market code like en-US, en-GB, etc.\n    ","inputSchema":{"properties":{"query":{"title":"Query","type":"string"},"count":{"default":10,"title":"Count","type":"integer"},"offset":{"default":0,"title":"Offset","type":"integer"},"market":{"default":"en-US","title":"Market","type":"string"}},"required":["query"],"title":"bing_web_searchArguments","type":"object"}},{"name":"bing_news_search","description":"Searches for news articles using Bing News Search API for current\n    events and timely information.\n\n    Args:\n        query: News search query (required)\n        count: Number of results (1-50, default 10)\n        market: Market code like en-US, en-GB, etc.\n        freshness: Time period of news (Day, Week, Month)\n    ","inputSchema":{"properties":{"query":{"title":"Query","type":"string"},"count":{"default":10,"title":"Count","type":"integer"},"market":{"default":"en-US","title":"Market","type":"string"},"freshness":{"default":"Day","title":"Freshness","type":"string"}},"required":["query"],"title":"bing_news_searchArguments","type":"object"}},{"name":"bing_image_search","description":"Searches for images using Bing Image Search API for visual content.\n\n    Args:\n        query: Image search query (required)\n        count: Number of results (1-50, default 10)\n        market: Market code like en-US, en-GB, etc.\n    ","inputSchema":{"properties":{"query":{"title":"Query","type":"string"},"count":{"default":10,"title":"Count","type":"integer"},"market":{"default":"en-US","title":"Market","type":"string"}},"required":["query"],"title":"bing_image_searchArguments","type":"object"}}]}}

Chromium Developer Tools

Claude Desktop is an Electron app with Chromium Developer Tools built-in. This is the same tool as the Developer Tools on Chrome browser. To open these tools on Windows, use:

CTRL + Shift + ALT + I

You will see familar browser developer tools. This should help significantly in debugging your MCP servers. Oh, and by the way, Anthropics is hiring.

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References

@article{
    leehanchung,
    author = {Lee, Hanchung},
    title = {Pro Tips: Model Context Protocol developement on Windows},
    year = {2025},
    month = {04},
    howpublished = {\url{https://leehanchung.github.io}},
    url = {https://leehanchung.github.io/blogs/2025/04/01/mcp-development-windows/}
}