🔒 Runs entirely locally. Your data never leaves your machine — no telemetry, no cloud proxy. See details ↓

Why?

AI assistants like GitHub Copilot and Claude are powerful — but they can't see your backlog, your branches, or your build status. This MCP server gives them direct, read-write access to your on-premises Azure DevOps Server, so you can ask things like:

"Show me all active bugs assigned to me in this sprint" "Create a PR from feature/login to develop with this description" "What changed in changeset 12345?" "Trigger the nightly build on the release branch"

Key Features

Overview

graph LR
    A["🤖 AI Assistants"] -->|MCP Protocol| B["⚙️ MCP Server<br/>48 Tools · 9 Domains"]
    B -->|REST API| C["☁️ Azure DevOps<br/>On-Prem or Cloud"]

    style A fill:#1e3a5f,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style B fill:#1a1a2e,stroke:#8B5CF6,color:#fff
    style C fill:#0f3460,stroke:#0078D7,color:#fff

Architecture

graph TD
    GHC["GitHub Copilot"] --> MCP
    CLI["Copilot CLI"] --> MCP
    CC["Claude Code"] --> MCP
    CD["Claude Desktop"] --> MCP
    CDX["Codex CLI"] --> MCP
    AG["Antigravity"] --> MCP

    MCP["MCP Server — Node.js + TypeScript"]

    MCP --> WI["Work Items — 8 tools"]
    MCP --> GIT["Git — 9 tools"]
    MCP --> TFVC["TFVC — 10 tools"]
    MCP --> PIPE["Pipelines — 5 tools"]
    MCP --> CONV["Convenience — 5 tools"]
    MCP --> TEST["Test Mgmt — 6 tools"]
    MCP --> WIKI["Wiki — 5 tools"]

    WI --> ADS
    GIT --> ADS
    TFVC --> ADS
    PIPE --> ADS
    CONV --> ADS
    TEST --> ADS
    WIKI --> ADS

    ADS["Azure DevOps Server — On-Prem or Cloud"]

    style GHC fill:#1e3a5f,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style CLI fill:#1e3a5f,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style CC fill:#1e3a5f,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style CD fill:#1e3a5f,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style CDX fill:#1e3a5f,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style AG fill:#1e3a5f,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style MCP fill:#1a1a2e,stroke:#8B5CF6,color:#fff
    style WI fill:#16213e,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style GIT fill:#16213e,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style TFVC fill:#16213e,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style PIPE fill:#16213e,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style CONV fill:#16213e,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style TEST fill:#16213e,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style WIKI fill:#16213e,stroke:#4a90d9,color:#fff
    style ADS fill:#0f3460,stroke:#0078D7,color:#fff

Tool Overview

mindmap
  root((Azure DevOps<br/>MCP Server<br/>48 Tools))
    **Work Items — 8**
      query_work_items
      get_work_item
      create_work_item
      update_work_item
      add_work_item_comment
      link_work_items
      get_work_item_history
      bulk_update_work_items
    **Git — 9**
      list_repositories
      list_branches
      get_file_content
      list_pull_requests
      get_pull_request
      create_pull_request
      list_commits
      get_commit_changes
      compare_branches
    **TFVC — 10**
      tfvc_browse
      tfvc_get_file
      tfvc_get_changeset
      tfvc_list_changesets
      tfvc_get_changeset_changes
      tfvc_get_changeset_work_items
      tfvc_list_branches
      tfvc_list_shelvesets
      tfvc_get_shelveset
      tfvc_list_labels
    **Pipelines — 5**
      list_build_definitions
      queue_build
      get_build
      list_builds
      list_releases
    **Convenience — 5**
      get_my_sprint_items
      search_work_items_by_tag
      get_work_item_statistics
      get_work_item_changesets
      get_current_user
    **Test Management — 6**
      list_test_plans
      get_test_plan
      list_test_suites
      list_test_cases
      list_test_runs
      get_test_results
    **Wiki — 5**
      list_wikis
      get_wiki_page
      wiki_browse
      get_wiki_page_stats
      search_wiki_pages

Restrict which tool domains load

The 48 tools are grouped into 7 domains. By default all 7 load. If you only need a subset, set AZURE_DEVOPS_ENABLED_DOMAINS in your .env to a comma-separated list — disabled domains' tools are not registered, which trims the AI client's tool list and reduces tool-selection confusion.

Valid domains: work_items, git, tfvc, pipelines, wiki, test_plans, convenience.

Role-based examples:

Unknown domain names cause the server to fail at startup, so typos surface immediately rather than silently dropping tools. Leave the variable unset (or empty) to load all 7 domains.

The startup log reports which domains were enabled and disabled, e.g.:

Enabled domains (4/7): work_items, tfvc, pipelines, convenience
Disabled domains: git, wiki, test_plans

Privacy & Data Flow

This server runs entirely locally. TFS API calls go directly from your machine to your Azure DevOps Server over your network. No data — work items, code, PATs, anything — is sent to the package author or any third-party service.

The only external destinations are:

1. Your own Azure DevOps Server — the URL you configure in .env.
2. Your chosen AI assistant (Claude, GitHub Copilot, Cursor) — the AI client reads tool outputs as conversation context per its own privacy policy. The MCP server itself never talks to these services; the AI client does.

There is no telemetry, no phone-home, no cloud proxy, no shared analytics. You can verify this claim by reading src/ — every network call goes through azure-devops-node-api pointed at your configured URL.

Prerequisites

• Node.js >= 18 (required for both Quick Start and Enterprise Setup).
• Azure DevOps Server 2022.2 on-premises (tested). Older TFS versions with REST API 7.x likely work but are untested.
• Personal Access Token (PAT) with the scopes listed below.

PAT scopes

Grant only what you need. Omit scopes for domains you don't plan to use — the affected tools will fail at call time, but the server will still start.

How to create a PAT

1. Open your Azure DevOps Server / TFS web UI.
2. Profile icon (top-right) → Security → Personal access tokens → New Token.
3. Name it (e.g. Azure_DevOps_MCP_Server).
4. Check the scopes from the table above.
5. Set an expiration ≤ 90 days and rotate regularly.
6. Copy the token immediately — it's only shown once. Paste it into your .env file.

Quick Start (For Individuals)

No cloning, no build — run straight from npm. Takes about 2 minutes end-to-end.

1. Get a PAT from your Azure DevOps Server with the scopes in Prerequisites.

2. Create a credential file somewhere under your home folder — e.g. ~/.azure-devops-mcp.env (Linux/macOS) or C:\Users\you\.azure-devops-mcp.env (Windows):

AZURE_DEVOPS_ORG_URL=https://your-tfs-server/tfs/YourCollection
AZURE_DEVOPS_PROJECT=YourProjectName
AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT=your_pat_token
# AZURE_DEVOPS_SSL_IGNORE=true   # uncomment for self-signed certs

Lock it so only you can read it:

# Linux / macOS
chmod 600 ~/.azure-devops-mcp.env

# Windows (PowerShell or bash)
icacls "%USERPROFILE%\.azure-devops-mcp.env" /inheritance:r /grant:r "%USERNAME%:R"

3. Register the server with your AI client. Pick the shortest path for your setup:

VS Code — one-click install

Click → VS Code opens with the config pre-filled → confirm. Works for VS Code 1.90+ with GitHub Copilot (Agent mode) or any MCP extension.

Claude Code (CLI) — one command

claude mcp add azure-devops -- npx -y @burcusg/azure-devops-mcp-onprem --env AZURE_DEVOPS_ENV_FILE=$HOME/.azure-devops-mcp.env

No JSON editing required.

Claude Desktop / Cursor / other clients — JSON config

Edit your client's MCP config file (Claude Desktop: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json on Windows or ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "azure-devops": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@burcusg/azure-devops-mcp-onprem"],
      "env": {
        "AZURE_DEVOPS_ENV_FILE": "C:\\Users\\you\\.azure-devops-mcp.env"
      }
    }
  }
}

Restart the client. All 48 tools appear in the tool picker. First npx run downloads the package (~60 seconds); subsequent runs are instant from the cache.

Why no PAT in the config file? Client configs sync to the cloud (Claude Desktop sync, VS Code Settings Sync) or get pasted into tickets. Keep credentials in the OS file; the server reads them via AZURE_DEVOPS_ENV_FILE.

Enterprise Setup (For Teams)

Use this path if you want to pin a specific commit, audit the code, add custom tools, or run offline without npm network access.

Step 1: Clone and Install

git clone https://github.com/burcusipahioglu/azure-devops-mcp-onprem.git
cd azure-devops-mcp-onprem
npm install

✅ Expected: No errors, node_modules/ created.

Step 2: Build TypeScript

npm run build

✅ Expected: No TypeScript errors, dist/ folder populated.

Step 3: Configure credentials

Copy the template:

cp .env.example .env

Fill in .env with your Azure DevOps details:

AZURE_DEVOPS_ORG_URL=https://your-tfs-server/tfs/YourCollection
AZURE_DEVOPS_PROJECT=YourProjectName
AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT=your_pat_token
# AZURE_DEVOPS_SERVER_NAME=CustomDisplayName   # optional, auto-derived from URL
# AZURE_DEVOPS_SSL_IGNORE=true                 # only for self-signed certs

Server name auto-detection (displayed by the AI client):

• https://dev.azure.com/acme → acme
• https://tfs.example.com/tfs/CompanyOrg → CompanyOrg
• Override with AZURE_DEVOPS_SERVER_NAME

.env is gitignored and will not be committed. For multiple TFS instances, see Multi-Instance Setup.

Step 4: Verify

npm start

Expected startup output (to stderr):

Azure DevOps MCP Server "CompanyOrg" running on stdio
env file: /path/to/.env
Authenticated as: Your Name (your.email@company.com)

Stop with Ctrl+C.

Step 5: Point your AI client at dist/index.js

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "azure-devops": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/azure-devops-mcp-onprem/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

No env block needed — the server loads .env from the repo root.

Configure Your AI Assistant

The examples below show configs for each major MCP client. Pick the style that matches your setup path:

• Quick Start path → command: "npx" + AZURE_DEVOPS_ENV_FILE pointing to your credential file.
• Enterprise Setup path → command: "node" pointing at dist/index.js, with .env in the repo root (no env block needed in mcp.json).

⚠ Never inline AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT / AZURE_DEVOPS_ORG_URL / AZURE_DEVOPS_PROJECT in the client config. These files sync to the cloud (Claude Desktop sync, VS Code Settings Sync) or get pasted into tickets. Use AZURE_DEVOPS_ENV_FILE for Quick Start, or .env in the repo for Enterprise Setup. For multiple TFS instances, see Multi-Instance Setup.

Visual Studio 2022 (17.14+)

The project includes .mcp.json in the root — VS 2022 picks it up automatically when you open the solution/folder. No extra setup needed.

1. Open the project folder or solution in VS 2022
2. Open Copilot Chat (Ctrl+\, Ctrl+C)
3. Select Agent mode
4. The Azure DevOps tools appear automatically

Requirement: Visual Studio 2022 version 17.14 or later with GitHub Copilot extension.

If you prefer manual configuration, add to <SolutionDir>\.mcp.json:

{
  "servers": {
    "azure-devops": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

VS Code

The project includes .vscode/mcp.json. Open Copilot Chat (Ctrl+Shift+I), select Agent mode, and start asking questions.

GitHub Copilot CLI

# Interactive — prompts for command, args, and env vars
/mcp add

# Or edit the config file directly
# Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.copilot\mcp-config.json
# macOS/Linux: ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json

Config file format (mcp-config.json):

{
  "servers": {
    "azure-devops": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["C:\\path\\to\\azure-devops-mcp-onprem\\dist\\index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Useful commands inside Copilot CLI:

• /mcp show — list all configured servers
• /mcp edit azure-devops — modify server config
• /mcp disable azure-devops / /mcp enable azure-devops — toggle on/off
• /mcp delete azure-devops — remove

Claude Code (CLI)

claude mcp add azure-devops -- node /path/to/azure-devops-mcp-onprem/dist/index.js

Claude Desktop

Add to %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows) or ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS).

Secrets stay in .env (from Enterprise Setup Step 3). The client config only points at the server binary:

Windows:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "azure-devops": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["C:\\path\\to\\azure-devops-mcp-onprem\\dist\\index.js"]
    }
  }
}

macOS / Linux:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "azure-devops": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/azure-devops-mcp-onprem/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Do not put AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT / AZURE_DEVOPS_ORG_URL / AZURE_DEVOPS_PROJECT under an env block here. The server reads them from the gitignored .env file automatically.

Server name: Auto-detected from AZURE_DEVOPS_ORG_URL in .env:

• https://dev.azure.com/acme → server name = acme
• https://my-tfs.company.com/tfs/MyOrg → server name = MyOrg
• Override by setting AZURE_DEVOPS_SERVER_NAME in .env.

After saving:

1. Restart Claude Desktop
2. Look for the 🔧 icon — it should show your server name, and the tools appear in the tool picker.

Multi-Instance Setup

The same server binary can run as multiple instances to connect to different Azure DevOps organizations/projects simultaneously.

Principle: keep secrets (AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT, URL, project) in gitignored .env.<profile> files. The MCP client config only references the profile name — no secrets committed to mcp.json.

How .env loading works

At startup, the server picks an env file using this precedence:

Variables already present in process.env always win — so anything you put directly in the mcp.json env block overrides the file.

Recommended pattern: one .env per profile

Create files next to .env:

Azure_DevOps_MCP_Server/
  .env.product-a    # gitignored — PAT, URL, project for Product A's TFS
  .env.product-b    # gitignored — PAT, URL, project for Product B's TFS
  .env.example      # committed — template

.env.product-a:

AZURE_DEVOPS_ORG_URL=https://tfs-1.example.com/tfs/ProductACollection
AZURE_DEVOPS_PROJECT=Product A
AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT=<pat-for-product-a>
AZURE_DEVOPS_SSL_IGNORE=false

mcp.json — secrets-free, safe to commit:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "azure-devops-product-a": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "AZURE_DEVOPS_PROFILE": "product-a",
        "AZURE_DEVOPS_SERVER_NAME": "azure-devops-product-a"
      }
    },
    "azure-devops-product-b": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "AZURE_DEVOPS_PROFILE": "product-b",
        "AZURE_DEVOPS_SERVER_NAME": "azure-devops-product-b"
      }
    }
  }
}

Tool names are automatically prefixed by the MCP framework:

• mcp__azure-devops-product-a__list_repositories
• mcp__azure-devops-product-b__list_repositories

At startup the server logs which env file it loaded, e.g.:

Azure DevOps MCP Server "azure-devops-product-a" running on stdio
env file: /path/to/.env.product-a
Authenticated as: ...

Alternative: explicit file path

If your .env files live outside the project directory (e.g. a shared secrets folder):

"env": {
  "AZURE_DEVOPS_ENV_FILE": "C:/secrets/tfs-product-a.env",
  "AZURE_DEVOPS_SERVER_NAME": "azure-devops-product-a"
}

Secrets hygiene

• Do not inline secrets in mcp.json. Client configs often sync to the cloud (Claude Desktop sync, VS Code Settings Sync, dotfile repos) or get pasted into tickets/chat. Any AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT in those files is one git add . away from a public leak.
• Use .env.<profile> files instead. .gitignore covers .env and .env.* (except .env.example) — profile files never land in a commit.
• One PAT per TFS instance, each with its own minimum scope set. Rotate on a 90-day cadence.
• If a PAT was ever committed (check git log -p -S "AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT="), revoke it at https://<your-tfs>/_usersSettings/tokens immediately — history rewrites miss mirrors, revocation is the only reliable remediation.
• Restrict file permissions (optional, recommended on shared machines):
  • Linux / macOS: chmod 600 .env .env.* — owner read/write only.
  • Windows (PowerShell or bash): icacls .env /inheritance:r /grant:r "%USERNAME%:R" (repeat for each .env.<profile>) — removes inherited ACLs, grants read-only access to the current user.

Project Structure

src/
  config.ts                  Config interface + loadConfig() — reads env vars once at startup
  connection.ts              Azure DevOps connection manager + API context helpers
  index.ts                   Entry point — loads config, inits connection, registers 9 tool modules
  utils/
    tool-response.ts         withErrorHandling() — centralized error handling + error sanitization
    wiql.ts                  sanitizeWiqlValue() — WIQL injection prevention
    schemas.ts               topParam() / skipParam() — shared input validation schemas
    work-item-helpers.ts     extractDisplayValue() / batchGetWorkItems() — shared helpers
    me-resolver.ts           resolveMe() — expands '@me' token to current user's display name
  tools/
    work-items.ts            6 tools — WIQL queries, CRUD, comments, links
    work-items-advanced.ts   2 tools — change history, bulk update with before/after report
    git.ts                   6 tools — repos, branches, file content, pull requests
    git-advanced.ts          3 tools — commit history, commit changes, branch comparison
    pipelines.ts             5 tools — build definitions, builds, releases
    tfvc.ts                  10 tools — browse, files, changesets, shelvesets, labels, branches
    convenience.ts           5 tools — sprint items, tag search, statistics, changeset inspector, current user
    test-management.ts       6 tools — test plans, suites, cases, runs, results
    wiki.ts                  5 tools — list wikis, pages, browse, stats, search

Tool Reference

Work Items (6 tools)

Work Items Advanced (2 tools)

Git (6 tools)

Git Advanced (3 tools)

TFVC (10 tools)

Pipelines (5 tools)

Convenience (5 tools)

Test Management (6 tools)

Wiki (5 tools)

Current User (@me)

Several filter parameters accept the magic token @me — the server resolves it to the authenticated PAT owner's display name via Azure DevOps ConnectionData API. The identity is cached for the lifetime of the process.

Why: In multi-agent setups, sub-agents rarely know the human's display name. Passing @me lets any agent filter to "my stuff" without needing identity context.

Supported parameters:

Need the identity explicitly? Call get_current_user — returns { displayName, id, uniqueName }.

Example:

// "Show me my latest shelveset"
tfvc_list_shelvesets({ owner: "@me", top: 1 })

// "Which commits did I push to feature/login this week?"
list_commits({ repositoryId: "my-repo", branch: "feature/login", author: "@me", fromDate: "2026-04-10" })

Note: WIQL queries (query_work_items, get_my_sprint_items) use Azure DevOps' native @Me macro — no server-side resolution needed.

Write Operation Safety

All write operations require explicit user confirmation before execution. The AI assistant is instructed to:

1. Show the user exactly what will be changed
2. Ask for explicit approval before proceeding
3. Return detailed reports after execution

On-Premises Configuration Notes

Cloud (Azure DevOps Services) support

Technically works — point AZURE_DEVOPS_ORG_URL at https://dev.azure.com/<your-org> and supply a PAT. Work Items, Git, Pipelines, Wiki, and Test Plans all function against cloud.

However, this project is not positioned for cloud use:

• TFVC doesn't exist on cloud — Microsoft disabled new TFVC repos for cloud organizations created after February 2017. The 10 TFVC tools (the main differentiator here) are dead weight on cloud.
• PAT-only auth. Many cloud tenants disable PAT in favor of Microsoft Entra ID OAuth. This server doesn't support Entra yet.
• Microsoft ships @azure-devops/mcp for cloud — officially maintained, Entra ID supported, broader tool coverage (code search, artifact download, PR threads, iteration/capacity).

Use this server on cloud only if you specifically need the @me token, profile-based multi-tenant config, or one of the convenience tools that the official server lacks. For anything else, the official Microsoft package is the right default.

Security

• Local-only execution. No data ever leaves your machine except to your own Azure DevOps Server and your chosen AI assistant. There is no telemetry, analytics, or cloud proxy — see Privacy & Data Flow for the full data-destination table.
• PAT storage: Credentials live in gitignored .env / .env.<profile> files — never in mcp.json / client configs. See Secrets hygiene.
• WIQL injection prevention: All user-supplied values are sanitized via sanitizeWiqlValue() before WIQL interpolation.
• Error message sanitization: Internal paths, URLs, and stack traces are scrubbed before responses reach the client.
• Input validation: top / skip parameters are bounded (1-1000) to prevent runaway API calls.
• Write operation safety: All mutating tools carry confirmation warnings; bulk operations require explicit user approval before execution.
• Minimum scopes: Grant each PAT only the scopes listed in Prerequisites.
• PAT expiration: Set an expiry (90 days recommended) and rotate regularly.
• Tool confirmation: GitHub Copilot and Claude prompt for user approval before each tool call.
• Dependencies: All packages from verified publishers (Microsoft, Anthropic, established OSS). Run npm audit periodically.

Development

# Watch mode (recompile on changes)
npm run dev

# Build once
npm run build

# Start server directly
npm start

License

Released under the MIT License. Copyright (c) 2026 Burcu Sipahioglu Gokbulut.

You are free to use, modify, and redistribute this project for any purpose — commercial or personal — provided the copyright notice and license text are preserved. See the LICENSE file for the full text.