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The Developer's Guide to MCP Notes: Cursor, VS Code & Claude Code

Set up SlashNote's MCP server in Cursor, VS Code, and Claude Code. Full guide to 19 MCP tools, 6 templates, and real developer workflows.

SlashNote Team

Your notes and your code live in different worlds. You write a design decision in a note, then re-explain it to your AI coding assistant 20 minutes later. You discuss architecture with Claude, then scramble to save the key points before starting a new conversation.

SlashNote’s MCP server bridges that gap. Your notes become accessible to every MCP-compatible IDE and AI assistant — directly, without copy-paste.

This guide covers setup for Cursor, VS Code, and Claude Code, then dives into the 19 tools, 6 templates, and real workflows that make MCP notes useful for developers.

Quick Start: Pick Your IDE

Cursor

  1. Open Cursor Settings (Cmd+,)
  2. Navigate to Features → MCP Servers
  3. Click Add new MCP Server
  4. Add this configuration:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "slashnote": {
      "command": "/Applications/SlashNote.app/Contents/MacOS/slashnote-mcp"
    }
  }
}
  1. Restart Cursor

Test it: Open Cursor Chat and type: “List all my SlashNote notes.” Cursor will call the MCP tools and show your notes.

VS Code (GitHub Copilot Chat)

  1. Create .vscode/mcp.json in your project root:
{
  "servers": {
    "slashnote": {
      "command": "/Applications/SlashNote.app/Contents/MacOS/slashnote-mcp"
    }
  }
}
  1. Reload VS Code window (Cmd+Shift+P → “Reload Window”)

Test it: Open Copilot Chat and ask: “Use SlashNote to list my notes.”

Claude Code

The simplest setup — one terminal command:

claude mcp add slashnote /Applications/SlashNote.app/Contents/MacOS/slashnote-mcp

That is it. No config files to edit.

Test it: In your Claude Code session, type: “List my notes.”

Windsurf

  1. Open Settings → MCP
  2. Add the SlashNote server:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "slashnote": {
      "command": "/Applications/SlashNote.app/Contents/MacOS/slashnote-mcp"
    }
  }
}
  1. Restart Windsurf

The 19 MCP Tools Explained

Here is every tool available to your AI assistant, with practical examples.

Note CRUD Operations

create_note — Create a new note

"Create a note titled 'Auth Service Architecture' with the content:
We're using JWT with refresh tokens. Access token expires in 15 min,
refresh token in 7 days. Tokens stored in HTTP-only cookies."

Parameters: title (string), content (string), color (optional: yellow, peach, green, blue, purple, pink)

read_note — Read a specific note’s content

"Read my note titled 'API Endpoints'"

Returns the full content of the note including formatting.

update_note — Modify an existing note

"Update my 'Auth Service Architecture' note — add that we also decided
to implement PKCE for the OAuth flow."

delete_note — Remove a note

"Delete the note titled 'Scratch Ideas' — I've moved everything to Jira."

list_notes — Get all notes with metadata

"List all my notes with their colors and creation dates."

Returns title, color, creation date, and preview for each note.

search_notes — Full-text search across titles and content

"Search my notes for 'database migration'"

Returns matching notes ranked by relevance.

Checkboxes

toggle_checkbox — Toggle a checkbox between unchecked, in-progress, and done

"Mark the first checkbox in my 'Sprint Tasks' note as done."

reorder_checkboxes — Reorder checkboxes within a note

"Move completed checkboxes to the bottom of my 'Sprint Tasks' note."

Window Management

show_note — Show a note window

"Show my 'Sprint Goals' note so I can see it while I code."

hide_note — Hide a note window

"Hide the Sprint Goals note, I'm done with it for today."

move_note — Move a note to a specific position on screen

"Move my 'API Endpoints' note to the top-right corner."

resize_note — Resize a note window

"Make my 'Architecture' note wider so I can see the full content."

Other Tools

duplicate_note — Create a copy of an existing note

"Duplicate my 'Meeting Template' note for today's standup."

get_stats — Get statistics about your notes

"Show me stats about my notes — how many do I have, what colors are most used?"

get_open_notes — List currently visible note windows

"Which notes do I have open right now?"

Automation

start_note_loop — Schedule automated task execution from a checklist note

"Start a note loop on my 'Deploy Checklist' note — execute each task automatically."

The AI agent will work through each checkbox in the note, executing tasks and marking them done.

cancel_note_loop — Cancel a scheduled automation loop

"Cancel the note loop on my deploy checklist."

list_note_loops — List all active scheduled loops

"Show me all active note loops."

complete_note_loop — Mark a loop as completed with summary

"Mark the deploy loop as complete."

The 6 Prompt Templates

Templates are structured workflows that produce consistent, well-formatted notes.

1. meeting-notes — Meeting Notes with Action Items

"Use the meeting-notes template. Standup with the backend team.
Attendees: Alex, Sarah, Mike. We discussed the caching issue,
decided to use Redis, and Alex will implement it by Friday."

Produces a structured meeting note with attendees, discussion points, and action items.

2. todo-list — Project-Based Task Generation

"Use the todo-list template. I'm starting the checkout redesign
project. Key tasks: update payment flow, add Stripe integration,
write tests for edge cases, update API docs."

Generates a project-based task list with checkboxes organized by priority.

3. checklist — Step-by-Step Procedure

"Use the checklist template for deploying to production.
Steps: run tests, build Docker image, push to registry,
update Kubernetes config, verify health checks, notify team."

Creates a sequential checklist for repeatable procedures.

4. summarize-notes — Consolidate Notes into Summary

"Use the summarize-notes template to consolidate all my notes
from this week into a single summary."

Reads your notes and produces a consolidated summary organized by theme.

5. organize-tasks — Consolidate Checkboxes by Status

"Use the organize-tasks template to gather all my checkboxes
across notes and organize them by status."

Scans notes for checkboxes and groups them by unchecked, in-progress, and done.

6. weekly-review — Weekly Accomplishments and Goals

"Use the weekly-review template for this week."

Reviews the past week’s notes, summarizes accomplishments, and sets goals for next week.

Real Developer Workflows

Workflow 1: Architecture Decision Records

Keep a running log of technical decisions, accessible to your AI assistant.

  1. During design discussions with AI, say: “Create a decision record for this.”
  2. The AI uses the Decision Log template to capture what was decided and why.
  3. Before starting new work, ask: “Read all my decision records about the payment system.”

Your AI assistant now has full context on past decisions without you re-explaining anything.

Workflow 2: Code Documentation During Development

Document as you code, without leaving your IDE.

In Cursor or VS Code:

"Create a note documenting the new /checkout endpoint I just built.
Include the request/response format and any edge cases."

The AI reads your code context (already available in the IDE) and creates a note combining what it sees in the code with your verbal additions.

Workflow 3: Sprint Notes with Color Coding

Organize sprint work visually:

  • Yellow — general notes
  • Green — completed items
  • Blue — meeting notes
  • Purple — architecture decisions
  • Peach — blockers and issues
  • Pink — personal reminders
"Create a peach note titled 'Blocker: Rate Limiter' — the Redis
cluster is hitting capacity. Need to discuss with DevOps."

At the end of the sprint:

"List all peach notes from this sprint — these are our blockers."

Workflow 4: Context Handoff Between AI Sessions

AI conversations are ephemeral. Notes persist.

At the end of a Claude Code session:

"Create a note summarizing what we worked on today and what's
left to do. I'll use this to start tomorrow's session."

Tomorrow:

"Read my note from yesterday about what we were working on.
Let's continue from where we left off."

Workflow 5: Research Before Implementation

Before writing code, gather context:

"Read all my notes about the notification system. Then help me
design the event schema for push notifications."

The AI reads your research notes, architecture decisions, and previous discussions — then gives you an informed recommendation instead of starting from scratch.

Tips for Power Users

Use consistent naming conventions

Prefix notes by category for easier search:

  • [ARCH] Database Sharding Strategy
  • [BUG] Memory Leak in Image Processor
  • [MEET] Backend Standup 2026-02-10
  • [DECIDE] JWT vs Session Auth

Pin your current task

Pin the note for what you are working on right now. It stays visible over your code, and you can glance at it without switching windows.

Color-code by project

If you work on multiple projects, assign a color to each one. Quick visual scan tells you which notes belong where.

Use tags for cross-cutting concerns

Tags work across colors and naming conventions:

  • urgent — needs attention today
  • sprint-42 — current sprint
  • reviewed — already reviewed
  • follow-up — needs follow-up action

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need the Pro plan for MCP?

Yes. MCP server access requires SlashNote Pro. The free plan includes unlimited notes with basic features.

Does this work with GitHub Copilot?

VS Code’s MCP support works with GitHub Copilot Chat. Set up the .vscode/mcp.json configuration and use Copilot Chat to interact with your notes.

Can I use MCP in a CI/CD pipeline?

The MCP server requires SlashNote to be running on a Mac. It is designed for interactive developer workflows, not headless automation. For automation, consider the HTTP Bridge API.

What if two IDE clients are connected simultaneously?

Both will access the same notes. SlashNote handles concurrent reads safely. Concurrent writes to the same note should be avoided — use different notes for different contexts.

Is the HTTP Bridge API documented?

Yes. See the full MCP documentation for endpoint details, authentication, and examples.

Your notes are more useful when your tools can access them. Set up SlashNote MCP in your IDE once, and every AI-assisted coding session benefits from your accumulated context.

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