claude-peers-mcp

---

name: claude-peers-mcp

description: Enable multiple Claude Code instances to discover each other and exchange messages in real-time via a local broker daemon and MCP server.

triggers:

- "set up claude peers"

- "let my claude instances talk to each other"

- "install claude-peers mcp"

- "send messages between claude sessions"

- "multi-agent claude communication"

- "list all running claude instances"

- "claude peers messaging setup"

- "coordinate multiple claude code sessions"

---

# claude-peers-mcp

> Skill by [ara.so](https://ara.so) — Daily 2026 Skills collection.

claude-peers is an MCP server that lets multiple Claude Code instances running on the same machine discover each other and exchange messages in real-time. A local broker daemon (SQLite + HTTP on `localhost:7899`) handles peer registration and message routing; each session's MCP server pushes inbound messages directly into the Claude channel so they appear instantly.

Installation

1. Clone and install dependencies

git clone https://github.com/louislva/claude-peers-mcp.git ~/claude-peers-mcp
cd ~/claude-peers-mcp
bun install

2. Register as a global MCP server

claude mcp add --scope user --transport stdio claude-peers -- bun ~/claude-peers-mcp/server.ts

Adjust the path if you cloned elsewhere.

3. Launch Claude Code with the channel enabled

claude --dangerously-skip-permissions --dangerously-load-development-channels server:claude-peers

Add a shell alias to avoid typing it every time:

# ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc
alias claudepeers='claude --dangerously-load-development-channels server:claude-peers'

The broker daemon starts automatically on first use. No manual daemon management needed.

Requirements

Architecture

                    ┌───────────────────────────┐
                    │  broker daemon            │
                    │  localhost:7899 + SQLite  │
                    └──────┬───────────────┬────┘
                           │               │
                      MCP server A    MCP server B
                      (stdio)         (stdio)
                           │               │
                      Claude A         Claude B

MCP Tools Reference

| Tool | Description |

|---|---|

| `list_peers` | Discover other Claude Code instances; scope: `machine`, `directory`, or `repo` |

| `send_message` | Send a message to a peer by ID — delivered instantly via channel push |

| `set_summary` | Set a description of what this instance is working on |

| `check_messages` | Manually poll for messages (fallback without channel mode) |

Example prompts to Claude

List all peers on this machine

Send a message to peer abc123: "what files are you editing right now?"

Set your summary to: "refactoring the authentication module"

Check for any new messages from peers

CLI Usage

Inspect and interact with the broker directly from the terminal:

cd ~/claude-peers-mcp

# Show broker status and all registered peers
bun cli.ts status

# List peers in a table
bun cli.ts peers

# Send a message into a specific Claude session
bun cli.ts send <peer-id> "your message here"

# Stop the broker daemon
bun cli.ts kill-broker

Configuration

Set these environment variables before starting Claude Code:

| Variable | Default | Description |

|---|---|---|

| `CLAUDE_PEERS_PORT` | `7899` | Port the broker listens on |

| `CLAUDE_PEERS_DB` | `~/.claude-peers.db` | Path to the SQLite database |

| `OPENAI_API_KEY` | — | Enables auto-summary via `gpt-4o-mini` on startup |

export CLAUDE_PEERS_PORT=7899
export CLAUDE_PEERS_DB=~/.claude-peers.db
export OPENAI_API_KEY=$OPENAI_API_KEY  # optional — enables auto-summary

Auto-Summary Feature

With `OPENAI_API_KEY` set, each instance generates a brief summary on startup describing what you're likely working on (based on working directory, git branch, recent files). Other peers see this in `list_peers` output. Without the key, Claude sets its own summary via `set_summary`.

Common Patterns

Cross-project coordination

Start two sessions in different project directories:

# Terminal 1 — in ~/projects/backend
claudepeers

# Terminal 2 — in ~/projects/frontend
claudepeers

Ask Claude in Terminal 1:

List peers scoped to machine, then ask the peer in the frontend project what API endpoints it needs

Scope-filtered peer discovery

List peers scoped to repo

Shows only instances running in the same git repository — useful when you have worktrees or split terminals on the same codebase.

Scripted message injection via CLI

# Inject a task into a running Claude session from a shell script
PEER_ID=$(bun ~/claude-peers-mcp/cli.ts peers | grep 'backend' | awk '{print $1}')
bun ~/claude-peers-mcp/cli.ts send "$PEER_ID" "run the test suite and report failures"

Polling fallback (no channel mode)

If you launch without `--dangerously-load-development-channels`, Claude can still receive messages by calling `check_messages` explicitly:

Check for any new peer messages

Troubleshooting

**Broker not starting**

# Check if something is already on port 7899
lsof -i :7899

# Kill a stuck broker and restart
bun ~/claude-peers-mcp/cli.ts kill-broker
# Then relaunch Claude Code

**Peers not appearing in `list_peers`**

**Messages not arriving instantly**

**Auto-summary not generating**

**Database issues**

# Reset the database entirely (all peers/messages lost)
rm ~/.claude-peers.db
bun ~/claude-peers-mcp/cli.ts kill-broker

**MCP server not found after registration**

# Verify registration
claude mcp list

# Re-register if missing
claude mcp add --scope user --transport stdio claude-peers -- bun ~/claude-peers-mcp/server.ts