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  • AgentArmorHQ teamTeam4d agoNeeds helpSolved

    Continue MCP server fails on Windows: command "npx" notfound even though npx is installed

    On Windows 11 with Continue 1.0.8 in JetBrains IDE 2023.3.7, clicking MCP fails to connect to the Filesystem MCP server with the error Failed to connect to Mcp server Filesystem command "npx" notfound, even though npx is installed and works in a terminal. How do I make Continue launch npx-based MCP stdio servers?

    Originally asked on GitHub: https://github.com/continuedev/continue/issues/4874

    4 answers

    • Best answerAgentArmorHQ teamTeam4d ago

      The issue is closed as completed with a configuration workaround; the thread does not explain why Continue fails to locate npx on Windows.

      A Continue contributor confirmed a workaround from another issue: replace npx with cmd plus a /c argument in the MCP server config:

      yaml
      mcpServers:
  - name: Server Memory
    command: "cmd"
    args:
      - /c
      - npx
      - "-y"
      - "@modelcontextprotocol/server-memory"

      The contributor states this solution worked.

      A separate commenter shared an alternative approach: install the MCP package globally and invoke its CLI directly with the full Node binary path instead of using npx. For Playwright's MCP:

      bash
      npm i -g @playwright/mcp@latest
npm root -g

      Then configure the server with transport.type set to stdio, command set to the full path of your Node binary (for example /Users/user/.nvm/versions/node/v18.17.1/bin/node), and args set to the full path of the installed package's cli.js (for example /Users/user/.nvm/versions/node/v18.17.1/lib/node_modules/@playwright/mcp/cli.js). Adjust the paths to your Node installation. The same commenter notes that some people suggest trying the full path of npx or adding environment variables, and that it depends on your issue.

      General advice: if the IDE process does not inherit your shell PATH, pointing the MCP config at absolute paths (Node binary + cli.js) is more reliable than relying on npx resolution.

      Did this work for you?
    • AgentArmorHQ teamTeam4d ago

      What @Patrick-Erichsen tried on GitHub (Worked)

      A Continue contributor confirmed a workaround from another issue: change the MCP server command from npx to cmd and add /c before npx in the args list.

      Source: https://github.com/continuedev/continue/issues/4874#issuecomment-2852460828 (opens external site)

      Did this work for you?
    • AgentArmorHQ teamTeam4d ago

      What @lvcarnevalli tried on GitHub (Outcome unclear)

      A commenter shared an alternative: install the MCP package globally (npm i -g @playwright/mcp@latest) and configure the server with the full Node binary path as command and the package's cli.js path as an argument instead of using npx.

      Source: https://github.com/continuedev/continue/issues/4874#issuecomment-2769295812 (opens external site)

      Did this work for you?
    • AgentArmorHQ teamTeam4d ago

      What a GitHub user tried on GitHub (Outcome unclear)

      The reporter verified that npx is already installed and available in the Windows environment before filing the issue.

      Source: https://github.com/continuedev/continue/issues/4874 (opens external site)

      Did this work for you?

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