hindsight-mcp

An MCP server for AI-assisted coding that leverages development history.

Overview

hindsight-mcp consolidates development data (git logs, test results, and GitHub Copilot sessions) into a searchable SQLite database, making it accessible to AI assistants through MCP tool calls in VS Code.

Key Features:

Full-text search across commits and Copilot conversations
Track test results linked to specific commits
Activity summaries and timeline views
Automatic git and Copilot session ingestion

Quick Start

Prerequisites

VS Code v1.99+ with GitHub Copilot
cargo-nextest (for test ingestion): cargo install cargo-nextest

Installation

cargo install hindsight-mcp

Configure VS Code

Create .vscode/mcp.json in your project:

{
  "servers": {
    "hindsight": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "hindsight-mcp",
      "args": ["--workspace", "${workspaceFolder}"]
    }
  }
}

Verify Setup

Open VS Code Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P)
Run "MCP: List Servers"
Confirm hindsight is listed
In Copilot Chat, switch to Agent mode
Ask: "What have I been working on recently?"

That's it! Copilot will use hindsight tools to answer questions about your development history.

MCP Tools

Tool	Purpose	Example Prompt
`hindsight_timeline`	Chronological activity view	"Show recent commits and test runs"
`hindsight_search`	Full-text search	"Find commits about authentication"
`hindsight_failing_tests`	Query test failures	"What tests are failing?"
`hindsight_activity_summary`	Aggregate stats	"Summarise my week"
`hindsight_commit_details`	Commit info with tests	"Details for commit abc123"
`hindsight_ingest`	Trigger data refresh	"Refresh development history"

hindsight_timeline

limit (int): Max events, default 50
workspace (string): Filter by path

hindsight_search

query (string): Search query (required)
source (string): "all", "commits", or "messages"
limit (int): Max results, default 20

hindsight_failing_tests

limit (int): Max tests, default 50
workspace (string): Filter by path
commit (string): Filter by SHA

hindsight_activity_summary

days (int): Days to summarise, default 7

hindsight_commit_details

sha (string): Commit SHA (required)

hindsight_ingest

workspace (string): Path to ingest (required)
source (string): "git", "copilot", or "all"
incremental (bool): Only new data, default true
limit (int): Max items

Test Ingestion

Run tests and automatically ingest results:

# Run all tests and ingest
hindsight-mcp test

# Test specific package
hindsight-mcp test -p my-crate

# Preview without writing to database
hindsight-mcp test --dry-run

The test command automatically:

Spawns cargo nextest with correct flags
Auto-detects the current git commit
Ingests results to the database

For CI pipelines or custom nextest invocations:

# Using stdin mode
NEXTEST_EXPERIMENTAL_LIBTEST_JSON=1 cargo nextest run \
  --message-format libtest-json 2>/dev/null | \
  hindsight-mcp test --stdin

# Using ingest command with explicit commit
NEXTEST_EXPERIMENTAL_LIBTEST_JSON=1 cargo nextest run \
  --message-format libtest-json 2>/dev/null | \
  hindsight-mcp ingest --tests --commit $(git rev-parse HEAD)

Data Sources

Source	Data Collected
Git	Commits (SHA, author, message, timestamp, parents)
Tests	Run metadata, outcomes, durations, failure output
Copilot	Chat sessions, prompts, responses, attached files

Git and Copilot data are ingested automatically. Test results require running hindsight-mcp test.

CLI Reference

hindsight-mcp [OPTIONS] [COMMAND]

Commands:
  ingest    Ingest data from various sources
  test      Run tests and ingest results

Options:
  -d, --database <PATH>   Database path [default: ~/.hindsight/hindsight.db]
  -w, --workspace <PATH>  Workspace path [default: current directory]
  -v, --verbose           Debug logging
  -q, --quiet             Errors only
      --skip-init         Skip database init
  -h, --help              Print help
  -V, --version           Print version

hindsight-mcp test [OPTIONS] [-- <NEXTEST_ARGS>...]

Options:
  -p, --package <PKG>     Package(s) to test
      --bin <BIN>         Binary(ies) to run
  -E, --filter <EXPR>     Filter expression
      --stdin             Read from stdin
      --dry-run           Preview only
      --no-commit         Do not link to commit
      --commit <SHA>      Explicit commit SHA
      --show-output       Show test output

Environment Variables

Variable	Description
`HINDSIGHT_DATABASE`	Database path
`HINDSIGHT_WORKSPACE`	Default workspace

Database Location

Platform	Default Path
macOS	`~/Library/Application Support/hindsight/hindsight.db`
Linux	`~/.local/share/hindsight/hindsight.db`
Windows	`%LOCALAPPDATA%\hindsight\hindsight.db`

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Server does not start	Check binary path; run with `--verbose`
No data showing	Run `hindsight_ingest` tool via Copilot
Log interference	Use `--quiet` in production

Development

git clone https://github.com/Rbfinch/hindsight-mcp.git
cd hindsight-mcp
cargo build --release

cargo install cargo-nextest
cargo nextest run --workspace

hindsight/
├── crates/
│   ├── hindsight-mcp/      # MCP server binary
│   ├── hindsight-git/      # Git log processing
│   ├── hindsight-tests/    # Test result processing
│   └── hindsight-copilot/  # Copilot session parsing

cd crates/hindsight-tests
cargo +nightly fuzz run fuzz_nextest_run

cd crates/hindsight-copilot
cargo +nightly fuzz run fuzz_session_json

License

MIT

hindsight-git 0.1.5