github-mcp

Mode: Cognitive/Prompt-Driven — No standalone utility script; use via agent context.

GitHub Skill

Overview

This skill provides access to the official GitHub MCP server with progressive disclosure for optimal context usage.

Context Savings: ~95% reduction

• MCP Mode: ~50,000 tokens always loaded (80+ tools)
• Skill Mode: ~500 tokens metadata + on-demand loading

Requirements

• Docker installed and running
• GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN environment variable set

Toolsets

The server provides 80+ tools across 19 toolsets:

Toolset	Description
actions	Workflow management, runs, jobs, artifacts
code_security	Scanning alerts, code analysis
discussions	Forum interactions
gists	Code snippets management
issues	Issue creation, updates, commenting
labels	Label management and filtering
projects	GitHub Projects board management
pull_requests	PR creation, review, merging
repos	Code search, commits, releases, branches
users	User search and management
orgs	Organization and team management
notifications	Notification management
secret_scanning	Secret scanning alerts
context	Context about the user

Quick Reference

Use the gh CLI for GitHub operations:

# Get repository info
gh repo view anthropics/claude-code

# List issues
gh issue list --repo anthropics/claude-code

# Search code
gh search code "language:python MCP"

# Create issue
gh issue create --repo me/myrepo --title "Bug" --body "Description"

# List pull requests
gh pr list --repo anthropics/claude-code

Common Tools (Default Toolsets: 40 tools)

Repository Operations

• search_repositories - Search for repositories
• create_repository - Create a new repository
• fork_repository - Fork a repository
• list_commits - List repository commits
• get_commit - Get commit details
• get_file_contents - Get file contents from a repository
• create_or_update_file - Create or update a file
• delete_file - Delete a file
• push_files - Push multiple files
• search_code - Search for code across GitHub
• list_branches - List repository branches
• create_branch - Create a new branch
• list_tags - List repository tags
• get_tag - Get tag details
• list_releases - List releases
• get_latest_release - Get latest release
• get_release_by_tag - Get release by tag

Issue Operations

• list_issues - List repository issues
• issue_read - Read issue details
• issue_write - Create/update issues
• add_issue_comment - Add a comment to an issue
• search_issues - Search for issues
• list_issue_types - List issue types (for organizations)
• get_label - Get label details
• sub_issue_write - Manage sub-issues
• assign_copilot_to_issue - Assign Copilot to an issue

Pull Request Operations

• list_pull_requests - List repository pull requests
• pull_request_read - Read PR details
• create_pull_request - Create a new PR
• update_pull_request - Update a PR
• update_pull_request_branch - Update PR branch
• merge_pull_request - Merge a PR
• search_pull_requests - Search for pull requests
• pull_request_review_write - Create/submit PR reviews
• add_comment_to_pending_review - Add comments to pending review
• request_copilot_review - Request Copilot review

User & Team Operations

• get_me - Get current authenticated user
• search_users - Search for users
• get_teams - Get organization teams
• get_team_members - Get team members

Configuration

The skill uses Docker to run the official GitHub MCP server:

• Image: ghcr.io/github/github-mcp-server
• Auth: GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN environment variable

Environment Variables

Variable	Required	Description
GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN	Yes	GitHub PAT for authentication
GITHUB_HOST	No	For GitHub Enterprise (default: github.com)
GITHUB_TOOLSETS	No	Comma-separated toolsets to enable
GITHUB_READ_ONLY	No	Set to 1 for read-only mode

Limiting Toolsets

When using MCP, configure toolsets via environment variables:

# Only repos and issues
GITHUB_TOOLSETS=repos,issues

# Only pull requests and code security
GITHUB_TOOLSETS=pull_requests,code_security

Error Handling

If operations fail:

1. Verify Docker is running: docker ps
2. Check GitHub token is set: echo $GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN
3. Ensure token has required permissions for the operation
4. Use gh auth status to verify authentication

Related

• Official GitHub MCP Server: https://github.com/github/github-mcp-server
• GitHub API Documentation: https://docs.github.com/en/rest

Memory Protocol (MANDATORY)

Before starting: Read .claude/context/memory/learnings.md

After completing:

• New pattern -> .claude/context/memory/learnings.md
• Issue found -> .claude/context/memory/issues.md
• Decision made -> .claude/context/memory/decisions.md

ASSUME INTERRUPTION: If it's not in memory, it didn't happen.