Does it work with remote SSH hosts in vs code?

[SinisterSpatula]

Hello, just trying to figure out, if codebase-memory-mcp also works for VS code when working with remote SSH hosts? (Using the vs code connect to SSH remote host option). My initial experimentation and research seems to suggest not. Or maybe there is a manual install method which will make that work? The problem I guess is that technically vs code is not installed on the remote host (only vscode-server) so it's not detected by the installer. Maybe a manual flag is needed for vs code in this situation, or it's just not designed to work in this situation?

Alternatively I guess I could install vs code on the remote host, and remotely connect to it, in order to use this tool. It looks interesting and I really wanted to try it.

Thanks!

[DeusData]

Thanks for raising this. Your reading is correct for the current installer.

On a Linux SSH host, CBM detects VS Code only when $HOME/.config/Code/User exists. A host with only vscode-server often does not have that desktop-user directory, so automatic VS Code detection does not fire. I also checked --clients=vscode: today it only restricts the detected set and does not force-enable an undetected client, so it does not solve this case by itself.

CBM itself can run on the remote host, but the VS Code MCP entry must point to the CBM binary installed on that host. The practical workaround is to install CBM remotely and add the server manually from the Remote SSH window, preferably as a workspace MCP configuration so the command is resolved and executed remotely.

We should treat the missing remote-host detection or explicit force-install path as a real installer gap. Thanks for testing the setup and describing exactly where detection breaks.

[SinisterSpatula]

Thank you for the reply! So I've installed it on the remote ssh host, and I would add it like this to my workspace settings? Command Palette → Preferences: Open Workspace Settings (JSON)

And would I need to add anything here?

Anything else I'd need to do?

[DeusData]

Thank you for the screenshots. Yes, Codebase Memory can run on the remote SSH host, but the MCP entry must be configured in the remote environment rather than only in the local VS Code profile.

Install the binary on the remote host, then from the remote VS Code window run MCP: Open Remote User Configuration, or create .vscode/mcp.json in the remote workspace:

{
  "servers": {
    "codebase-memory": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "/absolute/remote/path/to/codebase-memory-mcp",
      "args": [],
      "cwd": "${workspaceFolder}"
    }
  }
}

Then run MCP: List Servers and start or trust the entry. No additional local-side MCP configuration is needed for that remote workspace.

Our installer currently detects the desktop VS Code user directory, and --clients=vscode filters the clients that were detected; it does not force-write VS Code Remote user configuration. VS Code runs an MCP server where it is configured, so the remote user or remote workspace configuration is the important part here. Thank you for following up with the exact remote view.

[SinisterSpatula]

Thanks! I tried it but I guess the workspaceFolder variable isn't working.

But supposedly it's going to use whatever folder I have opened on the remote server as the current working directory anyway, and it does seem to be working. Much appreciated!