Installation¶

Two recommended paths: the Claude Code plugin (easiest, drives a guided setup) and pip (manage the MCP server yourself). Docker exists for CI and containerised dev only; it's not a user install path.

Requirements¶

Claude Code
For write, build, deploy, and test: a Windows host with TwinCAT 3.1 Build 4026 and TcXaeShell. Reads work without it.

The plugin uses uv under the hood. If you don't have it, pip install uv will do.

Plugin (recommended)¶

In Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add georgeturneruk/tckit
/plugin install tckit@tckit
> Set me up for TcKit.

The bundled tc-config skill walks you through the prompts and writes your config to ~/.tckit/config.toml. The MCP server runs as uvx tckit, fetching the package from PyPI on first use; updates happen automatically.

Skip to Bridge Setup if you need write/build/deploy/test.

pip (without the plugin)¶

If you want to manage the MCP server yourself rather than going through the plugin:

pip install tckit
tckit init                  # write ~/.tckit/config.toml from the bundled template
$EDITOR ~/.tckit/config.toml
tckit doctor                # health check

Then register it with Claude Code:

claude mcp add tckit -- tckit

tckit init --print emits the template to stdout if you'd rather drive your own scaffolding.

Docker (CI / dev only)¶

Docker mode is supported for CI and contributor workflows, not as a user install path. The container can't reach Windows host paths passed in from Claude Code, so it works only against projects mounted at the same path the agent will request. See Docker Setup for details and the open caveat.

Bridge (Windows, for write/build/deploy/test)¶

Both install paths use the same bridge service for write operations. The bridge ships inside the tckit Python package; install it to ~/.tckit/bridge/ with:

tckit bridge install

(tckit doctor will offer to run this for you when it spots that the bridge is down and not yet installed.) Then, in a separate PowerShell window with TcXaeShell open:

~/.tckit/bridge/Start-Bridge.ps1

See Bridge Setup for firewall and XAE-mode details.

Verify¶

tckit doctor        # config + bridge health check
tckit --help        # available subcommands and flags

To verify end-to-end, ask Claude Code (or any MCP client) to call a TcKit tool, for example get_structure against a TwinCAT project path.