MCP for Primavera P6

MCP for Primavera P6: Primavera P6 MCP Server

MCP for Primavera P6 is a local Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that connects Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, VS Code and any other MCP client to your Oracle Primavera P6 Professional schedules on Windows. It reads the P6 database itself (P6 Professional standalone, SQLite) or plain XER files and answers scheduling questions with real computations: critical path and driving path, total float, the DCMA 14-point check, look-ahead, baseline and update comparison, CPM what-if and Monte Carlo schedule risk. Unlike XER-only MCP servers, it can also write changes back to the P6 database: durations, logic, constraints, actuals, units and UDFs, each one previewed in a dry run, applied only after your confirmation, backed up first and recorded in an edit log.

MCP for Primavera P6 is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by Oracle. Oracle, Primavera and P6 are trademarks of Oracle and/or its affiliates.

Contents: What it does · Install · Connect your MCP client · Tools · Compared with XER-only servers · Safety · Privacy · P6 skills · FAQ · Troubleshooting

What it does

Ask your assistant "what drives the finish date?", "run a DCMA health check on the March update", "what changed since the last update?" or "what happens if procurement takes four more weeks?". The server computes the answer from the schedule; the model explains it. Dates and float come from P6's last schedule run (F9).

• Schedule analysis: projects and EPS, WBS roll-ups, activities filtered by status, float, dates, activity codes or UDFs, relationships with the project's lag calendar rule, critical path (total float or longest path), driving path, float paths, where an activity's float comes from, float distribution, look-ahead windows.
• Schedule quality: DCMA 14-point check with the project's own P6 thresholds, logic density and a weighted grade, comparison with earlier checks, out-of-sequence progress, dangling ends, redundant links.
• Comparisons, what-if and risk: two updates or a baseline compared activity by activity and link by link, with slip causes and float erosion; an integrity review of an update against the previous one (questions to raise, not proof); a CPM engine checked against P6's F9 (p6_cpm_validate reports the match) for what-if scenarios and Monte Carlo risk, run in memory and never written.
• Progress and reporting: S-curves and earned value at the data date, resource and cost summaries, groups by status, WBS or code, and a one-page Excel dashboard with native charts.
• XER files: inspect, import (new project, baseline, update), export, or analyse XER files alone in XER-only mode, without a P6 database or P6 installed.
• Edits (off by default): durations, constraints, actual dates, physical % complete, resource assignment units, activity UDF values, relationships, schedule options, EPS, deletes, backups and restore.

Install

MCP for Primavera P6 runs on Windows 10 or 11, next to P6 Professional. Nothing else to install: Python is bundled.

1. Download P6MCP-Setup-<version>.exe from Releases and check it against SHA256SUMS.txt (certutil -hashfile P6MCP-Setup-2.0.0.exe SHA256).
2. Run it. It installs for your Windows user only (no administrator rights) and, on its last page, offers to register the server with every MCP client it finds (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, LM Studio, Cline). Untick the ones you do not want.
3. MCP for Primavera P6 Settings opens. Under Database, pick your P6 database (suggestions come from P6's own connection list), click Test connection (read only), then Use this database, and Save. The server never picks a database by itself: until you do this, every tool answers "No database configured".
4. Restart your MCP client completely.

Release builds are not code signed yet: Windows SmartScreen may warn on first launch ("More info", "Run anyway"). Check the SHA-256 first. Other packages on the release page: a portable zip (no installation) and an MCP bundle (.mcpb, server only) that Claude Desktop installs in one click; it is also the package listed in the official MCP Registry as io.github.nizarhamza/p6-mcp.

Connect your MCP client

The installer and Settings > MCP clients write the client configuration for you: they add (or repair, or remove) only the p6mcp entry, after a timestamped backup, keeping every other entry, comment and the file's formatting. The manual steps below are for reference. In every snippet, replace <you> with your Windows user name (or copy the snippet from Settings > MCP clients > Other clients, which fills in the real path).

Claude Desktop

Either let the installer register it, or double-click the .mcpb bundle (Settings > Extensions shows it; pick the database there), or edit %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "p6mcp": {
      "command": "C:\\Users\\<you>\\AppData\\Local\\Programs\\P6 MCP\\p6mcp-server.exe",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Quit Claude Desktop completely (also from the notification area) and start it again. The P6 skills appear as prompts in the + menu.

Cursor

The installer registers it in %USERPROFILE%\.cursor\mcp.json, or add the same mcpServers entry as Claude Desktop above to that file. Cursor lists the tools under Settings > MCP.

VS Code (GitHub Copilot agent mode)

The installer registers it in %APPDATA%\Code\User\mcp.json (VS Code Insiders: ...\Code - Insiders\User\mcp.json). By hand, run MCP: Open User Configuration and add:

{
  "servers": {
    "p6mcp": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "C:\\Users\\<you>\\AppData\\Local\\Programs\\P6 MCP\\p6mcp-server.exe",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Then open Copilot Chat in Agent mode and pick the tools from the tools menu.

ChatGPT

ChatGPT cannot start a program on your PC, so there are two routes. Neither is tested by the maintainer yet: please report how it goes in an issue.

• Codex (in the ChatGPT desktop app, or the Codex CLI) starts local MCP servers from %USERPROFILE%\.codex\config.toml:

  [mcp_servers.p6mcp]
  command = 'C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Local\Programs\P6 MCP\p6mcp-server.exe'
  args = []

• ChatGPT chat reaches MCP servers over HTTPS only. OpenAI's Secure MCP Tunnel runs a small client on your PC that starts the server (stdio command above) and forwards ChatGPT's requests to it, without opening an inbound port; you then add a custom MCP server in ChatGPT with Tunnel as the connection. It needs an OpenAI platform API key and a ChatGPT plan or workspace that allows custom MCP servers. The tool results then pass through OpenAI's service, like any ChatGPT conversation.

Claude Code, LM Studio, Cline and other clients

The installer registers Claude Code (%USERPROFILE%\.claude.json), LM Studio (%USERPROFILE%\.lmstudio\mcp.json) and Cline as well. For Claude Code by hand:

claude mcp add --scope user p6mcp -- "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\P6 MCP\p6mcp-server.exe"

Any other client that starts stdio servers takes the mcpServers snippet above. Clients that need HTTP can use the local HTTP transport. From the command line (the installer uses the same commands):

& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\P6 MCP\p6mcp-server.exe" clients list
& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\P6 MCP\p6mcp-server.exe" clients register cursor

Tools

58 tools: 37 read-only (11 of them in the Basic profile), 2 that write a file, 18 write tools (off by default; a dry run, then your confirmation; a backup first) and 1 that changes the app's own settings. Generated from the code by tools/gen_docs.py.

Projects and structure

Activities and relationships

Critical path and float

Schedule quality

Progress and reporting

Comparison, what-if and risk

XER files

Edits (off by default)

Backups, log and diagnostics

Skill shop

Compared with XER-only MCP servers

Several MCP servers read Primavera P6 XER files; some can also edit an XER and export a new one to import back into P6. MCP for Primavera P6 works on the P6 Professional database itself, and reads XER files too.

"Varies" means some XER servers do it and others do not: check the one you are looking at.

Safety

• Tool profiles: Basic (11 read-only tools, suited to small local models) or Full (all 58).
• Writes are off by default. With the Full profile and "Allow write operations", every write takes two calls: a dry run that shows the plan and returns a single-use confirmation token, then, after your explicit yes, the same call with that token. Deleting a project or an activity and restoring a backup also need a confirmation text. If the database changed in between, the write is refused.
• A backup is taken before every write (with a retention you choose), writes are refused while P6 is running, and every write goes to the edit log with its parameters.
• Writes are refused on a P6 schema version the server was not tested with, unless you trust it explicitly.
• These rules are enforced by the server itself on every call, not only by the Settings window.

Writes go straight to the database and bypass P6's own application logic. The server updates the audit fields (update_date, update_user, create_*) the way P6 does and never writes planned, early or late dates or float: close P6 before writing, then open it and press F9. See SECURITY.md for the list of what the write tools can change.

Privacy

The server runs only on your PC: no cloud component, no telemetry. Its only network requests go to GitHub: the updates (releases of this repository), which you can turn off under Logs and updates, and the skill shop (reads of its public catalog when you open the Skill shop page or ask for it, at the first start of the Settings app for the core set, on Restore core skills, and with automatic updates on for newer skill versions), which you can turn off under Tools and safety (the core set then comes from the copy shipped with the app).

The data returned by the tools goes to the AI model your MCP client uses, which may be a cloud service. For confidential schedules, use a local model (for example in LM Studio).

P6 skills

P6 skills are ready-made workflows that chain the tools into one fixed report: weekly update review, schedule quality audit, safe update import, update integrity audit, schedule risk, delay what-if, baseline variance, Excel dashboard and more. They all come from the skill shop. At its first start the Settings app installs the core set from the shop (when GitHub cannot be reached, from the copy of the core set shipped with the app, updated from the shop later). Restore core skills (Skills or Skill shop page) installs the core set again: missing skills come back and edited ones get the shop's version. With automatic updates on (Logs and updates), the tray app also installs newer shop versions of your shop skills, except the ones you edited here: those show Update available on the Skill shop page, and Update asks before replacing your changes.

Most skills need the Full tool profile (the import also needs writes). MCP clients > Install skills writes each one as an Agent Skills folder p6-<name> (a SKILL.md and its reference files); the client's AI uses a skill when your request matches its description, and Claude Code also runs it as /p6-<name>:

Update skills refreshes them after an update or a change of the tool settings; Remove skills (and uninstalling) deletes only the files the app wrote. From the command line:

& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\P6 MCP\p6mcp-server.exe" clients skills install --detected

The server also offers them as MCP prompts: Claude Desktop lists them in the + menu, VS Code as /mcp.p6mcp.<name>, Claude Code as /mcp__p6mcp__<name>. Claude Desktop has no skills folder: export a skill as a zip file (Skills > Export) and upload it in Claude Desktop's settings to add it as a skill.

The Skills page of the Settings app lists them with whether the current tool settings offer them and where they come from (Shop, Shop edited here, Yours). Turn a skill off, edit it, or add your own (New, or Copy to my skills to start from a shop skill): a name, a title, a description that says what it does and when to use it (clients pick a skill by it), inputs written as {input} in the instructions, the P6 tools to use, and up to 5 text reference files (checklists, thresholds, examples; never scripts). The P6 rules are appended to your instructions. The Instructions page shows the instructions every client receives when it connects; turn built-in lines off (the two-step write rule stays on) or add your own, such as "When you show an activity, write it as Activity ID - Activity name". Click Save, then Update skills on the MCP clients page, and restart the MCP client for the prompts.

Skill shop

The Skill shop page lists the P6 skills of the public catalog nizarhamza/p6-mcp-shop: the core set maintained with the app and the skills other users shared. Reading it needs no account; the app reads it only when you open the page or ask your AI client (tools p6_shop_search, p6_shop_get and p6_shop_install, Full profile; an install shows the whole skill first and needs your confirmation). Read a skill before installing it: it is instructions for the AI, and a skill that uses write tools can change your schedule once you confirm the change. Turn the shop off under Tools and safety.

To share one of your skills, select it on the Skills page and click Share on GitHub: the app copies the skill to the clipboard and your browser opens the GitHub share form; sign in if asked (a free GitHub account is needed), paste the skill in the Skill field and click Create (nothing is sent by the app itself). The maintainer reviews it and, once approved, a GitHub Action checks it and publishes it in the catalog under the Apache-2.0 license. Without a GitHub account, Export the skill to a zip file and send it; Import adds a zip (or any skill folder with a SKILL.md and text files) after you review it.

Local HTTP transport

By default each client starts its own server (stdio). Under Server you can switch to a local HTTP server, hosted by the notification area app, for clients that need HTTP or to share one server:

• listens on 127.0.0.1 only (http://127.0.0.1:<port>/mcp), with a port check;
• every request needs Authorization: Bearer <token>; the token lives in the Windows Credential Manager (shown masked, copy, regenerate);
• Host and Origin headers are checked to block DNS rebinding.

Excel dashboard

Ask for example "export the dashboard of DEMO-A to D:\Reports\DEMO-A.xlsx" (Full profile). The template is built into the server: p6_export_dashboard reads the last F9 and writes a finished workbook (values and native Excel charts, no formulas), so press F9 in P6 first. An existing file is replaced only when you say so (overwrite).

Options: baseline (default the project baseline), baseline_dates (planned or current), milestones (Activity IDs), near_critical_days (10: Delayed beyond it, At risk up to it), period (month or week), prepared_by, revision, and for this export only company (shown in the sidebar) and colors ("primary,accent" in hex). Slip and variance are in working days, as P6 variance columns.

XER-only mode

Under Database > Data source, choose XER files only, add one or more XER files and click Load and check. The files are read into a private read-only copy; every read tool works on it. Load two updates of the same schedule to compare them: a Project ID already used by the first file gets a ~2 suffix.

FAQ

What is an MCP server for Primavera P6? MCP (Model Context Protocol) is the open standard AI assistants use to call tools. This server gives an assistant 58 tools that read and analyse Primavera P6 schedules, so you can ask questions in plain language and get answers computed from the schedule rather than guessed by the model.

Can the AI change my schedule? Only if you allow it. Writes are off by default; when on, each one is previewed in a dry run and applied only with a single-use token after your explicit yes, a backup is taken first, and P6 must be closed. Planned dates and float are never written: P6 computes them when you press F9.

Does my schedule leave my PC? The server runs locally and sends nothing anywhere. What the tools return goes to the AI model of your MCP client; with a cloud model that means its provider. For confidential projects use a local model, for example in LM Studio.

Which P6 versions and databases are supported? P6 Professional standalone (SQLite), tested with 25.12; other versions are read only until tested or trusted. XER files from P6 Professional 24.12 and from the server's own export. P6 EPPM and P6 Professional on SQL Server or Oracle are not supported.

Do I need P6 installed? Not for XER files: XER-only mode analyses them without P6 or a P6 database.

How does the DCMA 14-point check work? p6_health_check runs the 14 DCMA checks on the last F9, with the thresholds set in P6's schedule check settings for the project when they exist, else the DCMA defaults. The critical path test delays an activity in the server's CPM engine and runs only when that engine matches P6's dates. See the DCMA 14-point check guide.

Are the dates computed by the AI? No. Dates and float come from P6's last schedule run. What-if and risk use the server's CPM engine, and p6_cpm_validate shows how closely it matches P6's own dates on your project before you rely on it.

Which AI clients work? Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, LM Studio and Cline are registered automatically; any MCP client that starts stdio servers or speaks Streamable HTTP works too. ChatGPT works through Codex or OpenAI's Secure MCP Tunnel (see ChatGPT).

Does it run on macOS or Linux? No. P6 Professional is a Windows program and the server is built for Windows 10 and 11.

Is it free? Yes, under the Apache License 2.0.

Tested versions

Troubleshooting

• "No database configured": open MCP for Primavera P6 Settings, select a database, Test connection, Use this database, Save.
• A tool is "not available in the Basic profile": switch to Full under Tools and safety, Save, restart the client.
• The client does not show the tools: restart it completely (also from the notification area), then check MCP clients: the entry may need Repair. Ask the assistant to run p6_diagnose.
• "P6 (PM.exe) is running": close P6 before a write.
• "Unknown P6 schema": your P6 version was not tested; reads work. You can trust the schema under Database (after a backup).
• HTTP server error: Server shows the last error (often a port in use: pick another one).
• Logs: Logs and updates > Open log folder (%LOCALAPPDATA%\P6MCP\logs). Settings live in %APPDATA%\P6MCP\config.json; backups, edit log and XER copies in %LOCALAPPDATA%\P6MCP.

Versions 1.x were called P6 MCP: the install folder, the program names and the settings folders keep that name, so updates and client registrations carry over.

Uninstall

Windows Settings > Apps > MCP for Primavera P6. The uninstaller removes the program, the p6mcp entries from your MCP clients and the startup entry. Your settings, backups and logs are kept.

Development

python -m venv .venv
.venv\Scripts\pip install -e .[dev]
.venv\Scripts\python -m pytest -q
.venv\Scripts\python -m p6mcp.settings_app      # Settings window
.venv\Scripts\python tools\gen_docs.py          # tool tables of README.md and site/llms.txt

Tests run on a synthetic P6 database and synthetic XER files built by the tests (tests/fixtures/make_db.py). Never commit a real schedule, database, XER file or log. Building the installer and releasing: docs/RELEASING.md. The landing site is in site/.

To contribute, start with an issue: see CONTRIBUTING.md and the code of conduct. Accessibility: ACCESSIBILITY.md.

License

Apache License 2.0. Copyright 2026 Nizar Hamza. See NOTICE.

Primavera and P6 are trademarks of Oracle. This project is not affiliated with or endorsed by Oracle.