Connect Cursor to local Mac files with MCP

Use a local stdio server when the files live on your Mac. Cursor launches the server from mcp.json; a cloud URL is a different connection. This guide uses Ganado Bridge’s downloadable local evaluation and keeps installation, authorization and a useful first task as separate checks.

By Ganado · Published 20 September 2026 · Reviewed against Bridge 0.1.0-preview.2 and the linked vendor documentation. The sample configuration is checked; a successful installation in your specific Cursor version still needs verification.

When this is worth adding

Start with the task, not with another extension. Bridge is intended for workflows where you want a specific file read, an edit checked against its current SHA-256, and a command result returned with its actual exit code. When your existing editor tools already complete that workflow clearly, another server may add complexity rather than value.

For a concrete evaluation, choose one disposable text file and a harmless terminal command. Do not begin with your entire home directory, customer documents or a production deployment. You want to establish whether the connection works before deciding whether it deserves more access.

1. Prepare the local agent

Open the Bridge installation page and download the versioned .mcpb archive. Verify its SHA-256 against the release checksum. For a client configured through a command, extract the archive as ZIP into a stable folder that you control. The bundle includes its JavaScript dependencies; there is no separate ripgrep installation requirement in this version. These are properties of the published Bridge release, not promises about every MCP package.

Bridge 0.1.0-preview.2 targets macOS and requires Node.js 22.22 or newer within the 22.x line, or Node 24.x. Run these commands from the extracted folder:

node --version
node bin/bridge.mjs doctor
node bin/bridge.mjs selftest
node bin/bridge.mjs config

doctor checks the environment. selftest performs a disposable MCP file/process test and cleans up its fixture. config prints the local connection using the Node executable and agent path on your machine. It does not change your editor configuration.

A command working in Terminal does not establish that a desktop client launches the same executable. Keep the absolute Node path printed by the configuration command. Node documents process.execPath as the executable’s absolute pathname; see the Node process reference.

2. Add one Cursor connection

Cursor documents a project configuration at .cursor/mcp.json and a user configuration at ~/.cursor/mcp.json. Its local command transport is stdio. Use one location for the evaluation, preserve other entries, and include the explicit transport type. See Cursor’s MCP documentation.

The shape below illustrates a single connection. Replace both example paths with the values from your local config command; these are not universal macOS installation paths.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ganado-bridge": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "/absolute/path/to/node",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/bridge/bin/bridge.mjs",
        "serve",
        "--allow-local-access"
      ]
    }
  }
}

The local-access flag is real consent to file and terminal capabilities, not an optional speed setting. Read the security model before enabling the connection. Project-scoped configuration controls where the client loads the server; it does not restrict an owner-level shell to the project folder.

Do not point this entry at the Bridge website. The downloadable agent is a local process, and the website is not a customer MCP endpoint. Also avoid configuring the same Bridge twice through both an imported bundle and a manual entry while diagnosing it.

3. Verify the first task, not just the green indicator

Ask the assistant to use the Bridge tools explicitly:

Use Ganado Bridge to confirm the connected host.
In a disposable folder I specify, create one new text file.
Read it, replace one marker using its current SHA-256,
and read it back. Do not change any existing project file.
Run printf BRIDGE_OK and report the actual exit code.

Inspect the tool results and the file yourself. A successful evaluation has the intended host, one new fixture, the expected changed marker and a completed command. A confident answer without those results is not verification. The public archive acceptance workflow tests the package separately; it does not certify your editor session.

4. Disconnect cleanly

Disable or remove only the Bridge MCP entry and stop its client-managed process. Keep the extracted folder until no active configuration references it. Then remove that evaluation folder and your disposable fixture. Bridge’s local metadata logs are a separate directory described in the installation guide; deleting the archive alone is not the same as removing every log.

What happens next?

For ENOENT, a disconnected server or a tool that starts but cannot edit, follow the macOS troubleshooting guide. When the first task works, compare the time saved on a real, authorized workflow. The commercial licence page gives the exact scope and current purchase availability; no subscription or cloud relay is included.

Try the local evaluation →