Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for HED (Hierarchical Event Descriptor) validation. Provides tools for validating HED strings, TSV files, and
Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for HED (Hierarchical Event Descriptor) validation. Provides tools for validating HED strings, TSV files, and sidecar files through a standardized MCP interface. Exposed over MCP by the hed mcp mcp server, that capability becomes something an assistant can invoke while it works, not something you go and do afterwards.
Everything the assistant can do here goes through one of these:
validateHedString — Validates HED tag stringsvalidateHedTsv — Validates TSV files with HEDvalidateHedSidecar — Validates HED sidecar JSON filesgetFileFromPath — Reads files from filesystemPrerequisites — 1. Node.js 22+: Download from nodejs.org 2. Basic understanding of HED: Familiarity with HED concepts is helpful 3You will need one environment variable: DEBUG. Keep credentials in your client's env block or a secrets manager rather than in a file you might commit.
Before using the HED MCP Server, ensure you have: 1. Node.js 22+: Download from nodejs.org 2. Basic understanding of HED: Familiarity with HED concepts is helpful 3. MCP-compatible client: Such as the MCP Inspector or custom client
Installation goes through your MCP client rather than a global install: point it at @modelcontextprotocol/inspector on npm and it is fetched when the client starts. The copy-paste blocks for Claude Desktop, Claude Code and Cursor are further down this page.
Among the file and storage access options, the useful question is rarely "what can it do" but "what does it cost you to run" — permissions, credentials, and how much of your context its toolset consumes. Hed MCP's toolset — validateHedString, validateHedTsv, validateHedSidecar and 2 more — is a fair guide to whether it matches your workflow. It is maintained by hed-standard; worth a glance at recent repository activity before you build anything load-bearing on it.
This entry was verified against Hed MCP's own documentation before publication; SyncDev keeps the directory reviewed rather than auto-generated.
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| validateHedString | Validates HED tag strings |
| validateHedTsv | Validates TSV files with HED |
| validateHedSidecar | Validates HED sidecar JSON files |
| getFileFromPath | Reads files from filesystem |
| Prerequisites | 1. **Node.js 22+**: Download from [nodejs.org](https://nodejs.org/) 2. **Basic understanding of HED**: Familiarity with HED concepts is helpful 3. **MCP-compatible client**: Such as the MCP Inspector or custom client |
{
"mcpServers": {
"hed": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/inspector"],
"env": {
"DEBUG": "your-value"
}
}
}
}Add to claude_desktop_config.json, then restart Claude Desktop.
Before using the HED MCP Server, ensure you have: 1. Node.js 22+: Download from nodejs.org 2. Basic understanding of HED: Familiarity with HED concepts is helpful 3. MCP-compatible client: Such as the MCP Inspector or custom client
| Variable | Description | Required |
|---|---|---|
| DEBUG | Configuration value read at startup. | Optional |
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