chargehand

Name: chargehand
Author: Egoushka

by Egoushkaversion 0.19.13i★ –iRuns on your computer

Registry nameio.github.Egoushka/chargehand

Install

Overview

Description from the maker (original English)

Runs coding-agent workers on a codebase question; every claim in the answer carries evidence.

PopNx MCP’s three pillars

These three are never merged into one score: opinions, measurements and popularity are different things.

User voiceiNo reviews yetReviews open together with accounts in a later step
Our basic checksi1 of 1 passedChecked from public information; code not scanned yet
UsageiNot measured yet★ –

What you can do with it

We have not written a plain-language summary for this one yet. Below are the facts we read from the registry.

Connection: Runs on your computer
Transport: stdio
Category: Developer tools
You need to fill in: CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN, ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

Install

Pick the AI app you use, then copy the settings.

Before you install

Basic checks: 1 of 1 passed
Runs on your computer with your user’s permissions (files, network, apps).
You fill in yourself: CHARGEHAND_RUNTIME, CHARGEHAND_PROFILE, CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN, ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

Values marked secret are keys to your account. Never share them or paste them into a chat.

Which app do you use?

ClaudeClaude CodeCursorVS CodeChatGPT

Pick your app above. We remember it, so next time the button says “Install in …”.

Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config, and paste this into claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "chargehand": {
      "command": "dnx",
      "args": [
        "Chargehand",
        "--yes",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "CHARGEHAND_RUNTIME": "your-value",
        "CHARGEHAND_PROFILE": "your-value",
        "CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN": "your-value",
        "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Run this in your terminal

claude mcp add chargehand --env CHARGEHAND_RUNTIME=your-value --env CHARGEHAND_PROFILE=your-value --env CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN=your-value --env ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your-value -- dnx Chargehand --yes mcp

Fill in the empty values before running it.

Open in Cursor

Or copy the settings yourself

Paste into .cursor/mcp.json in your project, or ~/.cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "chargehand": {
      "command": "dnx",
      "args": [
        "Chargehand",
        "--yes",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "CHARGEHAND_RUNTIME": "your-value",
        "CHARGEHAND_PROFILE": "your-value",
        "CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN": "your-value",
        "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.

Open in VS Code

Or copy the settings yourself

Paste into .vscode/mcp.json in your project

{
  "servers": {
    "chargehand": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "dnx",
      "args": [
        "Chargehand",
        "--yes",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "CHARGEHAND_RUNTIME": "your-value",
        "CHARGEHAND_PROFILE": "your-value",
        "CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN": "your-value",
        "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.

This one runs on your computer, and ChatGPT can only connect to servers on the internet. Pick another app.

Your choice stays on this device in a cookie; no account needed.

Values you fill in

CHARGEHAND_RUNTIME env
Worker runtime, when both or neither of claude and opencode are on PATH.
CHARGEHAND_PROFILE env
A profile/v1 file for budgets, prices, memory or a pinned runtime version.
CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN secret env
Claude Code subscription token from claude setup-token. Set this or ANTHROPIC_API_KEY.
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY secret env
Anthropic API key for Claude Code workers. Set this or CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN.

These settings are generated from the maker’s registry entry. If the README says otherwise, follow the README.

What it can do

Runs on your computer; the tool list appears in your AI app after you install it.

Basic checksi

We check information anyone can see; we have not read the code. Checks that do not apply are left out of the count. · Checked Nov 7, 2026

✓ Pass
Maker matches the repo
The registry name was verified with the GitHub account Egoushka, which owns the repo
… Not checked yet
Still maintained
We have not read this repo from GitHub yet
… Not checked yet
Has a licence
We have not read this repo from GitHub yet
– Not applicable
Endpoint responds
This one runs on your computer; there is no internet endpoint
– Not applicable
Sign-in with OAuth
Runs on your computer and uses local settings instead
… Not checked yet
No hidden instructions in tool descriptions
Runs on your computer; we can only read tool lists from internet endpoints

Compared with others in Developer toolsi

More stars than 0% of the other 1396 servers in this category
Published to the registry more recently than 99% of the other 1396 servers in this category
Basic checks equal to or better than 100% of the other 1396 servers in this category

Compared with every active server in this category in the registry. Stars count only when the publisher owns the repo.

Common questions

Is chargehand safe?

It passed 1 of 1 applicable basic checks. We have not read the code. Before adding a key or token, see what access the server asks for and use a key with only the permissions you need.

What keys or codes does it need?

You need to fill in: CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN, ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

Does it run on my computer or in the cloud?

It runs on your computer. Your AI app starts it when needed, and data does not pass through the maker’s servers (unless it calls an online service itself).

Is it still maintained?

The GitHub repo last changed –, and the latest version (0.19.13) reached the registry today.

Which apps can use it?

Apps that support MCP, such as Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor and VS Code. You also need .NET on your computer.

What can I use instead?

In the same category: GitHub, Desktop Commander, Cloudflare MCP

Alternatives

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README from the maker

Open the README

Copied from the maker’s repo as written. PopNx MCP has not reviewed or endorsed it. HTML, images and scripts are removed. Links lead off this site.

chargehand

Ask a question about your code from Claude Code or any MCP client and get back claims that each cite a file at a pinned commit, checked before you see them.

Active. I work on it this month.

flowchart LR

caller[You or a program CLI · HTTP · MCP] -- request --> intake[Intake picks an action] intake -- answer or split --> workers[Agent sessions Claude Code or OpenCode] intake -- ask · deny · improve --> result workers -- claims + citations --> resolver[Evidence resolver checks each citation] resolver --> result[Typed result claims · open questions · cost] workers -. code preset, driven batches .-> branch[Tested branch or draft pull request] resolver --> log[(Run log tokens · cache · prompts)]

Why

Coding agents answer in prose. A program that calls one needs something it can check: claims tied to files at a commit, diffs, session messages or the caller's own inputs, plus a confidence and the exact prompts behind the answer. I also wanted the control flow (the task graph, budgets, retries, parallelism) in code rather than in a prompt, so each agent's context stays small, cached and disposable.

What it does

Answers with checked citations. You ask a question about a repository; chargehand runs a read-only agent session (Claude Code or OpenCode) on a clone at a pinned commit and returns typed JSON (result/v1): claims, open questions, a confidence, the cost and the prompts behind it. A *citation* is a file and line range, a commit, a diff range, a session message or an input id. Each one must exist at the pinned commit before a claim leaves its worker; the worker gets one repair turn, and claims that still fail move to open questions.

You reach it as an MCP server (stdio or HTTP), an HTTP API or a CLI. Presets (default, cheap, thorough, strict, draft, review) set the tools, the token and dollar budgets and whether a question may be split into 2 to 4 read-only subtasks.

Also in the box, each with its own guide:

A code preset and driven batches that write a tested branch or a draft pull request in a sandbox (Writing a branch, Driven sessions).
/chargehand:change, a Claude Code plugin command: one prompt to a reviewed change on a local branch (the change command).
An operator console in the browser (Web UI).
*Prompt CI*, which gates prompt and preset changes on paired evals; the run log records tokens, cache hits, cost and the prompt chain of every call (Prompt CI).

Not here: an agent loop of its own, direct calls to model providers, a model gateway, a memory store (it uses yours over MCP), a hosted service. A citation that resolves points at something that exists; checking that the cited text supports the claim is planned, not built (roadmap).

[!WARNING]

Before 1.0. The images have no latest tag: pin an exact version and read the changelog before you upgrade.

Quick start

Ask Claude Code a question about your own repository, with no clone of chargehand.

You need:

the .NET 10 SDK (dotnet --version prints 10.x), which provides dnx;
Claude Code 2.1.283 on PATH (claude --version), signed in (run claude once);
a token for the workers: claude setup-token prints one for your subscription (an ANTHROPIC_API_KEY works too and bills per token).

claude mcp add chargehand -e CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN=<token> -- dnx Chargehand@0.19.4 --yes -- mcp

Replace 0.19.4 with the newest version of the Chargehand package on nuget.org and pin it: the package changes before 1.0. In a Claude Code session in the repository you want to ask about, say: *use chargehand to find where retries are decided, and cite the code.* The answer lists claims, each with its file and lines. Other editors and agents (Cursor, VS Code, Codex, Gemini CLI and more) are in Connect your editor or agent.

From a clone, to ask one question about chargehand itself without MCP: it needs the .NET 10 SDK, git and the same Claude Code, signed in. With no profile, the workers use the CLI's own login and default model.

git clone https://github.com/Egoushka/chargehand.git && cd chargehand

cat > request.json <<EOF { "contract_version": "request/v1", "text": "Where does a split node decide whether to fork the first node's session? Cite the code.", "context": { "interactive": false, "preset": "default", "repository": { "path": "$PWD", "commit": "$(git rev-parse HEAD)" } } } EOF dotnet run --project src/Chargehand.Cli -- run < request.json

It prints result/v1 on stdout: claims with citations, open questions, a confidence and the cost. The quickstart guide explains every field, OpenCode instead of Claude Code, and what to do when a run fails.

How it works

Intake reads the request (request/v1) and writes a *Task Spec*: one action, answer, split, ask, deny or improve. The last three stop the run with questions, a reason or a better request. A preset can also stop a run for approval above a risk or cost estimate.
Workers are ordinary Claude Code or OpenCode sessions on a clone of the repository at the pinned commit, inside the directories the profile allows. chargehand never calls a model provider itself.
The evidence resolver checks every citation against git, the session and the request. The invariant: no claim reaches the result unless its citations resolved.
The result (result/v1) carries the claims, the open questions, usage and the prompt chain. The same record goes to the run log, which show, cache and routes read.

Writing runs follow the same path with a sandboxed worker: the code preset verifies a branch with the repository's tests, and driven batches add an egress allowlist, a runner that alone holds the Docker socket, and a check gate before a pull request opens. ARCHITECTURE.md maps the code.

Numbers

	Value	Source
Citations that resolved, read-only runs	50 of 50 (phase 3), 99 of 99 (phase 4)	benchmarks
Cost of a split against one plain session	1.53× ($0.00754 vs $0.00492 a run) for a blind score of 0.967 vs 0.950	phase 4
Deliberate prompt regressions Prompt CI blocked	1 of 2, and only after the score added completeness	Prompt CI
Quality benchmark on public repositories	13 tasks over 4 pinned repositories; no real run yet	benchmark
Users	1, me	counted

Lessons

Parallelism did not pay on the questions I measured. Splits resolved every citation but cost half again as much for a small score gain, so the shipped default, review and draft presets allow no split (ADR 0017).
A score that measures what run-time checks already enforce catches nothing. The first Prompt CI score measured grounding, which the resolver already forces, so a prompt that dropped a third of the claims passed. The score now multiplies grounding by completeness (ADR 0019).

Docs

Overview: what it is, how a run works, what it leaves out, status
What it does, and how we know: each capability with its status and evidence
Quickstart · Install with Docker Compose: from a clone, or from the release images
Use it from an MCP client · Run the HTTP server · Web UI
Writing a branch · Driven writing sessions · Several runners
The change command: the Claude Code plugin
Memory and services · Prompt CI · Benchmark
Reference: commands, routes, presets, contracts, profile fields, environment variables
Architecture · Decisions · Changelog · Roadmap
Contributing · Security · Apache-2.0 license

chargehand

Overview

PopNx MCP’s three pillars

What you can do with it

Install

Before you install

Values you fill in

What it can do

Basic checksi

Maker matches the repo

Still maintained

Has a licence

Endpoint responds

Sign-in with OAuth

No hidden instructions in tool descriptions

Compared with others in Developer toolsi

Common questions

Alternatives

GitHub

Desktop Commander

Cloudflare MCP

README from the maker

chargehand

Why

What it does

Quick start

How it works

Numbers

Lessons

Docs