Content
# ATLAS: Task Management System
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[](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/)
[](https://github.com/cyanheads/atlas-mcp-server/releases)
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[](https://github.com/cyanheads/atlas-mcp-server)
ATLAS (Adaptive Task & Logic Automation System) is a task management system for LLM Agents.
Built on a three-tier architecture:
```
+------------------------------------------+
| PROJECT |
|------------------------------------------|
| id: string |
| name: string |
| description: string |
| status: string |
| urls?: Array<{title: string, url: string}>|
| completionRequirements: string |
| outputFormat: string |
| taskType: string |
| createdAt: string |
| updatedAt: string |
+----------------+-------------------------+
| |
| |
v v
+----------------------------------+ +----------------------------------+
| TASK | | KNOWLEDGE |
|----------------------------------| |----------------------------------|
| id: string | | id: string |
| projectId: string | | projectId: string |
| title: string | | text: string |
| description: string | | tags?: string[] |
| priority: string | | domain: string |
| status: string | | citations?: string[] |
| assignedTo?: string | | createdAt: string |
| urls?: Array<{title: string, | | |
| url: string}> | | updatedAt: string |
| tags?: string[] | | |
| completionRequirements: string | | |
| outputFormat: string | | |
| taskType: string | | |
| createdAt: string | | |
| updatedAt: string | | |
+----------------------------------+ +----------------------------------+
```
Implemented as a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, ATLAS allows LLM agents to interact with project management database, enabling managing projects, tasks, and knowledge items.
> **Important Version Note**: [Version 1.5.4](https://github.com/cyanheads/atlas-mcp-server/releases/tag/v1.5.4) is the last version that uses SQLite as the database. Version 2.0 and onwards has been completely rewritten to use Neo4j, which requires either:
>
> - Self-hosting using Docker (docker-compose included in repository)
> - Using Neo4j AuraDB cloud service: https://neo4j.com/product/auradb/
>
> Version 2.5.0 introduces a new 3-node system (Projects, Tasks, Knowledge) that replaces the previous structure.
## Table of Contents
- [Overview](#overview)
- [Features](#features)
- [Installation](#installation)
- [Configuration](#configuration)
- [Project Structure](#project-structure)
- [Tools](#tools)
- [Resources](#resources)
- [Database Backup and Restore](#database-backup-and-restore)
- [Examples](#examples)
- [Contributing](#contributing)
- [License](#license)
## Overview
ATLAS implements the Model Context Protocol (MCP), enabling standardized communication between LLMs and external systems through:
- **Clients**: Claude Desktop, IDEs, and other MCP-compatible clients
- **Servers**: Tools and resources for project, task, and knowledge management
- **LLM Agents**: AI models that leverage the server's management capabilities
### System Integration
The Atlas Platform integrates these components into a cohesive system:
- **Project-Task Relationship**: Projects contain tasks that represent actionable steps needed to achieve project goals. Tasks inherit context from their parent project while providing granular tracking of individual work items.
- **Knowledge Integration**: Both projects and tasks can be enriched with knowledge items, providing team members with necessary information and context.
- **Dependency Management**: Both projects and tasks support dependency relationships, allowing for complex workflows with prerequisites and sequential execution requirements.
- **Unified Search**: The platform provides cross-entity search capabilities, allowing users to find relevant projects, tasks, or knowledge based on various criteria.
## Features
### Project Management
- **Comprehensive Tracking:** Manage project metadata, statuses, and rich content (notes, links, etc.) with built-in support for bulk operations.
- **Dependency & Relationship Handling:** Automatically validate and track inter-project dependencies.
### Task Management
- **Task Lifecycle Management:** Create, track, and update tasks through their entire lifecycle.
- **Prioritization & Categorization:** Assign priority levels and categorize tasks with tags for better organization.
- **Dependency Tracking:** Establish task dependencies to create structured workflows.
### Knowledge Management
- **Structured Knowledge Repository:** Maintain a searchable repository of project-related information.
- **Domain Categorization:** Organize knowledge by domain and tags for easy retrieval.
- **Citation Support:** Track sources and references for knowledge items.
### Graph Database Integration
- **Native Relationship Management:** Leverage Neo4j's ACID-compliant transactions and optimized queries for robust data integrity.
- **Advanced Search & Scalability:** Perform property-based searches with fuzzy matching and wildcards while maintaining high performance.
### Unified Search
- **Cross-Entity Search:** Find relevant projects, tasks, or knowledge based on content, metadata, or relationships.
- **Flexible Query Options:** Support for case-insensitive, fuzzy, and advanced filtering options.
## Installation
1. Clone the repository:
```bash
git clone https://github.com/cyanheads/atlas-mcp-server.git
cd atlas-mcp-server
```
2. Install dependencies:
```bash
npm install
```
3. Configure Neo4j:
```bash
# Start Neo4j using Docker
docker-compose up -d
```
4. Build the project:
```bash
npm run build
```
## Configuration
### Environment Variables
Create a `.env` file based on `.env.example`:
```bash
# Neo4j Configuration
NEO4J_URI=bolt://localhost:7687
NEO4J_USER=neo4j
NEO4J_PASSWORD=password2
# Application Configuration
LOG_LEVEL=info # debug, info, warn, error
NODE_ENV=development # development, production
```
### MCP Client Settings
Add to your MCP client settings:
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"atlas": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/path/to/atlas-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
"env": {
"NEO4J_URI": "bolt://localhost:7687",
"NEO4J_USER": "neo4j",
"NEO4J_PASSWORD": "password2",
"LOG_LEVEL": "info",
"NODE_ENV": "production"
}
}
}
}
```
## Project Structure
The codebase follows a modular structure:
```
src/
├── config/ # Configuration management (index.ts)
├── index.ts # Main server entry point
├── mcp/ # MCP server implementation (server.ts)
│ ├── resources/ # MCP resource handlers (index.ts, types.ts, knowledge/, projects/, tasks/)
│ └── tools/ # MCP tool handlers (individual tool directories)
├── services/ # Core application services
│ └── neo4j/ # Neo4j database services (index.ts, driver.ts, backupRestoreService.ts, etc.)
├── types/ # Shared TypeScript type definitions (errors.ts, mcp.ts, tool.ts)
└── utils/ # Utility functions (logger.ts, errorHandler.ts, etc.)
```
_Note: ID generation logic is primarily located in `src/services/neo4j/helpers.ts`._
## Tools
ATLAS provides a comprehensive suite of tools for project, task, and knowledge management, callable via the Model Context Protocol.
### Project Operations
| Tool Name | Description | Key Arguments |
| :--------------------- | :--------------------------------------- | :---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `atlas_project_create` | Creates new projects (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), project details (`name`, `description`, `status`, `urls`, `completionRequirements`, `dependencies`, `outputFormat`, `taskType`), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
| `atlas_project_list` | Lists projects (all/details). | `mode` ('all'/'details'), `id` (for details), filters (`status`, `taskType`), pagination (`page`, `limit`), includes (`includeKnowledge`, `includeTasks`), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
| `atlas_project_update` | Updates existing projects (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), `id`, `updates` object, `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). Bulk mode uses `projects` array. |
| `atlas_project_delete` | Deletes projects (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), `id` (single) or `projectIds` array (bulk), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
### Task Operations
| Tool Name | Description | Key Arguments |
| :------------------ | :------------------------------------ | :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `atlas_task_create` | Creates new tasks (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), `projectId`, task details (`title`, `description`, `priority`, `status`, `assignedTo`, `tags`, `completionRequirements`, `dependencies`, `outputFormat`, `taskType`), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
| `atlas_task_update` | Updates existing tasks (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), `id`, `updates` object, `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). Bulk mode uses `tasks` array. |
| `atlas_task_delete` | Deletes tasks (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), `id` (single) or `taskIds` array (bulk), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
| `atlas_task_list` | Lists tasks for a specific project. | `projectId` (required), filters (`status`, `assignedTo`, `priority`, `tags`, `taskType`), sorting (`sortBy`, `sortDirection`), pagination (`page`, `limit`), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
### Knowledge Operations
| Tool Name | Description | Key Arguments |
| :----------------------- | :-------------------------------------------- | :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `atlas_knowledge_add` | Adds new knowledge items (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), `projectId`, knowledge details (`text`, `tags`, `domain`, `citations`), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). Bulk mode uses `knowledge` array. |
| `atlas_knowledge_delete` | Deletes knowledge items (single/bulk). | `mode` ('single'/'bulk'), `id` (single) or `knowledgeIds` array (bulk), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
| `atlas_knowledge_list` | Lists knowledge items for a specific project. | `projectId` (required), filters (`tags`, `domain`, `search`), pagination (`page`, `limit`), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
### Search Operations
| Tool Name | Description | Key Arguments |
| :--------------------- | :--------------------------------------- | :------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `atlas_unified_search` | Performs unified search across entities. | `value` (search term), `property` (optional), filters (`entityTypes`, `taskType`), options (`caseInsensitive`, `fuzzy`), pagination (`page`, `limit`), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
### Research Operations
| Tool Name | Description | Key Arguments |
| :-------------------- | :------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | :---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `atlas_deep_research` | Initiates a structured deep research process by creating a hierarchical plan within the Atlas knowledge base. | `projectId` (required), `researchTopic` (required), `researchGoal` (required), `scopeDefinition` (optional), `subTopics` (required array with questions and search queries), `researchDomain` (optional), `initialTags` (optional), `planNodeId` (optional), `responseFormat` (optional). |
### Database Operations
| Tool Name | Description | Key Arguments |
| :--------------------- | :-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `atlas_database_clean` | **Destructive:** Completely resets the database, removing all projects, tasks, and knowledge. | `acknowledgement` (must be set to `true` to confirm), `responseFormat` ('formatted'/'json', optional). |
## Resources
ATLAS exposes project, task, and knowledge data through standard MCP resource endpoints.
### Direct Resources
| Resource Name | Description |
| :------------------ | :--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `atlas://projects` | List of all projects in the Atlas platform with pagination support. |
| `atlas://tasks` | List of all tasks in the Atlas platform with pagination and filtering support. |
| `atlas://knowledge` | List of all knowledge items in the Atlas platform with pagination and filtering support. |
### Resource Templates
| Resource Name | Description |
| :--------------------------------------- | :--------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `atlas://projects/{projectId}` | Retrieves a single project by its unique identifier (`projectId`). |
| `atlas://tasks/{taskId}` | Retrieves a single task by its unique identifier (`taskId`). |
| `atlas://projects/{projectId}/tasks` | Retrieves all tasks belonging to a specific project (`projectId`). |
| `atlas://knowledge/{knowledgeId}` | Retrieves a single knowledge item by its unique identifier (`knowledgeId`). |
| `atlas://projects/{projectId}/knowledge` | Retrieves all knowledge items belonging to a specific project (`projectId`). |
## Database Backup and Restore
ATLAS provides functionality to back up and restore the Neo4j database content. The core logic resides in `src/services/neo4j/backupRestoreService.ts`.
### Automatic Backups (Note)
**Important:** The automatic backup functionality has been removed due to inefficiency. The call to `triggerBackgroundBackup` in `src/services/neo4j/driver.ts` is commented out with a note indicating it was removed. Please use the manual backup process described below to protect your data.
### Backup Process
- **Mechanism**: The backup process exports all `Project`, `Task`, and `Knowledge` nodes, along with their relationships, into separate JSON files.
- **Output**: Each backup creates a timestamped directory (e.g., `atlas-backup-YYYYMMDDHHMMSS`) within the configured backup path (default: `./atlas-backups/`). This directory contains `projects.json`, `tasks.json`, `knowledge.json`, and `relationships.json`.
- **Manual Backup**: You can trigger a manual backup using the provided script:
```bash
npm run db:backup
```
This command executes `scripts/db-backup.ts`, which calls the `exportDatabase` function.
### Restore Process
- **Mechanism**: The restore process first completely clears the existing Neo4j database. Then, it imports nodes and relationships from the JSON files located in the specified backup directory.
- **Warning**: Restoring from a backup is a destructive operation. **It will overwrite all current data in your Neo4j database.**
- **Manual Restore**: To restore the database from a backup directory, use the import script:
```bash
npm run db:import <path_to_backup_directory>
```
Replace `<path_to_backup_directory>` with the actual path to the backup folder (e.g., `./atlas-backups/atlas-backup-20250326120000`). This command executes `scripts/db-import.ts`, which calls the `importDatabase` function.
- **Relationship Handling**: The import process attempts to recreate relationships based on the `id` properties stored within the nodes during export. Ensure your nodes have consistent `id` properties for relationships to be restored correctly.
## Examples
The `examples/` directory contains practical examples demonstrating various features of the ATLAS MCP Server.
- **Backup Example**: Located in `examples/backup-example/`, this shows the structure and format of the JSON files generated by the `npm run db:backup` command. See the [Examples README](./examples/README.md) for more details.
- **Deep Research Example**: Located in `examples/deep-research-example/`, this demonstrates the output and structure generated by the `atlas_deep_research` tool. It includes a markdown file (`covington_community_grant_research.md`) summarizing the research plan and a JSON file (`full-export.json`) containing the raw data exported from the database after the research plan was created. See the [Examples README](./examples/README.md) for more details.
## Contributing
1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Commit your changes with a descriptive message
4. Push to the branch
5. Create a Pull Request
For bugs and feature requests, please create an issue.
## License
Apache License 2.0
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