🚀 Claude Config Editor

🔥 The Problem

Claude Code stores EVERY conversation from EVERY project in a single JSON file.

After a few weeks of use:

• 📁 87 projects with full chat histories
• 💾 17 MB of JSON (yes, really)
• 🐌 Slow startup times (Claude has to parse that mess)
• 🤷 No easy way to clean it up (manual JSON editing? no thanks)

Sound familiar?

✅ The Solution

A beautiful web interface to:

• 🔍 See what's eating your disk (sorted by size)
• 🗑️ Delete old projects in bulk (top 10 biggest = 90% of bloat)
• 💾 Export before deleting (keep important conversations)
• 🔌 Manage MCP servers (no more JSON editing)
• 🛡️ Auto-backup everything (undo button for real life)

Works with both Claude Code AND Claude Desktop.

🎯 Why People Star This Repo

"My .claude.json was 23 MB. Deleted 50 old projects. Now it's 1.8 MB. Claude Code starts instantly now." - Actual result

"Finally! I can see my MCP servers without opening VSCode." - Reddit user

"I didn't even know this was a problem until I ran this tool." - HN comment

Translation: This tool solves a problem you didn't know you had, in 30 seconds, with zero risk.

📸 Screenshots

Overview Dashboard

Quick stats and health analysis at a glance

Project History Manager

See which projects are eating disk space, export or delete with one click

MCP Servers

Visual management of MCP server configurations

🚄 Quick Start

Three commands. Zero dependencies. Zero configuration.

git clone https://github.com/gagarinyury/claude-config-editor.git
cd claude-config-editor
python3 server.py

That's it. Opens at http://localhost:8765.

What Happens Next

1. Tool auto-detects your configs (Claude Code + Claude Desktop)
2. You select which one to edit
3. 30 seconds later your config is clean and fast

✨ Features That Make You Go "Finally!"

📊 Smart Analytics

See exactly what's taking up space:

• Config size (before/after)
• Projects ranked by size (biggest first)
• Instant health check ("Your config is bloated AF")

📁 Project History Manager

The killer feature:

• Export individual project histories before deletion (download as JSON)
• Bulk delete old projects (select top 10 = 90% space saved)
• Search & filter (find that old client project from 6 months ago)
• Sort by size/name/messages (find the bloat faster)

🔌 MCP Server Management

Because editing JSON manually is for masochists:

• Visual list of all MCP servers
• See command, args, env, working directory at a glance
• Add/remove servers with one click
• No more typos in JSON (you know what I'm talking about)

🎨 Beautiful Interface

• Dark theme (because your eyes matter)
• Real-time updates (see changes as you make them)
• Responsive (works on your tiny laptop screen)
• No installation required (Python stdlib only)

🔒 Safety First

• Auto-backup before every save (undo button for real life)
• Non-destructive (only changes what you tell it to)
• Local-only (zero network requests, zero data collection)
• Preview before save (see what you're about to do)

💡 Real-World Use Cases

"My Claude Code is slow"

→ Your config is probably huge. Click "Top 10 Largest", delete, save. Done in 30 seconds.

"I want to backup my conversations"

→ Go to Project History, click "💾 Export" on any project. Downloads JSON. Keep forever.

"I don't know which MCP servers I have"

→ Go to MCP Servers tab. See everything. No more cat ~/.claude.json | grep mcpServers.

"I messed up my config"

→ Restore from .claude.backup.json (created automatically before every save).

"I want to share my setup"

→ Export your config, share the JSON. Or just share this tool.

📖 How It Works (30 Second Tutorial)

Clean Up Project History

1. Open tool → Go to "Project History"
2. Click "Top 10 Largest" (selects 90% of bloat)
3. Review → Click "Delete Selected"
4. Click "💾 Save Changes"

Result: 17 MB → 732 KB (actual result from my config)

Export Before Delete

1. Find project in list
2. Click "💾 Export" (downloads JSON)
3. Now safe to delete (you have a backup)

Manage MCP Servers

View:   See all servers, their commands, args, env
Add:    Click "+ Add Server" → Enter name & command → Save
Remove: Find server card → Click "Delete" → Save

🛡️ Safety & Trust

• ✅ Auto-backup before every save (.claude.backup.json)
• ✅ Open source (read the code, it's 300 lines)
• ✅ No analytics (zero tracking, zero telemetry)
• ✅ Local-only (runs on localhost:8765, no internet required)
• ✅ Non-destructive (only modifies what you explicitly delete)

Worst case: Restore from .claude.backup.json. Best case: Your Claude is fast again.

🔧 Technical Details

Supported Configs

Requirements

• Python 3.7+ (no pip install, no virtualenv, just works)
• Claude Code or Claude Desktop (obviously)

How It Actually Works

1. Starts HTTP server on port 8765
2. Loads config via REST API (/api/config)
3. Web UI makes changes in memory
4. Click "Save" → writes to disk (with backup)
5. Restart Claude → changes take effect

Source: 300 lines of Python + 700 lines of HTML/CSS/JS. No frameworks. No build step. Just works.

🎓 FAQ (Questions You're About to Ask)

Q: Will this break my Claude setup? A: No. Automatic backups + only changes what you delete. Worst case: restore from .claude.backup.json.

Q: Why is my config so big? A: Claude stores EVERY message from EVERY project. 100 projects × 50 messages × 1 KB = 5 MB. Add paste content and it balloons to 10-20 MB.

Q: What happens to my conversations? A: Project history = conversation history. Deleting a project = deleting its chat history. Use "💾 Export" first if you want to keep it.

Q: Is my data sent anywhere? A: Nope. Runs on localhost:8765. Zero network requests. Check the code if you don't believe me.

Q: Can I undo a delete? A: Before save? Yes (just refresh). After save? Restore from .claude.backup.json (created automatically).

Q: Why not just edit the JSON manually? A: You could. Or you could use this and finish in 30 seconds instead of 30 minutes of JSON hell.

Q: Does this work with Claude Desktop? A: Yes! Auto-detects both Claude Code (.claude.json) and Claude Desktop (claude_desktop_config.json).

Q: Can I run this on Windows? A: Yes! Python is cross-platform. Works on macOS, Linux, Windows.

🤝 Contributing

Found a bug? Open an issue. Have an idea? Open an issue. Want to add a feature? Fork + PR.

git clone https://github.com/gagarinyury/claude-config-editor.git
cd claude-config-editor
# Make your changes
git commit -am "Add awesome feature"
git push origin main
# Open PR

Code style: Keep it simple. This is a tool, not a framework.

📜 License

MIT License - do whatever you want with this code.

🙏 Origin Story

I built this because:

1. My Claude Code was slow as hell
2. I checked .claude.json → 17 MB 😱
3. I opened it → 87 projects with full chat histories
4. I tried to clean it manually → JSON hell
5. I built this tool → 30 seconds later, 732 KB ✨

If this saved you time, star the repo! ⭐

It helps others discover the tool and validates my late-night coding session.

🗺️ Roadmap

• Search/filter in Raw JSON view
• Edit MCP server parameters inline (args, env, cwd)
• Import project history from JSON
• Config diff viewer (before/after)
• Automatic cleanup suggestions (AI-powered?)
• Export config as shareable template

Got ideas? Open an issue!

🌟 Star History

If you found this useful, star the repo! It helps others discover it.

💬 Support

• 🐛 Bugs: Open an issue
• 💡 Ideas: Open an issue
• 💬 Questions: Discussions
• ⭐ Show love: Star the