computer-use-mcp v5.0.0-preview

MCP server for Claude Code (and any MCP client): control desktop apps
through their accessibility tree plus screenshots.

What's new in v5.0.0-preview

A preview of v5.0: the settings panel, and everything it needed (what was
planned as v4.8). A preview build takes the finished v5.0.0 release when it
comes out; it isn't offered to anyone by the updater itself
(plan,
guide,
all commits).

• One panel for every setting (computer-use-mcp settings,
  Ctrl+Alt+J, or decide setup="open"): 187 settings in 22 groups, each with
  its help, its default and a reset, search, "changed from default", light,
  dark and automatic themes in Material Design 3 style with an accent colour.
  A test fails when a setting has no entry in the panel. Its address is the
  same every time (panel.port, a token in a file only you can read); it
  listens only while it is open. It sends its schema once and only the
  values that differ from the defaults after that (45 KB a request to 0.2 KB).
• The agent never uses it. A window whose title says "Zero panel
  [private]" is refused by every tool. Settings that limit the agent or the
  updates ask you to confirm, in the page and in the server; secrets are
  written but never sent back.
• Previews: how the pointer glides (from the program's own path maker),
  how the overlay's border, label and colours fit, what a picture costs in
  tokens.
• Profiles (Low tokens, Balanced, Best quality, Showcase, and your own),
  the tool list with what each tool costs, the apps report, the
  audit log, the settings file as text (checked as a whole, secrets
  covered) and import and export as TOML.
• Update controls: look every 5 minutes or more (check_every_mins) or
  never, stable or pre-release channel, pin a version, skip a version. A look
  asks GitHub only "has it changed?" (the tag is kept once a look is over);
  GitHub's "slow down" is waited out for an hour. The program an update
  replaces is kept, and Go back / update --rollback puts it in place.
  The panel shows when it last looked, what waits and its notes.
• One button to add it to the agents you use: the Connect page and
  computer-use-mcp install for Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Cursor
  and VS Code. Only its own entry is written, the rest of each file stays in
  its own order with its comments, a .bak copy is kept, a file with
  mistakes is left alone, and the program is kept at
  ~/.computer-use/bin so it stays where the agents look. Newer Claude Code
  keeps the name computer-use; the program is then added as
  zero-use-computer.
• A shortcut that opens the panel: on the desktop and with the system's
  apps (a .desktop file on Linux, a small app on a Mac, a .lnk on
  Windows), made, made again or taken away from the panel's Desktop shortcut
  page or with computer-use-mcp shortcut. It starts
  computer-use-mcp settings, which serves the panel on its own port and
  opens it in the browser, or shows the one already open. Only shortcuts the
  program made are ever removed. settings now serves the panel even when no
  browser can be opened, and prints its address.
• A guide inside the panel: nine short pages.
• More to turn: the pointer's trail, lean_strength and breathe
  (and how strong each is), and the real mouse's mouse_speed,
  mouse_overshoot and mouse_jitter. The real mouse travels only the last
  stretch of a reach, so mouse_overshoot (0 by default, as before) decides
  how often a long reach comes in a touch past its target.
• A reset leaves no empty section in the settings file.

Install

Windows: download computer-use-mcp-windows-x64.zip, extract it to a
permanent folder (for example C:\Tools\computer-use-mcp), then double-click
install.cmd (or run claude mcp add --scope user computer-use -- C:\Tools\computer-use-mcp\computer-use-mcp.exe serve).
Check with claude mcp list.

As a plugin (Customize ▸ Plugins ▸ Upload local plugin): upload the full
computer-use-mcp-<os>.zip. If "Upload failed" appears and a computer-use plugin is
already installed, remove the old one first, then upload again.
Only if the full zip is refused for containing a program, use the small
computer-use-plugin-<os>.zip (about 50 KB, no program inside on purpose): first run
install.cmd -NoRegister (Windows) / ./install.sh --no-register from the full zip,
which copies the program to ~/.computer-use/bin; then upload the plugin zip.

macOS / Linux: download your platform's zip, extract it, run ./install.sh.
macOS needs Accessibility and Screen Recording permission for the app that runs Claude Code.

Every zip contains the binary, the installers, docs/CONNECT.md (Claude Code, Claude Desktop,
Codex, Cursor, VS Code, HTTP) and ready-to-copy configs in examples/.
The binaries are not code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen may ask you to confirm.

Full Changelog: v4.0.1...v5.0.0-preview