Install IMAP mailbox in VS Code

What you need first

• VS Code, installed.
• Node.js, which gives the npx command the server starts with.
• Your own values for YOUR_IMAP_HOST,YOUR_IMAP_USER,YOUR_IMAP_PASSWORD.

Steps

1. In your project, create .vscode/mcp.json, or open it. For every project, run MCP: Open User Configuration from the Command Palette instead.
2. Add this block. If the file already has servers, add only the entry inside it.

{
  "servers": {
    "imap-mcp": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@ni-c/[email protected]"],
      "env": { "IMAP_HOST": "YOUR_IMAP_HOST", "IMAP_USER": "YOUR_IMAP_USER", "IMAP_PASSWORD": "YOUR_IMAP_PASSWORD" }
    }
  }
}

3. Replace YOUR_IMAP_HOST,YOUR_IMAP_USER,YOUR_IMAP_PASSWORD with your own values.
4. Save the file and choose Start above the server's entry, or run MCP: List Servers. Its tools appear in Copilot Chat's agent mode.

Check it worked

Ask VS Code: List the tools of imap-mcp.

If it does not start

spawn npx ENOENT

Node.js is not on the PATH that VS Code sees. Install it, or write the full path of npx in the config.

The server starts, but its tools fail

A YOUR_… placeholder is still in the config, or its value is wrong.

Nothing changes after a restart

The file is not valid JSON any more. Look for a missing comma where the block was added.