Get Claude working with FrameworX — from first install to productive AI sessions in minutes.
AI Integration | How-to Guide
The FrameworX AI Designer experience has two components that work as a pair:
The Claude Skill is a lightweight file (SKILL.md) that loads into Claude at the start of every session. It gives Claude baseline FrameworX knowledge and trained instincts — build-don't-plan discipline, schema-then-write patterns, trust-tool-results rules. Without the skill, Claude works but starts every session without context. With it, Claude behaves like an experienced FrameworX engineer from the first message.
The MCP for Designer connects Claude directly to the live Designer IDE. Every tool call produces immediate visual changes — tags, displays, alarms, and devices appear in real time while the engineer watches. 16 tools cover the full solution lifecycle from create_solution through start_runtime. Without MCP, Claude can only talk about FrameworX. With MCP, Claude can build.
Together, the skill conditions Claude's behavior before the first tool fires, and MCP gives Claude the tools to act on that knowledge. The result is an AI co-pilot that builds solutions correctly from the first response.
Note: MCP for Runtime is a separate integration that connects AI to running solutions for live data queries, dashboards, and troubleshooting. This page covers the Designer integration — the build-time experience. See AI MCP for Runtime Connector for runtime setup.
| Component | Purpose | Install Time |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Skill | Prepares Claude for FrameworX sessions | 2 minutes |
| MCP for Designer | Connects Claude to the live Designer IDE | 3 minutes |
| FrameworX Designer (v10.13+) | The IDE that Claude controls | Download |
Requires a Claude Pro, Max, Team, or Enterprise plan.
The Claude Skill is a portable SKILL.md file that follows the Agent Skills open standard. Install it once — it activates automatically whenever you mention FrameworX, SCADA, HMI, or related topics.
frameworx-industrial-platform.skillmkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/FrameworX-skill
cp SKILL.md ~/.claude/skills/FrameworX-skill/SKILL.md
Claude Code discovers skills automatically — no restart needed.
The same SKILL.md works with any compatible agent:
| Agent | Skill Location |
|---|---|
| GitHub Copilot | .github/skills/FrameworX-skill/SKILL.md |
| Cursor | .cursor/skills/FrameworX-skill/SKILL.md |
| OpenAI Codex CLI | .codex/skills/FrameworX-skill/SKILL.md |
Two connection modes depending on your setup. Pick the one that matches.
Use this when Claude Code and FrameworX Designer run on the same Windows machine. This is the simplest setup — Claude Code launches DesignerMCP directly as a subprocess.
Prerequisites:
Configuration:
Add to your Claude Code MCP settings:
{
"mcpServers": {
"FrameworX-Designer": {
"command": "<ProductPath>\\DesignerMCP.exe",
"transport": "stdio"
}
}
}
Replace <ProductPath> with your FrameworX installation directory. Example:
C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Tatsoft\\FrameworX\\fx-10\\MCP\\DesignerMCP.exe
Use double backslashes in the path.
Use this when Claude runs on a different machine than Designer, or when using Claude Desktop App or Claude.ai (the web chat interface). This mode uses HTTP with Server-Sent Events (SSE), which works across machines, across operating systems, and even across VMs.
How it works: DesignerMCPHttp runs as a lightweight HTTP server on the Windows machine alongside Designer. Claude connects to it over the network using mcp-remote, an open-source MCP-to-HTTP bridge.
Prerequisites:
mcp-remote bridge)Step 1 — Start DesignerMCPHttp on the Windows machine
Open a command prompt and navigate to the MCP directory:
cd "<ProductPath>\DesignerMCPHttp"
dotnet DesignerMCPHttp.dll
This starts the HTTP/SSE server on port 4000. Leave this running — it must be started before Claude.
Important: The MCP server must be running before you launch Claude Desktop. If you restart the server, restart Claude Desktop as well.
Step 2 — Configure Claude
For Claude Desktop App, edit claude_desktop_config.json:
%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json{
"mcpServers": {
"DesignerMCPHttp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"mcp-remote",
"http://127.0.0.1:4000/sse"
]
}
}
}
For Claude.ai (web interface with Claude in Chrome), the same HTTP endpoint works — configure http://127.0.0.1:4000/sse as the MCP server URL.
Step 3 — Restart Claude Desktop
Close Claude Desktop completely (use Task Manager to ensure it is fully closed) and relaunch.
If Designer runs on a different machine than Claude (including a Windows VM accessed from a Mac host):
127.0.0.1 with the IP address of the Windows machine running Designer127.0.0.1 works from the Mac sideExample for a Designer running on 192.168.1.50:
{
"mcpServers": {
"DesignerMCPHttp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"mcp-remote",
"http://192.168.1.50:4000/sse"
]
}
}
}
?? Security Authorization
After restarting Claude Desktop with MCP installed:
- Go to Settings → Connectors
- Find FrameworX-Designer (or DesignerMCPHttp) in the list
- Click Configure and set Tool Permissions to Always Allow
Without this, Claude will prompt for authorization on every tool call. Longer responses that use many tools may fail if permissions are not set to Always Allow.
Start a new Claude conversation and try:
Without MCP (skill only): Ask "How do I set up FrameworX MCP tools?" — Claude should provide step-by-step instructions from the skill, not a web search.
With MCP connected: Ask "Create a new FrameworX solution with a bottling line" — Claude should immediately load the New Solution skill and start building, not spend a response outlining a plan.
If Claude is web-searching for basic FrameworX setup information, the skill may not be enabled. Check Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
If Claude says MCP tools are not connected, verify the server is running and check your config file for typos.
| Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Claude web-searches for FrameworX basics | Skill not loaded | Check Settings → Capabilities → Skills |
| "MCP tools not connected" | Server not running or config error | Verify DesignerMCP/DesignerMCPHttp is running, check config JSON |
| Tools timeout or fail | Permissions not set | Set tool permissions to Always Allow |
| HTTP connection refused | Firewall or wrong IP | Open port 4000, verify IP address |
| "Cannot connect" on Mac → Windows VM | Port forwarding not configured | Configure VM port forwarding for port 4000 |
| Node.js errors with mcp-remote | Node.js not installed | Install from nodejs.org |
Claude Desktop (Windows): %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
Claude Desktop (macOS): ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Claude Code skills: ~/.claude/skills/FrameworX-skill/SKILL.md
Questions or feedback: