LABSCO SUMMARY

Safe by default, and the read-only mode is genuinely usable on its own.

Writes are disabled until you set the flag, so the first thing you can do is inventory and status — "which doors are unlocked, what is on in the basement, what are the setpoints" — with no risk of changing anything. Turn writes on and the allow and deny lists let you keep specific devices, the garage door being the obvious one, out of reach. Session memory is what makes the follow-up phrasing work rather than needing device ids every time.

What it is

A Control4 bridge that turns your project's rooms and devices into a tool surface, over STDIO for desktop clients or HTTP for scripts. It talks to the Director directly, validates every input, and enforces safety rules before anything changes state.

What you get

Rooms, devices and control types discovered by name, category and room — c4_list_rooms, c4_list_devices, c4_list_controls, c4_list_typenames
Lighting by name or level, including whole-room operations that avoid catching fans and outlets — c4_light_set_by_name, c4_light_set_level, c4_light_ramp, c4_room_lights_set, c4_light_get_state
Locks read and operated, with a state check before and after — c4_lock_get_state, c4_lock_lock, c4_lock_unlock, c4_lock_set_by_name
Thermostats: current state, target temperature, heat and cool setpoints, HVAC mode, fan mode and hold — c4_thermostat_get_state, c4_thermostat_set_target_f, c4_thermostat_set_heat_setpoint_f, c4_thermostat_set_cool_setpoint_f, c4_thermostat_set_hvac_mode, c4_thermostat_set_fan_mode, c4_thermostat_set_hold_mode
TVs and media: what is playing, remote sequences, launching apps, and per-room audio and video source selection — c4_tv_watch, c4_tv_off, c4_media_now_playing, c4_media_remote_sequence, c4_media_launch_app, c4_room_select_audio_device, c4_room_select_video_device
Scenes, macros, announcements and schedules — c4_macro_execute_by_name, c4_announcement_execute_by_name, c4_scheduler_list, c4_scheduler_set_enabled
Alarm state read, armed away or stay, and disarmed — c4_alarm_get_state, c4_alarm_arm_away, c4_alarm_arm_stay, c4_alarm_disarm
Session memory so follow-ups work: "now dim those lights" resolves against the previous target — c4_lights_set_last, c4_tv_off_last, c4_memory_get, c4_memory_clear
Structured ambiguity instead of a guess: when a name matches several rooms or devices, it returns the candidates so the client can ask

Requirements

A Control4 Director on your network and an account for it.
Credentials come from a local config.json pointed to by C4_CONFIG_PATH, or from C4_HOST, C4_USERNAME and C4_PASSWORD directly.
You clone the repository and run it from a Python virtual environment, over STDIO for desktop clients or hosted on a NAS over LAN HTTP. The README's pip install c4-mcp route does not work: PyPI has no package by that name.
State-changing tools stay off until C4_WRITES_ENABLED is true; C4_WRITE_GUARDRAILS, C4_WRITE_ALLOWLIST and C4_WRITE_DENYLIST narrow what writes can reach.
MIT licensed.

Setup effort

Follow the published steps — python -m venv .venv

See installation options

USE CASES

Running a good-night sweep across the whole house

Turn off the lights except the hallway, lock the exterior doors, set the downstairs thermostat, then report what succeeded and what did not — one request instead of a stack of taps.

c4_room_lights_setc4_lock_lockc4_thermostat_set_target_f

Checking the house is secure without touching anything

With writes off, list unlocked doors, lights still on and current setpoints per zone. Nothing in this path can change state.

c4_lock_get_statec4_list_devicesc4_thermostat_get_state

Asking for something by name and meaning one specific device

When "Basement" matches several rooms the call comes back with the candidates rather than acting on the wrong one; re-issue it with the room or exact device name to make it unambiguous.

c4_light_set_by_namec4_list_rooms

Turning on the TV and then adjusting it

Start the source, then follow up with "turn it off" or a remote sequence — session memory resolves the target from the previous call instead of asking again.

c4_tv_watchc4_tv_remote_lastc4_tv_off_last

121 tools

Counted once with only startup setup. Other versions, modes or optional credentials may expose a different list.

`c4_alarm_arm_away`

Arm an alarm/security panel in Away mode (best-effort).

INSTALLATION

Connect your client

Server setup

TERMINAL

git clone https://github.com/randybritsch/c4-mcp
cd c4-mcp

Windows (PowerShell):

TERMINAL

python -m venv .venv
.\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

macOS / Linux (bash/zsh):

TERMINAL

python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

Copy config.example.json to config.json and set your values in it

MCP Clients

Claude Desktop — Windows

CLAUDE DESKTOP — WINDOWS · JSON

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "c4-mcp": {
      "command": "C:\\Users\\<YOUR_USERNAME>\\c4-mcp\\.venv\\Scripts\\python.exe",
      "args": [
        "-u",
        "C:\\Users\\<YOUR_USERNAME>\\c4-mcp\\claude_stdio_server.py"
      ],
      "cwd": "C:\\Users\\<YOUR_USERNAME>\\c4-mcp",
      "env": {
        "PYTHONUTF8": "1",
        "PYTHONIOENCODING": "utf-8",
        "C4_STDIO_TOOL_MODE": "compact",
        "C4_CONFIG_PATH": "C:\\Users\\<YOUR_USERNAME>\\c4-mcp\\config.json",
        "C4_WRITE_GUARDRAILS": "true",
        "C4_WRITES_ENABLED": "false",
        "C4_DIRECTOR_TIMEOUT_S": "30",
        "C4_GET_ALL_ITEMS_TIMEOUT_S": "75"
      }
    }
  }
}

The c4-mcp path (it appears four times) is the full path of the folder git clone created, written with double backslashes. C4_CONFIG_PATH then points at the config.json you copied from config.example.json and filled in.

Other routes

Direct HTTP — curl

DIRECT HTTP — CURL · TERMINAL

curl -s http://127.0.0.1:3333/mcp/call -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"kind":"tool","name":"c4_list_rooms","args":{}}'

Docker — Synology

DOCKER — SYNOLOGY · TERMINAL

docker compose up -d

Control4 MCP Server

Safe by default, and the read-only mode is genuinely usable on its own.

What it is

What you get

Requirements

Setup effort

Running a good-night sweep across the whole house

Checking the house is secure without touching anything

Asking for something by name and meaning one specific device

Turning on the TV and then adjusting it

121 tools

c4_alarm_arm_away

c4_alarm_arm_stay

c4_alarm_disarm

c4_alarm_get_state

c4_alarm_list

c4_alarm_set_mode

c4_announcement_execute

c4_announcement_execute_by_name

c4_announcement_list

c4_announcement_list_commands

c4_capabilities_report

c4_contact_get_state

c4_contact_list

c4_control_keypad_list

c4_control_keypad_send_command

c4_debug_trace_command

c4_director_methods

c4_doorstation_set_external_chime

c4_doorstation_set_led

c4_doorstation_set_raw_setting

c4_fan_get_state

c4_fan_list

c4_fan_set_power

c4_fan_set_speed

c4_find_devices

c4_find_rooms

c4_intercom_list

c4_intercom_touchscreen_screensaver

c4_intercom_touchscreen_set_feature

c4_item_bindings

c4_item_commands

c4_item_execute_command

c4_item_send_command

c4_item_variables

c4_keypad_button_action

c4_keypad_buttons

c4_keypad_list

c4_light_get_level

c4_light_get_state

c4_light_ramp

c4_light_set_by_name

c4_light_set_level

c4_lights_get_last

c4_lights_set_last

c4_list_controls

c4_list_devices

c4_list_rooms

c4_list_typenames

c4_lock_get_state

c4_lock_lock

c4_lock_set_by_name

c4_lock_unlock

c4_macro_execute

c4_macro_execute_by_name

c4_macro_list

c4_macro_list_commands

c4_media_get_state

c4_media_launch_app

c4_media_now_playing

c4_media_remote

c4_media_remote_sequence

c4_media_roku_list_apps

c4_media_send_command

c4_media_watch_launch_app

c4_media_watch_launch_app_by_name

c4_memory_clear

c4_memory_get

c4_motion_get_state

c4_motion_list

`c4_alarm_arm_away`

`c4_alarm_arm_stay`

`c4_alarm_disarm`

`c4_alarm_get_state`

`c4_alarm_list`

`c4_alarm_set_mode`

`c4_announcement_execute`

`c4_announcement_execute_by_name`

`c4_announcement_list`

`c4_announcement_list_commands`

`c4_capabilities_report`

`c4_contact_get_state`

`c4_contact_list`

`c4_control_keypad_list`

`c4_control_keypad_send_command`

`c4_debug_trace_command`

`c4_director_methods`

`c4_doorstation_set_external_chime`

`c4_doorstation_set_led`

`c4_doorstation_set_raw_setting`

`c4_fan_get_state`

`c4_fan_list`

`c4_fan_set_power`

`c4_fan_set_speed`

`c4_find_devices`

`c4_find_rooms`

`c4_intercom_list`

`c4_intercom_touchscreen_screensaver`

`c4_intercom_touchscreen_set_feature`

`c4_item_bindings`

`c4_item_commands`

`c4_item_execute_command`

`c4_item_send_command`

`c4_item_variables`

`c4_keypad_button_action`

`c4_keypad_buttons`

`c4_keypad_list`

`c4_light_get_level`

`c4_light_get_state`

`c4_light_ramp`

`c4_light_set_by_name`

`c4_light_set_level`

`c4_lights_get_last`

`c4_lights_set_last`

`c4_list_controls`

`c4_list_devices`

`c4_list_rooms`

`c4_list_typenames`

`c4_lock_get_state`

`c4_lock_lock`

`c4_lock_set_by_name`

`c4_lock_unlock`

`c4_macro_execute`

`c4_macro_execute_by_name`

`c4_macro_list`

`c4_macro_list_commands`

`c4_media_get_state`

`c4_media_launch_app`

`c4_media_now_playing`

`c4_media_remote`

`c4_media_remote_sequence`

`c4_media_roku_list_apps`

`c4_media_send_command`

`c4_media_watch_launch_app`

`c4_media_watch_launch_app_by_name`

`c4_memory_clear`

`c4_memory_get`

`c4_motion_get_state`

`c4_motion_list`

`c4_outlet_get_state`

`c4_outlet_list`

`c4_outlet_set_power`

`c4_resolve`

`c4_resolve_device`

`c4_resolve_room`

`c4_room_lights_set`

`c4_room_list_commands`

`c4_room_list_video_devices`

`c4_room_listen`

`c4_room_listen_by_name`