prequel

Prequel Claude Code plugin

A Claude Code plugin for working with the Prequel MCP server over HTTP with JWT authentication.

The plugin registers a single remote MCP server (prequel) at:

https://mcp-beta.prequel.dev

Authentication is a Bearer JWT sent in the Authorization header.

Installation

From inside Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add prequel-dev/prequel-claude
/plugin install prequel@prequel

The first command registers this repo as a marketplace (the marketplace's name is prequel, defined in .claude-plugin/marketplace.json). The second installs the prequel plugin from it.

On install, Claude Code prompts for the one userConfig value: jwt_token. The token is stored as a sensitive credential — see Configuration storage below.

The jwt_token can be created through the web UI: https://app-beta.prequel.dev/api-tokens.

Choose the "viewer" role for the token, this is sufficient for MCP and the plugin functionality.

To pull in updates after the upstream repo changes:

/plugin marketplace update prequel

Layout

prequel-claude/
├── .claude-plugin/
│   ├── plugin.json        # manifest + userConfig (jwt_token)
│   └── marketplace.json   # marketplace catalog (one plugin: prequel)
├── .mcp.json              # HTTP MCP server with Bearer auth
└── commands/
    ├── configure.md       # /prequel:configure
    ├── status.md          # /prequel:status
    └── tools.md           # /prequel:tools

Testing the plugin

You have two options for running the plugin against a local checkout.

Option 1: launch Claude Code with --plugin-dir

claude --plugin-dir ./prequel-claude

Claude Code loads the plugin for that session only and prompts for jwt_token on first use.

Option 2: register as a local plugin

From inside Claude Code:

1. Run /plugin.
2. Add a local plugin pointing at this directory.
3. Enable it. Claude Code prompts for jwt_token.
4. Verify the MCP server is connected with /prequel:status.

After editing any plugin file (manifest, .mcp.json, commands) run /reload-plugins to pick up changes without restarting the session.

Smoke test checklist

• /prequel:status reports at least one MCP tool.
• /prequel:tools lists the tools the server exposes.
• An invalid or expired JWT yields a connection error and zero tools — fix by updating the token through /plugin.

Using the plugin

Once configured, the prequel MCP server's tools become available to Claude under the mcp__prequel__* namespace. You can either:

• Ask Claude to perform a task and let it pick the right Prequel tool, or
• Run one of the slash commands the plugin ships:

Command	What it does
/prequel:configure	Explains how to view and change the plugin's configuration.
/prequel:status	Verifies the MCP server is reachable and reports tool availability.
/prequel:tools	Lists and describes the MCP tools currently exposed by the server.

Slash commands are namespaced with the plugin name, so /prequel:status will not collide with other plugins.

How configuration is stored

The plugin declares one userConfig option in .claude-plugin/plugin.json:

• jwt_token — string, marked sensitive: true.

jwt_token → OS keychain

Because sensitive: true is set, the token is not written to settings.json. It is stored in the operating system's secret store:

• macOS — Keychain Access, under the Claude Code service.
• Linux — Secret Service / libsecret (GNOME Keyring, KWallet, etc).
• Fallback — if no keychain is available, ~/.claude/.credentials.json with file mode 600.

How the value reaches the MCP server

.mcp.json references the token via the ${user_config.<key>} substitution syntax:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "prequel": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp-beta.prequel.dev",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${user_config.jwt_token}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Substitution happens at plugin load time. The jwt_token is fetched out of the keychain — it never lands on disk in settings.json.

Changing or clearing the configuration

• Recommended: run /plugin, select prequel, and edit the user configuration. Run /reload-plugins afterwards.
• Manual: update the token entry in your OS keychain (or in ~/.claude/.credentials.json on the fallback path), then reload.

To remove the plugin's stored configuration entirely, disable the plugin via /plugin — that removes the pluginConfigs.prequel block from settings.json and the keychain entry.