[BUG] MCP Timeout needs to be configurable

[workingdoge]

Environment

• Platform (select one):
  • Anthropic API
  • AWS Bedrock
  • Google Vertex AI
  • Other:
• Claude CLI version:0.2.36
• Operating System: MacOS
• Terminal: Ghostty

Bug Description

MCP timeout error when using browser use

Steps to Reproduce

1. install browser_use mcp
2. tell claude code to search
3. search takes too long and claude code times out with a -32000: Connection closed

Expected Behavior

Complete Search

Actual Behavior

Timeout

[ashwin-ant]

Are you saying the tool call is timing out or the server startup?

[am0y]

also getting this issue frequently when server startup, sometimes i dont get it sometimes i do. its frustrating

[wskish]

I am seeing a timeout issue frequently as well (MCP error -32001: Request timed out) for long-running mcp tool calls.

The issue is the underlying mcp library has a default 60 second timeout which is reasonable for most cases but there is a long tail of operations that will take longer than this.

I tried adding progress_reporting to my mcp server but then discovered that claude code is not supporting it since the MCP typescript sdk defaults to ignoring progress reporting for timeout purposes. added #470 which would probably be better than trying to manage timeouts of unknown duration.

[pnispel]

Getting connection timeouts on server startup as well:

MCP server "postgres" Connection failed: Connection to MCP server "postgres" timed out after 5000ms
MCP server "typescript-definition-finder" Connection failed: Connection to MCP server "typescript-definition-finder" timed out after 5000ms

These both work in claude desktop fine

[ashwin-ant]

@pnispel you can configure a longer timeout with the MCP_TIMEOUT environment variable: MCP_TIMEOUT=30000 claude for example

[pnispel]

Oh awesome thank you. I figured I was missing something like that

[ashwin-ant]

No worries, we just rolled it out last week!

[inheinsight]

@ashwin-ant it would be awesome if we could set this with claude config set. Do you plan to include that instead of having to add this as a variable when we start Claude?

[ashwin-ant]

We can look into this! We're also going to be increasing the default timeout to 30 seconds, which should hopefully make it so you don't need to override it.

[inheinsight]

Oh yeah, that'd definitely help!

…

On Tue, Mar 18, 2025, 8:07 PM Ashwin Bhat ***@***.***> wrote: We can look into this! We're also going to be increasing the default timeout to 30 seconds, which should hopefully make it so you don't need to override it. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#424 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AHFKXUREFYHW3K7NFCP444T2VDGPXAVCNFSM6AAAAABYXX3IBGVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDOMZVGE2DAOJSGE> . You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: ***@***.***> [image: ashwin-ant]*ashwin-ant* left a comment (anthropics/claude-code#424) <#424 (comment)> We can look into this! We're also going to be increasing the default timeout to 30 seconds, which should hopefully make it so you don't need to override it. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#424 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AHFKXUREFYHW3K7NFCP444T2VDGPXAVCNFSM6AAAAABYXX3IBGVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDOMZVGE2DAOJSGE> . You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[luketchang]

you can configure a longer timeout with the MCP_TIMEOUT environment variable: MCP_TIMEOUT=30000 claude for example

@ashwin-ant This isn't working on my end still. We set MCP_TIMEOUT in the transport and also specify the timeout option when we call client.callTool and I still get the below error, is this correct? Error still indicates even callTool timeout is not being applied either

Code

transport = new StdioClientTransport({
  command: "claude",
  args: ["mcp", "serve"],
  env: {
    ...Object.fromEntries(
      Object.entries(process.env)
        .filter(([, value]) => value !== undefined)
        .map(([key, value]) => [key, value as string])
    ),
    MCP_TIMEOUT: String(1200000), // 20 min
  },
  cwd: workingDirectory,
});

// Initialize client with explicit timeout settings
mcpClient = new Client({
  name: "client",
  version: "1.0.0",
  options: {},
});

await mcpClient.connect(transport);

const mcpResponse = await mcpClient.callTool({
    name: "dispatch_agent",
    arguments: {
      prompt: mcpPrompt,
    },
    options: {
      timeout: 1200000, // 20 min
    },
  });

Error

Error in main: McpError: MCP error -32001: Request timed out
    at Timeout.timeoutHandler (/Users/luketchang/code/<dir>/node_modules/.pnpm/@modelcontextprotocol+sdk@1.7.0/node_modules/@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/src/shared/protocol.ts:528:43)
    at listOnTimeout (node:internal/timers:581:17)
    at process.processTimers (node:internal/timers:519:7) {
  code: -32001,
  data: { timeout: 60000 }
}

[ashwin-ant]

@luketchang the timeout is not for launching Claude Code as an MCP server, it's for using Claude Code as an MCP client that launches other servers. Can you share more about what you're trying to do?

[luketchang]

Can you share more about what you're trying to do?

Yep! We have an agent that fetches code context and is currently doing so by dispatching a task (via client.callTool(...)) to Claude Code, which runs as an MCP server via claude mcp serve.