MCP Simple Timeserver is a server designed to enhance AI models like Anthropic's Claude with real-time awareness. It addresses the limitation of AI models lacking access to current time information. This server provides two key tools: get_time, which delivers the user's local time and timezone, and get_utc, which fetches the current UTC time from an NTP server. By integrating Simple Timeserver, AI models can perform time-sensitive calculations and reasoning, opening up new possibilities for context-aware applications.

The server is implemented in Python and communicates with MCP clients via standard input/output. Installation is streamlined through Smithery or can be done manually using pip, followed by a simple configuration in the MCP client. This allows developers to quickly equip their AI models with accurate time data, improving the quality and relevance of AI interactions.

Local Time and Zone

The get_time tool is a core feature of the mcp-simple-timeserver, designed to provide the AI model with the current local time and timezone information of the user's machine. This is crucial because AI models like Claude often lack awareness of the user's specific location and the corresponding time. The tool retrieves this information directly from the user's system, ensuring accuracy and relevance. This allows the AI to understand the context of user messages and provide more appropriate and timely responses. For example, if a user asks "What's the weather like?", the AI can use the local time and timezone to fetch weather data for the user's location, providing a more accurate and helpful answer. The tool leverages Python's built-in libraries to access system time and timezone settings, making it platform-independent and easy to integrate.

UTC Time Retrieval

The get_utc tool is another essential component, providing the AI model with the current Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) obtained from an NTP (Network Time Protocol) server. This is important because UTC serves as a standard reference time, allowing the AI to perform time-related calculations and reasoning accurately, regardless of the user's timezone. By querying an NTP server, the tool ensures that the AI has access to a reliable and synchronized time source. This is particularly useful in scenarios where the AI needs to schedule events, compare timestamps, or perform any operation that requires a consistent time reference. For instance, if a user asks the AI to set a reminder for a meeting at a specific time, the AI can convert the user's local time to UTC to ensure the reminder is triggered at the correct time, even if the user travels to a different timezone. The tool uses standard Python libraries to communicate with NTP servers and retrieve the current UTC time.

Claude Time Awareness

The primary value proposition of mcp-simple-timeserver lies in its ability to equip Anthropic's Claude model with time awareness. Claude, by default, lacks the capability to determine the time a user message was sent or the current time. This limitation can hinder its ability to provide contextually relevant and timely responses. By integrating mcp-simple-timeserver, Claude gains access to both local time/timezone and UTC time, enabling it to understand the temporal context of user interactions. This enhanced awareness allows Claude to perform tasks such as scheduling, time-based reasoning, and providing location-specific information. For example, Claude can now accurately answer questions like "What time is it in London?" or "Remind me to call John in 3 hours," which were previously impossible without external time data. This integration significantly improves Claude's utility and responsiveness in time-sensitive scenarios.