Cursor Setup

Prerequisites

Cursor IDE installed
Pylance MCP Server running (local or cloud)
Active subscription (Hobby, Pro, or Enterprise)

Installation Steps

Install MCP Extension

Open Cursor settings and enable MCP support:

Cursor > Settings > Features > Model Context Protocol

Toggle Enable MCP to ON

Configure MCP Server

Create or edit ~/.cursor/mcp_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pylance": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "pylance_mcp.server"],
      "env": {
        "PYTHONPATH": "/path/to/your/workspace"
      }
    }
  }
}

Authenticate

On first use, Cursor will prompt for authentication:

Click Sign in with Clerk
Complete OAuth flow in browser
Return to Cursor

Verify Connection

Open Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P):

MCP: Check Server Status

Should show: ✅ Pylance MCP: Connected

Configuration Options

Local Deployment

For maximum privacy, run Pylance MCP locally:

~/.cursor/mcp_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pylance": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "pylance_mcp.server"],
      "env": {
        "PYTHONPATH": "${workspaceFolder}",
        "PYTHONWARNINGS": "ignore",
        "MCP_PORT": "3000"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cloud Deployment

Connect to hosted Pylance MCP:

~/.cursor/mcp_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pylance": {
      "url": "https://api.pylancemcp.dev",
      "apiKey": "${PYLANCE_API_KEY}",
      "workspace": "${workspaceFolder}"
    }
  }
}

Never commit API keys to version control. Use environment variables or Cursor’s secret storage.

Usage Examples

Code Completion

Type naturally and press Tab to accept suggestions:

def calculate_

def calculate_total(items: List[Item]) -> float:
    """Calculate total price of items."""
    return sum(item.price for item in items)

Hover Documentation

Hover over any symbol for instant documentation:

import requests  # Hover shows: "requests 2.31.0 - HTTP library"

response = requests.get(url)  # Hover shows: get(url, params=None, **kwargs) -> Response

Go to Definition

Cmd+Click (Mac) or Ctrl+Click (Windows) on any symbol:

from mymodule import MyClass  # Click "MyClass" → jumps to definition

obj = MyClass()  # Click "MyClass" → jumps to definition

Find References

Right-click → Find All References:

def important_function():  # Right-click here
    pass

# Shows all usages:
# ├── main.py:45
# ├── utils.py:12
# └── tests/test_main.py:67

Rename Symbol

Right-click → Rename Symbol (F2):

# Before
old_name = 42

# After renaming to "new_name"
new_name = 42

All references update automatically across your workspace.

Advanced Features

Workspace Settings

Configure per-workspace settings in .cursor/workspace.json:

.cursor/workspace.json

{
  "pylanceMcp": {
    "pythonPath": ".venv/bin/python",
    "analysis": {
      "typeCheckingMode": "strict",
      "diagnosticMode": "workspace",
      "stubPath": "typings"
    },
    "formatting": {
      "provider": "black",
      "lineLength": 100
    }
  }
}

Keybindings

Customize keyboard shortcuts in keybindings.json:

keybindings.json

[
  {
    "key": "ctrl+space",
    "command": "pylance.triggerCompletion",
    "when": "editorTextFocus && editorLangId == python"
  },
  {
    "key": "shift+f12",
    "command": "pylance.findAllReferences",
    "when": "editorTextFocus && editorLangId == python"
  }
]

Troubleshooting

Server Not Starting

Symptoms: “Failed to start Pylance MCP server”Solutions:

Check Python is in PATH: which python or where python
Verify installation: python -m pylance_mcp.server --version
Check logs: ~/.cursor/logs/mcp-pylance.log

No Completions

Symptoms: No autocomplete suggestions appearSolutions:

Ensure file is saved (Pylance analyzes saved files)
Check file encoding (must be UTF-8)
Restart Cursor: Cmd+Shift+P → “Reload Window”
Clear cache: Delete ~/.cursor/cache/pylance/

Slow Performance

Symptoms: Completions take >2 secondsSolutions:

Reduce diagnosticMode to “openFilesOnly”

Exclude large directories in .cursorignore:

node_modules/
.venv/
__pycache__/
*.pyc

Upgrade subscription tier for higher rate limits

Authentication Errors

Symptoms: “Unauthorized” or “Invalid API key”Solutions:

Log out and log back in: Cmd+Shift+P → “MCP: Sign Out”
Check subscription status at https://pylancemcp.dev/dashboard
Verify API key hasn’t expired

Best Practices

Enable Auto-Save: Pylance analyzes saved files for best results

Use Type Hints: Add type annotations for better completions

Organize Imports: Keep imports at top of file for faster analysis

Configure .cursorignore: Exclude virtual environments and caches

Large Workspaces: Workspaces >10,000 files may need diagnosticMode: "openFilesOnly"

Performance Tips

Optimize Cursor for large Python projects:

settings.json

{
  "pylance.analysis.memory.keepLibraryAst": false,
  "pylance.analysis.memory.keepLibraryLocalVariables": false,
  "pylance.analysis.extraCommitChars": false,
  "pylance.analysis.completeFunctionParens": true,
  "files.watcherExclude": {
    "**/.git/**": true,
    "**/.venv/**": true,
    "**/node_modules/**": true,
    "**/__pycache__/**": true
  }
}

Get Started

Core Concepts

Guides

API Reference

Deployment

Prerequisites

Installation Steps

Configuration Options

Local Deployment

Cloud Deployment

Usage Examples

Code Completion

Hover Documentation

Go to Definition

Find References

Rename Symbol

Advanced Features

Workspace Settings

Keybindings

Troubleshooting

Best Practices

Performance Tips

Video Tutorial

Next Steps

API Reference

Custom Workspace

​Prerequisites

​Installation Steps

​Configuration Options

​Local Deployment

​Cloud Deployment

​Usage Examples

​Code Completion

​Hover Documentation

​Go to Definition

​Find References

​Rename Symbol

​Advanced Features

​Workspace Settings

​Keybindings

​Troubleshooting

​Best Practices

​Performance Tips

​Video Tutorial

​Next Steps

API Reference

Custom Workspace

Prerequisites

Installation Steps

Configuration Options

Local Deployment

Cloud Deployment

Usage Examples

Code Completion

Hover Documentation

Go to Definition

Find References

Rename Symbol

Advanced Features

Workspace Settings

Keybindings

Troubleshooting

Best Practices

Performance Tips

Video Tutorial

Next Steps