Intermittent MCP Connection Drops in Penpot

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Hi everyone,

I’m experiencing an intermittent issue while using Claude Code with the Penpot MCP Plugin, and I’m wondering if anyone else has encountered the same problem or knows of a workaround.

Environment

  • Claude Code connected to Penpot through the browser-based MCP Plugin
  • Using the execute_code tool to run JavaScript against the Penpot Plugin API
  • Working in an active Penpot design file

The issue

For the past couple of days, the MCP connection has become very unstable.

Initially, everything works as expected. Claude can successfully communicate with Penpot and make changes to the design file. However, after some time, the connection suddenly drops.

At first, I thought this only happened during larger design-generation tasks, but that’s no longer the case. It now happens even during very simple tasks or after only a few execute_code calls.

When the issue occurs:

  • Every subsequent request fails, including a simple “ping” or no-op script.
  • The MCP connection icon starts blinking continuously.
  • Clicking Connect from the MCP panel or selecting Connect from the File menu doesn’t reconnect immediately—it appears to do nothing.
  • After waiting for a while, the connection eventually reconnects on its own.
  • As soon as Claude starts making calls again, the connection often drops shortly afterward, and the same cycle repeats.

The errors I’ve seen include:

  • The operation timed out.
  • Unable to connect. Is the computer able to access the URL?
  • The socket connection was closed unexpectedly.

Additional observations

  • This issue wasn’t happening initially and only started a few days ago.
  • It doesn’t appear to be related to the complexity of the JavaScript being executed.
  • Once the connection drops, even the simplest requests fail until it reconnects.
  • The repeated blinking of the MCP connection icon makes it seem like the plugin is trying to reconnect but isn’t able to establish a stable connection.

Questions

  • Has anyone else experienced this recently?
  • Is this a known issue with the current MCP implementation or browser plugin?
  • Is the blinking MCP icon expected behavior when the connection is repeatedly attempting to reconnect?
  • Are there any logs or debug options that can help determine why the connection keeps dropping?

Any help or suggestions