ADR-001: Named Pipes for IPC

Status

Accepted.

Context

The server needs low-latency, local, bidirectional IPC between the MCP host and the injected inspector process.

Decision

Use Windows named pipes with process-derived pipe names, ACL restrictions, JSON payloads, and explicit framing.

Why this was chosen

• lower latency than local HTTP for this use case
• Windows-native security model
• natural fit for same-machine communication
• simpler operational surface than sockets or WCF

Consequences

• Windows-only by design
• strong fit for local developer tooling
• requires explicit framing and timeout handling

For more detail, see IPC and Protocol.