Qwen Code

Check the prerequisites

Install Node 22.5 or newer, or Bun. The sandbox and FTS5 knowledge base depend on a current runtime. You also need Qwen Code itself installed.

node --version

If you do not already have Qwen Code, install it globally:

npm install -g @qwen-code/qwen-code

Install the package

This installs the hook dispatcher, the MCP server, and the context-mode command line.

npm install -g context-mode

Add the hooks and register the server

Both the hooks and the MCP server live in a single file, ~/.qwen/settings.json. context-mode uses five of the twelve events Qwen Code emits:

• Each hook invokes the context-mode dispatcher, which reads the event on stdin and returns its decision on stdout.
• The mcpServers entry backs the ctx_* tools.
• The PreToolUse matcher targets Qwen Code's native tool names (run_shell_command, read_file, and so on) plus a catch-all for external MCP servers (mcp__(?!.*context-mode)).
• On Qwen Code, context-mode's own tools are named mcp__context-mode__ctx_execute and so on; the explicit mcp__plugin_context-mode_context-mode__ctx_* entries in the matcher are the Claude Code marketplace form, carried over verbatim.

{
  "hooks": {
    "PreToolUse": [{ "matcher": "run_shell_command|read_file|read_many_files|grep_search|web_fetch|agent|mcp__plugin_context-mode_context-mode__ctx_execute|mcp__plugin_context-mode_context-mode__ctx_execute_file|mcp__plugin_context-mode_context-mode__ctx_batch_execute|mcp__(?!.*context-mode)", "hooks": [{ "type": "command", "command": "context-mode hook qwen-code pretooluse" }] }],
    "PostToolUse": [{ "matcher": "run_shell_command|read_file|write_file|edit|glob|grep_search|todo_write|agent|ask_user_question|mcp__", "hooks": [{ "type": "command", "command": "context-mode hook qwen-code posttooluse" }] }],
    "SessionStart": [{ "matcher": "", "hooks": [{ "type": "command", "command": "context-mode hook qwen-code sessionstart" }] }],
    "PreCompact": [{ "matcher": "", "hooks": [{ "type": "command", "command": "context-mode hook qwen-code precompact" }] }],
    "UserPromptSubmit": [{ "matcher": "", "hooks": [{ "type": "command", "command": "context-mode hook qwen-code userpromptsubmit" }] }]
  },
  "mcpServers": {
    "context-mode": {
      "command": "context-mode",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

The five dispatched hook commands are:

context-mode hook qwen-code pretooluse
context-mode hook qwen-code posttooluse
context-mode hook qwen-code sessionstart
context-mode hook qwen-code precompact
context-mode hook qwen-code userpromptsubmit

context-mode also wires a 6th hook — Stop — to capture per-turn token cost. Token usage is unreachable through hook stdin, so the Stop script tails the Qwen chat log. The five events above cover routing and session continuity even without it.

Restart Qwen Code after editing the file so the hooks and the server load.

Copy the routing instructions (optional)

context-mode reads project routing rules from QWEN.md. Copy the shipped file so the model knows to send data-heavy work into the sandbox.

cp "$(npm root -g)/context-mode/configs/qwen-code/QWEN.md" ./QWEN.md

For global use, copy it into the Qwen Code config directory instead:

cp "$(npm root -g)/context-mode/configs/qwen-code/QWEN.md" ~/.qwen/QWEN.md

Check the savings in chat

Type ctx stats in Qwen Code. It reports the context-window tokens saved this session — the savings ratio plus a per-tool token breakdown — so you can watch routing pay off after a few data-heavy operations.

Confirm hooks and MCP are registered

Run the doctor. It confirms all six hooks in ~/.qwen/settings.json and that context-mode is in mcpServers, rendering each check as an [OK], [FAIL], or [WARN] line.

context-mode doctor