Skip to main content
Glama
ConnorBoetig-dev

Unrestricted Development MCP Server

docker_exec

Execute commands inside running Docker containers to run scripts, debug applications, or perform administrative tasks within container environments.

Instructions

Execute a command inside a running container

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
containerYesContainer name or ID
commandYesCommand to execute
workdirNoWorking directory inside container
userNoUser to run command as
envNoEnvironment variables
cwdNoWorking directory

Implementation Reference

  • Main handler function that constructs and executes the docker exec command using the helper executeDockerCommand
    export async function dockerExec(args: z.infer<typeof dockerExecSchema>): Promise<ToolResponse> {
      const workdirFlag = args.workdir ? `-w ${args.workdir}` : '';
      const userFlag = args.user ? `-u ${args.user}` : '';
      const envFlags = args.env
        ? Object.entries(args.env).map(([key, value]) => `-e ${key}="${value}"`).join(' ')
        : '';
    
      // Escape the command for shell execution
      const escapedCommand = args.command.replace(/"/g, '\\"');
    
      return executeDockerCommand(
        `docker exec ${workdirFlag} ${userFlag} ${envFlags} ${args.container} sh -c "${escapedCommand}"`.trim(),
        args.cwd
      );
    }
  • Zod schema for validating docker_exec tool inputs
    export const dockerExecSchema = z.object({
      container: z.string().describe('Container name or ID'),
      command: z.string().describe('Command to execute'),
      workdir: z.string().optional().describe('Working directory inside container'),
      user: z.string().optional().describe('User to run command as'),
      env: z.record(z.string()).optional().describe('Environment variables'),
      cwd: z.string().optional().describe('Working directory')
    });
  • src/index.ts:451-453 (registration)
    Dispatch handler in main server that validates args with schema and calls the dockerExec function
    if (name === 'docker_exec') {
      const validated = dockerExecSchema.parse(args);
      return await dockerExec(validated);
  • Tool metadata definition in dockerTools array used for listing available tools
    {
      name: 'docker_exec',
      description: 'Execute a command inside a running container',
      inputSchema: {
        type: 'object',
        properties: {
          container: { type: 'string', description: 'Container name or ID' },
          command: { type: 'string', description: 'Command to execute' },
          workdir: { type: 'string', description: 'Working directory inside container' },
          user: { type: 'string', description: 'User to run command as' },
          env: { type: 'object', additionalProperties: { type: 'string' }, description: 'Environment variables' },
          cwd: { type: 'string', description: 'Working directory' }
        },
        required: ['container', 'command']
      }
    },
  • Helper function that executes docker commands and formats the ToolResponse
    async function executeDockerCommand(command: string, cwd?: string): Promise<ToolResponse> {
      try {
        const { stdout, stderr } = await execAsync(command, {
          cwd: cwd || process.cwd(),
          shell: '/bin/bash',
          maxBuffer: 10 * 1024 * 1024, // 10MB buffer for logs
          timeout: 60000 // 60 second timeout for builds
        });
    
        return {
          content: [
            {
              type: "text" as const,
              text: JSON.stringify({
                success: true,
                command: command,
                stdout: stdout.trim(),
                stderr: stderr.trim(),
                cwd: cwd || process.cwd()
              }, null, 2)
            }
          ]
        };
      } catch (error: any) {
        return {
          content: [
            {
              type: "text" as const,
              text: JSON.stringify({
                success: false,
                command: command,
                stdout: error.stdout?.trim() || '',
                stderr: error.stderr?.trim() || error.message,
                exitCode: error.code || 1,
                cwd: cwd || process.cwd()
              }, null, 2)
            }
          ],
          isError: true
        };
      }
    }

Latest Blog Posts

MCP directory API

We provide all the information about MCP servers via our MCP API.

curl -X GET 'https://glama.ai/api/mcp/v1/servers/ConnorBoetig-dev/mcp2'

If you have feedback or need assistance with the MCP directory API, please join our Discord server