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# linux-mcp - Linux MCP Server

A Linux system monitoring server built on the [Model Context Protocol (MCP)](https://modelcontextprotocol.io). Provides real-time system information - CPU, memory, disk, network, processes, Docker, and more - via MCP tools over STDIO transport.

[![MCP Registry](https://img.shields.io/badge/MCP%20Registry-linux--mcp-000?style=flat-square&logo=github)](https://registry.modelcontextprotocol.io) [![linux-mcp MCP server](https://glama.ai/mcp/servers/Mohabdo21/linux-mcp/badges/score.svg)](https://glama.ai/mcp/servers/Mohabdo21/linux-mcp)
![GitHub Downloads (all assets, all releases)](https://img.shields.io/github/downloads/Mohabdo21/linux-mcp/total)

<p align="center">
  <img src="assets/demo.gif" alt="linux-mcp demo" width="100%">
</p>

## Features

- **System** - hostname, OS, kernel, architecture, uptime, load averages
- **CPU** - usage, model, frequency, core counts, temperature sensors
- **Memory** - RAM and swap usage with percentages
- **Disk** - per-partition usage, inodes, mount options, largest files, block devices
- **Network** - interface stats, active connections, listening ports, DNS, ping, IP geolocation & ASN lookup
- **Processes** - running processes sorted by CPU or memory, open file descriptors per process
- **Docker** - containers, images, networks, volumes, disk usage, system info, stats for all containers, system snapshot
- **Services & automation** - systemd units, service status, user timers, crontab, system cron jobs
- **Security** - active user sessions, failed login detection, SELinux/AppArmor status, firewall/SSH/SUID/world-writable audit with security score
- **Packages** - installed packages and available updates (pacman, dpkg)
- **Hardware** - GPU info, PCI/USB bus devices, power/battery analytics
- **Desktop session** - Wayland/X11 protocol, DE identifiers, runtime config
- **Storage health** - RAID status, logrotate configuration, time synchronization, SMART disk health, per-device I/O metrics
- **System health** - comprehensive health assessment with memory, disk, load, and systemd checks
- **/proc diagnostics** - deep /proc inspection: interrupts, softirqs, vmstat, diskstats, filesystems, kernel version, slabinfo
- **Man pages** - system manual pages for any installed command
- **Snapshot** - comprehensive system overview in a single call
- **MCP Resources** - system data also accessible as readable resources

## Prerequisites

- **Go 1.27+** (to build from source)
- **Linux** (the server targets Linux; some tools use Linux-specific paths)
- **Docker** (optional - only needed for Docker tools)

## Installation

### Via MCP Registry

Discover the server on the [MCP Registry](https://registry.modelcontextprotocol.io) and install via your MCP client (VS Code one-click install, or manual config).

### Download pre-built binary

Download the latest binary from the [GitHub Releases](https://github.com/Mohabdo21/linux-mcp/releases) page:

```bash
curl -LO https://github.com/Mohabdo21/linux-mcp/releases/latest/download/linux-mcp
chmod +x linux-mcp
```

A fully static build (no libc dependency) is also available as `linux-mcp_static`.

### Via `go install`

```bash
go install github.com/Mohabdo21/linux-mcp@latest
```

The binary is placed in `$GOPATH/bin/` (typically `~/go/bin/`).

### Build from source

```bash
git clone https://github.com/Mohabdo21/linux-mcp.git
cd linux-mcp
make build
```

The binary is placed at `bin/linux-mcp`.

For a fully static binary (no libc dependency):

```bash
make build-static
```

## Usage

The server communicates over STDIO transport, following the MCP standard. It is designed to be launched by an MCP client (e.g., Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, or any MCP host).

### Running directly

```bash
./bin/linux-mcp
```

This starts the server and listens for MCP requests on STDIN/STDOUT.

### Integration

<details>
<summary><h4>OpenCode</h4></summary>

Add the following to your OpenCode configuration:

```json
{
  "mcp": {
    "linux-mcp": {
      "type": "local",
      "command": ["/path/to/linux-mcp"],
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
```

</details>

<details>
<summary><h4>Claude Code</h4></summary>

Add the server via the CLI:

```bash
claude mcp add linux-mcp -- /path/to/linux-mcp
```

To scope it to all your projects instead of just the current one:

```bash
claude mcp add linux-mcp --scope user -- /path/to/linux-mcp
```

Or create a `.mcp.json` file in your project root for team-shared configuration:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "linux-mcp": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "/path/to/linux-mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

Verify the connection inside a Claude Code session with `/mcp`.

</details>

<details>
<summary><h4>Codex</h4></summary>

Add the server via the CLI:

```bash
codex mcp add linux-mcp -- /path/to/linux-mcp
```

Or add it manually to `~/.codex/config.toml` (or `.codex/config.toml` for project-scoped config):

```toml
[mcp_servers.linux-mcp]
command = "/path/to/linux-mcp"
```

Verify the connection with `codex mcp list`.

</details>

### Tools and resources

69 tools and 19 resources covering system, CPU, memory, disk, network, processes, Docker, security, packages, hardware, and more.

**[Full tool and resource reference](docs/tools.md)**

## Configuration

The server can be configured via a JSON file loaded from `~/.config/linux-mcp/config.json` or the `LINUX_MCP_CONFIG` environment variable.

```json
{
  "log_level": "info",
  "timeouts": {
    "get_system_snapshot": "60s",
    "ping_host": "5s"
  },
  "disabled": []
}
```

| Field       | Description                                               |
| ----------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| `log_level` | One of `debug`, `info`, `warn`, `error` (default: `info`) |
| `timeouts`  | Per-tool timeout overrides as Go duration strings         |
| `disabled`  | List of tool names to disable at startup                  |

The server also handles **SIGHUP** to reload the configuration file at runtime without restarting.

## MCP Registry

Published on the [MCP Registry](https://registry.modelcontextprotocol.io) as `io.github.Mohabdo21/linux-mcp`.

## License

- [MIT](./LICENSE)

## Dependencies

- [modelcontextprotocol/go-sdk](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/go-sdk) - MCP SDK for Go
- [shirou/gopsutil/v4](https://github.com/shirou/gopsutil) - System metrics (CPU, memory, disk, network, processes, sensors)
- [docker/go-sdk](https://github.com/docker/go-sdk) - Docker Engine API client
- [moby/moby/client](https://github.com/moby/moby) - Docker client library
- [ip-api.com](https://ip-api.com) - Free IP geolocation API (used by `get_ip_info`)

TDQS

A4.1/5.0

Scored across 69 tools

Disambiguation3/5

There are several clusters where tools can be confused, such as get_docker_info vs get_docker_system_info vs get_docker_system_snapshot, get_disk_io_metrics vs get_io_stats, and get_system_snapshot vs get_system_health_check vs get_system_info. The descriptions do a good job of cross-referencing and clarifying each tool's niche, but the sheer volume of similar get_* names increases the chance of misselection.

Naming Consistency4/5

The vast majority of tools follow a predictable get_<subject> lowercase snake_case pattern, making the surface scannable. The exceptions are few and minor: check_updates, ping_host, and resolve_dns break the strict get_ prefix but still use clear verb_noun naming.

Tool Count2/5

69 tools is far beyond the 25+ threshold and creates a heavy selection surface for an agent. While each tool is individually targeted, the count feels like multiple specialized diagnostic servers merged into one rather than a tightly scoped MCP server.

Completeness4/5

The read-only diagnostic scope is covered unusually well: system, storage, network, Docker, security, boot, processes, packages, logs, and hardware are all represented. The main gaps are package manager support being limited to pacman/dpkg (fatal on rpm/dnf) and several tools depending on optional binaries like iostat, smartctl, or pidstat.

Maintenance

ActivityActive
ResponsivenessNo issues