Defense MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that gives AI assistants access to 31 defensive security tools (with 250+ actions) on Linux. Connect it to Claude Desktop, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible client to harden systems, manage firewalls, scan for vulnerabilities, and enforce compliance — all through natural language conversation.

Why I Made This

Basically I'm a total noob when it comes to really serious system hardening so I thought I'd test the latest LLM models and see how far I could get. Turns out they're pretty helpful! I got tired of hardening my new systems by hand every time I spun up a new one so I made this MCP server to make it pretty easy. I jam packed as many security tools as I could into this thing so be prepared to burn tokens using it. Hopefully it helps you about half as much as its helped me.

So What It Does

This server exposes Linux security tools as MCP tools that an AI assistant can invoke on your behalf. Instead of memorizing command syntax for dozens of security utilities, you describe what you want in plain English and the assistant calls the right tool with the right parameters. Sounds pretty good right!

Here are the tools:

Every tool runs with safety guardrails:

• Dry-run by default — tools preview what they would do before making changes

• Command allowlist — only pre-approved binaries can execute (no shell interpreters)

• Input sanitization — all parameters validated against injection attacks

• Backup before changes — system state backed up before modifications

• Rate limiting — prevents runaway tool invocations

Automatic Tool Installation

You don't need to pre-install every security tool. The server automatically detects missing dependencies and installs them when needed.

How it works:

1. Each tool declares which system binaries it requires (e.g., firewall_iptables needs iptables or ufw)

2. Before executing a tool, the server checks if the required binary is installed

3. If it's missing, the server installs it using your system's package manager (apt on Kali/Debian, dnf on RHEL, pacman on Arch)

4. The tool then runs normally

Example: If you ask the assistant to scan for malware but ClamAV isn't installed, the server will run apt install clamav automatically, then proceed with the scan.

Security controls on auto-installation:

• System packages are installed via the official package manager only

• npm/pip packages are restricted to a hardcoded allowlist (e.g., yara-python, cdxgen) — arbitrary packages cannot be installed

• Auto-installation requires sudo privileges — if running without elevated access, the server will report what needs to be installed manually

• All installation actions are logged

To disable auto-installation entirely, run with:

DEFENSE_MCP_AUTO_INSTALL=false node build/index.js

Requirements

• Linux (Kali, Debian, Ubuntu, RHEL, Arch, or any systemd-based distro)

• Node.js 20+

• npm 9+

System Dependencies

Most tools will be auto-installed on first use, but you can pre-install everything for faster startup:

Standard Packages (apt)

sudo apt-get install -y \
  aide rkhunter chkrootkit clamav clamav-daemon lynis auditd \
  nmap tcpdump nftables fail2ban apparmor apparmor-utils \
  libpam-pwquality suricata bpftool gitleaks cosign checksec \
  wireguard-tools debsums acct uidmap inotify-tools sysstat \
  htop strace logrotate openssl gnupg cryptsetup curl lsof

Third-Party Tools

These are not available in standard Debian/Ubuntu repos and require manual installation:

Important Notes

• snort → suricata: Snort has been removed from Debian Trixie (13+) repositories. Suricata is the recommended IDS replacement and is available in standard repos.

• ufw vs nftables: UFW conflicts with iptables-persistent — they cannot coexist on the same system. For modern Debian systems, prefer nftables (the nft command) for firewall management.

• bpftool: On Debian Trixie, install the bpftool package directly (NOT linux-tools-generic which is Ubuntu-specific).

• pam_pwquality: This is a PAM module (libpam-pwquality), not a standalone binary. Install via apt-get install libpam-pwquality.

Installation

Option A: npm (recommended)

npm install -g defense-mcp-server

Option B: Clone and build

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/bottobot/defense-mcp-server.git
   cd defense-mcp-server

2. Install dependencies:

   npm install

3. Build:

   npm run build

Connecting to Claude Desktop

Add this to your Claude Desktop configuration file (~/.config/claude/claude_desktop_config.json on Linux):

If installed globally via npm:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "defense-mcp-server": {
      "command": "defense-mcp-server"
    }
  }
}

If cloned and built locally:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "defense-mcp-server": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/defense-mcp-server/build/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Replace /path/to/ with the actual path where you cloned the repo.

Restart Claude Desktop. The server will appear in the MCP tools panel.

Connecting to Other MCP Clients

Any MCP client that supports stdio transport can connect. The server communicates over stdin/stdout using the MCP protocol. Launch it with:

node build/index.js

Usage Examples

Once connected, talk to your AI assistant naturally:

• "Check my firewall status" → calls firewall_iptables with action: list

• "Harden SSH to disable root login and password auth" → calls access_ssh with harden action and appropriate settings

• "Run a CIS benchmark on this system" → calls compliance_check with CIS framework

• "Scan /var/www for malware" → calls malware_clamav on the specified path

• "Show me what patches are available" → calls patch_update_audit

• "Create a backup before I make changes" → calls backup with state action

• "Set up fail2ban for SSH" → calls log_fail2ban to configure jail

• "Check if any cloud credentials are exposed" → calls cloud_security with check_iam_creds

• "Detect rogue access points on the network" → calls wireless_security with rogue_ap_detect

• "Generate a security report" → calls report_export with generate action

The assistant handles parameter construction, error interpretation, and follow-up actions automatically.

Sudo Elevation

Many tools require elevated privileges. The server provides a secure sudo management system:

• sudo_elevate — provide your password once; it's stored in a zeroable Buffer (never logged)

• sudo_elevate_gui — use a native GUI dialog (zenity/kdialog) so the password is never visible to the AI

• sudo_status — check if the session is currently elevated

• sudo_drop — immediately zero the cached password and drop elevation

• sudo_extend — extend the session timeout without re-entering the password

• preflight_batch_check — check multiple tools' sudo requirements before running them

Configuration

Configuration is via environment variables. All have secure defaults:

To apply changes for real (not just preview), set:

DEFENSE_MCP_DRY_RUN=false node build/index.js

Security

This server is designed to be safe by default:

• Commands execute with shell: false — no shell interpretation

• All binaries resolved against a 190-entry allowlist at startup

• Input validated with Zod schemas before execution

• Passwords handled as Buffers (zeroed after use, never logged)

• Rate limited to prevent abuse (30/tool/min, 100 global/min)

• All file writes go through secure-fs with audit trail

• Encrypted state storage (AES-256-GCM) for sensitive runtime data

• Atomic file writes (write-to-temp-then-rename) to prevent corruption

For the full security architecture, see ARCHITECTURE.md.

Development

# Run tests
npm test

# Run with coverage
npm run test:coverage

# Type check
npm run build:verify

# Security lint
npm run lint:security

# Security audit
npm run audit:security

Test Coverage

• 2,048+ tests across 62 test files

• Every source module (core + tools) has a corresponding test file

• Coverage enforced in CI pipeline

License

MIT — see LICENSE