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Shell MCP Server

Shell MCP Server

by blazickjp

🖥️ Shell MCP Server

PyPI version License: MIT Python Code style: black

🚀 Add secure shell command execution capabilities to your AI applications with the Shell MCP Server! Built for the Model Context Protocol.

✨ Features

  • 🔒 Secure Execution - Commands run only in specified directories

  • 🐚 Multiple Shells - Support for bash, sh, cmd, powershell

  • ⏱️ Timeout Control - Automatic termination of long-running commands

  • 🌍 Cross-Platform - Works on both Unix and Windows systems

  • 🛡️ Safe by Default - Built-in directory and shell validation

Related MCP server: Terminal MCP Server

🚀 Quick Start

Installation

# Using pip
pip install shell-mcp-server

# Using uv (recommended)
uv pip install shell-mcp-server

🔌 Claude Desktop Integration

Add this to your Claude Desktop config to enable shell command execution:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "shell-mcp-server": {
            "command": "uv",
            "args": [
                "--directory",
                "/path/to/shell-mcp-server",
                "run",
                "shell-mcp-server",
                "/path/to/allowed/dir1",
                "/path/to/allowed/dir2",
                "--shell", "bash", "/bin/bash",
                "--shell", "zsh", "/bin/zsh"
            ]
        }
    }
}

🎮 Usage Examples

Basic File Operations

# List directory contents
result = execute_command(
    command="ls -la",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/project"
)

# Find files by pattern
result = execute_command(
    command="find . -name '*.py'",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/project"
)

Project Management

# Git operations
result = execute_command(
    command="git status && git diff",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/repo"
)

# Package management
result = execute_command(
    command="pip list --outdated",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/python/project"
)

System Information

# Resource usage
result = execute_command(
    command="df -h && free -h",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/dir"
)

# Process monitoring
result = execute_command(
    command="ps aux | grep python",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/dir"
)

File Processing

# Search file content
result = execute_command(
    command="grep -r 'TODO' .",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/project"
)

# File manipulation
result = execute_command(
    command="awk '{print $1}' data.csv | sort | uniq -c",
    shell="bash",
    cwd="/path/to/data"
)

Windows-Specific Examples

# List processes
result = execute_command(
    command="Get-Process | Where-Object {$_.CPU -gt 10}",
    shell="powershell",
    cwd="C:\\path\\to\\dir"
)

# System information
result = execute_command(
    command="systeminfo | findstr /B /C:'OS'",
    shell="cmd",
    cwd="C:\\path\\to\\dir"
)

⚙️ Configuration

Configure behavior with command-line arguments:

Argument

Description

directories

📁 List of allowed directories

--shell name path

🐚 Shell specifications (name and path)

Environment variables:

  • COMMAND_TIMEOUT: ⏱️ Max execution time in seconds (default: 30)

🛡️ Security Features

  • 🔐 Directory Isolation: Commands can only execute in specified directories

  • 🔒 Shell Control: Only configured shells are allowed

  • ⏰ Timeout Protection: All commands have a configurable timeout

  • 🛑 Path Validation: Working directory validation prevents traversal attacks

  • 👤 Permission Isolation: Commands run with the same permissions as the server process

🛠️ Development

Set up your development environment:

# Create and activate virtual environment
uv venv
source .venv/bin/activate

# Install development dependencies
uv pip install -e ".[test]"

# Run tests
python -m pytest

# Run tests with coverage
python -m pytest --cov=shell_mcp_server

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Feel free to:

  • 🐛 Report bugs

  • 💡 Suggest features

  • 🔧 Submit pull requests

  • 📚 Improve documentation

📜 License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.


🌟 Enhance Your AI with Secure Shell Access! 🌟

Built for the Model Context Protocol | Made with ❤️ by the MCP Community

Available Tools

1 tool
execute_commandB

Execute a shell command in a specified directory using a specified shell

Inputs: command (required), shell (required), cwd (required).

Tool Schema Changelog

Recent tool additions, removals, and schema changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Loading tool schema changelog…

    TDQS

    B3.3/5.0

    Scored across 1 tool

    Disambiguation5/5

    With only one tool, there is no possibility of ambiguity or overlap between tools. The single tool has a clear and distinct purpose.

    Naming Consistency5/5

    A single tool inherently has perfect naming consistency, as there are no other tools to compare it against for patterns or conventions.

    Tool Count2/5

    A single tool is generally too few for a server's purpose, as it limits functionality and scope. For a shell server, this feels thin and may not cover common use cases effectively.

    Completeness2/5

    The tool surface is severely incomplete for a shell domain. It lacks operations for file management, process control, environment variables, or other common shell tasks, leading to significant gaps that will cause agent failures.

    Maintenance

    ActivityNo data
    ResponsivenessOutdated data

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