MCP server for secure SSH command execution on remote Linux systems. It allows MCP clients (like Claude Desktop) to execute commands on configured SSH hosts.

• SSH Remote Execution: Execute commands on remote Linux systems via SSH
• Connection Management: Automatic connection pooling and reconnection
• Authentication Support: Both password and private key authentication
• Simple API: Just two tools - ssh_execute and ssh_disconnect
• Configurable: Define multiple SSH connections with custom settings

npx mcp-ssh

npm install -g mcp-ssh

Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ssh": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-ssh"]
    }
  }
}

For use with a specific config file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ssh": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-ssh",
        "--config",
        "/path/to/your/config.json"
      ]
    }
  }
}

The server requires a configuration file to define SSH connections.

1. Create a configuration file:

npx mcp-ssh --init-config ~/.mcp-ssh/config.json

2. Edit the configuration file to add your SSH connections

3. Update your Claude Desktop configuration to use the config file

{
  "ssh": {
    "enabled": true,
    "defaultTimeout": 30,
    "maxConcurrentSessions": 5,
    "keepaliveInterval": 10000,
    "keepaliveCountMax": 3,
    "readyTimeout": 20000,
    "connections": {
      "my-server": {
        "host": "192.168.1.100",
        "port": 22,
        "username": "myuser",
        "password": "mypassword"
      },
      "production": {
        "host": "prod.example.com",
        "port": 22,
        "username": "deploy",
        "privateKeyPath": "/home/user/.ssh/id_rsa"
      }
    }
  }
}

• enabled (boolean): Must be true for the server to function
• defaultTimeout (number): Default command execution timeout in seconds (default: 30)
• maxConcurrentSessions (number): Maximum concurrent SSH sessions (default: 5)
• keepaliveInterval (number): Keepalive packet interval in milliseconds (default: 10000)
• keepaliveCountMax (number): Maximum keepalive failures before disconnect (default: 3)
• readyTimeout (number): Connection establishment timeout in milliseconds (default: 20000)

Each connection in the connections object has:

• host (string, required): Hostname or IP address
• port (number, required): SSH port (default: 22)
• username (string, required): SSH username
• password (string, optional): Password for authentication
• privateKeyPath (string, optional): Path to private key file
• keepaliveInterval (number, optional): Override global keepalive interval
• keepaliveCountMax (number, optional): Override global keepalive count
• readyTimeout (number, optional): Override global ready timeout

Note: You must provide either password or privateKeyPath for authentication.

The server looks for configuration in these locations (in order):

1. Path specified by --config flag
2. ./config.json in current directory
3. ~/.mcp-ssh/config.json in user's home directory

Execute a command on a remote system via SSH.

Input:

• connectionId (string): ID of the SSH connection to use
• command (string): Command to execute

Returns: Command output as text, or error message if execution fails

Example:

{
  "connectionId": "my-server",
  "command": "ls -la /var/log"
}

Disconnect from an SSH server.

Input:

• connectionId (string): ID of the SSH connection to disconnect

Returns: Confirmation message

Example:

{
  "connectionId": "my-server"
}

• Authentication: Store private keys securely and use appropriate file permissions (600)
• Network Security: Use SSH keys instead of passwords when possible
• Connection Limits: Configure appropriate timeouts and connection limits
• Host Verification: The server currently does not verify host keys (accepts any host)
• Command Execution: All commands are executed with the privileges of the SSH user

git clone https://github.com/your-username/mcp-ssh.git
cd mcp-ssh
npm install
npm run build

npm test

npm run watch

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.