Remote Shell MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI models to manage SSH connections and execute commands on remote machines without repeatedly entering credentials. Built with FastMCP and Paramiko for cross-platform compatibility.

Features

• 🔐 Multiple Authentication Methods: Support both password and SSH key authentication
• 🔄 Persistent Connections: Create and maintain SSH connections across multiple operations
• 📁 File Transfer: Upload and download files between local and remote machines
• ⚙️ Flexible Configuration: Three ways to configure connections (global config, server args, or dynamic)
• 🌐 Multi-Connection Support: Manage multiple remote hosts simultaneously
• 🛠️ Simple MCP Tools: Easy-to-use tools for command execution and file operations

Installation

Option 1: Install from PyPI (Recommended)

# Install with pip
pip install remoteshell-mcp

# Or install with uv
uv pip install remoteshell-mcp

Option 2: Install from Source

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11 or higher
• uv package manager

Steps

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/chouzz/remoteShell-mcp.git
cd remoteShell-mcp

# Install dependencies
uv sync

# The server is now ready to use

Configuration

There are three ways to configure SSH connections:

1. Global Configuration File (Recommended for Personal Use)

Create a configuration file at ~/.remoteShell/config.json:

{
  "connections": [
    {
      "id": "prod-server",
      "host": "192.168.1.100",
      "port": 22,
      "user": "admin",
      "auth_type": "password",
      "password": "your_password"
    },
    {
      "id": "dev-server",
      "host": "192.168.1.101",
      "port": 22,
      "user": "developer",
      "auth_type": "key",
      "key_path": "~/.ssh/id_rsa"
    }
  ]
}

Security Note: Ensure this file has proper permissions:

chmod 600 ~/.remoteShell/config.json

2. MCP Client Configuration (Recommended for Claude Code/Cursor)

Configure connections directly in your MCP client settings (see below for specific examples).

3. Dynamic Creation

Create connections on-the-fly using the create_connection tool during a conversation with your AI assistant.

Client Setup

Claude Code Configuration

Add the following to your Claude Code MCP settings file (usually located at ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "remoteshell": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/absolute/path/to/remoteShell-mcp",
        "run",
        "remoteshell-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

With Pre-configured Connections:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "remoteshell": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/absolute/path/to/remoteShell-mcp",
        "run",
        "remoteshell-mcp",
        "--connections",
        "[{\"id\":\"server1\",\"host\":\"192.168.1.100\",\"user\":\"admin\",\"auth_type\":\"password\",\"password\":\"secret\"}]"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Or reference a configuration file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "remoteshell": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/absolute/path/to/remoteShell-mcp",
        "run",
        "remoteshell-mcp",
        "--connections",
        "/path/to/your/connections.json"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Cursor Configuration

Add the following to your Cursor settings (Settings → Features → MCP):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "remoteshell": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/absolute/path/to/remoteShell-mcp",
        "run",
        "remoteshell-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

With Pre-configured Connections:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "remoteshell": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/absolute/path/to/remoteShell-mcp",
        "run",
        "remoteshell-mcp",
        "--connections",
        "/path/to/your/connections.json"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Note: Replace /absolute/path/to/remoteShell-mcp with the actual absolute path to this repository on your system.

Available Tools

1. create_connection

Create a new SSH connection to a remote host.

Parameters:

• host (required): Remote host address (IP or domain)
• user (required): Username for authentication
• port (optional): SSH port (default: 22)
• password (optional): Password for authentication
• key_path (optional): Path to SSH private key file
• connection_id (optional): Custom connection ID (auto-generated if not provided)

Example Usage:

Create a connection to 192.168.1.100 with username admin and password secret123

2. execute_command

Execute a command on a remote host.

Parameters:

• connection_id (required): ID of the connection to use
• command (required): Command to execute
• timeout (optional): Command timeout in seconds
• working_dir (optional): Working directory for command execution

Example Usage:

Execute "ls -la /home" on prod-server

3. upload_file

Upload a file from local machine to remote host.

Parameters:

• connection_id (required): ID of the connection to use
• local_path (required): Path to local file
• remote_path (required): Destination path on remote host

Example Usage:

Upload /tmp/config.txt to /etc/app/config.txt on prod-server

4. download_file

Download a file from remote host to local machine.

Parameters:

• connection_id (required): ID of the connection to use
• remote_path (required): Path to file on remote host
• local_path (required): Destination path on local machine

Example Usage:

Download /var/log/app.log from prod-server to /tmp/app.log

5. list_connections

List all available connections (both active and pre-configured).

Example Usage:

Show me all available connections

6. close_connection

Close an active SSH connection.

Parameters:

• connection_id (required): ID of the connection to close

Example Usage:

Close the connection to prod-server

Usage Examples

Basic Workflow

1. List available connections:

   Show me all configured connections
   

2. Execute a command:

   Run "df -h" on prod-server
   

3. Create a new connection dynamically:

   Connect to 192.168.1.200 with username ubuntu using SSH key at ~/.ssh/mykey.pem, call it web-server
   

4. Upload a file:

   Upload my local file /tmp/data.csv to /home/user/data.csv on web-server
   

5. Download a file:

   Download /var/log/nginx/access.log from web-server to ~/Downloads/access.log
   

Advanced Usage

Execute commands in a specific directory:

Run "npm install" on dev-server in the /var/www/myapp directory

Check system resources on multiple servers:

Check disk space on prod-server and dev-server

Batch file operations:

Upload all .conf files from /etc/local to /etc/remote on backup-server

Security Considerations

1. Credential Storage:

   • Store passwords and keys securely
   • Use file permissions to protect config files (chmod 600)
   • Consider using SSH keys instead of passwords when possible

2. SSH Key Authentication:

   • More secure than password authentication
   • Keys can be password-protected for additional security
   • Use different keys for different hosts when possible

3. Connection Timeouts:

   • Set appropriate timeouts to prevent hanging connections
   • Connections automatically reconnect if they drop

4. Global Config File:

   • Located at ~/.remoteShell/config.json
   • Should have restrictive permissions (600)
   • Consider encrypting sensitive data at rest

Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

Problem: "Authentication failed"

• Solution: Verify username and password/key path are correct
• Solution: Ensure SSH key has proper permissions (chmod 600)

Problem: "Connection timed out"

• Solution: Check if host is reachable (ping)
• Solution: Verify firewall rules allow SSH connections
• Solution: Confirm SSH service is running on remote host

Problem: "SSH key file not found"

• Solution: Use absolute path or expand ~ properly
• Solution: Verify file exists and is readable

File Transfer Issues

Problem: "Permission denied" during upload

• Solution: Check write permissions on remote directory
• Solution: Ensure remote user has necessary permissions

Problem: "No such file or directory" during download

• Solution: Verify remote file path is correct
• Solution: Check if file exists on remote host

Development

Running Tests

uv run pytest

Project Structure

remoteShell-mcp/
├── src/
│   └── remoteshell_mcp/
│       ├── __init__.py
│       ├── server.py              # FastMCP server with tools
│       ├── connection_manager.py  # SSH connection management
│       ├── ssh_client.py          # Paramiko wrapper
│       └── config_loader.py       # Configuration handling
├── config.example.json            # Example configuration
├── pyproject.toml                 # Project dependencies
└── README.md                      # This file

License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Support

For issues, questions, or contributions, please open an issue on the GitHub repository.