ssh

This MCP server enables AI assistants (notably Claude Desktop) to securely execute SSH commands on remote servers through the MCP interface. Built in Node.js with the official MCP SDK, it focuses on private-key SSH authentication and token-efficient operation. The server exposes a remote-SSH capability that accepts structured tool calls and returns command outputs, allowing you to perform tasks like checking disk usage, restarting services, or listing processes on remote hosts via SSH keys.

To use it, configure your MCP client (e.g., Claude Desktop) to point at the ssh MCP server. The recommended one-command NPX installation lets you run the server on demand without local installation. Once configured, Claude can issue queries such as running a shell command on a target host by providing host, user, command, and a path to your private key (or rely on auto-discovery for existing keys). The server uses the SSH2 library for secure connections and supports multiple key formats and explicit key paths as shown in the configuration examples.

Prerequisites:

• Node.js 18+ installed on the host
• NPM 9+ installed

Option A: Run directly with NPX (no local install)

1. Ensure you have a Node.js environment with NPX available.
2. Start the MCP server using NPX:

npx @idletoaster/ssh-mcp-server@latest

Option B: Install globally for repeated use

1. Install the package globally:

npm install -g @idletoaster/ssh-mcp-server

2. Run the server locally:

npm start

Option C: Local project installation (for development)

1. Create a project folder and initialize:

mkdir ssh-mcp && cd ssh-mcp
npm init -y

2. Install dependencies:

npm install @idletoaster/ssh-mcp-server

3. Run locally:

npm start

Notes:

• The server is designed to be run on demand via NPX for zero-setup deployments, but a local installation is great for development and testing.
• If you plan to run as a background service, consider using a process manager like PM2 or systemd, depending on your OS.

Tips and common considerations:

• Use NPX to avoid local installs: npx @idletoaster/ssh-mcp-server@latest
• Configure SSH keys securely: private keys with restricted permissions (chmod 600) and consider passphrases where possible.
• Supported key formats include RSA (id_rsa), ED25519 (id_ed25519), and ECDSA (id_ecdsa); OpenSSH and PEM formats are supported as well.
• You can specify an explicit privateKeyPath or rely on environment variable SSH_PRIVATE_KEY or auto-discovery for keys in ~/.ssh.
• In Claude Desktop (or other MCP clients), place the configuration under mcpServers with the server name (e.g., ssh) and ensure the env block is populated if needed.
• Keep the MCP server up to date to benefit from token-efficiency improvements and security fixes mentioned in the v2.1.0 notes.