Content
# MCP Server Kubernetes
[](https://github.com/yourusername/mcp-server-kubernetes/actions/workflows/ci.yml)
[](https://github.com/yourusername/mcp-server-kubernetes)
[](https://bun.sh)
[](https://kubernetes.io/)
[](https://www.docker.com/)
[](https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-server-kubernetes/stargazers)
[](https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-server-kubernetes/issues)
[](https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-server-kubernetes/pulls)
[](https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-server-kubernetes/commits/main)
[](https://smithery.ai/protocol/mcp-server-kubernetes)
MCP Server that can connect to a Kubernetes cluster and manage it.
https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/f25f8f4e-4d04-479b-9ae0-5dac452dd2ed
<a href="https://glama.ai/mcp/servers/w71ieamqrt"><img width="380" height="200" src="https://glama.ai/mcp/servers/w71ieamqrt/badge" /></a>
## Usage with Claude Desktop
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"kubernetes": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["mcp-server-kubernetes"]
}
}
}
```
The server will automatically connect to your current kubectl context. Make sure you have:
1. kubectl installed and in your PATH
2. A valid kubeconfig file with contexts configured
3. Access to a Kubernetes cluster configured for kubectl (e.g. minikube, Rancher Desktop, GKE, etc.)
4. Helm v3 installed and in your PATH (no Tiller required). Optional if you don't plan to use Helm.
You can verify your connection by asking Claude to list your pods or create a test deployment.
If you have errors open up a standard terminal and run `kubectl get pods` to see if you can connect to your cluster without credentials issues.
## Usage with mcp-chat
[mcp-chat](https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-chat) is a CLI chat client for MCP servers. You can use it to interact with the Kubernetes server.
```shell
npx mcp-chat --server "npx mcp-server-kubernetes"
```
Alternatively, pass it your existing Claude Desktop configuration file from above (Linux should pass the correct path to config):
Mac:
```shell
npx mcp-chat --config "~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json"
```
Windows:
```shell
npx mcp-chat --config "%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json"
```
## Features
- [x] Connect to a Kubernetes cluster
- [x] List all pods, services, deployments, nodes
- [x] Create, describe, delete a pod
- [x] List all namespaces, create a namespace
- [x] Create custom pod & deployment configs, update deployment replicas
- [x] Get logs from a pod for debugging (supports pods, deployments, jobs, and label selectors)
- [x] Support Helm v3 for installing charts
- Install charts with custom values
- Uninstall releases
- Upgrade existing releases
- Support for namespaces
- Support for version specification
- Support for custom repositories
- [x] kubectl explain and kubectl api-resources support
- [x] Get Kubernetes events from the cluster
- [x] Port forward to a pod or service
- [x] Create, list, and decribe cronjobs
## Local Development
```bash
git clone https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-server-kubernetes.git
cd mcp-server-kubernetes
bun install
```
### Development Workflow
1. Start the server in development mode (watches for file changes):
```bash
bun run dev
```
2. Run unit tests:
```bash
bun run test
```
3. Build the project:
```bash
bun run build
```
4. Local Testing with [Inspector](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/inspector)
```bash
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node dist/index.js
# Follow further instructions on terminal for Inspector link
```
5. Local testing with Claude Desktop
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"mcp-server-kubernetes": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/path/to/your/mcp-server-kubernetes/dist/index.js"]
}
}
}
```
6. Local testing with [mcp-chat](https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-chat)
```bash
npm run chat
```
## Contributing
See the [CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md) file for details.
## Advanced
For more advanced information like using SSE transport, see the [ADVANCED_README.md](ADVANCED_README.md).
## Architecture
This section describes the high-level architecture of the MCP Kubernetes server.
### Request Flow
The sequence diagram below illustrates how requests flow through the system:
```mermaid
sequenceDiagram
participant Client
participant Transport as StdioTransport
participant Server as MCP Server
participant Handler as Request Handler
participant K8sManager as KubernetesManager
participant K8s as Kubernetes API
Client->>Transport: Send Request via STDIO
Transport->>Server: Forward Request
alt Tools Request
Server->>Handler: Route to tools handler
Handler->>K8sManager: Execute tool operation
K8sManager->>K8s: Make API call
K8s-->>K8sManager: Return result
K8sManager-->>Handler: Process response
Handler-->>Server: Return tool result
else Resource Request
Server->>Handler: Route to resource handler
Handler->>K8sManager: Get resource data
K8sManager->>K8s: Query API
K8s-->>K8sManager: Return data
K8sManager-->>Handler: Format response
Handler-->>Server: Return resource data
end
Server-->>Transport: Send Response
Transport-->>Client: Return Final Response
```
## Publishing new release
Go to the [releases page](https://github.com/Flux159/mcp-server-kubernetes/releases), click on "Draft New Release", click "Choose a tag" and create a new tag by typing out a new version number using "v{major}.{minor}.{patch}" semver format. Then, write a release title "Release v{major}.{minor}.{patch}" and description / changelog if necessary and click "Publish Release".
This will create a new tag which will trigger a new release build via the cd.yml workflow. Once successful, the new release will be published to [npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/mcp-server-kubernetes). Note that there is no need to update the package.json version manually, as the workflow will automatically update the version number in the package.json file & push a commit to main.
## Not planned
Authentication / adding clusters to kubectx.
