ToolHive

# ToolHive - making MCP servers easy and secure <!-- omit in toc --> [](https://github.com/StacklokLabs/toolhive/releases) | [](https://github.com/StacklokLabs/toolhive/actions/workflows/run-on-main.yml) | [](https://opensource.org/licenses/Apache-2.0) | [](https://github.com/StacklokLabs/toolhive) | [](https://discord.gg/stacklok) <img src="docs/images/toolhive.png" alt="ToolHive Logo" width="300" /> ToolHive (thv) is a lightweight utility designed to simplify the deployment and management of MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers, ensuring ease of use, consistency, and security. <img src="./docs/images/thv-readme-demo.svg" alt="Terminal Recording"> ## Contents <!-- omit in toc --> - [Why ToolHive?](#why-toolhive) - [Key benefits](#key-benefits) - [Getting started](#getting-started) - [Prerequisites](#prerequisites) - [Installation](#installation) - [Quickstart - run your first MCP server](#quickstart---run-your-first-mcp-server) - [Client compatibility](#client-compatibility) - [Architecture overview](#architecture-overview) - [Usage examples](#usage-examples) - [Register clients](#register-clients) - [Find and run an MCP server](#find-and-run-an-mcp-server) - [Manage MCP servers](#manage-mcp-servers) - [Secrets management](#secrets-management) - [Run a custom MCP server](#run-a-custom-mcp-server) - [Advanced usage](#advanced-usage) - [Customize permissions](#customize-permissions) - [Run ToolHive in Kubernetes](#run-toolhive-in-kubernetes) - [Contributing to ToolHive](#contributing-to-toolhive) - [License](#license) ## Why ToolHive? Deploying MCP servers often involves complex, multi-step processes that can introduce friction, such as running potentially unsafe commands (e.g., uv or npx), manually managing security credentials (e.g., storing API tokens in plaintext), and dealing with inconsistent packaging methods. ToolHive aims to solve these challenges by running containers in a consistent and locked-down environment, granting only the minimal permissions required to run. This significantly reduces the attack surface, improves usability, and enforces best practices for container security. ToolHive simplifies MCP deployment by focusing on three key areas: - **Ease of use**: Instantly deploy MCP servers using Docker containers. Start MCP servers with a single, straightforward command without the need to install and manage different versions of Python, Node.js, or other build tools. - **Enhanced security**: Secure by default. ToolHive securely manages secrets and configurations, greatly reducing the risk of leaks. Avoid plaintext secrets in configuration files. - **Standardized packaging**: Leverage OCI container standards to provide a repeatable, standardized packaging method for MCP servers, ensuring compatibility and reliability. ### Key benefits - **Curated MCP registry**: ToolHive provides a curated registry of MCPs with verified configurations, allowing you to discover and deploy MCP servers effortlessly. Simply select one from the list and run it securely with a single command. - **Enterprise-ready authorization**: Robust authorization controls designed for enterprise environments, securely managing tool access and integrating seamlessly with existing infrastructure (e.g., Kubernetes). - **Seamless integration**: Automatic configuration of popular development tools like GitHub Copilot, Cursor, and more to streamline your workflow. ## Getting started ### Prerequisites ToolHive currently works on macOS and Linux using Docker or Podman. For client auto-discovery/configuration, a supported client: - VS Code (v1.99.0 or newer) with an active GitHub Copilot subscription - Cursor - Roo Code (VS Code extension) ### Installation Installation is quite easy and we have several options to do so. #### MacOS (Homebrew) ```bash brew tap stacklok/tap brew install thv ``` #### Download a release Download the latest release from [toolhive/releases](https://github.com/StacklokLabs/toolhive/releases). #### Build from source You can do your normal `go build` and `go install` or you can do the following if you have task installed (it's similar to `make`) ```bash task build task install ``` ### Quickstart - run your first MCP server > Note: This example enables auto-discovery to automatically find supported > client(s) and update their configuration. Skip this step if you prefer to > manually configure your client, or run `thv config register-client --help` to > learn how to explicitly register a client. ```shell # Enable client auto-discovery: thv config auto-discovery true # Run the Fetch MCP server which allows LLMs to fetch the contents of a website: thv run fetch # List the running MCP servers: thv list ``` Your client should now be able to use the `fetch` MCP tool to fetch website content. ## Client compatibility ToolHive has been tested with the following clients: | Client | Supported | Notes | | ----------------- | --------- | -------------------------------------- | | Copilot (VS Code) | ✅ | v1.99.0+ or Insiders version | | Cursor | ✅ | | | Roo Code | ✅ | | | PydanticAI | ✅ | | | Continue | ❌ | Continue doesn't yet support SSE | | Claude Desktop | ❌ | Claude Desktop doesn't yet support SSE | Other clients and development libraries that support the SSE protocol can also be used with ToolHive. Automatic configuration is supported for Copilot, Cursor, and Roo Code. For other clients, manual configuration of the MCP server URL is required. ## Architecture overview ToolHive exposes an SSE proxy to forward requests to MCP servers running in containers. The proxy communicates with MCP servers via standard input/output (stdio) or server-sent events (SSE). ```mermaid flowchart LR subgraph container[Docker/Podman] direction LR proxy1[SSE proxy 1] proxy2[SSE proxy 2] proxy3[SSE proxy 3] mcp1[MCP Server] mcp2[MCP Server] mcp3[MCP Server] proxy1 -->|stdio| mcp1 proxy2 -->|stdio| mcp2 proxy3 -->|sse| mcp3 end T[ToolHive CLI] -->|Socket API| container C[Client] -->|HTTP/SSE| proxy1 C[Client] -->|HTTP/SSE| proxy2 C[Client] -->|HTTP/SSE| proxy3 ``` ## Usage examples Common usage scenarios are detailed below. To view all available commands and options, see the [ToolHive CLI reference](./docs/cli/thv.md) or run `thv --help`. ### Register clients ToolHive can automatically configure supported clients to use the MCP servers you run. To take advantage of this feature, clients must be registered before you run an MCP server. To enable automatic discovery and configuration of supported clients, run: ```bash thv config auto-discovery true ``` Or, you can register clients manually: ```bash # Register a client thv config register-client <client-name> # Show registered clients thv config list-registered-clients # Remove a client thv config remove-client <client-name> ``` ### Find and run an MCP server First, find the MCP server you want to run. You can list or search available MCP servers in the built-in registry using: ```bash # List all available servers thv registry list # Find a server by keyword thv search <search-term> ``` To view detailed information about a specific MCP server including its available tools, configuration options, and other metadata, use: ```bash thv registry info <name-of-mcp-server> ``` Once you find the MCP server you want to run, start it using the `thv run` command: ```bash thv run <name-of-mcp-server> ``` The registry already contains all the parameters needed to run the server, so you don't need to specify any additional arguments. ToolHive will automatically pull the image and start the server. We're always looking to expand our MCP server registry. If you have a specific server you'd like to see included, feel free to [open an issue](https://github.com/StacklokLabs/toolhive/issues) or submit a pull request to update the [registry.json](pkg/registry/data/registry.json) file. ### Manage MCP servers To list the running MCP servers: ```bash thv list ``` This displays all active MCP servers managed by ToolHive, along with their current status. To include stopped servers, add the `--all` flag. To stop and/or remove a server: ```bash thv stop <name-of-mcp-server> thv rm <name-of-mcp-server> # Or to stop and remove in one command: thv rm -f <name-of-mcp-server> ``` ### Secrets management Many MCP servers require API tokens or other secrets for authentication. ToolHive provides a secure way to manage these secrets without exposing them in plaintext configuration files. This example enables ToolHive's encrypted secrets store, creates a secret for a GitHub authentication token, and runs the GitHub MCP server with the token: ```bash thv config secrets-provider encrypted thv secret set github # <enter your GitHub personal access token when prompted> thv run --secret github,target=GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN github ``` ToolHive stores the encryption password in your operating system's keyring service. For more details on managing secrets, see the [`thv secret` command reference](./docs/cli/thv_secret.md) or run `thv secret --help`. ### Run a custom MCP server If you want to run a custom MCP server that is not in the registry, you can do so by specifying the image name and any additional arguments. For example: ```bash thv run --transport sse --name my-mcp-server --port 8080 my-mcp-server-image:latest -- my-mcp-server-args ``` This command closely resembles `docker run` but focuses on security and simplicity. When invoked: - ToolHive creates a container from the specified image (`my-mcp-server-image:latest`). - It configures the container to listen on the chosen port (8080). - Labels the container so it can be tracked by ToolHive: ```yaml toolhive: true toolhive-name: my-mcp-server ``` - Sets up the specified transport method (`--transport stdio` or `--transport sse`): - **Standard I/O** (`stdio`), default:\ ToolHive redirects SSE traffic from the client to the container's standard input and output. This acts as a secure proxy, ensuring that the container does not have direct access to the network or the host machine. - **Server-sent events (SSE)** (`sse`):\ ToolHive creates a reverse proxy on a random port that forwards requests to the container. This means the container itself does not directly expose any ports. ## Advanced usage ### Customize permissions Containers launched by ToolHive come with a minimal set of permissions, strictly limited to what is required. Permissions can be further customized via a JSON-based permission profile provided with the `--permission-profile` flag. An example permission profile file could be: ```json { "read": ["/var/run/mcp.sock"], "write": ["/var/run/mcp.sock"], "network": { "outbound": { "insecure_allow_all": false, "allow_transport": ["tcp", "udp"], "allow_host": ["localhost", "google.com"], "allow_port": [80, 443] } } } ``` This profile lets the container read and write to the `/var/run/mcp.sock` Unix socket and also make outbound network requests to `localhost` and `google.com` on ports `80` and `443`. Two built-in profiles are included for convenience: - `stdio`: Grants minimal permissions with no network access. - `network`: Permits outbound network connections to any host on any port (not recommended for production use). ### Run ToolHive in Kubernetes ToolHive can also be used to deploy MCP servers in a Kubernetes cluster. This functionality is still under active development for production use cases, but we invite you to try it out locally using a kind cluster. Check out the [Run ToolHive in Kubernetes using kind](./docs/running-toolhive-in-kind-cluster.md) guide to get started. ## Contributing to ToolHive We welcome contributions to ToolHive! If you'd like to contribute, please review the [CONTRIBUTING guide](./CONTRIBUTING.md) for details on how to get started. If you run into a bug or have a feature request, please [open an issue](https://github.com/StacklokLabs/toolhive/issues) in the repository or join us in the `#toolhive-developers` channel on our [community Discord server](https://discord.gg/stacklok). ## License This project is licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. See the [LICENSE](./LICENSE) file for details. <!-- markdownlint-disable-file MD033 -->