What is Mcp Kubernetes

mcp-kubernetes is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that facilitates interaction between AI assistants and Kubernetes clusters. It acts as a bridge, translating natural language requests into Kubernetes operations and providing results in a format that AI tools can understand.

Use cases

Use cases for mcp-kubernetes include automating Kubernetes management tasks through AI assistants, simplifying resource queries, and enhancing the user experience in managing Kubernetes clusters using natural language.

How to use

To use mcp-kubernetes, install it via Docker or locally. For Docker, run a command that mounts your kubeconfig file. For local installation, ensure kubectl and helm are installed and configured properly. Then, set up your MCP servers in compatible AI tools like Claude, Cursor, or ChatGPT Copilot.

Key features

Key features of mcp-kubernetes include the ability to query Kubernetes resources, execute kubectl commands, manage Kubernetes clusters through natural language interactions, and diagnose the states of Kubernetes resources.

Where to use

mcp-kubernetes can be used in various fields such as DevOps, cloud computing, and AI development, where Kubernetes orchestration and AI tool integration are required.

mcp-kubernetes

The mcp-kubernetes is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI assistants to interact with Kubernetes clusters. It serves as a bridge between AI tools (like Claude, Cursor, and GitHub Copilot) and Kubernetes, translating natural language requests into Kubernetes operations and returning the results in a format the AI tools can understand.

It allows AI tools to:

• Query Kubernetes resources
• Execute kubectl commands
• Manage Kubernetes clusters through natural language interactions
• Diagnose and interpret the states of Kubernetes resources

How it works

How to install

Docker

Get your kubeconfig file for your Kubernetes cluster and setup in the mcpServers (replace src path with your kubeconfig path):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "kubernetes": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "--mount",
        "type=bind,src=/home/username/.kube/config,dst=/home/mcp/.kube/config",
        "ghcr.io/azure/mcp-kubernetes"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Local

# For Linux
curl -LO "https://dl.k8s.io/release/$(curl -L -s https://dl.k8s.io/release/stable.txt)/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl"

# For MacOS
curl -LO "https://dl.k8s.io/release/$(curl -L -s https://dl.k8s.io/release/stable.txt)/bin/darwin/arm64/kubectl"

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/helm/helm/main/scripts/get-helm-3 | bash

Config your MCP servers in Claude Desktop, Cursor, ChatGPT Copilot, Github Copilot and other supported AI clients, e.g.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "kubernetes": {
      "command": "<path of binary 'mcp-kubernetes'>",
      "args": [
        "--transport",
        "stdio"
      ],
      "env": {
        "KUBECONFIG": "<your-kubeconfig-path>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Options

Environment variables:

• KUBECONFIG: Path to your kubeconfig file, e.g. /home/<username>/.kube/config.

Command line arguments:

Usage of ./mcp-kubernetes:
      --additional-tools string   Comma-separated list of additional tools to support (kubectl is always enabled). Available: helm,cilium
      --allow-namespaces string   Comma-separated list of namespaces to allow (empty means all allowed)
      --host string               Host to listen for the server (only used with transport sse or streamable-http) (default "127.0.0.1")
      --port int                  Port to listen for the server (only used with transport sse or streamable-http) (default 8000)
      --readonly                  Enable read-only mode (prevents write operations)
      --timeout int               Timeout for command execution in seconds, default is 60s (default 60)
      --transport string          Transport mechanism to use (stdio, sse or streamable-http) (default "stdio")

Usage

Ask any questions about Kubernetes cluster in your AI client, e.g.

What is the status of my Kubernetes cluster?

What is wrong with my nginx pod?

Available Tools

The mcp-kubernetes server provides the following tools for interacting with Kubernetes clusters:

Note: Read-write and admin tools are only available when the server is not run in read-only mode.

Development

How to inspect MCP server requests and responses:

npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector <path of binary 'mcp-kubernetes'>

Contributing

This project welcomes contributions and suggestions. Most contributions require you to agree to a
Contributor License Agreement (CLA) declaring that you have the right to, and actually do, grant us
the rights to use your contribution. For details, visit https://cla.opensource.microsoft.com.

When you submit a pull request, a CLA bot will automatically determine whether you need to provide
a CLA and decorate the PR appropriately (e.g., status check, comment). Simply follow the instructions
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This project has adopted the Microsoft Open Source Code of Conduct.
For more information see the Code of Conduct FAQ or
contact [email protected] with any additional questions or comments.

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