SSH MCP Server

SSH MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that exposes SSH, SFTP, and tunnel capabilities as AI tools. Connect any MCP-compatible AI app to your remote servers.

Tools (17 total)

| Category | Tools | |----------|-------| | Connections | ssh_connect, ssh_disconnect, ssh_list_connections | | Profiles | ssh_save_profile, ssh_list_profiles, ssh_delete_profile | | Exec | ssh_exec | | SFTP | sftp_upload, sftp_download, sftp_list, sftp_stat, sftp_mkdir, sftp_rm | | Tunnels | ssh_forward_local, ssh_forward_remote, ssh_list_tunnels, ssh_close_tunnel |

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Prerequisites

• Node.js v18+
• Clone and build the server:

git clone <your-repo-url>
cd ssh-mcp
npm install
npm run build

The built entry point will be at dist/index.js.

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Connecting to AI Apps

Replace /path/to/ssh-mcp with the actual absolute path where you cloned the repo. - Windows example: D:/projects/ssh-mcp - macOS/Linux example: /home/user/ssh-mcp

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Claude Desktop

Config file location:

• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Open the file and add the mcpServers block (merge with existing content if needed):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ssh": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Windows example: ``json { "mcpServers": { "ssh": { "command": "node", "args": ["D:/projects/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"] } } } ``

Steps:

1. Edit the config file above
2. Fully quit Claude Desktop (right-click tray icon → Quit)
3. Relaunch Claude Desktop
4. Look for the 🔨 hammer icon in the chat input — click it to verify SSH tools are listed

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Google Antigravity

Config file location:

• Windows: C:\Users\<YOUR_USERNAME>\.gemini\antigravity\mcp_config.json
• macOS/Linux: ~/.gemini/antigravity/mcp_config.json

Create or edit mcp_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ssh": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Alternatively via the UI:

1. Open Antigravity → click Agent session dropdown in the side panel
2. Select MCP Servers → Manage MCP Servers
3. Click View raw config and paste the config above

Steps:

1. Save the config file
2. Restart Antigravity or reload the MCP servers from the UI
3. The SSH tools will appear in the agent tool list

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VS Code (GitHub Copilot Chat)

MCP servers in VS Code can be scoped to a workspace or configured globally.

Option A — Workspace (recommended)

Create .vscode/mcp.json in your project root:

{
  "servers": {
    "ssh": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Option B — Global (user settings)

Open VS Code settings (Ctrl+, / Cmd+,) → search for MCP → click Edit in settings.json and add:

{
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "ssh": {
        "type": "stdio",
        "command": "node",
        "args": ["/path/to/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"]
      }
    }
  }
}

Steps:

1. Save the config
2. Open Copilot Chat (Ctrl+Alt+I / Cmd+Alt+I)
3. Switch to Agent mode using the mode selector
4. The SSH tools will be available to the agent

Requires: VS Code 1.99+ with the GitHub Copilot extension

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Opencode

Config file location: ~/.config/opencode/config.json

Add the mcp block to your config (create the file if it doesn't exist):

{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "ssh": {
      "type": "local",
      "command": ["node", "/path/to/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"],
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}

Steps:

1. Save the config file
2. Start or restart opencode
3. The SSH tools will be loaded automatically on startup

The command field in Opencode is an array (command + args combined), unlike other apps that split them into command + args.

LM Studio

LM Studio supports MCP servers since version 0.3.17. It uses the same mcpServers format as Claude Desktop.

Config file via UI (easiest):

1. Open LM Studio → switch to the Program tab in the right sidebar
2. Click Install → Edit mcp.json — this opens the config in the built-in editor
3. Add the SSH server entry and save

mcp.json format:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ssh": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Windows example: ``json { "mcpServers": { "ssh": { "command": "node", "args": ["D:/projects/ssh-mcp/dist/index.js"] } } } ``

Steps:

1. Edit mcp.json via the UI or directly on disk
2. Save the file — LM Studio reloads MCP servers automatically
3. Load a model that supports tool use (e.g. a Qwen, Llama, or Mistral instruct model)
4. Start a new chat — LM Studio will show a confirmation dialog before executing any tool call

Note: LM Studio shows a tool-call confirmation dialog before running each tool, letting you review and optionally edit the arguments first. Requires: LM Studio 0.3.17+

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Authentication Methods

When connecting with ssh_connect, three auth methods are supported:

| Method | When to use | |--------|-------------| | password | Username + password login | | key | Private key file (PEM format) | | agent | SSH agent (e.g. ssh-agent, Pageant on Windows) |

Password example: `` ssh_connect host=192.168.1.10 username=admin auth=password password=secret ``

Key example: `` ssh_connect host=192.168.1.10 username=admin auth=key privateKeyPath=/home/user/.ssh/id_rsa ``

Agent example: `` ssh_connect host=192.168.1.10 username=admin auth=agent ``

Saving profiles

To avoid re-entering credentials every session, save a profile: `` ssh_save_profile name=myserver host=192.168.1.10 username=admin auth=password ``

Then connect using: `` ssh_connect profileName=myserver password=secret ``

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Development

# Run without building (uses tsx)
npm run dev

# Build to dist/
npm run build

# Type-check only
npm run typecheck

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Troubleshooting

| Problem | Fix | |---------|-----| | Tools don't appear in the app | Make sure you ran npm run build and dist/index.js exists | | Cannot find module error | Run npm install then npm run build again | | Connection refused | Check the host/port and that the SSH service is running on the remote | | Auth failed | Double-check username, password, or key path and permissions | | Antigravity doesn't load tools | Reload MCP servers from the UI or restart Antigravity | | VS Code tools missing | Ensure you're in Agent mode in Copilot Chat, not Ask/Edit mode | | LM Studio tools missing | Requires v0.3.17+; make sure you're using a model that supports tool use |