Kubernetes MCP server

The Kubernetes MCP server provides a powerful interface for AI tools to interact with Kubernetes clusters. This server connects directly to the Kubernetes API, allowing AI assistants to manage resources without relying on external command-line tools.

Installation Options

NPX (Recommended)

The fastest way to get started is using NPX if you have Node.js installed:

npx -y kubernetes-mcp-server@latest

For Claude Desktop

Add the MCP server to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "kubernetes": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "kubernetes-mcp-server@latest"
      ]
    }
  }
}

For VS Code / VS Code Insiders

Install using the one-click method by clicking on this link: Install in VS Code

Or manually with:

# For VS Code
code --add-mcp '{"name":"kubernetes","command":"npx","args":["kubernetes-mcp-server@latest"]}'
# For VS Code Insiders
code-insiders --add-mcp '{"name":"kubernetes","command":"npx","args":["kubernetes-mcp-server@latest"]}'

For Cursor

Install with: Install MCP Server

Or manually edit the mcp.json file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "kubernetes-mcp-server": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "kubernetes-mcp-server@latest"]
    }
  }
}

For Goose CLI

Add to your config.yaml:

extensions:
  kubernetes:
    command: npx
    args:
      - -y
      - kubernetes-mcp-server@latest

Configuration

The server can be configured with command line arguments:

npx kubernetes-mcp-server@latest --help

Key configuration options include:

Option	Description
--port	Starts the server in HTTP mode on specified port
--log-level	Sets logging verbosity (0-9)
--config	Path to main TOML configuration file
--config-dir	Path to drop-in configuration directory
--kubeconfig	Path to Kubernetes configuration file
--list-output	Output format for resource listings (yaml or table)
--read-only	Run in read-only mode (no modifications allowed)
--disable-destructive	Disable destructive operations like delete
--toolsets	Comma-separated list of toolsets to enable

Toolsets

Control which features are available by enabling specific toolsets:

• config: View and manage Kubernetes configuration
• core: Common tools (Pods, Generic Resources, Events)
• kiali: Tools for managing Kiali
• kubevirt: Virtual machine management tools
• helm: Tools for managing Helm charts and releases

By default, the config, core, and helm toolsets are enabled.

Dynamic Configuration with Drop-in Files

The server supports both a main config file and drop-in configuration files:

kubernetes-mcp-server --config /etc/kubernetes-mcp-server/config.toml

Configuration files use TOML format and are merged in this order:

1. Internal defaults
2. Main configuration file
3. Drop-in files (loaded in alphabetical order)

For example, to enable only specific toolsets:

# /etc/kubernetes-mcp-server/conf.d/10-toolsets.toml
toolsets = ["core", "config", "helm"]

How to install this MCP server

For Claude Code

To add this MCP server to Claude Code, run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add-json "kubernetes" '{"command":"npx","args":["-y","kubernetes-mcp-server@latest"]}'

See the official Claude Code MCP documentation for more details.

For Cursor

There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.

If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > Tools & Integrations and click "New MCP Server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "kubernetes": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "kubernetes-mcp-server@latest"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.

How to use the MCP server

Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.

The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.

You can also explicitly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.

For Claude Desktop

To add this MCP server to Claude Desktop:

1. Find your configuration file:

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

2. Add this to your configuration file:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "kubernetes": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "kubernetes-mcp-server@latest"
            ]
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect