kubectl-mcp-server MCP Server

How to use

You interact with a compatible AI assistant to manage clusters. Start conversations like: ask why a pod is crashing, deploy a service, optimize costs, audit security, or view dashboards. The MCP server handles translating your natural language requests into Kubernetes operations, returning results, metrics, and actionable guidance.

How to install

Choose a convenient way to run the MCP server on your machine or in your environment. You can run directly without installation or install a runtime locally.

# Quick Start with npx (Zero Install)
# Run directly without installation - works instantly!
npx -y kubectl-mcp-server

# Or install globally for faster startup
npm install -g kubectl-mcp-server

# Or install with pip (Python)
# Standard installation
pip install kubectl-mcp-server

# With interactive UI dashboards (recommended)
pip install kubectl-mcp-server[ui]

Additional setup and options

Prerequisites you will need before running the MCP server: Node.js 14+ for npx usage, Python 3.9+ for pip usage, and kubectl installed and configured to access your Kubernetes cluster.

# Prerequisites check
kubectl cluster-info
python --version
node --version
npm --version

get_pods

List and retrieve pod information, logs, and health status across namespaces.

get_logs

Fetch and display pod logs with filtering and search capabilities.

get_pod_events

Retrieve events for one or more pods to diagnose issues.

check_pod_health

Assess pod health and readiness with actionable diagnostics.

exec_in_pod

Execute commands inside a running container within a pod.

cleanup_pods

Clean up terminated or unused pods to reclaim resources.

get_pod_conditions

Query and explain current pod conditions and statuses.

get_previous_logs

Access previous container logs for crash analysis.

get_deployments

List deployments and their statuses across namespaces.

create_deployment

Create a new deployment with recommended defaults.

scale_deployment

Scale a deployment to the desired number of replicas.

kubectl_rollout

Manage Kubernetes rollouts for deployments.

restart_deployment

Restart a deployment to trigger a fresh rollout.

get_statefulsets

List StatefulSets and their pod statuses.

get_daemonsets

List DaemonSets and their pod statuses.

get_jobs

List Jobs and their completion status.

get_replicasets

List ReplicaSets and their scale information.

get_services

List services and their endpoints.

get_ingress

Retrieve Ingress resources and routing details.

get_endpoints

Show endpoints for services.

diagnose_network_connectivity

Diagnose network reachability across cluster components.

check_dns_resolution

Verify DNS resolution for services and pods.

trace_service_chain

Trace a service call path from ingress to pods.

get_persistent_volumes

List Persistent Volumes and their status.

get_pvcs

List Persistent Volume Claims and usage.

get_storage_classes

Show available storage classes and defaults.

get_configmaps

Retrieve Kubernetes ConfigMaps and their data (masked when needed).

get_secrets

Retrieve Secrets with data masked for security.

get_resource_quotas

Show resource quotas across namespaces.

get_limit_ranges

Show limit ranges for resource management.

get_nodes

List nodes with health and capacity details.

get_namespaces

List all namespaces and their statuses.

get_cluster_info

Get high-level cluster information.

get_cluster_version

Show Kubernetes version information.

health_check

Perform a cluster health check and summarize results.

get_node_metrics

Query node resource metrics.

get_pod_metrics

Query pod resource metrics.

get_rbac_roles

List RBAC roles in the cluster.

get_cluster_roles

List cluster roles.

get_service_accounts

List service accounts across namespaces.

audit_rbac_permissions

Audit RBAC permissions for potential over-privilege.

check_secrets_security

Scan secrets for potential leakage or misconfigurations.

get_pod_security_info

Display pod security context and policies.

get_admission_webhooks

List admission webhooks and their configurations.

get_crds

List CustomResourceDefinitions.

get_priority_classes

List Kubernetes priority classes.

helm_list

List Helm releases.

helm_status

Show Helm release status.

helm_history

Show Helm release history.

helm_get_values

Retrieve Helm release values.

helm_get_manifest

Show Helm release manifest.

helm_get_notes

Show Helm release notes.

helm_get_hooks

Show Helm release hooks.

helm_get_all

Show all Helm release details.

install_helm_chart

Install a Helm chart into a namespace.

upgrade_helm_chart

Upgrade an existing Helm chart release.

uninstall_helm_chart

Uninstall a Helm chart release.

helm_rollback

Rollback a Helm release to a previous revision.

helm_test

Run Helm chart tests.

helm_template

Render Helm templates without installation.

helm_template_apply

Render and apply Helm templates.

helm_create

Create a new Helm chart skeleton.

helm_lint

Lint a Helm chart for best practices.

helm_package

Package a Helm chart for distribution.

helm_pull

Pull a Helm chart from a repository.

helm_dependency_list

List chart dependencies.

helm_dependency_update

Update chart dependencies.

helm_dependency_build

Build chart dependencies.

helm_version

Show Helm version information.

helm_env

Show or set Helm environment details.

get_current_context

Show the current kubectl context.

switch_context

Switch to a different Kubernetes context.

list_contexts

List all available contexts.

list_kubeconfig_contexts

List contexts from kubeconfig.

diagnose_pod_crash

Diagnose crashes with logs and events.

detect_pending_pods

Detect pods stuck in Pending state.

get_evicted_pods

List pods evicted from nodes.

compare_namespaces

Compare resources across namespaces.

kubectl_apply

Apply a manifest to a resource.

kubectl_create

Create a resource from manifest or inline content.

kubectl_describe

Describe a resource in detail.

kubectl_patch

Patch a resource with JSON or strategic merge.

delete_resource

Delete a Kubernetes resource.

kubectl_cp

Copy files to or from containers.

backup_resource

Back up a resource state.

label_resource

Add or update labels on a resource.

annotate_resource

Add annotations to a resource.

taint_node

Taint or untaint a node.

wait_for_condition

Wait for a specific condition on a resource.

get_hpa

List HorizontalPodAutoscalers.

get_pdb

List PodDisruptionBudgets.

kubectl_generic

Execute generic kubectl operations not covered by other tools.

kubectl_explain

Explain a Kubernetes resource or field.

get_api_resources

List API resources available in the cluster.

port_forward

Port-forward to a pod for local access.

get_resource_usage

Show current resource usage across the cluster.

node_management

Manage node lifecycle and maintenance tasks.

show_pod_logs_ui

UI tool to view pod logs with filtering.

show_pods_dashboard_ui

UI dashboard showing real-time pod and node status.

show_resource_yaml_ui

UI to view resource YAML with syntax highlighting.

show_cluster_overview_ui

UI overview of cluster health and usage.

show_events_timeline_ui

UI timeline of events with filters.

render_k8s_dashboard_screenshot

Export cluster dashboards as images.

gitops_apps_list

List GitOps-managed apps.

gitops_app_get

Get details of a GitOps app.

gitops_app_sync

Synchronize GitOps app state.

gitops_app_status

Show status of a GitOps app.

gitops_sources_list

List GitOps sources.

gitops_source_get

Get details of a GitOps source.

gitops_detect_engine

Detect GitOps engine in use.

certs_list

List Cert-Manager certificates.

certs_get

Get a specific certificate.

certs_issuers_list

List Cert-Manager issuers.

certs_issuer_get

Get a specific issuer.

certs_renew

Renew a certificate.

certs_status_explain

Explain certificate status.

certs_challenges_list

List certificate challenges.

certs_requests_list

List certificate requests.

certs_detect

Detect certificate issues.

policy_list

List policy resources (Kyverno/Gatekeeper).

policy_get

Get a specific policy.

policy_violations_list

List policy violations.

policy_explain_denial

Explain policy denial decisions.

policy_audit

Audit policy compliance.

policy_detect

Detect policy violations.

backup_list

List Velero backups.

backup_get

Get backup details.

backup_create

Create a Velero backup.

backup_delete

Delete a Velero backup.

restore_list

List Velero restores.

restore_create

Create a Velero restore.

restore_get

Get a Velero restore.

backup_locations_list

List Velero backup locations.

backup_schedules_list

List Velero backup schedules.

backup_schedule_create

Create a Velero backup schedule.

backup_detect

Detect Velero backups in use.

keda_scaledobjects_list

List KEDA ScaledObjects.

keda_scaledobject_get

Get a specific ScaledObject.

keda_scaledjobs_list

List KEDA ScaledJobs.

keda_triggerauths_list

List KEDA TriggerAuth resources.

keda_triggerauth_get

Get a TriggerAuth resource.

keda_hpa_list

List KEDA HPAs.

keda_detect

Detect KEDA usage.

cilium_policies_list

List Cilium NetworkPolicies.

cilium_policy_get

Get a Cilium policy.

cilium_endpoints_list

List Cilium endpoints.

cilium_identities_list

List Cilium identities.

cilium_nodes_list

List Cilium nodes.

cilium_status

Show Cilium status.

hubble_flows_query

Query Hubble observable flows.

cilium_detect

Detect Cilium networking setup.

rollouts_list

List Argo Rollouts.

rollout_get

Get rollout details.

rollout_status

Show rollout status.

rollout_promote

Promote a rollout.

rollout_abort

Abort a rollout.

rollout_retry

Retry a rollout.

rollout_restart

Restart a rollout.

analysis_runs_list

List analysis runs for Rollouts.

flagger_canaries_list

List Flagger canaries.

flagger_canary_get

Get a canary.

rollouts_detect

Detect rollout state.

capi_clusters_list

List Cluster API clusters.

capi_cluster_get

Get a Cluster API cluster.

capi_machines_list

List Cluster API machines.

capi_machine_get

Get a specific machine.

capi_machinedeployments_list

List MachineDeployments.

capi_machinedeployment_scale

Scale a MachineDeployment.

capi_machinesets_list

List MachineSets.

capi_machinehealthchecks_list

List MachineHealthChecks.

capi_clusterclasses_list

List ClusterClass resources.

capi_cluster_kubeconfig

Get kubeconfig for a cluster.

capi_detect

Detect Cluster API usage.

kubevirt_vms_list

List KubeVirt virtual machines.

kubevirt_vm_get

Get details of a VM.

kubevirt_vm_start

Start a VM.

kubevirt_vm_stop

Stop a VM.

kubevirt_vm_restart

Restart a VM.

kubevirt_vm_pause

Pause a VM.

kubevirt_vm_unpause

Unpause a VM.

kubevirt_vm_migrate

Migrate a VM.

kubevirt_datasources_list

List KubeVirt data sources.

kubevirt_instancetypes_list

List instance types for VMs.

kubevirt_datavolumes_list

List data volumes.

kubevirt_detect

Detect KubeVirt presence.

istio_virtualservices_list

List Istio VirtualServices.

istio_virtualservice_get

Get a VirtualService.

istio_destinationrules_list

List DestinationRules.

istio_gateways_list

List Gateways.

istio_peerauthentications_list

List PeerAuthentications.

istio_authorizationpolicies_list

List AuthorizationPolicies.

istio_proxy_status

Check Istio proxy status.

istio_analyze

Analyze Istio configuration.

istio_sidecar_status

Check Istio sidecar status.

istio_detect

Detect Istio setup.

vind_detect_tool

Detect vCluster presence.

vind_list_clusters_tool

List vCluster clusters.

vind_status_tool

Check vCluster status.

vind_get_kubeconfig_tool

Fetch kubeconfig for a vCluster.

vind_logs_tool

Fetch vCluster logs.

vind_create_cluster_tool

Create a vCluster.

vind_delete_cluster_tool

Delete a vCluster.

vind_pause_tool

Pause a vCluster.

vind_resume_tool

Resume a vCluster.

vind_connect_tool

Connect to a vCluster.

vind_disconnect_tool

Disconnect from a vCluster.

vind_upgrade_tool

Upgrade a vCluster.

vind_describe_tool

Describe a vCluster.

vind_platform_start_tool

Start vCluster platform.

kind_detect_tool

Detect kind (Kubernetes in Docker) usage.

kind_version_tool

Show kind version.

kind_list_clusters_tool

List kind clusters.

kind_get_nodes_tool

Get nodes of a kind cluster.

kind_get_kubeconfig_tool

Get kubeconfig for a kind cluster.

kind_export_logs_tool

Export logs from kind cluster.

kind_cluster_info_tool

Get cluster information for kind.

kind_node_labels_tool

Show node labels for kind clusters.

kind_create_cluster_tool

Create a new kind cluster.

kind_delete_cluster_tool

Delete a kind cluster.

kind_delete_all_clusters_tool

Delete all kind clusters.

kind_load_image_tool

Load image into kind cluster.

kind_load_image_archive_tool

Load image from archive into kind cluster.

kind_build_node_image_tool

Build node image for kind cluster.

kind_set_kubeconfig_tool

Set kubeconfig for kind.