Docker MCP Server

A comprehensive, production-ready, industry-standard compliant MCP (Model Context Protocol) Server that enables full Docker management capabilities for AI assistants like GitHub Copilot and Claude. Featuring 36 powerful tools covering containers, images, networks, volumes, and system operations.

Quick Start

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

# Test the server
npm start

✨ Features

Core Capabilities

✅ 36 Docker Tools: Complete coverage of Docker operations
✅ Container Management: Create, run, start, stop, restart, pause, unpause, rename, remove, exec, stats, logs
✅ Image Operations: List, pull, build, push, tag, remove, prune
✅ Network Management: List, create, remove, inspect, connect, disconnect
✅ Volume Management: List, create, remove, inspect, prune
✅ System Operations: Info, version, prune (containers, images, volumes, networks)
✅ Proper Array Handling: Correctly handles command, entrypoint, and environment variables
✅ VS Code Integration: Works seamlessly with GitHub Copilot
✅ Industry Standard: Uses MCP SDK and Docker best practices
✅ TypeScript: Full type safety and modern JavaScript features

What's New in v2.0

🚀 25 New Tools: Added extensive container, image, network, and volume management
🔧 Container Exec: Execute commands in running containers
📊 Container Stats: Real-time CPU, memory, network, and I/O metrics
🏗️ Image Building: Build images from Dockerfile with build args
🔄 Advanced Lifecycle: Restart, pause, unpause, rename containers
🌐 Full Network CRUD: Create, inspect, connect, disconnect, remove networks
💾 Full Volume CRUD: Create, inspect, remove volumes
🧹 Resource Cleanup: Prune unused containers, images, volumes, networks
⚙️ System Info: Get Docker daemon information and version

Installation

Prerequisites

Node.js 18 or higher
Docker installed and running
npm or yarn package manager

Setup

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/Swartdraak/Docker-MCP.git
cd Docker-MCP

Install dependencies:

npm install

Build the project:

npm run build

Usage

Standalone Mode

Run the server directly:

npm start

VS Code Integration

To integrate with VS Code and GitHub Copilot, add the following to your MCP settings file:

For VS Code (~/.vscode/mcp-settings.json or in your workspace settings):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "docker": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/Docker-MCP/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

For Claude Desktop (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "docker": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/Docker-MCP/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

Alternative using npx (after publishing to npm):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "docker": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["docker-mcp-server"]
    }
  }
}

Available Tools (36 Total)

Container Operations (15 tools)

`list_containers`

List all Docker containers (running or all)

{
  "all": true
}

`create_container`

Create a new Docker container

{
  "image": "nginx:latest",
  "name": "my-nginx",
  "command": ["nginx", "-g", "daemon off;"],
  "env": ["NODE_ENV=production"],
  "exposedPorts": {"80/tcp": {}},
  "hostConfig": {
    "PortBindings": {"80/tcp": [{"HostPort": "8080"}]},
    "Binds": ["/host/path:/container/path"]
  }
}

`run_container`

Create and start a container (recommended)

{
  "image": "python:3.9",
  "name": "my-python-app",
  "command": ["python", "app.py"],
  "env": ["DEBUG=true", "PORT=5000"]
}

`start_container`

Start a stopped container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name"
}

`stop_container`

Stop a running container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "timeout": 10
}

`remove_container`

Remove a container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "force": false,
  "volumes": false
}

`inspect_container`

Get detailed container information

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name"
}

`container_logs`

Get container logs

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "tail": 100,
  "follow": false
}

`exec_container` 🆕

Execute a command in a running container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "command": ["ls", "-la", "/app"],
  "workingDir": "/app",
  "env": ["DEBUG=true"]
}

`container_stats` 🆕

Get real-time resource usage statistics (CPU, memory, network, I/O)

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "stream": false
}

`restart_container` 🆕

Restart a Docker container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "timeout": 10
}

`pause_container` 🆕

Pause all processes within a container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name"
}

`unpause_container` 🆕

Unpause all processes within a container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name"
}

`rename_container` 🆕

Rename a Docker container

{
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "newName": "new-container-name"
}

`prune_containers` 🆕

Remove all stopped containers

{}

Image Operations (7 tools)

`list_images`

List Docker images

{
  "all": false
}

`pull_image`

Pull an image from registry

{
  "image": "nginx:latest"
}

`build_image` 🆕

Build a Docker image from a Dockerfile

{
  "context": "/path/to/build/context",
  "dockerfile": "Dockerfile",
  "tag": "myimage:latest",
  "buildArgs": {
    "NODE_VERSION": "18"
  }
}

`tag_image` 🆕

Tag an image with a new name/tag

{
  "image": "myimage:latest",
  "repo": "myrepo/myimage",
  "tag": "v1.0.0"
}

`push_image` 🆕

Push an image to a Docker registry

{
  "image": "myrepo/myimage:v1.0.0"
}

`remove_image` 🆕

Remove a Docker image

{
  "image": "image_id_or_name",
  "force": false
}

`prune_images` 🆕

Remove unused images

{
  "all": false
}

Network Operations (6 tools)

`list_networks`

List Docker networks

{}

`create_network` 🆕

Create a Docker network

{
  "name": "my-network",
  "driver": "bridge",
  "internal": false
}

`inspect_network` 🆕

Get detailed information about a network

{
  "networkId": "network_id_or_name"
}

`connect_network` 🆕

Connect a container to a network

{
  "networkId": "network_id_or_name",
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name"
}

`disconnect_network` 🆕

Disconnect a container from a network

{
  "networkId": "network_id_or_name",
  "containerId": "container_id_or_name",
  "force": false
}

`remove_network` 🆕

Remove a Docker network

{
  "networkId": "network_id_or_name"
}

`prune_networks` 🆕

Remove all unused networks

{}

Volume Operations (5 tools)

`list_volumes`

List Docker volumes

{}

`create_volume` 🆕

Create a Docker volume

{
  "name": "my-volume",
  "driver": "local",
  "labels": {
    "environment": "production"
  }
}

`inspect_volume` 🆕

Get detailed information about a volume

{
  "volumeName": "volume_name"
}

`remove_volume` 🆕

Remove a Docker volume

{
  "volumeName": "volume_name",
  "force": false
}

`prune_volumes` 🆕

Remove all unused volumes

{}

System Operations (5 tools)

`system_info` 🆕

Get Docker system information

{}

`system_version` 🆕

Get Docker version information

{}

Key Features: Array Handling

This MCP server correctly handles arrays for:

Command: Passed as an array of strings ["python", "app.py", "--port", "8000"]
Entrypoint: Passed as an array of strings ["/bin/bash", "-c"]
Environment Variables: Passed as an array of KEY=VALUE strings ["NODE_ENV=production", "PORT=3000"]
Volume Bindings: Passed as an array of bind strings ["/host/path:/container/path"]

This resolves the common "array issue" where MCP servers incorrectly expect strings instead of arrays, causing errors when integrated with VS Code and GitHub Copilot.

Development

Scripts

npm run build - Compile TypeScript to JavaScript
npm run watch - Watch mode for development
npm start - Run the compiled server
npm run dev - Build and run

Project Structure

Docker-MCP/
├── src/
│   └── index.ts          # Main server implementation
├── dist/                 # Compiled JavaScript output
├── package.json          # Project dependencies
├── tsconfig.json         # TypeScript configuration
└── README.md            # This file

Troubleshooting

Docker Connection Issues

If you get "Cannot connect to Docker daemon" errors:

Ensure Docker is running: docker ps
Check Docker socket permissions
On Linux: Add your user to the docker group: sudo usermod -aG docker $USER

VS Code Integration Issues

If the MCP server doesn't appear in VS Code:

Verify the path to dist/index.js is absolute
Check that the server builds successfully: npm run build
Restart VS Code after updating MCP settings
Check VS Code Output panel for MCP-related errors

Array-Related Errors

This server is specifically designed to handle arrays correctly. If you encounter array errors:

Ensure you're passing arrays for command, entrypoint, and env fields
Verify JSON formatting in tool arguments
Check that arrays contain string items

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

For detailed usage examples, see EXAMPLES.md.

For configuration help, see CONFIGURATION.md.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details

Author

Swartdraak (eternusprocer@gmail.com)

Docker-MCP

Docker MCP Server

Quick Start

✨ Features

Core Capabilities

What's New in v2.0

Installation

Prerequisites

Setup

Usage

Standalone Mode

VS Code Integration

Available Tools (36 Total)

Container Operations (15 tools)

list_containers

create_container

run_container

start_container

stop_container

remove_container

inspect_container

container_logs

exec_container 🆕

container_stats 🆕

restart_container 🆕

pause_container 🆕

unpause_container 🆕

rename_container 🆕

prune_containers 🆕

Image Operations (7 tools)

list_images

pull_image

build_image 🆕

tag_image 🆕

push_image 🆕

remove_image 🆕

prune_images 🆕