network-mcp
Give AI direct access to your network devices. 35 MCP tools, multi-vendor, one interface.
Stop writing Netmiko scripts. Connect Claude, ChatGPT, or any MCP-compatible AI to your routers, switches, and firewalls — and let it run show commands, check health, calculate subnets, discover topology, and manage configs through natural language.
You: "Check the health of all my devices"
Claude: [calls health_check_all] → 6 devices healthy, Switch-R2 has 2 interfaces down
What is this?
An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that gives AI assistants real-time access to network devices. Built for network engineers who want to automate without writing boilerplate.
Supported platforms:
- Cisco IOS-XE (routers, switches)
- Nokia SR Linux
- FRRouting (FRR)
- Juniper Junos
- Aruba AOS-CX
- Linux hosts
Quick Start
1. Install
git clone https://github.com/E-Conners-Lab/MCP-DEMO-LAB.git
cd network-mcp
python -m venv .venv && source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
2. Configure devices
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your device IPs and credentials
3. Try it instantly (no lab required)
# Demo mode returns realistic mock data — no devices needed
DEMO_MODE=true python network_mcp_server.py
4. Connect to Claude Desktop
Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"network": {
"command": "/path/to/network-mcp/.venv/bin/python",
"args": ["/path/to/network-mcp/network_mcp_server.py"]
}
}
}
Restart Claude Desktop. You now have 35 network tools available.
5. Try with a real lab (5 minutes)
# Spin up 2 FRR routers with containerlab
cd quickstart && sudo containerlab deploy -t topology.clab.yml
Tools
Device Operations
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
get_devices | List all devices in inventory |
send_command | Run show commands on any device |
send_config | Push configuration changes |
health_check | Check device health (CPU, memory, interfaces) |
health_check_all | Health check all devices in parallel |
backup_config | Backup running configuration |
compare_configs | Diff two config backups |
rollback_config | Restore a previous config |
Network Intelligence
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
discover_topology | LLDP-based topology discovery |
get_routing_table | View routing tables |
get_neighbors | BGP/OSPF neighbor status |
get_arp_table | ARP table lookup |
get_mac_table | MAC address table |
ping_sweep | Sweep a subnet for reachable hosts |
traceroute | Trace path to destination |
Calculators (no devices needed)
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
calculate_tunnel_mtu | Optimal MTU/MSS for VPN tunnels |
calculate_subnet_info | Subnet details from CIDR notation |
split_network | VLSM subnet splitting |
convert_netmask | CIDR to dotted decimal conversion |
SNMP & Monitoring
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
snmp_get_oid | SNMP GET for specific OIDs |
snmp_walk_oid | SNMP WALK subtrees |
snmp_poll_metrics | Poll interface/CPU/memory metrics |
NETCONF
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
get_interfaces_netconf | Interface data via NETCONF |
get_bgp_neighbors_netconf | BGP state via NETCONF |
get_netconf_capabilities | Device NETCONF capabilities |
Configuration Management
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
compliance_check | Check device against compliance templates |
full_network_test | End-to-end network validation |
Architecture
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ AI Assistant (Claude, ChatGPT, etc.) │
└────────────────┬────────────────────────┘
│ MCP Protocol (stdio/SSE)
┌────────────────▼────────────────────────┐
│ network_mcp_server.py │
│ FastMCP server + tool registry │
└────────────────┬────────────────────────┘
│
┌────────────────▼────────────────────────┐
│ mcp_tools/ │
│ ├── device.py (9 tools) │
│ ├── calculators.py (6 tools) │
│ ├── topology.py (6 tools) │
│ ├── config.py (8 tools) │
│ ├── snmp.py (5 tools) │
│ ├── netconf.py (4 tools) │
│ ├── compliance.py (7 tools) │
│ └── ... (10 modules, 35 tools total) │
└────────────────┬────────────────────────┘
│
┌────────────────▼────────────────────────┐
│ core/ │
│ ├── connection.py (Netmiko/Scrapli) │
│ ├── parser.py (NTC/Genie) │
│ ├── mtu_calculator.py │
│ └── subnet_calculator.py │
└────────────────┬────────────────────────┘
│ SSH / NETCONF / SNMP
┌────────────────▼────────────────────────┐
│ Network Devices │
│ Cisco · Nokia · FRR · Juniper · Aruba │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
Project Structure
network-mcp/
├── network_mcp_server.py # MCP server entry point
├── config/
│ └── devices.py # Device inventory (env var overrides)
├── mcp_tools/ # All MCP tool implementations
│ ├── device.py # Core device operations
│ ├── calculators.py # MTU/subnet calculators
│ ├── topology.py # LLDP discovery
│ ├── config.py # Config backup/compare/rollback
│ ├── snmp.py # SNMP polling
│ ├── netconf.py # NETCONF operations
│ ├── compliance.py # Compliance checking
│ └── ... # 10 modules, 35 tools total
├── core/ # Connection and parsing libraries
├── templates/ # Jinja2 config templates (FRR, IOS-XE)
├── quickstart/ # Containerlab quick-start lab
└── tests/ # Test suite
Configuration
All configuration is via environment variables (or .env file):
# Device credentials
DEVICE_USERNAME=admin
DEVICE_PASSWORD=admin
# Device IPs (override defaults)
R1_HOST=10.255.255.11
R2_HOST=10.255.255.12
# Optional features
DEMO_MODE=true # Mock data, no real devices
USE_NETBOX=true # Pull inventory from NetBox
NETBOX_URL=http://localhost:8000
NETBOX_TOKEN=your-token
Requirements
- Python 3.11+
- Network devices reachable via SSH/NETCONF/SNMP
- Claude Desktop or any MCP-compatible client
Contributing
See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.
License
MIT License - see LICENSE for details.