kali-mcp

An MCP server that gives AI assistants access to a full Kali Linux environment running in Docker. Connect it to Claude Desktop, Claude Code, or any MCP-compatible client and let the AI run security tools like nmap, sqlmap, hydra, nikto, gobuster, and more.

How it works

Claude <--stdio--> MCP Server <--Docker API--> Kali Linux Container

The MCP server manages a Docker container running Kali Linux. It exposes tools that let the AI start/stop the container, execute commands, and transfer files — all through the Model Context Protocol.

Tools

Tool	Description
container_start	Start the Kali Linux container
container_stop	Stop and remove the container
container_status	Check if the container is running
execute_command	Run any shell command inside Kali
upload_file	Write a file to the container
download_file	Read a file from the container
list_files	List directory contents

Pre-installed tools

nmap, nikto, gobuster, sqlmap, hydra, john, hashcat, metasploit-framework, dirb, enum4linux, curl, wget, python3, wordlists, and more.

Prerequisites

• Node.js v18+
• Docker Desktop (must be running)

Setup

1. Clone and install

git clone https://github.com/Hannes221/kali-mcp.git
cd kali-mcp
npm install
npm run build

2. Build the Kali Docker image

cd docker
docker compose build
cd ..

This downloads and builds the Kali Linux image (~4GB). It takes a few minutes on the first run.

3. Connect to your AI client

Claude Desktop

Open Settings > Developer > Edit Config and add the kali server to your claude_desktop_config.json:

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

Replace /absolute/path/to/kali-mcp with the actual path where you cloned the repo.

Then restart Claude Desktop.

Claude Code

If you cloned the repo, the .mcp.json file is already included. Just open the project directory in Claude Code:

cd kali-mcp
claude

Or add it manually to your Claude Code config:

claude mcp add kali node /absolute/path/to/kali-mcp/dist/index.js

4. Verify

In a conversation, ask the AI to:

Start the Kali container and run nmap --version

It should call container_start, then execute_command with nmap --version and return the version output.

Usage examples

Once connected, you can ask the AI things like:

• "Scan 192.168.1.0/24 for open ports"
• "Run nikto against http://target.com"
• "Use sqlmap to test http://target.com/page?id=1 for SQL injection"
• "Crack these hashes with john"
• "Enumerate SMB shares on 10.0.0.5"

The AI will use the appropriate Kali tools and interpret the results for you.

Development

npm run dev    # Run with tsx (auto-compiles TypeScript)
npm run build  # Compile to dist/
npm start      # Run compiled version

Customizing the Kali image

Edit docker/Dockerfile to add or remove tools, then rebuild:

cd docker
docker compose build

Security

• The container runs with default Docker isolation (no --privileged flag)
• Network mode is bridge by default
• The container is ephemeral — no persistent volumes
• Only use this for authorized security testing, CTF challenges, and educational purposes

License

MIT