Tailscale Compute MCP

Run builds, tests, and benchmarks on your own remote compute node from an MCP coding agent.

The coding agent edits files on your local computer. This MCP server copies the project through rsync and runs a command through SSH only when the agent calls compute_run.

This is an independent project. It is not an official Tailscale product and is not endorsed by Tailscale Inc. Tailscale is a trademark of Tailscale Inc.

Release status

This package is a beta.

• The full path has run on a Mac laptop and an Apple M4 Mac mini.
• The server includes Linux probes and NVIDIA inventory support.
• Linux parsing has automated coverage.
• This release has not run on a real NVIDIA DGX Spark. Do not treat the Linux or NVIDIA result as DGX Spark validation yet.

How it works

MCP coding agent
    |
    | local stdio
    v
Tailscale Compute MCP
    |
    | rsync and SSH through the user's tailnet
    v
Mac or Linux compute node

The package runs on the local computer. No MCP service runs on the remote node. The project author does not receive your code, credentials, command output, or Tailscale traffic.

Security warning

compute_run can run any non-interactive command with the permissions of the remote SSH user. Treat it as remote code execution.

• Use a dedicated non-root account on the remote node.
• compute_status reports the remote user id and warns when the SSH user is root. Run compute through a non-root user so a compromised build cannot control the whole node.
• Every compute_run is recorded in a local audit log (program, arguments, workspace, and result). It never contains environment values, standard input, or credentials.
• Do not auto-approve compute_run calls.
• Do not put passwords, SSH private keys, or Tailscale auth keys in MCP configuration.
• Use an SSH agent or Tailscale SSH.
• Limit access with Tailscale policy rules.
• Review SECURITY.md before use.

Requirements

Local computer

• Node.js 20 or later.
• Tailscale connected to the same tailnet as the remote node.
• OpenSSH client.
• rsync with --include and --exclude support.
• An MCP host that supports local stdio servers.

macOS and Linux are the supported local systems for this beta.

Remote node

• Darwin or Linux.
• Tailscale connected.
• SSH server.
• rsync available on PATH.
• A known SSH host key.
• The toolchain required by the project.

The MCP package does not need Node.js on the remote node unless the remote workload uses Node.js.

Set up a Mac mini

1. Install and connect Tailscale on both Macs.
2. On the Mac mini, open System Settings, select General, select Sharing, and turn on Remote Login.
3. Add the local public key to the remote account:

ssh-copy-id -i ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub user@mac-mini.example.ts.net

4. Verify the host key and non-interactive access:

ssh user@mac-mini.example.ts.net /usr/bin/true

5. Check the remote tools:

ssh user@mac-mini.example.ts.net '/bin/zsh -lc "rsync --version"'

A sleeping or powered-off Mac might not accept a Tailscale connection. Configure macOS network wake when required. This MCP server does not send wake packets.

Set up a Linux node

Install and connect Tailscale by using the official Tailscale instructions for your Linux distribution. Then install an SSH server and rsync.

For Ubuntu or Debian:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install --yes openssh-server rsync
sudo systemctl enable --now ssh

Use a standard SSH key:

ssh-copy-id -i ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub user@compute-node.example.ts.net
ssh user@compute-node.example.ts.net /usr/bin/true

You can use Tailscale SSH on supported Linux nodes instead of distributing SSH keys. Your Tailscale policy must permit both the network connection and SSH connection.

Install in an MCP host

Pin the package version. Do not use an unpinned package for agent command execution.

VS Code

Create .vscode/mcp.json:

{
  "servers": {
    "tailscale-compute": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@dylantirandaz/tailscale-compute-mcp@0.1.0-beta.3"
      ],
      "env": {
        "TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST": "user@compute-node.example.ts.net"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Create .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "tailscale-compute": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@dylantirandaz/tailscale-compute-mcp@0.1.0-beta.3"
      ],
      "env": {
        "TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST": "user@compute-node.example.ts.net"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code

claude mcp add tailscale-compute \
  -e TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST=user@compute-node.example.ts.net \
  -- npx -y @dylantirandaz/tailscale-compute-mcp@0.1.0-beta.3

Check the connection

Run the package outside the MCP host first:

TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST=user@compute-node.example.ts.net \
npx -y @dylantirandaz/tailscale-compute-mcp@0.1.0-beta.3 --check

A successful check returns kind: "ready". It also reports:

• Operating system.
• CPU architecture and model.
• Logical processor count.
• Memory.
• Selected remote shell.
• rsync version.
• NVIDIA GPU inventory when nvidia-smi is available.

MCP tools

compute_status

Checks SSH access and reports the remote platform and hardware.

compute_run

Copies the local workspace and runs one non-interactive remote command.

Example:

{
  "program": "npm",
  "arguments": ["test"],
  "syncMode": "incremental",
  "timeoutSeconds": 900
}

For shell syntax, call a supported remote shell explicitly:

{
  "program": "/bin/bash",
  "arguments": ["-lc", "npm ci && npm test"],
  "syncMode": "clean",
  "timeoutSeconds": 1800
}

compute_run returns the remote exit code, standard output, standard error, sync time, and command time. Output is limited to protect the MCP connection. When output is too large, the result keeps its start and end and reports the omitted byte count.

Sync modes

• incremental: Update the managed remote workspace and delete remote files that no longer exist locally.
• clean: Delete only the hashed managed workspace, create it again, and copy the project.
• none: Reuse the last remote snapshot without copying local files.

Each local workspace maps to a stable remote directory under:

.cache/tailscale-compute-mcp

The server runs commands for one workspace in sequence. Different workspaces can run at the same time.

Excluded files

The sync reads .gitignore and .tailscale-compute-ignore from the workspace root. It supports blank lines, comments that start with #, negation that starts with !, and standard rsync patterns. It does not read nested ignore files. Each ignore file can be up to 64 KiB, and the server reads up to 5,000 rules across both files. It ignores a file or later rules that exceed these limits.

.git/
.env
.env.*
.npmrc
.pypirc
.ssh/
.aws/
.gnupg/
.git-credentials
.netrc
*_history
.curlrc
.wgetrc
*.pem
*.key
*.p12
*.pfx
*.secret
secrets/
node_modules/
.venv/
venv/
target/
__pycache__/
.next/cache/

The fixed exclusions above have priority. An ignore-file negation cannot include one of these files.

Add project-specific secrets and large outputs to .tailscale-compute-ignore.

Ignored files are not copied. If a required file is ignored, create it on the remote node or provide its value through an explicit compute_run.environment entry. Remember that tool arguments are visible to the MCP host and model.

Configuration

Variable	Required	Default	Purpose
TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST	Yes	None	SSH user and direct Tailscale IP address or full MagicDNS name.
TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_LOCAL_ROOT	No	MCP process directory	Absolute local project path.
TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_REMOTE_ROOT	No	.cache/tailscale-compute-mcp	Managed remote workspace root.
TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_REMOTE_SHELL	No	auto	auto, /bin/sh, /bin/bash, or /bin/zsh.
TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_CONNECT_TIMEOUT_SECONDS	No	10	SSH connection timeout from 1 through 60 seconds.
TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_AUDIT_LOG	No	~/.config/tailscale-compute-mcp/compute-audit.log	Local audit log path for compute_run records.

Automatic shell selection uses /bin/zsh on Darwin. It uses /bin/bash on Linux when available and /bin/sh otherwise.

Multiple compute nodes

Register the package more than once with a different name and host. Keep one target per MCP server instance.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "compute-mac-mini": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@dylantirandaz/tailscale-compute-mcp@0.1.0-beta.3"],
      "env": {
        "TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST": "developer@mac-mini.example.ts.net"
      }
    },
    "compute-linux": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@dylantirandaz/tailscale-compute-mcp@0.1.0-beta.3"],
      "env": {
        "TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST": "developer@linux-node.example.ts.net",
        "TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_REMOTE_SHELL": "/bin/bash"
      }
    }
  }
}

NVIDIA workloads

compute_status reports NVIDIA devices through nvidia-smi. This inventory does not prove that a workload used a GPU.

A GPU workload must select the intended device and verify the placement of its model, inputs, computation, and outputs. Do not treat a successful nvidia-smi call as functional validation. The server does not fall back to CPU on behalf of the remote command.

Development

npm ci
npm run check

Run a connection check against a real remote node:

TAILSCALE_COMPUTE_HOST=user@100.64.0.1 node dist/main.js --check

Test the package contents before release:

npm pack --dry-run

License

MIT. See LICENSE.