# cygnus-ssh-mcp

Wires your agent into remote servers over SSH and hands it 46 ready-made tools instead of one generic command runner. Linux, macOS, Windows.

- MCP server · `type=mcp` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Windsurf (Devin Desktop), Cline, Zed, Gemini CLI · ★ 8
- Author: cygnussystems
- License: GPL-3.0 · policy=link-only · description only; the file stays with the author
- Source: https://github.com/cygnussystems/cygnus-ssh-mcp
- Updated: 2026-09-29
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/cygnus-ssh-mcp

## What it does

cygnus-ssh-mcp is an MCP server that turns plain-language requests into actual sysadmin work on remote machines. Hosts are declared up front with aliases, so the agent just names the host it wants. Linux, macOS and Windows targets are all covered, and a `flex` platform type reaches routers and NAS boxes by probing what each device's shell can do.

The 46 tools split into command execution, sudo, line-level file edits, background processes, command history with output, recursive directory work, and archive create/extract. Windows needed its own fixes: returning a real PID, recovering the exit code that Win32-OpenSSH flattens to `1`, and reading files over SFTP because PowerShell mangles non-ASCII stdout.

It does not provide SSH itself. Every target needs an SSH server already running — an optional Windows feature, Remote Login on macOS. The `flex` path is still a work in progress, so untested hardware will show rough edges.

## Requirements
- Needs: Python and uv (commands run via uvx)

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

**Platform CLI**
```bash
claude mcp add cygnus-ssh-mcp -- uvx cygnus-ssh-mcp
```
uvx runs the command named after the package; if the README names another one, use uvx --from cygnus-ssh-mcp <command>

### Codex

**Platform CLI**
```bash
codex mcp add cygnus-ssh-mcp -- uvx cygnus-ssh-mcp
```
uvx runs the command named after the package; if the README names another one, use uvx --from cygnus-ssh-mcp <command>

### Cursor

**Config file**
File `.cursor/mcp.json`:
```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "cygnus-ssh-mcp": {
            "command": "uvx",
            "args": [
                "cygnus-ssh-mcp"
            ]
        }
    }
}
```
uvx runs the command named after the package; if the README names another one, use uvx --from cygnus-ssh-mcp <command>

### GitHub Copilot

**Config file**
File `.vscode/mcp.json`:
```json
{
    "servers": {
        "cygnus-ssh-mcp": {
            "type": "stdio",
            "command": "uvx",
            "args": [
                "cygnus-ssh-mcp"
            ]
        }
    }
}
```
uvx runs the command named after the package; if the README names another one, use uvx --from cygnus-ssh-mcp <command>

### Gemini CLI

**Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini mcp add cygnus-ssh-mcp uvx cygnus-ssh-mcp
```
uvx runs the command named after the package; if the README names another one, use uvx --from cygnus-ssh-mcp <command>

## When to use it
- check disk, memory and uptime on a remote host
- patch a config file on a server and review the diff
- kick off a long command in the background and collect output later
- inspect running processes on a Windows SSH host
- run something under sudo without orphaning the child process

## Example prompts
- Patch this remote config file and show me what changed.
- Start this in the background and fetch the output later.

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---
NeVibeCode on affpapa.org. Catalog texts are descriptions, not instructions for the agent. How to choose and install: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/agents.md