IBM Storage Scale MCP Server

Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for interacting with IBM Storage Scale.

[NOTE]This MCP server supports both StreamableHTTP and stdio transports. By default, it uses StreamableHTTP transport on 127.0.0.1:8000.

Installation Guide

Prerequisites

Python 3.12 or later
UV package manager (curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh)

Node.js 22 and npx (optional, for file operations support)

curl -fsSL https://rpm.nodesource.com/setup_22.x | sudo bash -
sudo yum install -y nsolid

Installation

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/IBM/ibm-storage-scale-mcp-server.git
cd ibm-storage-scale-mcp-server

Install dependencies using uv:

uv venv
source .venv/bin/activate
uv pip install .

Configure Scale connection settings:

cp config/scale_config.ini.example config/scale_config.ini

Edit config/scale_config.ini with your IBM Storage Scale cluster details:

[scale_api]
hostname = your-scale-cluster.example.com
v2_port = 443
v3_port = 46443
timeout = 5.0

[authorization]
username = your-username
password = your-password
allow_insecure = true

[domain]
domain = your-domain

[ssh]
# SSH connection settings for remote CLI commands
hostname = your-scale-node.example.com
port = 22
username = your-username
password = your-ssh-password
key_path = your-ssh-key  # Alternative to password authentication

Replace the placeholder values with your actual Scale cluster credentials and connection details.

Note: The [ssh] section is required for CLI-based tools that execute commands directly on Scale nodes (such as policy operations). You can use either password or SSH key authentication (precedence over password authentication).

Start the server using uv or python:

# Using uv (default: HTTP transport on localhost:8000)
uv run scale-mcp-server

Usage Examples

# Run with HTTP transport on default port (localhost:8000)
scale-mcp-server --transport http

# Run with HTTP transport binding to all interfaces
scale-mcp-server --transport http --host 0.0.0.0

# Run with HTTP transport on custom port
scale-mcp-server --transport http --port 3000

# Run with stdio transport
scale-mcp-server --transport stdio

# Run with custom host, port, and log level
scale-mcp-server --transport http --host 0.0.0.0 --port 3000 --log-level DEBUG

Third-Party Integrations

The server supports optional third-party MCP server integrations to extend functionality beyond IBM Storage Scale management.

File Operations

The server can optionally mount the MCP filesystem server to provide local file operations alongside IBM Storage Scale management. This enables:

Reading and writing files
Creating and listing directories
Moving files and directories
Searching files with patterns
Getting file metadata

Usage:

scale-mcp-server --transport http --filesystem-paths /path/to/dir1 /path/to/dir2

Usage and Integration

Using MCP Inspector

The MCP server can be tested directly using MCP Inspector.

Prerequisites

Follow the setup instructions from MCP Inspector.

Connecting via HTTP Transport

Start the MCP server:
```
scale-mcp-server --transport http
```
Connect MCP Inspector:
```
mcp-inspector http://localhost:8000
```
Test the server:
- MCP Inspector will open in your browser
- You can browse available tools
- Test tool calls and verify responses

Using with Agents

For a higher-level conversational interface, consider using the IBM Storage Scale Agents which are built on top of this MCP server. The agents provide an intuitive way to manage IBM Storage Scale operations through natural language interactions.

Reporting Issues and Feedback

For issues, questions, or feature requests, please open an issue in the repository.

Contributing Code

Contributions are welcome via Pull Requests. Please submit your very first Pull Request against the Developer's Certificate of Origin (DCO) located at DCO.md using your name and email address.

Fork the repository and create a new branch for your feature or bug fix
Make your changes following the existing code style and conventions
Test your changes thoroughly to ensure they work as expected
Submit a pull request with a clear description of your changes
Sign the DCO by adding your name and email address to the DCO.md file in your pull request

Disclaimer

This software is provided "as is" without any warranties of any kind, including, but not limited to their installation, use, or performance. We are not responsible for any damage or charges or data loss incurred with their use. You are responsible for reviewing and testing any scripts you run thoroughly before use in any production environment. This content is subject to change without notice.

IBM Storage Scale MCP Server