IBM Storage Scale 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

1. Clone the repository:

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

2. Install dependencies using uv:

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

3. 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).

4. 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

1. Start the MCP server:

   scale-mcp-server --transport http
   

2. Connect MCP Inspector:

   mcp-inspector http://localhost:8000
   

   

3. 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.

1. Fork the repository and create a new branch for your feature or bug fix
2. Make your changes following the existing code style and conventions
3. Test your changes thoroughly to ensure they work as expected
4. Submit a pull request with a clear description of your changes
5. 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.