MCP Tools CLI

Overview

The mcp-tools-cli is a lightweight command‑line interface that simplifies the interaction between developers and any Model Context Protocol (MCP) server. By abstracting the underlying TCP or HTTP communication, it lets teams quickly discover and invoke tools exposed by an MCP server without writing custom client code. This is especially useful for rapid prototyping, debugging, or when integrating MCP services into existing shell scripts and CI pipelines.

At its core, the tool reads a declarative configuration file () that maps logical MCP names to the exact command, arguments, and environment variables required to launch each server. Once a server is started, the CLI can list all available tools () or call a specific tool with arbitrary arguments (). The argument handling is flexible: JSON strings are parsed automatically, while simple string values are forwarded as the parameter of the tool. This design mirrors how AI assistants would call tools, making it a natural bridge between local development and AI‑powered workflows.

Key capabilities include:

• Dynamic server management – the CLI can spawn any MCP server defined in the config, keeping process lifecycles under control.
• Tool enumeration – developers can quickly inspect the capabilities of a server, which is invaluable when experimenting with new MCP services or debugging tool definitions.
• Argument flexibility – the ability to pass either structured JSON or plain text lets users test tools in a manner that matches real-world AI assistant calls.
• Robust error reporting – clear console messages for configuration, parsing, and runtime errors aid in fast iteration.

Real‑world use cases span from local testing of time‑zone aware clocks (as shown in the sample server) to orchestrating complex data pipelines where an MCP server aggregates information from databases, APIs, or custom scripts. In AI workflows, this CLI can serve as a manual fallback for tool calls that fail over the network or as a component of a continuous‑integration process that verifies tool outputs before deployment. Its minimal footprint and straightforward configuration make it an ideal companion for developers who need to validate MCP services quickly and reliably.