Catalyst Center MCP Server

Connect an MCP-compatible AI client to your Cisco Catalyst Center instance. This standalone server exposes the APIs in its bundled Catalyst Center tool catalog over a local, streamable HTTP Model Context Protocol (MCP) endpoint.

Use it to let an AI client retrieve and analyze Catalyst Center data, such as inventory, device health, wireless experience, software, and compliance information, without building a custom integration for each API.

What Is MCP?

MCP is an open standard that lets AI clients discover and call structured tools at runtime. In this integration, the client chooses a Catalyst Center tool, supplies its parameters, and the server authenticates to Catalyst Center and returns the API result. The client can then sequence multiple tools to answer a broader operational question.

This server exposes a versioned bundle of generated Catalyst Center API tools, aligned with the Catalyst Center release and its API operations.

Before You Start

Select the release branch that matches your Catalyst Center version before building or running the server:

git clone https://github.com/cisco-en-programmability/catc-mcp-oss
cd catc-mcp-oss
git checkout release/

You need:

• Network access from the server host to your Catalyst Center instance
• A Catalyst Center username and password
• Docker
• An MCP-compatible client, such as Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, or Codex

Use a Dedicated, Least-Privilege Account

The server authenticates to Catalyst Center with the configured username and password and executes tools with that account’s permissions. It does not add an authorization layer or enforce read-only access. The bundled catalog includes generated API operations and may include operations that change configuration.

Create a dedicated Catalyst Center account with the minimum permissions needed for the tasks you intend to perform. Treat every client connected to this server as able to request any bundled operation that account is allowed to execute.

Keep the MCP endpoint private. The examples bind it to 127.0.0.1; do not expose it on an untrusted network without adding appropriate network controls and authentication in front of it.

Quick Start

From a clone of this repository, configure the target controller and account:

export CATALYST_CENTER_HOST="https://catalyst-center.example.com"
export CATALYST_CENTER_USERNAME="mcp-service-account"
export CATALYST_CENTER_PASSWORD="replace-with-a-password"
export CATALYST_CENTER_VERIFY_SSL=false

CATALYST_CENTER_HOST may be a hostname, IP address, or URL. When no scheme is provided, the server uses https://.

Build the image and start the server on the local loopback interface:

docker build -t catalyst-center-mcp:local .
docker run --rm -p 127.0.0.1:7001:7001 \
  -e CATALYST_CENTER_HOST \
  -e CATALYST_CENTER_USERNAME \
  -e CATALYST_CENTER_PASSWORD \