NetsCLI

What NetsCLI MCP server does

The NetsCLI MCP server gives AI agents access to network inspection functions provided by the NetsCLI Rust application. Its default tool set covers host discovery, TCP and UDP port scanning, ping, DNS queries, ARP table inspection with vendor lookup, combined host inspection, network sweeps, interface listing, and mDNS queries.

The server is intended for questions and tasks involving a reachable network. An agent can use it to identify devices on the local subnet, check whether selected ports are open, resolve DNS information, inspect interfaces, or look for multicast DNS services. Packet-capture builds add four more MCP tools, but the supplied material does not list their names or schemas.

How it works

NetsCLI uses the same underlying library for its CLI, terminal UI, and MCP server. Starting netscli serve launches the MCP interface. A client sends tool requests, and the server performs the corresponding network operation rather than requiring an agent to execute a separate scanner and interpret output intended for people.

The default configuration exposes nine tools: discover, scan, ping, DNS, ARP, inspect, sweep, interfaces, and mDNS. The README provides the tool categories but does not define their complete arguments, permissions, timeout behavior, or result schemas; consult the MCP guide before building automation around specific fields.

Setup and configuration

Install NetsCLI using Homebrew on macOS or Linux, Winget on Windows, or Cargo on any platform. The standard MCP configuration starts the installed executable with the serve argument:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "netscli": {
      "command": "netscli",
      "args": ["serve"]
    }
  }
}

An installation-free alternative uses npx as the command with -y netscli serve as its arguments. The project also publishes an .mcpb bundle in each latest release for clients that support that format. No required environment variables are documented in the supplied material.

Tools and capabilities

The NetsCLI MCP server includes tools for:

• Discovering hosts on the local subnet
• Scanning TCP and UDP ports
• Pinging hosts
• Querying DNS records
• Reading the ARP table and looking up vendors
• Combining ping, scanning, and resolution through inspection
• Sweeping network ranges
• Listing network interfaces
• Querying mDNS

The same project also provides command-line and terminal interfaces, but those are separate ways to use the shared networking library. The MCP interface is the relevant choice when an agent should call structured network operations directly.

Limitations and notes

Network results depend on the interfaces, routes, permissions, and devices visible from the machine running NetsCLI. The README describes local-subnet discovery and network operations but does not promise visibility into every host or service. Packet capture requires separate builds and has additional requirements documented by the project.

The supplied material does not identify authentication, authorization, a remote deployment mode, or client-specific configuration. Review the project’s MCP and operations documentation before exposing scans to untrusted agents or relying on results for security decisions.