Dechonet MCP vs Shodan
A side-by-side look at the Dechonet MCP and Shodan MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Dechonet MCP for security work as a local process; choose Shodan for security as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Dechonet MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Security domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
- You want tools like
dns_lookup, ssl_check, http_security.
Choose Shodan when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Security domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You have the keys it needs:
SHODAN_API_KEY. - You want tools like
ip_lookup, shodan_search, cve_lookup.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Security | Security |
| Quality signal | 65/100 · Great | 68/100 · Great |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | No auth required | Not declared |
| Pricing | Free | Not declared |
| Required env vars | None listed | SHODAN_API_KEY |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 1 | 178 |
| Directory activity | 6 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 20 | 11 |
| Full listing | View Dechonet MCP | View Shodan |
Tools & capabilities
Dechonet MCP tools 20
dns_lookupQuery DNS records (A, AAAA, MX, TXT, NS, SOA, CAA) for a domain and validate email-related records, including DNSSEC presence and SPF/DMARC syntax, returning severity-rated diagnostics. Use this for a single authoritative answer about one domain. Use dns_propagation instead when you need to compare answers across multiple global resolvers (e.g., right after a change), or email_auth for a full SPF/DKIM/DMARC deliverability assessment. Read-only; requires no API key or authentication; subject to rate limiting. Returns a text report: status, KPI summary, detected issues, and recommended actions.ssl_checkInspect a host's served TLS/SSL certificate and connection: expiry date, issuer, SAN list, chain integrity, TLS version, and HSTS, returning an A+ to F grade weighted by certificate validity (40%), TLS version (25%), chain trust (15%), and HSTS (20%). Use this to diagnose certificate or HTTPS-handshake problems for one host. Use http_security instead to audit response security headers, or security_scan for an all-in-one domain report. Read-only: it completes a TLS handshake but sends no application data; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns a text report: grade, expiry/issuer KPIs, issues, and actions.http_securityFollow a URL's HTTP redirect chain and audit response security headers (CSP, HSTS, X-Frame-Options, COOP, CORP, COEP, Permissions-Policy), grading A+ to F and flagging information leaks such as server-version disclosure. Use this for HTTP-layer/header posture. Use ssl_check instead for certificate or TLS-handshake issues, or security_scan for a full domain report. Read-only (an HTTP GET-style probe that sends no payload); requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns a text report: grade, header findings, redirect trace, issues, and actions.email_authAssess a domain's email authentication and deliverability posture: MX records, SPF, DMARC, DKIM (probes 15 common selectors), BIMI, MTA-STS, TLS-RPT, and DANE, plus a blacklist check across all MX hosts, returning a 0-100 deliverability score. Use this for a full sending/receiving readiness review of a domain. Use dns_lookup instead if you only need raw TXT/MX records, or email_header_analysis to diagnose a specific message that was already sent. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns a text report: score, per-mechanism KPIs, issues, and actions.port_scanProbe a host for a fixed set of common TCP ports (HTTP, HTTPS, SSH, FTP, SMTP, DNS, and common databases) and report which are open, the service name, and the response time. BEHAVIOR: this makes an ACTIVE TCP connection to the target. It is non-intrusive — a connect probe only; it does not authenticate, send exploits, or transfer data — and changes nothing on the target (read-only), but the connection is visible in the target's logs, so only scan hosts you own or are explicitly authorized to test. Use this to confirm which services are exposed. Use ssl_check or http_security instead to assess a specific service's configuration. Requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns a per-port open/closed list with service names.dns_propagationQuery one DNS record across 8+ global public resolvers (Google, Cloudflare, Quad9, OpenDNS, and more) simultaneously and report which resolvers return stale versus updated values. Use this after changing a record to confirm worldwide propagation. Use dns_lookup instead for a single authoritative answer with SPF/DMARC validation. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns per-resolver values and a consistency verdict.reverse_dnsResolve the PTR (reverse DNS) record for an IPv4 or IPv6 address and verify forward-confirmed reverse DNS (FCrDNS) by checking that the PTR hostname resolves back to the same IP. Infers the hosting provider from PTR naming patterns. Use this to validate mail-server rDNS or identify a single IP's host. Use asn_lookup instead for network/BGP ownership of the IP. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns the PTR hostname, FCrDNS pass/fail, and a provider guess.asn_lookupLook up Autonomous System (ASN) / BGP information for an IP address or AS number: the network operator, announced prefixes, abuse contact, and a classification (cloud, CDN, ISP, hosting, or enterprise). Use this to identify who runs a network or whether an IP is cloud/CDN-hosted. Use reverse_dns instead for the host-level PTR name of a single IP. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns operator, prefixes, classification, and abuse contact.whois_lookupRetrieve domain registration data via RDAP (with WHOIS fallback): registrar, creation/expiry/update dates, nameservers, and EPP status flags, highlighting risk states such as clientHold and pendingDelete. Use this for ownership, lifecycle, and expiry questions about a registered domain. Use dns_lookup instead for live DNS records, or reverse_dns/asn_lookup for IP-level ownership. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns registrar, key dates, nameservers, and status flags.subdomain_discoveryEnumerate the subdomains of a domain from Certificate Transparency logs — fully passive (no packets are sent to the target; CT logs are public records of every TLS certificate ever issued). Flags operational-looking names (dev, staging, admin, vpn, legacy) and wildcard certificates, because forgotten subdomains are a common takeover path. Use this as the first recon step to map a domain's attack surface. Use dns_lookup to check whether a discovered name still resolves, or lookalike_domains for typosquat variants of the domain name itself. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns the subdomain count, risky-name count, wildcard flag, and the hostname list.lookalike_domainsGenerate the typosquat/lookalike variants of a domain that phishers actually register — homoglyph swaps (l→1, o→0, rn→m), TLD swaps (.com→.co), character omissions, transpositions, repetitions, hyphenations — and check which of them are currently registered (live NS delegation via DoH). Use this to assess brand-impersonation and phishing exposure for a domain the user is responsible for. A registered variant is NOT proof of abuse (it may be an unrelated legitimate site) — follow up with whois_lookup on each hit for its owner and registration date. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited. Returns generated/checked counts and the registered variants with the technique that produced each.ip_infoReport information about the caller's own public IP as seen by the server: IPv4/IPv6 address, ISP, ASN, approximate geolocation, and proxy/VPN heuristics. Takes no input — it reflects the egress IP of THIS MCP server's network, which is usually NOT the end user's IP. Use this to discover the server's outbound IP or test connectivity. To inspect a specific, known IP instead, use asn_lookup or reverse_dns. Read-only; requires no API key; rate-limited.- +8 more on the listing page
Shodan tools 11
ip_lookupRetrieve comprehensive information about an IP address, including geolocation, operating system, open ports, running services (product, version, CPE), known vulnerabilities (CVEs), SSL certificates, hostnames, and cloud provider details if available. Returns service banners and HTTP server information when present. Optional history returns historical banners; minify omits banners.shodan_searchSearch Shodan's database of internet-connected devices. Returns detailed information about matching devices including services, vulnerabilities, and geographic distribution. Supports advanced search filters and returns facet statistics (default: by country). Costs 1 query credit when the query uses filters, plus 1 per page beyond the first. Use shodan_count (free) to get totals and facets without results.cve_lookupQuery detailed vulnerability information from Shodan's CVEDB. Returns comprehensive CVE details including CVSS scores (v4/v3/v2), EPSS probability and ranking, KEV status, proposed mitigations, ransomware associations, and affected products (CPEs).dns_lookupResolve domain names to IP addresses using Shodan's DNS service. Supports batch resolution of multiple hostnames in a single query. Returns IP addresses mapped to their corresponding hostnames.reverse_dns_lookupPerform reverse DNS lookups to find hostnames associated with IP addresses. Supports batch lookups of multiple IP addresses in a single query. Returns all known hostnames for each IP address, with clear indication when no hostnames are found.cpe_lookupSearch for Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) entries by product name in Shodan's CVEDB. Supports pagination and can return either full CPE details or just the total count. Useful for identifying specific versions and configurations of software and hardware.cves_by_productSearch for vulnerabilities affecting specific products or CPEs. Supports filtering by KEV status, sorting by EPSS score, date ranges, and pagination. Can search by product name or CPE 2.3 identifier. Returns detailed vulnerability information including severity scores and impact assessments.shodan_countGet the total number of Shodan results for a query, with optional facet breakdowns (e.g. by country, org, port). Free: does not consume query credits. Use search_filters to list valid filters and facets.domain_infoGet subdomains and DNS records for a domain from Shodan. Costs 1 query credit per lookup.api_infoShow the Shodan API plan, remaining query and scan credits, monitored IPs, and usage limits for the configured API key. Free: does not consume credits.search_filtersList the search filters and facets Shodan supports. Use this to build valid shodan_search and shodan_count queries and facets. Free: does not consume credits.
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Dechonet MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"node-man-dechonet-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"dechonet-mcp"
]
}
}
}
Shodan
{
"mcpServers": {
"shodan-2": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@burtthecoder/mcp-shodan"
],
"env": {
"SHODAN_API_KEY": "YOUR_SHODAN_API_KEY_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Dechonet MCP is categorized under Security and uses a local stdio subprocess. Shodan belongs to Security and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Dechonet MCP for security work and Shodan for security.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Dechonet MCP is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. Shodan has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add node-man-dechonet-mcp and shodan-2 as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Dechonet MCP has a quality signal of 65/100 (Great) with 6 views, 0 installs and 1 GitHub stars. Shodan has 68/100 (Great) with 1 views, 0 installs and 178 GitHub stars.