IDA Pro MCP
Headless IDA Pro MCP Server
What is IDA Pro MCP?
IDA Pro MCP is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to headless ida pro mcp server
Headless IDA Pro MCP Server
This server falls under the Developer Tools category on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.
Features
- Headless IDA Pro MCP Server
Use Cases
Maintainer
Works with
Installation
Manual Installation
npx ida-mcp-rsConfiguration
Configuration Details
claude_desktop_config.json
Performance
Response Metrics
Resource Usage
How to Set Up and Use IDA Pro MCP
The IDA Pro MCP server (ida-mcp-rs) is a headless Rust-based bridge between IDA Pro's idalib and AI assistants like Claude, enabling automated binary analysis, disassembly, decompilation, cross-reference traversal, and IDAPython scripting through natural language. It exposes 71 tools across categories including core database management, function enumeration, decompilation (Hex-Rays), control flow graphs, memory search, type editing, and scripting — all without requiring IDA's GUI to be open.
Prerequisites
- IDA Pro 9.2 or 9.3 (including the idalib shared library) installed on the analysis machine
- A valid IDA Pro license; decompilation tools additionally require a Hex-Rays decompiler license
- Homebrew (macOS/Linux) or Scoop (Windows) for easy installation, or direct binary download
- Claude Code, Cursor, or another MCP client capable of stdio server connections
- IDADIR or DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variable set if IDA is not in a standard location
Install ida-mcp via Homebrew (macOS/Linux)
Install the correct tap for your IDA version. The default tap targets IDA 9.3/9.3sp1.
brew install blacktop/tap/ida-mcp
# For IDA 9.2:
brew install blacktop/tap/[email protected]Install on Windows via Scoop (alternative)
Add the blacktop bucket and install the package.
scoop bucket add blacktop https://github.com/blacktop/scoop-bucket
scoop install blacktop/ida-mcpSet environment variables if needed
On Linux, point IDADIR to your IDA installation. On macOS, set DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH if the library is not in a standard path.
# Linux
export IDADIR=~/ida-pro-9.3
# macOS (if needed)
export DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=/Applications/IDA\ Professional\ 9.3.app/Contents/MacOSAdd to Claude Code
Register the ida-mcp binary as an MCP server in Claude Code.
claude mcp add ida -- ida-mcpConfigure with optional toolset filtering
Limit which tool categories are exposed to reduce context overhead. The full 71-tool set uses ~10k tokens; filtering helps with clients that have tight context limits.
{
"mcpServers": {
"ida-mcp": {
"command": "ida-mcp",
"env": {
"IDA_MCP_TOOLSETS": "core,functions,disassembly,decompile,xrefs",
"IDA_MCP_READ_ONLY": "true"
}
}
}
}Open a binary and start analysis
Ask Claude to open an IDB file and enumerate functions to verify the connection works.
IDA Pro MCP Examples
Client configuration
Claude Desktop / Claude Code configuration for ida-mcp with core toolsets and read-only mode.
{
"mcpServers": {
"ida-mcp": {
"command": "ida-mcp",
"env": {
"IDA_MCP_TOOLSETS": "core,functions,disassembly,decompile,xrefs,control_flow",
"IDA_MCP_READ_ONLY": "true"
}
}
}
}Prompts to try
Binary analysis tasks you can ask Claude once the server is connected.
- "Open ~/samples/malware.idb and list the first 20 functions."
- "Decompile the function at address 0x100000f00 and explain what it does."
- "Show me all callers of the function named 'decrypt_payload'."
- "Extract all string literals from the binary (limit 50) and flag anything suspicious."
- "Run an IDAPython script to print all function addresses in hex."Troubleshooting IDA Pro MCP
ida-mcp fails to load idalib on macOS with dylib error
Set DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH to the MacOS directory inside your IDA.app bundle, e.g. export DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=/Applications/IDA\ Professional\ 9.3.app/Contents/MacOS, then restart your MCP client.
Decompile tool returns 'Hex-Rays not available'
The decompile toolset requires a separately licensed Hex-Rays decompiler (x86/x64, ARM, etc.). Verify your IDA license includes the relevant decompiler plugin by checking Help → About in IDA's GUI.
Too many tools cause context overflow in the client
Set IDA_MCP_TOOLSETS to only the categories you need (e.g. 'core,functions,disassembly') via the environment variable, or use IDA_MCP_EXCLUDE_TOOLS to drop specific tools. This can reduce context usage from ~10k to ~2k tokens.
Frequently Asked Questions about IDA Pro MCP
What is IDA Pro MCP?
IDA Pro MCP is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that headless ida pro mcp server It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.
How do I install IDA Pro MCP?
Follow the installation instructions on the IDA Pro MCP GitHub repository. Clone the repo, install dependencies, and add the server config to your AI client.
Which AI clients work with IDA Pro MCP?
IDA Pro MCP works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.
Is IDA Pro MCP free to use?
Yes, IDA Pro MCP is open source and available under the MIT license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
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Quick Config Preview
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