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Toolhive

v1.0.0•Developer Tools•stable

** - A lightweight utility designed to simplify the deployment and management of MCP servers, ensuring ease of use, consistency, and security through containerization

aiai-securityaicodeassistantgolangkubernetes
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What is Toolhive?

Toolhive is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to ** - a lightweight utility designed to simplify the deployment and management of mcp servers, ensuring ease of use, consistency, and security through containerization

** - A lightweight utility designed to simplify the deployment and management of MCP servers, ensuring ease of use, consistency, and security through containerization

This server falls under the Developer Tools category on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.

Features

  • ** - A lightweight utility designed to simplify the deployme

Use Cases

Deployment and management of MCP servers
Containerized security for MCP infrastructure
stacklok

Maintainer

LicenseApache-2.0
Languagego
Versionv1.0.0
UpdatedMay 21, 2026
Statushealthy
Maintenanceactive

Works with

ClaudeOpenAIwindowsmacoslinux
View SourceBrowse All Servers

Installation

Manual Installation

npx toolhive

Configuration

Configuration Details

Config File

claude_desktop_config.json

Performance

Response Metrics

Response Time< 200ms
ThroughputMedium

Resource Usage

Memory UsageLow
CPU UsageLow

How to Set Up and Use Toolhive

ToolHive is an open-source platform for deploying and managing MCP servers inside isolated containers, providing security, observability, and policy enforcement for every server interaction. It supports local desktop use via Docker or Podman, Kubernetes deployments via a custom operator, and a curated registry of trusted MCP servers. Teams use ToolHive to enforce identity and access policies, reduce token usage by up to 85% with semantic tool search, and gain audit logging and OpenTelemetry monitoring across their MCP infrastructure.

Prerequisites

  • Docker or Podman installed for local container-based deployments
  • Go 1.21+ if building the thv CLI from source
  • Kubernetes cluster access for operator-based production deployments
  • An MCP-compatible client such as Claude Desktop, Cursor, or VS Code
  • ToolHive CLI (thv) downloaded from stacklok.com/download/
1

Download the ToolHive CLI

Visit stacklok.com/download/ and download the thv binary for your platform (macOS, Linux, or Windows). Move it to a directory on your PATH and verify the installation.

thv --version
2

Start a containerized MCP server

Use the thv run command to launch an MCP server from the ToolHive registry. ToolHive pulls the server image, isolates it in a container, and exposes the MCP endpoint locally.

thv run fetch
thv run github --env GITHUB_TOKEN=your_token_here
3

List running MCP servers

Check which MCP servers are currently managed by ToolHive, including their status, transport, and exposed endpoints.

thv list
4

Configure your MCP client to use the ToolHive endpoint

Point your MCP client at the local ToolHive SSE or stdio endpoint. ToolHive acts as a transparent proxy, so no changes to the underlying server are needed.

5

Deploy to Kubernetes using the Operator

For production environments, install the ToolHive Kubernetes Operator and apply Custom Resource Definitions to manage MCP servers declaratively across namespaces.

kubectl apply -f https://docs.stacklok.com/toolhive/install/operator.yaml
6

Enable observability and audit logging

ToolHive integrates with OpenTelemetry and Prometheus out of the box. Configure your telemetry backend and ToolHive will emit metrics and traces for every MCP request, plus a full audit log of tool invocations.

Toolhive Examples

Client configuration (Claude Desktop via ToolHive proxy)

When ToolHive is running, configure Claude Desktop to connect through the ToolHive-managed endpoint. The thv CLI outputs the correct config snippet after starting a server.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "toolhive-fetch": {
      "command": "thv",
      "args": ["proxy", "fetch"]
    }
  }
}

Prompts to try

After connecting through ToolHive, use your MCP client to work with any registered server's tools.

- "List all MCP servers currently running under ToolHive"
- "Fetch the content of https://docs.stacklok.com/toolhive/ and summarize it"
- "Show the audit log for my last 10 MCP tool invocations"
- "Start the GitHub MCP server with my token and list my open pull requests"

Troubleshooting Toolhive

thv run fails with 'cannot connect to Docker daemon'

Ensure Docker Desktop or the Docker daemon is running before invoking thv. On Linux, add your user to the docker group: sudo usermod -aG docker $USER and re-login.

MCP client cannot reach the ToolHive endpoint

Run thv list to confirm the server is running and note the exposed port. Verify no firewall rules block the local port, and ensure the client config references the correct host and port.

Server image fails to pull from the registry

Check your internet connection and Docker Hub access. For corporate environments, configure Docker to use a mirror via /etc/docker/daemon.json and retry with thv run --pull.

Frequently Asked Questions about Toolhive

What is Toolhive?

Toolhive is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that ** - a lightweight utility designed to simplify the deployment and management of mcp servers, ensuring ease of use, consistency, and security through containerization It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.

How do I install Toolhive?

Follow the installation instructions on the Toolhive GitHub repository. Clone the repo, install dependencies, and add the server config to your AI client.

Which AI clients work with Toolhive?

Toolhive works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.

Is Toolhive free to use?

Yes, Toolhive is open source and available under the Apache-2.0 license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.

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Quick Config Preview

{ "mcpServers": { "toolhive": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "toolhive"] } } }

Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json or .cursor/mcp.json

Read the full setup guide →

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