Zsh Tool MCP Server

Zsh execution tool for Claude Code with full Bash parity, yield-based oversight, PTY mode, NEVERHANG circuit breaker, and A.L.A.N. short-term learning. Its 10 documented tools cover zsh, alan, neverhang. It runs locally over stdio via the published package.

People connecting this server to Claude, Cursor, VS Code, or another MCP client. The project is written in Rust.

VERIFIED ACTIVE

LAST COMMIT 2026-04-15 · ★ 4 · #600 OF 848 MAINTAINED OTHER · VERIFIED 2026-08-25

MIT · Rust servers · how we verify → /methodology

01 · Install Zsh Tool

before you install - you'll need

Set NEVERHANG_TIMEOUT_MAX before connecting. NEVERHANG_TIMEOUT_DEFAULT is optional or environment-specific per the README.

Claude Code

claude mcp add arktechnwa-zsh-tool -- uvx zsh-tool-mcp

Claude Desktop / Cursor / VS Code - add to config

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "arktechnwa-zsh-tool": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "zsh-tool-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Same JSON for Cursor. For VS Code, rename the top-level key from `mcpServers` to `servers`.

Using another client? Same JSON, different key

Claude Desktop · mcpServers

Cursor · mcpServers

VS Code · servers

Windsurf · mcpServers

Zed · context_servers

Cline · mcpServers

Roo Code · mcpServers

Continue · mcpServers

LibreChat · mcpServers

Gemini CLI · mcpServers

Codex CLI · mcp_servers

Full setup guides: every client.

02 · Evidence

Security posture

What to check before giving this server access to your agent - from the registry, GitHub, and our own probes. We don't score safety; we show what's verifiable.

runs as local process (stdio) - runs on your machine with your user's permissions

license MIT - declared in the repository

pypi package zsh-tool-mcp - check the name against the project README before installing (PyPI has no namespace ownership)

registry namespace io.github.ArkTechNWA is GitHub-verified and matches the repo owner

03 · What Zsh Tool can do

Prose above is summarized from the project's README and registry record - no invented capabilities.

What you can build

With this server connected, an agent can execute command with yield-based oversight, get new output (delta) from running task with line numbers, send input to task's stdin, and list all active tasks.

The 10 tools it gives your agent

Extracted from the project's README - what zsh-tool lets an agent do.

zsh: - Execute command with yield-based oversight
zsh_poll: - Get new output (delta) from running task with line numbers
zsh_send: - Send input to task's stdin
zsh_kill: - Kill a running task
zsh_tasks: - List all active tasks
zsh_health: - Overall health status
zsh_alan_stats: - A.L.A.N. database statistics
zsh_alan_query: - Query pattern insights for a command
zsh_neverhang_status: - Circuit breaker state
zsh_neverhang_reset: - Reset circuit to CLOSED

Latest releases

v0.6.1 · 2026-02-16

Protocol Fix - Bare JSON-RPC support for Claude Code v2.1+ · v0.6.0 was broken with Claude Code v2.1.42+. This release fixes it. · MCP server now auto-detects bare newline-delimited JSON (Claude Code v2.1+) vs…

v0.5.0 · 2026-02-12

Intelligent polling, kill-aware A.L.A.N., manopt integration. See docs/plans/2026-02-11-alan-v2-upgrade-design.md for full design.

v0.4.90 · 2026-02-10

Better signal, less noise. · ALAN insights classified as info/warning tuples · Command awareness: grep exit 1 = "no match" (info), exit 127 = "command not found" (warning) · Post-execution insights: silent detection…

04 · Who maintains Zsh Tool

zsh-tool is maintained by arktechnwa. It's the only MCP server we track from this author; the repo dates to Jan 2026.

05 · Facts

repository: github.com/arktechnwa/zsh-tool
category: other - ranked #600 of 848 actively-maintained other servers as of 2026-08-25.
registry: io.github.ArkTechNWA/zsh-tool (active, first published 2026-01-15)
packages: pypi:zsh-tool-mcp

06 · Zsh Tool FAQ

Is Zsh Tool still maintained?

Yes - as of 2026-08-25, its last commit was 2026-04-15. We re-verify nightly.

What can Zsh Tool do?

With this server connected, an agent can execute command with yield-based oversight, get new output (delta) from running task with line numbers, send input to task's stdin, and list all active tasks.

How do I install Zsh Tool?

Run `uvx zsh-tool-mcp`. The README documents 2 environment variables (NEVERHANG_TIMEOUT_DEFAULT, NEVERHANG_TIMEOUT_MAX) to set first. Set NEVERHANG_TIMEOUT_MAX before connecting. NEVERHANG_TIMEOUT_DEFAULT is optional or environment-specific per the README. You can also paste the ready-made client config above.

Does Zsh Tool run locally?

Yes - it's a stdio server: it runs on your machine (via uvx) with your user's permissions. Your data stays local unless the server itself calls external APIs.

07 · Alternatives to Zsh Tool

Alternatives to Zsh Tool

Maintained other servers if Zsh Tool isn't the fit.

More MCP servers to compare · Arm MCP Server · Froglet · Propstack MCP · Loyal Spark · FTX MCP - FactoryTalk Optix MCP Server

More Rust MCP servers · Vedaksha · Leteo · As Decided · Kshana PNT-resilience simulator · see all