unifi-rmcp

unifi-rmcp is a Rust MCP server and CLI for managing Ubiquiti UniFi Network controllers through official, internal, and hybrid UniFi API actions.

It exposes one MCP tool, unifi, plus the runifi CLI. Agents can inspect clients, devices, WiFi networks, health, alarms, events, controller sysinfo, and authenticated identity, and can use generated official_* / unifi_* actions when their MCP auth scope permits it.

30-second path: set UNIFI_URL and UNIFI_API_KEY, then run npx -y unifi-rmcp health --json -> start loopback HTTP with UNIFI_MCP_HOST=127.0.0.1 npx -y unifi-rmcp serve -> call tools/call with {"action":"health"}.

Status: operational RMCP upstream-client server. The preserved convenience actions are read-oriented; generated mutating actions require unifi:admin authorization. HTTP MCP supports loopback dev mode, static bearer tokens, and Google OAuth through lab-auth.

Not for: replacing the UniFi console, storing controller credentials for callers, bypassing UniFi permissions, generic HTTP proxying, multi-tenant isolation, or passing UniFi API keys through MCP tool arguments.

Contents

• Naming
• Capabilities And Boundaries
• Install
• Quickstart
• Client Configuration
• Runtime Surfaces
• MCP Tool Reference
• CLI Reference
• Configuration
• Authentication
• Safety And Trust Model
• Architecture
• Distribution Contract
• Development
• Verification
• Deployment
• Troubleshooting
• Related Servers
• Documentation
• License

Naming

| Surface | This repo | |---|---| | Repository | unifi-rmcp | | Rust crate | unifi-rmcp | | Binary / CLI | runifi | | npm package | unifi-rmcp | | npm binary aliases | unifi-rmcp, runifi | | MCP tool | unifi | | Config home | ~/.unifi-rmcp on hosts, /data in containers | | Env prefixes | UNIFI_*, UNIFI_MCP_*, UNIFI_RMCP_* for npm launcher controls |

The repo and npm package use the RMCP family name, while the shipped binary uses the short Rust CLI name runifi.

Capabilities And Boundaries

• Read connected wireless and wired clients, network devices, WLAN configs, site health, active alarms, recent events, controller sysinfo, and current authenticated user.
• Dispatch generated official_* actions for documented Network Integration API endpoints.
• Dispatch model-backed unifi_* internal controller actions and hybrid aliases such as list_clients, list_devices, list_networks, list_wifi, and get_system_info.
• Enforce unifi:read for read actions and unifi:admin for mutating actions in mounted HTTP MCP mode.
• Provide setup, doctor, and endpoint-verification commands for local runtime checks.

| This repo owns | UniFi owns | Explicitly out of scope | |---|---|---| | MCP/CLI projection, action registry, request validation, HTTP MCP auth policy, response shaping, generated action dispatch, setup checks, and endpoint verification. | Controller state, site/device/client data, UniFi users, API key issuance, upstream authorization, and actual network mutations. | Replacing the controller UI, credential brokerage, arbitrary HTTP proxying, long-lived polling, policy-as-code, multi-tenant sandboxing, and local gateway provisioning. |

Install

| Path | Command | Best for | Notes | |---|---|---|---| | npm / npx | npx -y unifi-rmcp --help | Local MCP clients and quick trials. | Downloads the matching runifi binary from GitHub Releases. | | Release installer | curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jmagar/unifi-rmcp/main/scripts/install.sh \| bash | Host installs without Node. | Installs runifi for the current Linux host. | | Docker / Compose | docker compose up -d | Shared HTTP MCP deployments. | Reads .env and exposes container port 40030. | | Build from source | cargo build --release | Development and audits. | Produces target/release/runifi. | | Plugin | claude plugin install plugins/unifi | Claude Code local plugin setup from this checkout. | Uses the packaged setup hook, skill, and local runtime metadata. |

npm / npx

Run the stdio MCP server or CLI without a manual binary install:

npx -y unifi-rmcp --help
npx -y unifi-rmcp mcp
npx -y unifi-rmcp health --json

The npm package downloads runifi during postinstall. Override download behavior only when testing packaging:

| Variable | Purpose | |---|---| | UNIFI_RMCP_SKIP_DOWNLOAD=1 | Skip postinstall binary download. | | UNIFI_RMCP_VERSION or UNIFI_RMCP_BINARY_VERSION | Select the GitHub Release tag. | | UNIFI_RMCP_REPO | Select the GitHub repo used for release downloads. | | UNIFI_RMCP_RELEASE_BASE_URL | Select a custom release base URL. |

Build From Source

git clone https://github.com/jmagar/unifi-rmcp
cd unifi-rmcp
cargo build --release
./target/release/runifi --help

Minimum supported Rust version: 1.86.

Quickstart

1. Create A UniFi API Key

In UniFi OS, go to Settings -> Admins & Users -> API Keys, create a key, and copy it into UNIFI_API_KEY.

2. Configure The Controller

export UNIFI_URL=https://unifi.local
export UNIFI_API_KEY=...
export UNIFI_SITE=default
export UNIFI_SKIP_TLS_VERIFY=true

Set UNIFI_LEGACY=true only for older non-UDM controllers that do not use the /proxy/network path prefix.

3. Run A Safe CLI Call

npx -y unifi-rmcp health --json

4. Start Loopback HTTP MCP

UNIFI_MCP_HOST=127.0.0.1 npx -y unifi-rmcp serve

In another shell:

curl -sf http://127.0.0.1:40030/health

5. Make A First MCP Call

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:40030/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Accept: application/json, text/event-stream" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"unifi","arguments":{"action":"health"}}}'

Client Configuration

Claude Code Stdio

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "unifi": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "unifi-rmcp", "mcp"],
      "env": {
        "UNIFI_URL": "https://unifi.local",
        "UNIFI_API_KEY": "...",
        "UNIFI_SITE": "default",
        "UNIFI_SKIP_TLS_VERIFY": "true"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code HTTP

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "unifi": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "http://127.0.0.1:40030/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${UNIFI_MCP_TOKEN}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Codex / Labby Gateway

Register UniFi through Labby as an HTTP upstream when sharing one long-running server, or run it directly as stdio for local-only use.

[mcp_servers.unifi]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "unifi-rmcp", "mcp"]

Generic MCP JSON

{
  "command": "runifi",
  "args": ["mcp"],
  "env": {
    "UNIFI_URL": "https://unifi.local",
    "UNIFI_API_KEY": "..."
  }
}

Do not put UNIFI_API_KEY, OAuth secrets, passwords, SSH keys, or upstream bearer tokens in MCP tool arguments. Use env, config files, or the MCP client's secret storage. MCP callers never provide credentials, tokens, keys, or secrets as action arguments.

Runtime Surfaces

| Surface | Status | Entry point | Purpose | |---|---:|---|---| | MCP stdio | Supported | runifi mcp, npx -y unifi-rmcp mcp | Local child-process MCP clients. | | MCP HTTP | Supported | runifi serve, POST /mcp | Streamable HTTP MCP for local or shared server deployments. | | CLI | Supported | runifi <command> | Scriptable parity and debugging. | | Prompts | Supported | network_summary | Agent prompt for UniFi status summaries. | | Resource | Supported | MCP tool schema resource | Client-side schema discovery. | | REST API | Not shipped | N/A | UniFi already owns the REST APIs. | | Web UI | Not shipped | N/A | UniFi already owns the controller UI. |

MCP Tool Reference

One MCP tool is exposed: unifi. Pass the required action argument to select the operation.

Preserved Convenience Actions

| Action | Description | Required params | Optional params | |---|---|---|---| | clients | Connected wireless and wired clients. | none | none | | devices | Network devices: APs, switches, gateways. | none | none | | wlans | WiFi network configurations. | none | none | | health | Site health summary. | none | none | | alarms | Active alarms and alerts. | none | none | | events | Recent controller events. | none | limit | | sysinfo | Controller system information. | none | none | | me | Authenticated UniFi identity. | none | none | | help | Built-in action documentation. | none | none |

Generated Action Families

| Family | Description | Scope behavior | |---|---|---| | official_* | Documented Network Integration API operations under /proxy/network/integration/v1. | Read operations require unifi:read; mutating operations require unifi:admin. | | unifi_* | Model-backed internal controller-compatible actions under /proxy/network/api/s/{site} and /proxy/network/v2/api/site/{site}. | Read operations require unifi:read; mutating operations require unifi:admin. | | Hybrid aliases | list_clients, list_devices, list_networks, list_wifi, get_system_info. | Use internal actions by default, or official API when siteId or params.prefer="official" is supplied. |

Endpoint coverage is tracked in docs/unifi_api_coverage.md; contract and safe live verification are documented in docs/unifi_endpoint_verification.md.

CLI Reference

The binary calls the same service layer as the MCP tool:

runifi clients [--json]
runifi devices [--json]
runifi wlans [--json]
runifi health [--json]
runifi alarms [--json]
runifi events [--limit N] [--json]
runifi sysinfo [--json]
runifi me [--json]
runifi official_list_clients --param siteId=<uuid> --json
runifi official_create_network --param siteId=<uuid> --body-json '{"name":"IoT"}' --json
runifi list_clients --param siteId=<uuid> --json
runifi doctor [--json]
runifi setup check [--json]
runifi setup repair [--json]

Generated actions accept --param k=v, --body-json JSON, and --json.

Configuration

Host installs read ~/.unifi-rmcp/.env before loading config. Containers read /data/.env. Process environment overrides both.

| Variable | Default | Purpose | |---|---|---| | UNIFI_URL | unset | Controller base URL, e.g. https://unifi.local. | | UNIFI_API_KEY | unset | API key for the X-API-KEY header. | | UNIFI_SITE | default | UniFi site name. | | UNIFI_SITE_ID | unset | Official API site UUID used by live tests and explicit generated calls. | | UNIFI_SKIP_TLS_VERIFY | true | Skip TLS certificate verification for self-signed controllers. | | UNIFI_LEGACY | false | Legacy controller mode without /proxy/network prefix. | | UNIFI_MCP_HOST | 0.0.0.0 | HTTP bind host. | | UNIFI_MCP_PORT | 40030 | HTTP bind port. | | UNIFI_MCP_SERVER_NAME | unifi-rmcp | Advertised MCP server name. | | UNIFI_MCP_TOKEN | unset | Static bearer token for HTTP MCP. | | UNIFI_MCP_NO_AUTH | false | Disable auth only for loopback development. | | UNIFI_NOAUTH | false | Trust an upstream gateway to enforce auth. | | UNIFI_MCP_PUBLIC_URL | unset | Public URL for OAuth metadata. | | UNIFI_MCP_AUTH_MODE | bearer | bearer or oauth. | | UNIFI_MCP_GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID | unset | Google OAuth client ID. | | UNIFI_MCP_GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET | unset | Google OAuth client secret. | | UNIFI_MCP_AUTH_ADMIN_EMAIL | unset | Admin email for OAuth bootstrap. |

Authentication

Stdio MCP runs as a local trusted child process and does not use HTTP auth.

HTTP MCP auth policy:

| State | Condition | Behavior | |---|---|---| | Loopback dev | UNIFI_MCP_HOST starts with 127. or auth is explicitly disabled on loopback | Local unauthenticated development is allowed. | | Mounted bearer | Non-loopback with UNIFI_MCP_TOKEN | Requires Authorization: Bearer <token> and action scopes. | | Mounted OAuth | UNIFI_MCP_AUTH_MODE=oauth | Uses Google OAuth/JWT through lab-auth. | | Trusted gateway | UNIFI_NOAUTH=true | Assumes a reverse proxy or gateway already enforced auth. |

unifi:admin satisfies unifi:read; unifi:read does not satisfy mutating actions.

Safety And Trust Model

• UniFi API keys are loaded from config/env only.
• MCP callers select actions, params, and request bodies, not upstream credentials.
• Preserved convenience actions are read-oriented.
• Generated mutating actions require unifi:admin in mounted HTTP MCP mode.
• Unknown actions and malformed generated-action params fail before upstream calls.
• Non-loopback HTTP deployments must use bearer auth, OAuth, or a trusted authenticated gateway.
• This bridge does not sandbox UniFi itself. UniFi remains responsible for API permissions and the actual network-side effect of a mutating call.

Architecture

Capabilities   (src/capabilities.rs)   official/internal/hybrid registry
      |
UnifiClient    (src/api.rs, src/unifi.rs) HTTP path families and transport
      |
UnifiService   (src/app.rs)            action execution boundary
      |
MCP shim       (src/mcp/tools.rs)      JSON args -> service -> Value
CLI shim       (src/cli.rs)            argv -> service -> stdout

Distribution Contract

• Cargo.toml, Cargo.lock, packages/unifi-rmcp/package.json, .release-please-manifest.json, and server.json must agree on the released version.
• GitHub Releases publish the runifi binary consumed by the npm launcher.
• The npm package name is unifi-rmcp; binary aliases are unifi-rmcp and runifi.
• Docker/OCI metadata uses ghcr.io/jmagar/unifi-rmcp:<version>.
• plugins/unifi/.mcp.json must launch npx -y unifi-rmcp mcp so stdio clients start the MCP transport rather than the HTTP server.
• The root README is curated. Source of truth for current actions and generated endpoint coverage is src/capabilities.rs, the data/ inventories, docs/unifi_api_coverage.md, and docs/unifi_endpoint_verification.md.

Development

cargo fmt --check
cargo test
cargo clippy -- -D warnings
cargo build --release
npm --prefix packages/unifi-rmcp run check

Verification

python3 /home/jmagar/workspace/soma/scripts/check-readme-guide.py README.md
npm --prefix packages/unifi-rmcp run check
cargo check
cargo test
cargo run -p xtask -- verify-api-endpoints --mode contract
git diff --check

Live read probes require a controller:

UNIFI_URL=https://<gateway> \
UNIFI_API_KEY=<network-api-key> \
UNIFI_SITE=default \
UNIFI_SITE_ID=<official-site-uuid> \
UNIFI_SKIP_TLS_VERIFY=true \
cargo run -p xtask -- verify-api-endpoints --mode safe_live

Deployment

Use loopback for local development:

UNIFI_MCP_HOST=127.0.0.1 runifi serve

Use Docker Compose for shared HTTP deployment:

cp .env.example .env
docker compose up -d

When binding to a non-loopback address, configure UNIFI_MCP_TOKEN, UNIFI_MCP_AUTH_MODE=oauth, or UNIFI_NOAUTH=true behind an authenticated gateway.

Troubleshooting

| Symptom | Check | |---|---| | UNIFI_URL or UNIFI_API_KEY is missing | Set it in env or ~/.unifi-rmcp/.env. | | TLS errors against a UniFi controller | Keep UNIFI_SKIP_TLS_VERIFY=true unless the controller has a trusted certificate. | | Legacy controller paths fail | Set UNIFI_LEGACY=true for older non-UDM controllers. | | HTTP /mcp returns unauthorized | Set UNIFI_MCP_TOKEN and send Authorization: Bearer <token>. | | Stdio client hangs or logs JSON errors | Ensure client config runs unifi-rmcp mcp, not the default HTTP server mode. | | Generated official action needs siteId | Pass --param siteId=<uuid> or MCP params.siteId. | | Mutating generated action is forbidden | Use an HTTP MCP token/session with unifi:admin. |

Related Servers

• tailscale-rmcp / rustscale - Tailscale API bridge for devices, users, and tailnet operations.
• unraid-rmcp / unrust - Unraid GraphQL bridge for NAS and server management.
• apprise-rmcp - Apprise notification fan-out bridge for many delivery backends.
• gotify-rmcp - Gotify push notification bridge for sends, messages, apps, and clients.
• arcane-rmcp - Arcane Docker management bridge for containers and related resources.
• yarr-rmcp - Media-stack bridge for Sonarr, Radarr, Prowlarr, Plex, and related services.
• ytdl-mcp - Media download and metadata workflow server.
• synapse - Local Synapse workflow server for scout and flux actions.
• cortex - Syslog and homelab log aggregation MCP server.
• axon - RAG, crawl, scrape, extract, and semantic search project.
• lab - Homelab control plane and Labby gateway project.
• lumen - Local semantic code search MCP server.
• nugs - Project/package management helper for local agent workflows.
• agentcast - Agent transcript and activity publishing project.
• soma - RMCP scaffold/runtime template for new provider-backed servers.

Documentation

• CLAUDE.md is the curated local operating guide for contributors and agents.
• docs/unifi_api_coverage.md is the curated API-family and coverage summary.
• docs/unifi_endpoint_verification.md is the curated endpoint verification guide.
• docs/SETUP.md is curated plugin/setup guidance.
• docs/OAUTH.md is curated OAuth setup guidance.
• plugins/unifi/skills/unifi/SKILL.md is the agent usage guide.
• data/ inventories are generated/reference inputs for the action registry.
• src/ is the source of truth for current action dispatch, config defaults, auth behavior, and CLI parsing.

License

MIT. See LICENSE.