catalyst-center-mcp

catalyst-center-mcp

2

Catalyst Center MCP Server is a Python-based server designed for Cisco Catalyst Center, enabling efficient device management, client information retrieval, and network monitoring. It integrates via FastMCP for robustness and supports easy authentication and configuration processes.

Catalyst Center MCP Server

A Python-based MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for Cisco Catalyst Center (formerly DNA Center) that provides tools for device management, client information retrieval, and network monitoring.

Features

  • Secure authentication with Cisco Catalyst Center.
  • Device discovery, listing, and detailed information retrieval.
  • Site information retrieval, including hierarchy and details.
  • Network interface information for specific devices.
  • Client listing with comprehensive filtering options.
  • Detailed client information retrieval by MAC address.
  • Client count retrieval with filtering.
  • Helper tool for API-compatible time range conversion.
  • Implemented using FastMCP for a robust and extensible MCP server.
  • Configuration via .env file for easy setup.

Installation

  1. Clone the repository:
git clone https://github.com/richbibby/catalyst-center-mcp.git
cd catalyst-center-mcp
  1. Create a virtual environment and activate it:
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
  1. Install dependencies:
pip install -r requirements.txt

Configuration

  1. Copy the example environment file:
cp .env.example .env
  1. Update the .env file with your Catalyst Center credentials:
CCC_HOST=your-catalyst-center-host
CCC_USER=your-username
CCC_PWD=your-password

Usage With Claude Desktop Client

  1. Configure Claude Desktop to use this MCP server:
  • Open Claude Desktop
  • Go to Settings > Developer > Edit Config
  • Add the following configuration (adjust paths as needed, see claude_desktop_config.json for an example structure):
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "catalyst-center-mcp": {
      "command": "/path/to/your/venv/bin/fastmcp",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "/path/to/your/catalyst-center-mcp/catalyst-center-mcp.py"
      ],
      "env": {
        "PYTHONUNBUFFERED": "1"
      }
    }
  }
}
  • Replace /path/to/your/... with the absolute paths relevant to your local environment.
  • The PYTHONUNBUFFERED environment variable is recommended for Stdio transport.
  1. Restart Claude Desktop

  2. Interact with Claude Desktop:

  • Ask Claude to perform actions like "Show me the devices in my Cisco Catalyst Center"
  • Claude will use the MCP server to authenticate and fetch device information

Claude Desktop with Catalyst Center MCP

Claude Desktop with Catalyst Center MCP

Example Questions

Here are some example questions you can ask Claude to interact with your Catalyst Center:

Device Information

  • "Show me all devices in my network"
  • "List all switches in my network"
  • "What devices are currently unreachable?"
  • "Show me devices with hostname containing 'switch'"
  • "What's the status of device with IP 10.1.1.1?"

Interface Information

  • "Show me all interfaces for device X"
  • "What interfaces are down on device Y?"
  • "List all Gigabit interfaces on device Z"
  • "Show me interfaces with IP addresses"
  • "What's the status of interface GigabitEthernet1/0/1 on device X?"

Site Information

  • "Show me all sites in my network"
  • "What devices are in site X?"
  • "List all buildings in my network"
  • "Show me the site hierarchy"
  • "What's the address of site Y?"

Client Information

  • "How many clients are currently connected?"
  • "List all wireless clients."
  • "Show me clients connected to SSID 'Corporate-WiFi'."
  • "What are the details for client with MAC address aa:bb:cc:dd:ee:ff?"
  • "Are there any clients with an OS type of 'macOS'?"
  • "List clients active in the last hour."

Combined Queries

  • "Show me all devices in site X and their interfaces"
  • "List all down interfaces across all devices"
  • "What devices in building Y have unreachable interfaces?"
  • "Show me the network topology for site Z"
  • "What's the status of all devices in area A?"

Available Tools

  • fetch_devices: Fetches a list of devices from Cisco Catalyst Center, with filtering options.
  • fetch_sites: Fetches a list of sites from Cisco Catalyst Center, returning a compact JSON structure.
  • fetch_interfaces: Fetches interface information for a specific device ID.
  • get_api_compatible_time_range: Converts natural language time inputs (e.g., "last 24 hours", "yesterday") or specific timestamps into API-compatible epoch millisecond start and end times.
  • get_clients_list: Retrieves a list of clients from Cisco Catalyst Center with comprehensive filtering options (e.g., by client type, OS, site, MAC/IP address, SSID). Returns a maximum of 100 clients per call.
  • get_client_details_by_mac: Fetches detailed information for a specific client by their MAC address.
  • get_clients_count: Retrieves the total count of clients matching specified filters.

Contributing

  1. Fork the repository
  2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
  3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some amazing feature')
  4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
  5. Open a Pull Request