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Shell Exec▌

by domdomegg

Shell Exec - execute bash commands and manage background jobs on Linux. Fast, reliable shell command execution with back

Execute bash commands with background job support.

github stars

★ 4

GitHubWebsitenpm
Background job supportNo API key needed

best for

  • / Developers needing to run build commands and file operations
  • / System administration and monitoring tasks
  • / Running long-running processes or servers in background

capabilities

  • / Execute bash commands with optional timeout
  • / Run background jobs and processes
  • / Check status of running background jobs
  • / Perform file operations like find, grep, mv, rm
  • / Get system information with df, ps, env commands
  • / Run build tools like npm, make, or custom scripts

what it does

Execute bash commands directly from Claude with support for background jobs. Run builds, file operations, system commands, and long-running processes.

about

Shell Exec is a community-built MCP server published by domdomegg that provides AI assistants with tools and capabilities via the Model Context Protocol. Shell Exec - execute bash commands and manage background jobs on Linux. Fast, reliable shell command execution with back It is categorized under developer tools.

how to install

You can install Shell Exec in your AI client of choice. Use the install panel on this page to get one-click setup for Cursor, Claude Desktop, VS Code, and other MCP-compatible clients. This server runs locally on your machine via the stdio transport.

license

MIT

Shell Exec is released under the MIT license. This is a permissive open-source license, meaning you can freely use, modify, and distribute the software.

readme

shell-exec-mcp

MCP server for executing bash commands with background job support.

Use Cases

Run build commands: Execute npm run build, make, or other build tools and get the output.

File operations: Use find, grep, mv, rm, mkdir -p, stat etc. for file management.

Long-running tasks: Start servers or watch processes in background mode, check on them later.

System info: Run df -h, ps aux, env etc. to inspect the system state.

Setup

claude mcp add shell-exec-mcp -- npx -y shell-exec-mcp

Or with HTTP transport:

# Start the server
MCP_TRANSPORT=http PORT=3000 npx -y shell-exec-mcp

# Add to Claude
claude mcp add --transport http shell-exec-mcp http://localhost:3000/mcp

Tools

ToolDescription
executeRun a bash command (with optional timeout and background mode)
get_job_statusCheck status of a background job

Contributing

Pull requests are welcomed on GitHub! To get started:

  1. Install Git and Node.js
  2. Clone the repository
  3. Install dependencies with npm install
  4. Run npm run test to run tests
  5. Build with npm run build

Releases

Versions follow the semantic versioning spec.

To release:

  1. Use npm version <major | minor | patch> to bump the version
  2. Run git push --follow-tags to push with tags
  3. Wait for GitHub Actions to publish to the NPM registry.

FAQ

What is the Shell Exec MCP server?
Shell Exec is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server profile on explainx.ai. MCP lets AI hosts (e.g. Claude Desktop, Cursor) call tools and resources through a standard interface; this page summarizes categories, install hints, and community ratings.
How do MCP servers relate to agent skills?
Skills are reusable instruction packages (often SKILL.md); MCP servers expose live capabilities. Teams frequently combine both—skills for workflows, MCP for APIs and data. See explainx.ai/skills and explainx.ai/mcp-servers for parallel directories.
How are reviews shown for Shell Exec?
This profile displays 10 aggregated ratings (sample rows for discoverability plus signed-in user reviews). Average score is about 4.5 out of 5—verify behavior in your own environment before production use.
MCP server reviews

Ratings

4.5★★★★★10 reviews
  • ★★★★★Shikha Mishra· Oct 10, 2024

    Shell Exec is among the better-indexed MCP projects we tried; the explainx.ai summary tracks the official description.

  • ★★★★★Piyush G· Sep 9, 2024

    We evaluated Shell Exec against two servers with overlapping tools; this profile had the clearer scope statement.

  • ★★★★★Chaitanya Patil· Aug 8, 2024

    Useful MCP listing: Shell Exec is the kind of server we cite when onboarding engineers to host + tool permissions.

  • ★★★★★Sakshi Patil· Jul 7, 2024

    Shell Exec reduced integration guesswork — categories and install configs on the listing matched the upstream repo.

  • ★★★★★Ganesh Mohane· Jun 6, 2024

    I recommend Shell Exec for teams standardizing on MCP; the explainx.ai page compares cleanly with sibling servers.

  • ★★★★★Oshnikdeep· May 5, 2024

    Strong directory entry: Shell Exec surfaces stars and publisher context so we could sanity-check maintenance before adopting.

  • ★★★★★Dhruvi Jain· Apr 4, 2024

    Shell Exec has been reliable for tool-calling workflows; the MCP profile page is a good permalink for internal docs.

  • ★★★★★Rahul Santra· Mar 3, 2024

    According to our notes, Shell Exec benefits from clear Model Context Protocol framing — fewer ambiguous “AI plugin” claims.

  • ★★★★★Pratham Ware· Feb 2, 2024

    We wired Shell Exec into a staging workspace; the listing’s GitHub and npm pointers saved time versus hunting across READMEs.

  • ★★★★★Yash Thakker· Jan 1, 2024

    Shell Exec is a well-scoped MCP server in the explainx.ai directory — install snippets and categories matched our Claude Code setup.