IDA Pro
fdrechslerLABSCO SUMMARY
The IDA database you already have open, readable from a chat.
It is early and says so — the surface is expected to change. The direction worth watching is the idalib mode, which would drop both the plugin install and the requirement to have IDA running at all.
What it is
A server for IDA interaction and automation, paired with a plugin that runs inside IDA. The server exposes the database to an MCP client; the plugin is what gives it access to the live IDA session.
What you get
Tools for reading an IDA database from a large language model, driven through the plugin running inside IDA. The author notes an idalib mode is in development that will remove both the plugin install and the need to have IDA running, since idalib is available from IDA Pro 9.0+.
Requirements
Two halves. On the server side, uvx mcp-server-ida needs no separate install, or pip install mcp-server-ida and run it with python -m mcp_server_ida. On the IDA side, copy repository/plugin/ida_mcp_server_plugin.py and the ida_mcp_server_plugin directory into IDA's plugin directory — %APPDATA%\Hex-Rays\IDA Pro\plugins on Windows, $HOME/.idapro/plugins on Linux and macOS. Then add it to claude_desktop_config.json with uvx or python -m as the command. The MCP inspector can be pointed at it for debugging. The author describes it as early development, with the functionality and available tools subject to change and expansion.
Setup effort
One command — pip install mcp-server-ida
USE CASES
01
Asking questions about a binary you are reversing
The plugin gives the server access to the live IDA database, so answers come from the analysis you already have rather than from a dump you exported.
02
Setting it up without a permanent install
uvx runs the server directly with nothing installed; only the IDA-side plugin has to be copied into place.
03
Checking what the server exposes
Run the MCP inspector against it to see the current tool surface, which is the reliable way to keep up with an early-stage project.
BEFORE YOU INSTALL
What to know first
Requires
pip on PATH
Where it runs
The documented client runs the server on your machine.
INSTALLATION
Connect your client
Server setup
TERMINAL
pip install mcp-server-idaMCP Clients
Claude Desktop
CLAUDE DESKTOP · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"ida": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"mcp-server-ida"
]
}
}
}
