Summary
Cargo as tool calls, not shell strings.
Because each subcommand is a typed tool, release mode or a feature list is a parameter rather than a string an agent assembles - and you can allow the check and test tools without granting a general shell.
What it is
An MCP server that wraps Cargo. Each subcommand is its own tool with typed parameters - release mode, feature list, target triple, workspace path - so builds, tests, Clippy runs and rustfmt happen as tool calls rather than as command lines.
What you get
- A project built, in debug or release, with the features and target you name
- Tests run, all of them or one by name
- A binary run, chosen by name in a multi-binary project
- Errors checked without producing a binary
- Clippy run over the project
- Code formatted with rustfmt
- Documentation generated
- Build artifacts cleared
- The dependency tree displayed
Requirements
Python 3.8 or higher, and Rust with Cargo already installed - the server runs the real toolchain rather than reimplementing it. Install from source with pip install -e . The workspace root is auto-detected; pass workspace_path when it guesses wrong.
Setup effort
One command — cargo-mcp