Dapr MCP Server
Dapr state, pub/sub, bindings, secrets, locks, crypto, conversation, actors, invocation as MCP tools
Install
Add this to your client's MCP configuration (Claude Desktop: claude_desktop_config.json; Cursor: .cursor/mcp.json; VS Code and others use the same "mcpServers" shape).
ghcr.io/dapr/dapr-mcp-server:v0.0.3claude mcp add dapr-mcp-server -e 'DAPR_GRPC_PORT=50001' -e 'DAPR_API_TOKEN=<your dapr_api_token>' -e 'DAPR_MCP_SERVER_LOG_LEVEL=info' -- docker run -i --rm ghcr.io/dapr/dapr-mcp-server:v0.0.3 --http={
"mcpServers": {
"dapr-mcp-server": {
"command": "docker",
"args": [
"run",
"-i",
"--rm",
"ghcr.io/dapr/dapr-mcp-server:v0.0.3",
"--http="
],
"env": {
"DAPR_GRPC_PORT": "50001",
"DAPR_API_TOKEN": "<your dapr_api_token>",
"DAPR_MCP_SERVER_LOG_LEVEL": "info"
}
}
}
}Environment variables
DAPR_GRPC_PORTrequired gRPC port of the Dapr sidecarDAPR_API_TOKENsecret Dapr API token, if the sidecar requires oneDAPR_MCP_SERVER_LOG_LEVELLog level, written as JSON to stderr
Documentation
From the project's README on GitHub, refreshed weekly. Links open on GitHub.
Contents
dapr-mcp-server
A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that exposes Dapr's building blocks as tools for AI agents.
What it is
dapr-mcp-server is a Go MCP server that fronts a Dapr sidecar and hands AI agents a curated set of tools over every Dapr building block: state, pub/sub, secrets, service invocation, actors, bindings, distributed locks, cryptography, and conversation components. Tools register dynamically from the live component set — if your deployment has no pub/sub broker, the pub/sub tools aren't exposed.
Two transports are supported: stdio for local IDE integrations (Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, Claude Code) and streamable HTTP for remote or shared deployments. Every tool call is annotated with OpenTelemetry spans, metrics, and optional log export; requests can be gated by OIDC, SPIFFE, Dapr Sentry, or a hybrid of the three.
Full documentation lives at docs.dapr.io / developing-ai / mcp.
Quick start
Run the binary next to a Dapr sidecar with dapr run (install it from Install):
dapr init
# stdio, for local MCP clients that launch the server themselves
dapr run --app-id dapr-mcp-server --resources-path resources -- dapr-mcp-server
# streamable HTTP, for remote clients
dapr run --app-id dapr-mcp-server --resources-path resources -- dapr-mcp-server --http :8080With --http, connect any MCP client to http://localhost:8080/. The container image is meant for Kubernetes, where the Dapr sidecar injector adds the sidecar through the dapr.io/enabled: "true" and dapr.io/app-id pod annotations. For the complete walk-through (components, auth, OTEL, verification), see the getting started guide.
Install
| Method | Command |
|---|---|
| Container | docker pull ghcr.io/dapr/dapr-mcp-server:latest |
| Binary | Download from Releases and place on PATH |
| From source (Go 1.26.6+) | go install github.com/dapr/dapr-mcp-server/cmd/dapr-mcp-server@latest |
The server is listed in the official MCP Registry as io.github.dapr/dapr-mcp-server, so MCP clients that browse the registry can install it as a container.
Configuration
The configuration guide has the full environment variable reference.
| Flag | Default | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
--http <addr> | unset (stdio) | Serve streamable HTTP on this address instead of stdin/stdout. Health probes are served on /livez, /readyz and /startupz. |
--health-check | false | Probe /livez of a running server and exit 0 if it answers 200, 1 otherwise. Used by the container HEALTHCHECK. |
--health-check-addr <host:port> | from --http, else localhost:8080 | Address --health-check probes. A wildcard host such as 0.0.0.0 is probed as localhost. |
--version | false | Print the version and exit. |
Logs are written as JSON to stderr, so they never mix with the stdio transport on stdout. /readyz returns 503 while the Dapr sidecar is unreachable.
Settings specific to the HTTP transport:
| Environment variable | Default | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
DAPR_MCP_CORS_ORIGIN | unset (no CORS headers) | Origin allowed to call the server from a browser, for example https://app.example.com. Set it only when a browser-based MCP client on another origin needs access. |
Documentation
| Page | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Overview | What the server is, architecture, capabilities, when to use it |
| Getting started | Install, configure components, run, verify |
| Tool reference | Schemas, inputs, outputs, and safety flags for every tool |
| Configuration | Environment variables, flags, and transport settings |
| Authentication | OIDC, SPIFFE, Dapr Sentry, hybrid mode |
| Observability | Traces, metrics, and logs |
AI coding agents contributing to this repo: see AGENTS.md. For human contributors: see CONTRIBUTING.md.
Tools at a glance
All tools, with links to their entries in the tool reference. Core tools are always registered; conditional tools register only when a matching Dapr component exists. The server follows components that Dapr hot-reloads: each time a client lists tools or calls get_components, it checks the sidecar, adds a building block's tools when its first component appears and removes them when its last one goes, and tells connected clients the tool list changed.
| Category | Tool | Registration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| metadata | get_components | Core | Always call first |
| invoke | invoke_service | Core | Service-to-service HTTP invocation |
| actors | invoke_actor_method | Core | Virtual-actor method call |
| state | save_state | state.* | Idempotent save |
| state | get_state | state.* | Read-only |
| state | delete_state | state.* | Destructive, idempotent |
| state | execute_transaction | state.* | Atomic batch |
| pubsub | publish_event | pubsub.* | Not idempotent |
| pubsub | publish_event_with_metadata | pubsub.* | Adds headers/TTL |
| bindings | invoke_output_binding | bindings.* | External-system I/O |
| secrets | get_secret | secretstores.* | Single secret |
| secrets | get_bulk_secrets | secretstores.* | High-risk; bulk fetch |
| conversation | converse_with_llm | conversation.* | Delegate to a downstream LLM |
| crypto | encrypt_data | crypto.* | RSA encrypt |
| crypto | decrypt_data | crypto.* | RSA decrypt |
| lock | acquire_lock | lock.* | Distributed mutex |
| lock | release_lock | lock.* | Pair with acquire_lock |
Development
go build -o dapr-mcp-server ./cmd/dapr-mcp-server
go test -race ./...
golangci-lint run ./...See AGENTS.md for the full contributor / AI-agent playbook (build commands, tool-addition pattern, testing strategy, DCO flow).
Contributing
Contributions welcome — open issues via the issue templates, sign your commits per the DCO, and follow the pull request template. See CONTRIBUTING.md for the full workflow.
Security issues: do not open a public issue — follow the Dapr security disclosure process instead.
License
Apache 2.0 — see LICENSE.
Frequently asked questions
What is Dapr MCP Server?
Dapr state, pub/sub, bindings, secrets, locks, crypto, conversation, actors, invocation as MCP tools
How do I install Dapr MCP Server?
It runs on your machine. In Claude Code: claude mcp add dapr-mcp-server -e 'DAPR_GRPC_PORT=50001' -e 'DAPR_API_TOKEN=<your dapr_api_token>' -e 'DAPR_MCP_SERVER_LOG_LEVEL=info' -- docker run -i --rm ghcr.io/dapr/dapr-mcp-server:v0.0.3 --http=. For other clients, paste the JSON configuration from this page into their MCP settings.
Does Dapr MCP Server need an API key?
Yes. It expects DAPR_GRPC_PORT, DAPR_API_TOKEN, which you set in its configuration.
Is Dapr MCP Server open source?
Yes. Its code is on GitHub under the Apache-2.0 license.
Who maintains Dapr MCP Server?
It is published by dapr. AI.tn lists it but does not maintain or endorse it.
From the official MCP Registry. Listing is not an endorsement: review a server's code and permissions before giving it access to your data.