dotnet-dump-mcp-server

Analyze .NET memory dumps with the help of your AI Assistant.

This project is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that wraps the powerful Microsoft.Diagnostics.Runtime (ClrMD) library. It allows AI agents (like Claude CLI, Gemini CLI, Zed Agent or Cursor) to inspect .NET core dumps, analyze the heap, check threads, and diagnose memory leaks or deadlocks directly.

🚀 Quick Start

Option 1: Using Docker (Recommended)

This is the easiest way to run the server, especially if you are on a Mac analyzing Linux dumps (fixes architecture mismatches).

1. Build the image:

   docker build -t dotnet-dump-mcp-server .
   

2. Run the server: Mount the folder containing your dump files to /dumps inside the container.

   docker run --rm -i \
     -v "/path/to/your/dumps:/dumps" \
     -e DUMP_PATH=/dumps/your_dump.core \
     dotnet-dump-mcp-server
   

   Tip: The DUMP_PATH variable is optional. If omitted, the server will start without a dump, and your AI agent can use the load_dump tool to select one later.

   Note for Mac users with Linux dumps: Add --platform linux/amd64 to the run command if you are analyzing an x64 Linux dump on Apple Silicon.

Option 2: Running Locally

If you have the .NET SDK 8, 9 or 10 installed and your OS matches the dump's OS (e.g., Windows dump on Windows, Linux on Linux).

MacOS / Linux:

# Set the dump path (optional) and run
export DUMP_PATH="/path/to/your/dump.core"
dotnet run --project src/DotNetDump.Server/DotNetDump.Server.csproj --framework net9.0

Windows (PowerShell):

$env:DUMP_PATH = "C:\path\to\your\dump.dmp"
dotnet run --project src\DotNetDump.Server\DotNetDump.Server.csproj --framework net9.0

✨ Features

The server exposes the following tools to your AI agent:

• Heap Analysis:
  • dump_heap: Get a statistical summary of the managed heap (top objects by size/count).
  • list_objects: List specific objects with filtering and pagination.
  • ee_heap: View internal CLR heap segments.
• Object Inspection:
  • dump_obj: detailed view of an object's fields and values.
  • gc_root: Find why an object is being kept in memory (reference chains).
  • gchandles: List Garbage Collector handles.
• Thread & Stack Analysis:
  • clr_threads: List all managed threads and their states (Live, Dead, etc.).
  • clr_stack: Get stack traces, optionally grouped by unique frames.
  • thread_pool: View CLR ThreadPool status (completion ports, workers).
• System & Modules:
  • clr_modules: List loaded assemblies and modules.
  • sync_blk: Analyze synchronization blocks to find locked objects (deadlock detection).

🤖 Agent Configuration

Add this server to your MCP client configuration (e.g., claude_desktop_config.json or Cursor Settings).

Docker Config (Example)

Note that we set a timeout to 10 minutes (600000 ms) due to that some requests might take a large amount of time (dump_heap as an example).

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "dotnet-dump": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run", "--rm", "-i",
        "-v", "/Users/yourname/dumps:/dumps",
        "-e", "DUMP_PATH=/dumps/crash.core",
        "dotnet-dump-mcp-server"
      ],
      "timeout": 600000
    }
  }
}

Local Config (Example)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "dotnet-dump": {
      "command": "dotnet",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "--project",
        "/absolute/path/to/dotnet-dump-mcp-server/src/DotNetDump.Server/DotNetDump.Server.csproj",
        "--framework", "net9.0"
      ],
      "env": {
        "DUMP_PATH": "/path/to/your/dump.core"
      }
    }
  }
}

🛠️ Development

To contribute or test the server locally, you can use the MCP Inspector.

1. Clone the repo:

   git clone https://github.com/yourusername/dotnet-dump-mcp-server.git
   cd dotnet-dump-mcp-server
   

2. Run with MCP Inspector: This launches a web UI to interact with the server directly, allowing you to call tools and see the output.

   export DUMP_PATH="/path/to/sample.core"
   npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector \
     dotnet run --project src/DotNetDump.Server/DotNetDump.Server.csproj --framework net9.0
   

Project Structure

• src/DotNetDump.Core: The analysis logic (ClrMD wrappers).
• src/DotNetDump.Server: The MCP Server implementation.
• tests: Integration tests.

Code Style

• Run dotnet format before committing to ensure code style consistency.