🎓 Ghidra MCP Server - Student Guide

Welcome to your first MCP server! Let's learn step by step.

📚 What You'll Learn

1. What is MCP and how it works
2. How to structure an MCP server
3. How to define tools that Claude can use
4. How to test your MCP server
5. How to expand it with more features

🔧 Part 1: Installation (5 minutes)

Step 1: Install Dependencies

# Create a new directory
mkdir ghidra-mcp-server
cd ghidra-mcp-server

# Create requirements.txt
cat > requirements.txt << EOF
mcp>=0.9.0
EOF

# Install
pip install -r requirements.txt

Step 2: Install Required Tools

# On Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install binutils file

# On macOS
brew install binutils

# Optional (for better security analysis)
# Install checksec
pip install checksec.py

Step 3: Save the Server Code

Save the Python code as ghidra_mcp_server.py

🎯 Part 2: Understanding the Code (10 minutes)

Let's break down what each part does:

A. The Server Class

class GhidraMCPServer:
    def __init__(self):
        self.server = Server("ghidra-mcp")  # Creates MCP server
        # ... setup workspace, find tools

What it does: Initializes the server and prepares the environment.

B. Tool Registration

@self.server.list_tools()
async def list_tools() -> list[Tool]:
    return [
        Tool(
            name="analyze_binary",      # Tool name
            description="...",           # What it does
            inputSchema={...}            # What inputs it needs
        )
    ]

What it does: Tells Claude "Hey, these are the tools you can use!"

C. Tool Handler

@self.server.call_tool()
async def call_tool(name: str, arguments: Any):
    if name == "analyze_binary":
        result = await self.analyze_binary(arguments["file_path"])
    return [TextContent(type="text", text=result)]

What it does: When Claude calls a tool, this routes it to the right function.

D. Tool Implementation

async def analyze_binary(self, file_path: str) -> str:
    # 1. Check if file exists
    # 2. Run system commands (file, readelf, etc.)
    # 3. Format and return results

What it does: The actual work - analyzing the binary!

🚀 Part 3: Testing Your Server (10 minutes)

Test 1: Run the Server Standalone

python ghidra_mcp_server.py

If it starts without errors, good! But it won't do much because it's waiting for MCP messages.

Test 2: Configure Claude Desktop

Create/edit: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) Or: %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (Windows)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ghidra-mcp": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": [
        "/full/path/to/ghidra_mcp_server.py"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Important: Use the FULL path to your script!

Test 3: Restart Claude Desktop

1. Quit Claude Desktop completely
2. Restart it
3. Look for the 🔌 icon (bottom right) - it shows connected MCP servers

Test 4: Try It Out!

In Claude, try asking:

"Can you analyze this binary file for me: /path/to/some/binary"

Claude should use your MCP server! 🎉

🧪 Part 4: What Each Tool Does

1. analyze_binary

Purpose: Get basic information about a binary Uses: file, readelf commands Good for: Understanding what type of binary you're dealing with

Example:

Claude: "Analyze /bin/ls for me"
Result: File type, size, architecture, ELF header info

2. extract_strings

Purpose: Find readable text in binaries Uses: strings command Good for: Finding hardcoded passwords, URLs, error messages

Example:

Claude: "Extract strings from this binary"
Result: List of all readable strings (min 4 chars)

3. get_file_info

Purpose: Quick file type check Uses: file command Good for: Fast identification

4. check_security

Purpose: Check exploit mitigations Uses: readelf, nm, or checksec Good for: Understanding security features (NX, PIE, Canary)

🔍 Part 5: How MCP Communication Works

You → Claude Desktop → MCP Server → System Commands → Results → Claude → You

Step by step:

1. You ask Claude to analyze a binary
2. Claude recognizes it needs the analyze_binary tool
3. Claude sends a JSON-RPC message to your MCP server
4. Your server runs the analyze_binary function
5. Results are sent back to Claude
6. Claude formats and shows you the results

The messages look like this:

// Claude calls tool
{
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "analyze_binary",
    "arguments": {
      "file_path": "/bin/ls"
    }
  }
}

// Your server responds
{
  "result": [
    {
      "type": "text",
      "text": "=== Binary Analysis: ls ===\nFile Size: 12345 bytes..."
    }
  ]
}

🎓 Part 6: Exercises (Learn by Doing!)

Exercise 1: Add a New Tool (Easy)

Add a tool that counts functions in a binary:

Tool(
    name="count_functions",
    description="Count the number of functions in a binary",
    inputSchema={
        "type": "object",
        "properties": {
            "file_path": {"type": "string"}
        },
        "required": ["file_path"]
    }
)

Then implement:

async def count_functions(self, file_path: str) -> str:
    # Use: nm --defined-only file_path | wc -l
    pass

Exercise 2: Add Filtering (Medium)

Modify extract_strings to filter by pattern:

"pattern": {
    "type": "string",
    "description": "Regex pattern to filter strings"
}

Exercise 3: Add Caching (Advanced)

Cache analysis results to speed up repeated queries.

🐛 Part 7: Common Issues & Solutions

Issue 1: "Server not connecting"

Solution: Check the config file path is correct. Use full absolute paths.

Issue 2: "Tool not found (strings, readelf, etc.)"

Solution: Install the missing tools:

sudo apt-get install binutils  # Linux
brew install binutils          # macOS

Issue 3: "Permission denied"

Solution: Make sure the binary you're analyzing is readable:

chmod +r /path/to/binary

Issue 4: "MCP module not found"

Solution: Install MCP:

pip install mcp

🚀 Part 8: Next Steps

Now that you understand the basics, you can:

1. Add Ghidra Integration

   • Use Ghidra's headless analyzer
   • Decompile functions
   • Generate call graphs

2. Add More Analysis Tools

   • Disassembly (objdump)
   • Symbol extraction
   • Import/export analysis

3. Add Database Support

   • Store analysis results
   • Compare binaries
   • Track changes

4. Add Visualization

   • Function call graphs
   • Control flow graphs
   • Dependency trees

📖 Quick Reference

File Structure

ghidra-mcp-server/
├── ghidra_mcp_server.py    # Main server
├── requirements.txt         # Dependencies
├── README.md               # This guide
└── .ghidra_mcp_workspace/  # Working directory (auto-created)

Key MCP Concepts

Useful Commands

# Test if binutils is installed
which readelf nm objdump strings file

# Check a binary manually
file /bin/ls
readelf -h /bin/ls
strings /bin/ls

# View MCP logs (helpful for debugging)
# Check Claude Desktop logs in:
# macOS: ~/Library/Logs/Claude/
# Windows: %APPDATA%/Claude/logs/

🎯 Summary: What You've Learned

✅ How MCP servers work (JSON-RPC over stdio) ✅ How to define tools with input schemas ✅ How to implement tool handlers ✅ How to integrate with system commands ✅ How to test and debug MCP servers ✅ How to configure Claude Desktop

Next: Try building your own tool! Start small, test often, and gradually add complexity.

💡 Pro Tips

1. Start Simple: Get one tool working before adding more
2. Test Incrementally: Test each tool separately
3. Log Everything: Add logging to debug issues
4. Handle Errors: Always catch exceptions and return helpful messages
5. Document Well: Future you will thank present you

🤝 Need Help?

• Read the MCP Documentation
• Check Claude Desktop logs for errors
• Test system commands manually first
• Start with simpler tools and build up

Happy Learning! 🎓

"The best way to learn is by building." - Every programmer ever