AUTOMATIONSWITCH

GKE MCP Server

by GoogleCloudPlatform org

Google Kubernetes Engine MCP server in the GoogleCloudPlatform org. Adds GKE-specific tools (cluster management, upgrade risk reports, log queries) plus Gemini CLI extension support. Maintainers explicitly state this is for education and experimentation and is NOT FOR PRODUCTION USE.

147·8 tools·Released JUN 2025·Apache-2.0
go install github.com/GoogleCloudPlatform/gke-mcp@latest
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Lives in the GoogleCloudPlatform org and adds GKE-specific tools (cluster management, upgrade risk reports, log queries) plus Gemini CLI extension support. Maintainers explicitly state this is for education and experimentation and is NOT FOR PRODUCTION USE. Treat it accordingly. The README disclaimer explicitly excludes the project from Google Cloud Terms of Service and Data Processing Terms, and labels the tool experimental and best-effort. That posture lowers the editorial weight despite the GoogleCloudPlatform org placement. The functional capability is real: v0.11.1 ships, the cluster_toolkit creates AI-optimised GKE clusters, gke-upgrade-risk-report performs upgrade safety analysis, and the Gemini CLI extension format is natively supported. For GKE engineers experimenting with agent-driven cluster operations in non-production environments, this server is the most direct path. For production GKE operations, the two community Kubernetes MCPs in this batch are the safer choices, with kubeconfig pointed at your GKE clusters.

Reviewed by M. Nouriel · APR 2026

INSTALL THIS SERVER

Requires authenticationGoogle Cloud SDK Application Default Credentials (`gcloud auth application-default login`). Scope ADC to the minimum required IAM roles.
{ "mcpServers": { "gke": { "command": "gke-mcp" } } }
PrereqRequires Go installed (`go install github.com/GoogleCloudPlatform/gke-mcp@latest`) plus gcloud SDK authenticated (`gcloud auth application-default login`). Maintainers state this is NOT FOR PRODUCTION USE; run against a dedicated sandbox project. For Streamable HTTP transport, the server binds to 0.0.0.0; firewall rules required. For Gemini CLI users: `gemini extensions install https://github.com/GoogleCloudPlatform/gke-mcp.git`. Path: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS).
{ "mcpServers": { "gke": { "command": "gke-mcp" } } }
{ "mcpServers": { "gke": { "command": "gke-mcp" } } }
{ "mcpServers": { "gke": { "command": "gke-mcp" } } }
{ "mcpServers": { "gke": { "command": "gke-mcp" } } }

8 TOOLS AVAILABLE

cluster_toolkit
Create AI-optimised GKE clusters
Admin
list_clusters
List GKE clusters in a project
Read
get_cluster
Get details for a single GKE cluster
Read
create_cluster
Create a new GKE cluster
Admin
get_kubeconfig
Configure kubeconfig to a single GKE cluster
Write
giq_generate_manifest
Generate a GKE manifest for AI/ML inference workloads via Inference Quickstart
Write

OUR ASSESSMENT

Strengths
  • Lives in the official GoogleCloudPlatform GitHub org.
  • Active release cadence (v0.11.1, 59 commits in the last 30 days).
  • Gemini CLI extension format supported natively.
  • GKE Inference Quickstart manifest generation via giq_generate_manifest.
  • Upgrade risk reports built in via gke-upgrade-risk-report command.
  • cluster_toolkit creates AI-optimised GKE clusters.
  • Streamable HTTP transport supported alongside stdio.
Weaknesses
  • Maintainers explicitly state "not an officially supported Google product" and "NOT FOR PRODUCTION USE."
  • Google Cloud Platform Terms of Service and Data Processing and Security Terms do not apply.
  • 147 stars indicate limited community traction so far.
  • Streamable HTTP transport binds to 0.0.0.0 (any network the host is on); firewall rules required.
  • Requires Go installed plus gcloud SDK authenticated for non-Gemini-CLI install paths.
Security Notes

Streamable HTTP mode listens on all network interfaces by default. Apply firewall rules before enabling HTTP transport. Authentication uses standard Google Cloud SDK Application Default Credentials (`gcloud auth application-default login`); scope ADC to the minimum required IAM roles. Standard production caveats apply twice over given the maintainers explicit "NOT FOR PRODUCTION" statement. For experimentation, run against a dedicated sandbox project with billing limits configured.

Best For

GKE engineers experimenting with agent-driven cluster operations in non-production environments, Gemini CLI users wanting GKE skills, and internal demos and proof-of-concept work on managed Kubernetes.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Language
go
Transport
stdiostreamable-http
Clients
Claude DesktopClaude CodeCursorVS CodeWindsurf
License
Apache-2.0
npm
gke-mcp
Last Release
v0.11.1APR 17, 2026
First Released
JUN 19, 2025

ADOPTION METRICS

// GitHub Stars
147

// Reading this147 stars and 61 forks. The GoogleCloudPlatform org placement provides discovery weight but the explicit non-production disclaimer caps editorial confidence.

// Popularity Rank
#22
Globally · #4 in Infrastructure

// Reading thisFourth-ranked in infrastructure. Recommend pairing with one of the two community Kubernetes MCPs for production GKE operations.

SOURCES & VERIFICATION

We don't take any single directory's word for it. Before scoring, we cross-reference 5 public MCP sources, install the server ourselves against the clients we cover, and record when we last re-verified.

01
Discovered
Manual submission
First indexed APR 29, 2026
02
Cross-referenced
5 directories
PulseMCP, MCP.so, Glama, Smithery, Official MCP Registry
03
Verified against
Gemini CLI, Cursor, VS Code, Claude Desktop
Installed and tested across clients
04
Last re-checked
APR 29, 2026
Weekly re-verification
// How other directories see it

The same server, 5 different lenses. We reconcile these signals into our editorial score, which is why our number sometimes diverges from a directory-aggregate star count.

SourceTheir ratingTheir star countTheir downloadsLast synced
AutomationSwitch This page3.8editorial147APR 29, 2026
PulseMCP— unratedunavailableunavailableAPR 29, 2026
MCP.so— unratedunavailableunavailableAPR 29, 2026
Glama— unratedunavailableunavailableAPR 29, 2026
Smithery— unratedunavailableunavailableAPR 29, 2026
Official MCP Registry— unratedunavailableunavailableAPR 29, 2026

// Counts are directory-reported; we don't adjust them. Discrepancies usually come from different snapshot times or star-caching.

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