GitHub MCP Server for Apple Containers

A native Apple container implementation of GitHub's MCP server - faster, simpler, and Docker-free

Overview

This project provides a streamlined way to run GitHub's MCP server using Apple containers instead of Docker. Perfect for macOS users who want better performance, simpler setup, and unified container management without Docker Desktop overhead.

Why Apple Containers?

• 🚀 Better Performance: Native ARM64 execution on Apple Silicon
• 📦 Simpler Setup: No Docker Desktop required
• 🔧 Unified Management: Uses the same container runtime as your development tools
• 💾 Lower Resource Usage: Lightweight compared to Docker Desktop
• ⚡ Faster Startup: Quick container initialization

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• macOS with Apple containers support
• Go 1.21+ (for building)
• Git
• GitHub Personal Access Token (create one here)

One-Command Installation

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/transcendr/github-mcp-apple-containers/main/scripts/install.sh | bash

Manual Installation

1. Clone and build:

   git clone https://github.com/transcendr/github-mcp-apple-containers.git
   cd github-mcp-apple-containers
   make build

2. Run interactive setup:

   make setup

3. Configure your MCP client (see Configuration below)

Configuration

Claude Desktop

Add to your ~/.claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "github": {
      "command": "/path/to/scripts/run.sh",
      "args": ["ghp_your_github_token_here"]
    }
  }
}

Claude Code CLI

claude mcp add github "/path/to/scripts/run.sh" "ghp_your_github_token_here"

Environment Variables

Alternatively, set your token as an environment variable:

export GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN=ghp_your_github_token_here

Then use:

# Claude Desktop
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "github": {
      "command": "/path/to/scripts/run.sh",
      "args": ["--env-token"]
    }
  }
}

# Claude Code CLI
claude mcp add github "/path/to/scripts/run.sh" "--env-token"

Features

Core Functionality

• Repository Management: Create, clone, and manage repositories
• Issue Tracking: Create, search, and manage GitHub issues
• Pull Requests: Create and manage pull requests
• Code Search: Search across repositories and code
• GitHub Actions: Manage workflows and runs

Enhanced Features

• Multiple Token Support: Configure different tokens for different repositories
• Configuration Management: Persistent configuration with ~/.github-mcp-config
• Health Checks: Built-in validation and monitoring
• Debug Mode: Detailed logging for troubleshooting
• Version Management: Build specific versions or latest releases

Usage Examples

Basic Usage

# Start the server with your token
./scripts/run.sh ghp_your_github_token_here

# With debug logging
./scripts/run.sh --debug ghp_your_github_token_here

# Using environment token
export GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN=ghp_your_github_token_here
./scripts/run.sh --env-token

Advanced Configuration

# Custom configuration file
./scripts/run.sh --config ./my-config ghp_your_github_token_here

# Health check before running
./scripts/run.sh --health-check ghp_your_github_token_here

# Limit to specific toolsets
./scripts/run.sh ghp_your_github_token_here --toolsets repos,issues

Development Workflow

# Complete development setup
make dev

# Build specific version
make build-version VERSION=v1.2.3

# Run all tests
make test

# Quick configuration examples
make config-claude-desktop
make config-claude-code

Documentation

• Installation Guide - Detailed installation instructions
• Configuration Guide - Complete configuration options
• Claude Desktop Integration - Claude Desktop specific setup
• Claude Code CLI Integration - Claude Code CLI specific setup
• Troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions
• vs Docker Comparison - Performance and feature comparison

Architecture

Directory Structure

github-mcp-apple-containers/
├── scripts/
│   ├── build.sh       # Enhanced build script with version management
│   ├── run.sh         # Enhanced runner with configuration support
│   ├── setup.sh       # Interactive setup helper
│   └── install.sh     # One-command installer
├── docs/              # Comprehensive documentation
├── examples/          # Configuration examples
├── tests/             # Automated testing
└── Makefile          # Development automation

Key Components

• Build Script: Compiles GitHub MCP server as ARM64 binary for Apple containers
• Runner Script: Manages container execution with proper stdio handling
• Setup Helper: Interactive configuration for different MCP hosts
• Test Suite: Validates build process, runtime, and MCP protocol compliance

Apple Container Integration

• Directory Mounting: Uses --volume dir:dir (required by Apple containers)
• Static Binaries: CGO-disabled builds for container portability
• Stdio Handling: Proper interactive communication for MCP protocol
• Resource Management: Optional memory and CPU limits

Performance Comparison

Metric	Docker Desktop	Apple Containers
Startup Time	~3-5 seconds	~1-2 seconds
Memory Usage	~200MB overhead	~50MB overhead
Binary Size	~15MB (with base image)	~12MB (static)
Architecture	x86_64 emulated	Native ARM64

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Development Setup

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/transcendr/github-mcp-apple-containers.git
cd github-mcp-apple-containers

# Set up development environment
make dev-setup

# Build and test
make dev

# Run linting
make lint

Testing

# Run all tests
make test

# Test specific components
make test-build
make test-run

# Integration tests (requires GitHub token)
export GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN=ghp_your_token_here
make test-integration

Security

• No Token Persistence: Tokens are not stored in configuration files by default
• Environment Variable Support: Secure token handling via environment variables
• Validation: Basic token format validation with security warnings
• Container Isolation: Runs in isolated Apple containers

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Binary not found:

# Rebuild the binary
make build

Container not starting:

# Check Apple containers availability
container --version

# Run with debug logging
./scripts/run.sh --debug ghp_your_token_here

MCP protocol errors:

# Test the setup
./scripts/setup.sh --test ghp_your_token_here

# Verify token permissions
curl -H "Authorization: token ghp_your_token_here" https://api.github.com/user

See Troubleshooting Guide for more solutions.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

• GitHub MCP Server - The original MCP server implementation
• Model Context Protocol - The MCP specification
• Anthropic - For Claude and MCP development

Related Projects

• GitHub MCP Server - Official Docker-based implementation
• MCP Specification - Model Context Protocol specification
• Claude Desktop - Claude Desktop application
• Claude Code CLI - Claude Code command-line interface

---

Made with ❤️ for the macOS development community