This project lets you use Ghidra in headless mode to extract rich binary analysis data (functions, pseudocode, structs, enums, etc.) into a JSON file, and expose it to LLMs like Claude via Model Context Protocol (MCP).

It turns Ghidra into an interactive reverse-engineering backend.

• Decompiles a binary using Ghidra headless mode
• Extracts:
  • Function pseudocode, names, parameters, variables, strings, comments
  • Data structures (structs), enums, and function definitions
• Outputs to ghidra_context.json
• MCP server exposes tools like:
  • list_functions(), get_pseudocode(name)
  • list_structures(), get_structure(name)
  • list_enums(), get_enum(name)
  • list_function_definitions(), get_function_definition(name)

• macOS (tested)
• Python 3.10+
• Ghidra 11.3.1+
• Java 21 (Temurin preferred)
• MCP client (e.g. Claude Desktop)
• mcp CLI (install via pip install mcp)

brew install --cask temurin@21

Then set it:

export JAVA_HOME=$(/usr/libexec/java_home -v 21)
echo 'export JAVA_HOME=$(/usr/libexec/java_home -v 21)' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Check it:

java -version

Should say: openjdk version "21.0.x"...

Download and extract Ghidra 11.3.1

cd ghidra_mcp
gcc -Wall crackme.c -o crackme

mcp install main.py

This registers the MCP server so Claude or other clients can access it.

mcp dev main.py

This enables hot reload and developer logs.

Analyze the binary file located at <BINARY_PATH> using Ghidra installed at <GHIDRA_PATH>. First, set up the analysis context using both paths, then list all functions in the binary. Examine the main entry point function and provide a high-level overview of what the program does.

➡️ Fix: Install Java 21, not 17 or 24:

brew install --cask temurin@21
export JAVA_HOME=$(/usr/libexec/java_home -v 21)

➡️ Claude can't locate uv by name. To fix:

1. Run in your terminal:

which uv

Example output:

/Users/yourname/.cargo/bin/uv

2. Open your Claude Desktop config file:

open ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

3. Update it like so:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ghidra": {
      "command": "/Users/yourname/.cargo/bin/uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/Users/yourname/Documents/ghidra_mcp",
        "run",
        "main.py"
      ]
    }
  }
}

4. Restart Claude Desktop. You should now see your custom MCP tools.

➡️ Fix: Java not installed or JAVA_HOME is unset. Follow setup instructions above.

Tomi Bamimore
Ghidra by the NSA
MCP by Anthropic