What you can do
With the Endor Labs MCP server, you can:- Check dependency safety before adding a new package
- Scan for vulnerabilities and malware in your open source dependencies
- Find leaked secrets accidentally committed in your Git history
- Run AI security reviews on your code changes (Enterprise Edition)
Install the MCP server
- Developer Edition
- Enterprise Edition
The Developer Edition is free and uses default security policies from Endor Labs. When you use the MCP server for the first time, a browser window opens for authentication through GitHub, GitLab, or Google.
Have questions? Email us at community-support@endor.ai.
Verify the installation
After you add the MCP server configuration for either edition:- Open the Chat view by pressing Cmd+Option+I (macOS) or Ctrl+Alt+I (Windows/Linux).
- Switch to Agent mode.
- Select the Settings icon and confirm MCP Server: endor-cli-tools appears and is enabled.
Try a test prompt
After installing the MCP server, try the following prompt in your AI chat or CLI to verify that the tools are working.check_dependency_for_vulnerabilities tool to check for known vulnerabilities and return the results. If you see a response with vulnerability details, the MCP server is working correctly.
Use the MCP server with GitHub Copilot
To use the Endor Labs MCP server with GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio Code:- Open the Chat view by pressing Cmd+Option+I (macOS) or Ctrl+Alt+I (Windows/Linux).
- Switch to Agent mode.
- Select the Settings icon.
- Select MCP Server: endor-cli-tools from the dropdown menu.
-
Set up Copilot rules in
.github/instructions/*.mdto use the Endor Labs MCP server throughout the development process. See Example Copilot rules for more information.
How to use the Endor Labs MCP server
The Endor Labs MCP server provides the following tools:check_dependency_for_vulnerabilities: Check if a dependency in your project is vulnerable.check_dependency_for_risks: Check a dependency for security risks including vulnerabilities and malware.get_endor_vulnerability: Get the details of a specific vulnerability from the Endor Labs vulnerability database.get_resource: Retrieve additional context from commonly used Endor Labs resources about your software, such as findings, vulnerabilities, and projects.scan: Run an Endor Labs security scan to detect risks in your open source dependencies, find common security issues, and spot any credentials accidentally exposed in your Git repository.security_review: Perform security review analysis on code diffs. Analyzes local uncommitted changes (both staged and unstaged) compared to HEAD, or diffs between the main branch and the last commit. Requires the Enterprise Edition. You must specify your namespace in the MCP server configuration. You must also enable AI security code review for your namespace in the Endor Labs platform. See AI security code review for setup instructions.
Example Copilot rules
Copilot instructions define the guidelines that Copilot should follow throughout the development process. The following examples demonstrate how to use the Endor Labs MCP server within Copilot rules.- SCA Rule Example
- Secrets Rule Example
- SAST Rule Example
Troubleshooting
Use the following troubleshooting steps to resolve common issues with the Endor Labs MCP server.MCP server shows disconnected
MCP server shows disconnected
Run
npx --version in your terminal. If the command fails, install Node.js version 18 or later. After installing, restart your IDE or CLI to reload the MCP server configuration.Browser auth window does not open
Browser auth window does not open
Ensure your IDE or CLI can open a browser. Check firewall or security software that might block browser launch. For Enterprise Edition with SSO, verify that
ENDOR_MCP_SERVER_AUTH_MODE and ENDOR_MCP_SERVER_AUTH_TENANT are set correctly in your MCP configuration.npx times out behind a corporate proxy
npx times out behind a corporate proxy
Install endorctl globally and update your MCP config to call it directly instead of using npx. For more information, see Install endorctl.Replace the
command and args entries with:Tools return errors (Enterprise)
Tools return errors (Enterprise)
Verify your namespace is correct and your user has
Read-Only permissions in Endor Labs. See Authorization policies for details. Also ensure endorctl is on your PATH if you installed it globally instead of using npx.MCP server fails to start on Windows
MCP server fails to start on Windows
On Windows, ensure the following prerequisites are met:If this returns a version number, your Windows setup is complete and the MCP server can use
- Node.js is installed
- npm global bin directory is in your PATH
Install Node.js
If Node.js is not installed, download and install the LTS version from nodejs.org. During installation, ensure the option to add Node.js to PATH is selected.Configure the PATH environment variable
After installing Node.js, verify that the npm global bin directory is in your PATH:-
Run the following command in the command line.
This returns the npm global directory path, typically
C:\Users\<YourUsername>\AppData\Roaming\npm. - Add the npm global directory path to the Path variable under User variables in your system’s environment variables settings.
- Restart for the PATH changes to take effect.
Verify the setup
Run the following command in your terminal.npx to run endorctl.