Prerequisites

All examples in this guide use the public image. If you’ve mirrored the repository for your own use (for example, to your Docker Hub namespace), update your commands to reference the mirrored image instead of the public one.

For example:

• Public image: dhi.io/<repository>:<tag>
• Mirrored image: <your-namespace>/dhi-<repository>:<tag>

For the examples, you must first use docker login dhi.io to authenticate to the registry to pull the images.

Getting Started with Git MCP Server

The Git MCP Server provides tools to read, search, and manipulate Git repositories programmatically through the Model Context Protocol. It enables AI applications to perform Git operations safely and efficiently.

Configuration

Claude Desktop Configuration

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "git": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "--rm",
        "-i",
        "-v", "/path/to/repository:/repo:rw",
        "dhi.io/git-mcp",
        "--repository",
        "/repo"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Replace /path/to/repository with your Git repository path.

Running the Server

Basic usage with a mounted repository:

docker run --rm -i \
  -v "$PWD:/repo:rw" \
  dhi.io/git-mcp \
  --repository /repo

Read-only access:

docker run --rm -i \
  -v "$PWD:/repo:ro" \
  dhi.io/git-mcp \
  --repository /repo

Available Tools

The Git MCP Server provides the following capabilities:

• Read files at refs: Access file contents at specific commits, branches, or tags
• List commits: Browse commit history with filtering options
• Search repository: Search for code and content across the repository
• Git operations: Perform basic Git commands (status, log, diff)
• Branch management: List and inspect branches
• Diff analysis: Compare changes between commits or branches

Example Use Cases

Code Review

Query: "Show me the changes in the last commit"
Server returns diff output for the latest commit

File History

Query: "Read the version of config.yaml from the v1.0.0 tag"
Server retrieves file content at the specified tag

Repository Search

Query: "Find all files that import the database module"
Server searches repository contents and returns matches

Commit Analysis

Query: "List commits from the last week by author"
Server filters and returns commit history

Branch Comparison

Query: "Show differences between main and feature branch"
Server compares branches and returns diff

Security Considerations

Security recommendations:

1. Repository Isolation: Mount only necessary repositories
2. Read-Only for Analysis: Use :ro volume mounts when only reading data
3. Credential Management: Handle Git credentials securely (SSH keys, tokens)
4. Branch Protection: Be cautious with write operations on protected branches
5. Audit Logging: Monitor Git operations in production environments

Working with Git Credentials

For private repositories requiring authentication:

SSH Keys:

docker run --rm -i \
  -v "$PWD:/repo:rw" \
  -v "$HOME/.ssh:/home/nonroot/.ssh:ro" \
  dhi.io/git-mcp \
  --repository /repo

Git Config:

docker run --rm -i \
  -v "$PWD:/repo:rw" \
  -v "$HOME/.gitconfig:/home/nonroot/.gitconfig:ro" \
  dhi.io/git-mcp \
  --repository /repo

Performance Tips

• Use shallow clones for large repositories when full history isn't needed
• Configure Git LFS for large binary files
• Leverage Git's sparse-checkout for large monorepos
• Use appropriate ref filters when listing commits

Additional Resources

• Git MCP Server Documentation⁠
• Git Documentation⁠
• Model Context Protocol⁠

Non-hardened images vs Docker Hardened Images

Key differences

Why no shell or package manager?

Docker Hardened Images prioritize security through minimalism:

• Reduced attack surface: Fewer binaries mean fewer potential vulnerabilities
• Immutable infrastructure: Runtime containers shouldn't be modified after deployment
• Compliance ready: Meets strict security requirements for regulated environments

The hardened images intended for runtime don't contain a shell nor any tools for debugging. Common debugging methods for applications built with Docker Hardened Images include:

• Docker Debug⁠ to attach to containers
• Docker's Image Mount feature to mount debugging tools
• Ecosystem-specific debugging approaches

Docker Debug provides a shell, common debugging tools, and lets you install other tools in an ephemeral, writable layer that only exists during the debugging session.

For example, you can use Docker Debug:

docker debug <container-name>

or mount debugging tools with the Image Mount feature:

docker run --rm -it --pid container:my-git-mcp \
  --mount=type=image,source=dhi.io/busybox:1,destination=/dbg,ro \
  --entrypoint /dbg/bin/sh \
  dhi.io/git-mcp:<tag>

Image variants

Docker Hardened Images come in different variants depending on their intended use.

Runtime variants are designed to run your application in production. These images are intended to be used either directly or as the FROM image in the final stage of a multi-stage build. These images typically:

• Run as the nonroot user
• Do not include a shell or a package manager
• Contain only the minimal set of libraries needed to run the app

Build-time variants typically include dev in the variant name and are intended for use in the first stage of a multi-stage Dockerfile. These images typically:

• Run as the root user
• Include a shell and package manager
• Are used to build or compile applications

FIPS variants

FIPS variants include fips in the variant name and tag. They come in both runtime and build-time variants. These variants use cryptographic modules that have been validated under FIPS 140, a U.S. government standard for secure cryptographic operations.

For example, usage of MD5 fails in FIPS variants. To verify FIPS compliance, check the cryptographic module version in use by your Git MCP instance.

Migrate to a Docker Hardened Image

To migrate your application to a Docker Hardened Image, you must update your Dockerfile. At minimum, you must update the base image in your existing Dockerfile to a Docker Hardened Image. This and a few other common changes are listed in the following table of migration notes:

The following steps outline the general migration process.

1. Find hardened images for your app.

   A hardened image may have several variants. Inspect the image tags and find the image variant that meets your needs.

2. Update the base image in your Dockerfile.

   Update the base image in your application's Dockerfile to the hardened image you found in the previous step. For framework images, this is typically going to be an image tagged as dev because it has the tools needed to install packages and dependencies.

3. For multi-stage Dockerfiles, update the runtime image in your Dockerfile.

   To ensure that your final image is as minimal as possible, you should use a multi-stage build. All stages in your Dockerfile should use a hardened image. While intermediary stages will typically use images tagged as dev, your final runtime stage should use a non-dev image variant.

4. Install additional packages

   Docker Hardened Images contain minimal packages in order to reduce the potential attack surface. You may need to install additional packages in your Dockerfile. Inspect the image variants to identify which packages are already installed.

   Only images tagged as dev typically have package managers. You should use a multi-stage Dockerfile to install the packages. Install the packages in the build stage that uses a dev image. Then, if needed, copy any necessary artifacts to the runtime stage that uses a non-dev image.

   For Alpine-based images, you can use apk to install packages. For Debian-based images, you can use apt-get to install packages.

Troubleshoot migration

General debugging

The hardened images intended for runtime don't contain a shell nor any tools for debugging. The recommended method for debugging applications built with Docker Hardened Images is to use Docker Debug⁠ to attach to these containers. Docker Debug provides a shell, common debugging tools, and lets you install other tools in an ephemeral, writable layer that only exists during the debugging session.

Permissions

By default image variants intended for runtime, run as the nonroot user. Ensure that necessary files and directories are accessible to the nonroot user. You may need to copy files to different directories or change permissions so your application running as the nonroot user can access them.

Privileged ports

Non-dev hardened images run as a nonroot user by default. As a result, applications in these images can't bind to privileged ports (below 1024) when running in Kubernetes or in Docker Engine versions older than 20.10.

No shell

By default, image variants intended for runtime don't contain a shell. Use dev images in build stages to run shell commands and then copy any necessary artifacts into the runtime stage. In addition, use Docker Debug to debug containers with no shell.

Entry point

Docker Hardened Images may have different entry points than images such as Docker Official Images. Use docker inspect to inspect entry points for Docker Hardened Images and update your Dockerfile if necessary.