github-mcp-server

Install GitHub MCP Server in Google Gemini CLI

Prerequisites

Google Gemini CLI installed (see official Gemini CLI documentation)
GitHub Personal Access Token with appropriate scopes
For local installation: Docker installed and running

Storing Your PAT Securely

For security, avoid hardcoding your token. Create or update `~/.gemini/.env` (where `~` is your home or project directory) with your PAT: ```bash # ~/.gemini/.env GITHUB_PAT=your_token_here ```

GitHub MCP Server Configuration

MCP servers for Gemini CLI are configured in its settings JSON under an mcpServers key.

Global configuration: ~/.gemini/settings.json where ~ is your home directory
Project-specific: .gemini/settings.json in your project directory

After securely storing your PAT, you can add the GitHub MCP server configuration to your settings file using one of the methods below. You may need to restart the Gemini CLI for changes to take effect.

Note: For the most up-to-date configuration options, see the main README.md.

Method 1: Remote Server (Recommended)

The simplest way is to use GitHub’s hosted MCP server:

// ~/.gemini/settings.json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "github": {
            "httpUrl": "https://api.githubcopilot.com/mcp/",
            "trust": true,
            "headers": {
                "Authorization": "Bearer $GITHUB_PAT"
            }
        }
    }
}

Method 2: Local Docker

With docker running, you can run the GitHub MCP server in a container:

// ~/.gemini/settings.json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "github": {
            "command": "docker",
            "args": [
                "run",
                "-i",
                "--rm",
                "-e",
                "GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN",
                "ghcr.io/github/github-mcp-server"
            ],
            "env": {
                "GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "$GITHUB_PAT"
            }
        }
    }
}

Method 3: Binary

You can download the latest binary release from the GitHub releases page or build it from source by running go build -o github-mcp-server ./cmd/github-mcp-server.

Then, replacing /path/to/binary with the actual path to your binary, configure Gemini CLI with:

// ~/.gemini/settings.json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "github": {
            "command": "/path/to/binary",
            "args": ["stdio"],
            "env": {
                "GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "$GITHUB_PAT"
            }
        }
    }
}

Verification

To verify that the GitHub MCP server has been configured, start Gemini CLI in your terminal with gemini, then:

Check MCP server status:

 /mcp list

 ℹConfigured MCP servers:

 🟢 github - Ready (96 tools, 2 prompts)
     Tools:
     - github__add_comment_to_pending_review
     - github__add_issue_comment
     - github__add_sub_issue
     ...

Test with a prompt
```
 List my GitHub repositories
```

Troubleshooting

Local Server Issues

Docker errors: Ensure Docker Desktop is running
```
  docker --version
```
Image pull failures: Try docker logout ghcr.io then retry
Docker not found: Install Docker Desktop and ensure it’s running

Authentication Issues

Invalid PAT: Verify your GitHub PAT has correct scopes:
- repo - Repository operations
- read:packages - Docker image access (if using Docker)
Token expired: Generate a new GitHub PAT

Configuration Issues

Invalid JSON: Validate your configuration:
```
  cat ~/.gemini/settings.json | jq .
```
MCP connection issues: Check logs for connection errors:
```
  gemini --debug "test command"
```

References

Gemini CLI Docs > MCP Configuration Structure

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