# Install mcpsnoop with Homebrew

Transparent proxy and TUI for debugging MCP traffic. Version 0.17.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-08-01.

## Install

```sh
sudo av install brew:mcpsnoop
```

Additional install commands:

### macOS

- Homebrew (100%):

```sh
brew install mcpsnoop
```

  Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata

## Package facts

- **Package key:** brew:mcpsnoop
- **Package manager:** Homebrew
- **Version:** 0.17.0
- **Source summary:** Transparent proxy and TUI for debugging MCP traffic
- **Homepage:** <https://github.com/kerlenton/mcpsnoop>
- **Repository:** <https://github.com/kerlenton/mcpsnoop>
- **Last updated:** 2026-08-01T03:22:33Z
- **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00

## Executables

- mcpsnoop (alias)

## Install behavior

- Bottle: not available

## Freshness

- Page generated: 2026-08-03
- Package-manager version: 0.17.0
## Project history and usage

mcpsnoop is a transparent proxy and terminal interface for observing Model Context Protocol traffic between an actual AI client and its MCP servers. It captures JSON-RPC frames from stdio or streamable-HTTP connections and supports live inspection, replay, export, comparison, and automated checks.

### Project history

The project appeared publicly in June 2026 with an initial v0.1.0 release. It was designed to complement MCP Inspector by sitting directly in the client's real data path rather than establishing a separate inspection connection.

### Adoption history

The project distributes a single Go binary through GitHub releases, `go install`, and Homebrew. Its early release series moved from v0.1.0 in June 2026 to v0.16.0 in July 2026, adding workflows for saved sessions and CI-oriented protocol checks alongside the interactive TUI.

### How it is used

For stdio servers, users replace the configured server command with `mcpsnoop -- <server command>` and run `mcpsnoop` separately to open the TUI. For streamable HTTP, `mcpsnoop http` acts as a reverse proxy. Commands can reopen, export, compare, replay, validate, and prune captured sessions.

### Why package nerds care

mcpsnoop brings packet-inspection conventions to MCP without requiring a language-specific SDK or modified server. Its single-binary packaging and CI exit codes make captured agent-tool traffic usable both interactively and as a reproducible test artifact.

### Timeline

- 2026: The official repository and v0.1.0 release appeared on June 27.
- 2026: Version v0.16.0 was released on July 27.

### Related projects

- MCP Inspector is the official comparison point; mcpsnoop differs by observing the user's real client-server connection.
- Model Context Protocol and JSON-RPC define the traffic mcpsnoop captures and validates.

### Sources

- <https://api.github.com/repos/kerlenton/mcpsnoop>
- <https://github.com/kerlenton/mcpsnoop#readme>
- <https://github.com/kerlenton/mcpsnoop/releases/tag/v0.1.0>
- <https://github.com/kerlenton/mcpsnoop/releases/tag/v0.16.0>
- source_facts.package-manager


## Security Notes

No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for mcpsnoop. Nucleus package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL.



## Configuration and credential file locations

These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.


## Configuration files

- Unix: ./.mcpsnoop.toml

## Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/mcpsnoop.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/mcpsnoop.yml)


## Sources

- pkg.so package database
- curated configuration and credential file locations
- curated package history
- cross-ecosystem install command graph