1.4 KiB
1.4 KiB
| id | type | title | tags | importance | confidence | created | updated | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| b81fd2b1-d974-4060-85f9-7a5c3c41b751 | insight | Docker MCP Gateway architecture: dynamic vs static server activation modes |
|
0.6 | 0.8 | 2026-02-24T01:52:56.353969+00:00 | 2026-02-24T01:52:56.353969+00:00 |
Docker MCP Gateway: Dynamic vs Static Server Activation
Two Activation Modes
1. Dynamic (default)
Gateway starts with only built-in tools: mcp-find, mcp-add, mcp-config-set, mcp-exec, code-mode, mcp-remove. Claude Code uses mcp-add at runtime to spin up server containers on demand.
Problem: mcp-add validates secrets against Docker Desktop backend. Fails on headless Docker Engine with "Missing required secrets".
2. Static (--servers flag)
Pre-starts named servers at gateway launch. Bypasses mcp-add validation. All server tools appear immediately in tools/list.
# Example: pre-start n8n and gitea
--servers=n8n --servers=gitea
Preferred approach for headless Docker Engine environments.
Key Paths Inside Gateway Container (Alpine-based)
/root/.docker/mcp/config.yaml— per-server config/root/.docker/mcp/registry.yaml— enabled servers/root/.docker/config.json— Docker credential store config/misc/— volume for docker-mcp-bridge binary
Secret Resolution Priority
docker-desktop socket → /run/secrets/mcp_secret → /.env → custom --secrets paths