Best for
- HPC systems that rely on Lmod for managing custom software stacks.
- AI agent workflows seeking to streamline environment setup.
- Researchers familiar with module commands and dynamic module loading.
C
CLIO Lmod
Community
Environment Module Management MCP Server for LLMs
- Category
- Other #106 of 230
- Stars
- ★ 30 Popular
- Transport
- stdio (local process)
- Runtime
- Python 3.10+ · Prebuilt binary
- Credentials
- No credential needed
- License
- BSD-3-Clause
- Last commit
- Tools
- 10
55FMRS · C
Summary: This server is designed specifically for HPC environment management, tightly integrated with Lmod and offering rich operations on environment modules. It is suitable for HPC users who need automation on top of Lmod. It is not useful for systems without module support. Note that operations may require appropriate permissions and risk inducing environment changes.
Strongest · Maintenance 13/20 Weakest · Reliability 10/20
Why each score
- Reliability 10/20
- The manifest declares 10 lmod tools, one resource and one prompt, but the supplied material contains no lmod source, tests, or CI evidence specific to this server; README mentions CI/coverage badges and a uv.lock-based launcher but never proves lmod paths are covered. Tool descriptions are coherent and match lmod semantics, yet tool-to-behavior fidelity, error handling, and dependency control are unverifiable statically. Scored at the 'happy path plausible but tests/edge cases thin' anchor: 10.
- Security and permissions 10/20
- lmod operations (load/unload/swap/save/restore) mutate the session environment — side-effectful but reversible system administration; no irreversible delete/pay/deploy defaults, no credential or exfiltration red lines observed. However, nothing discloses confirmation flows, privilege scoping, or data-flow boundaries for environment mutations. 'Main risks visible but permissions/confirmation incomplete': 10.
- Maintenance 13/20
- Non-archived repo, BSD-3-Clause license, 39 open issues, CI and pip-audit badges, clear NSF/GRC/IIT ownership, ongoing PyPI releases — but the manifest version (2.10.6) vs README install example (2.4.3) shows versioning inconsistency, and there is no visible lmod-specific release cadence, issue-response evidence, or security-response channel. Gaps in governance/versioning: 13.
- Documentation 10/20
- README covers installation, multi-client configs (Cursor/Claude Code/VS Code/Claude Desktop), troubleshooting, and a server table listing lmod as 'Environment module management'. But there is no lmod-specific documentation: no tool parameter details, no prerequisites (Lmod installed, MODULEPATH), no limitations or cost disclosure, no lmod usage examples. Usable but with many hidden assumptions: 10.
- Setup experience 12/20
- The path is clear: uv tool install clio-kit then clio-kit mcp-server lmod, and the manifest ships a correct pypi package with stdio transport and positional packageArguments (mcp-server lmod); client examples can be adapted directly. Deductions: the HPC prerequisite of having Lmod installed is not stated in setup instructions, and the README version (2.4.3) conflicts with the manifest package version (2.10.6), creating confusion; no execution evidence, capped at 15 statically — 12.
Static review · not runListed 2026-09-08
Read the FMRS scoring method →Fit and risk
What it can accessRuns commands or code
Not for
- Non-HPC systems or bare-metal without environment modules.
- Users who need permanent env persistence without module systems.
- HPC environments based on Conda/Spack but not Lmod.
Required permissions
- Initiates operations to load, unload, swap modules, modifying the shell environment of the session.
- Writes to user directories to save/restore module collections.
- Accesses system module configuration locations to list/search available modules.
Risks and side effects
- Module commands may fail due to misconfigured Lmod or permissions.
- Accidental module loads can cause environment variable conflicts or program behavior issues.
- Incorrect module paths may lead to wrong executables or library versions.
Setup
Before you start
Runtime：Python 3.10+ · Prebuilt binary
Ensure uv is installed. Persistently install CLIO Kit and update shell: uv tool install 'clio-kit==2.4.3'; uv tool update-shell. After installation, add to your MCP client (e.g., Claude Desktop) config: {"mcpServers":{"lmod-mcp":{"command":"clio-kit","args":["mcp-server","lmod"]}}}.
claude_desktop_config.json
{
"mcpServers": {
"lmod-mcp": {
"command": "clio-kit",
"args": [
"mcp-server",
"lmod"
]
}
}
}
Shown for Claude Desktop. Other clients may use a different file or key (VS Code uses "servers") — the configurator below converts it.
.vscode/mcp.json
{
"servers": {
"lmod-mcp": {
"command": "clio-kit",
"args": [
"mcp-server",
"lmod"
]
}
}
}
Goes in your project's .vscode/mcp.json (VS Code uses a "servers" key).
Terminal
claude mcp add lmod-mcp -- clio-kit mcp-server lmod
Run it in a terminal; replace any <…> placeholders with your own values first.
Check that it works
The lmod tools (module_list, module_avail, module_show, etc.) should appear in the client's tool list; running module_list and getting a valid (possibly empty) list of loaded modules confirms the connection.
Troubleshooting
- Check if Lmod is loaded: module list
- Verify module paths are available: module avail
- If module load fails, consult system docs to validate module names.
- Check clio-kit is installed correctly: which clio-kit
- Use a test environment to avoid affecting production.
Things to try
Once connected, you can ask your AI assistant things like:
- List all environment modules currently loaded in my session.
- Search for available hdf5 modules and show detailed information about it.
- Load the gcc and openmpi modules, then save the current environment as a collection named myenv.
- Atomically swap the currently loaded hdf5 module for a different version.
Tools 10
module_list read-only
List all currently loaded environment modules.
module_avail read-only
Search for available modules, optionally filtered by name pattern.
module_show read-only
Display detailed information about a specific module.
module_load writes
Load one or more environment modules into the current session.
module_unload writes
Unload one or more currently loaded modules from the environment.
module_swap writes
Swap one module for another atomically.
module_spider read-only
Search the entire module tree comprehensively for matching modules.
module_save writes
Save currently loaded modules as a named collection.
Show 2 more tools
module_restore writes
Restore a previously saved module collection.
module_savelist read-only
List all saved module collections.
No matching tools
Use cases
Dynamically load or swap modules of different software versions on HPC systems.
Automating environment setup for jobs, such as preparing dependencies.
Saving and restoring module collections to manage complex environments.
Supported clients
Claude Desktop
Listed from the project's documentation, not tested by this site.
Overview
The CLIO Lmod server allows AI agents to manage HPC software environments via Lmod (Linux Environment Modules). It provides a suite of tools to list, search, load, unload, swap, and save environment modules, as well as repository status and a guided workflow for setting up environments. The server is part of CLIO Kit, a toolset for scientific computing from the IoWarp platform.
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Source revision 93e41d70d6c2 Data synced 2026-10-19 Read the FMRS scoring method