netlogger-mcp

<!-- mcp-name: io.github.qso-graph/netlogger-mcp -->
# netlogger-mcp

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MCP server for [NetLogger](https://www.netlogger.org/): nets on the air now, live check-in lists and who's up, and past nets and their check-ins, through any MCP-compatible AI assistant.

Data from NetLogger's public XML Data Service (API 1.3). Part of the [qso-graph](https://qso-graph.io/) project. **No API key needed.** Your callsign is asked for once (see below).

## Install

```bash
uvx netlogger-mcp            # run it; nothing to install
pip install netlogger-mcp    # or install it into your own environment
```

## Tools

| Tool | Description | Key Parameters |
|------|-------------|----------------|
| `netlogger_active_nets` | Nets on the air now: frequency, band, mode, net control, logger, monitoring count | name_like |
| `netlogger_checkins` | A live net's check-in list, plus the pointer (the station being worked now) | server_name, net_name |
| `netlogger_past_nets` | Closed nets over the last N days, with the net IDs past check-ins need | interval_days, name_like |
| `netlogger_past_checkins` | A closed net's check-in list | server_name, net_name, net_id |
| `netlogger_set_callsign` | Save your callsign (asked once, on first use) | callsign |
| `get_version_info` | Service version + upstream spec version (fleet identity attestation) | — |

## What is NetLogger?

NetLogger is the logging program many amateur-radio nets use: net control or a logger keeps the check-in list, and anyone can follow the net live. Its server publishes active nets, check-in lists and past nets through a public API.

## Your Callsign

Every request tells NetLogger which station is asking, so it can tell one user from another:

```
netlogger-mcp/0.1.0 (KI7MT; +https://github.com/qso-graph/netlogger-mcp)
```

On first use the assistant asks for your callsign and saves it. You're asked once. To set it yourself, use `NETLOGGER_MCP_CALLSIGN=KI7MT`.

It's saved in `settings.json`, in `~/.config/netlogger-mcp/` (Linux), `~/Library/Application Support/netlogger-mcp/` (macOS) or `%APPDATA%\netlogger-mcp\` (Windows).

## Good Neighbour Policy

NetLogger is a donation-funded service on one server, and it limits how often each call may be made. We keep to those limits:

| Measure | Detail |
|---------|--------|
| **NetLogger's call limits** | GetActiveNets 1/min, GetCheckins 3/min, GetPastNets 1/min, GetPastNetCheckins 10/min. Checked before a request is sent, never after. |
| **One budget per user** | Every copy you run (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, a script) shares one budget, through a locked file beside `settings.json`. |
| **Shared answers** | Every copy also shares the answers it fetched, so a copy that has hit the limit gets another copy's recent answer, with its age, instead of an error. |
| **Response caching** | Active nets 60 s, check-ins 20 s, past nets 60 s, past check-ins 1 hour. Filtering by name costs no extra calls. |
| **How old an answer is** | Every answer has `as_of_utc` (when it was given) and `age_seconds` (how old the data is), so it was fetched at `as_of_utc` minus `age_seconds`. |
| **Stale answers over errors** | When a limit is reached, the last answer comes back with its age rather than a new request. |
| **429 back-off** | A "too many requests" on any call stops all calls for at least a minute, longer if NetLogger asks. |
| **Past-net windows** | More than 7 days of past nets needs a name filter, NetLogger's rule to protect its server. |
| **Request timeout** | 15-second timeout. |
| **User-Agent header** | Every request names this project and your callsign, so NetLogger's operators can see who is asking. |

## Bands and Frequencies

NetLogger's band and frequency are whatever the logger typed ("40M", "75M", "DMR", "7033", "3918 KHz", "147.030 91.5", "TG 3141"). They're returned as typed, and beside them, only when the text can be read reliably: `frequency_mhz`, `band_adif` (the ADIF band, from ADIF 3.1.7's Band enumeration), `tone_hz` and `talkgroup`. A frequency outside the amateur bands (e.g. GMRS) gets no `band_adif`.

## Privacy

NetLogger's check-in data includes street addresses and ZIP codes, and past nets include the IP address of whoever opened them. **None of these are ever returned.**

## Quick Start

### Configure your MCP client

netlogger-mcp works with any MCP-compatible client. Add the server config and restart. The tools appear automatically.

#### Claude Desktop

Add to `claude_desktop_config.json` (`~/Library/Application Support/Claude/` on macOS, `%APPDATA%\Claude\` on Windows):

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "netlogger": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["netlogger-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

#### Claude Code

Add to `.claude/settings.json`:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "netlogger": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["netlogger-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

#### ChatGPT Desktop

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "netlogger": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["netlogger-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

#### Cursor

Add to `.cursor/mcp.json` (project-level) or `~/.cursor/mcp.json` (global):

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "netlogger": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["netlogger-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

#### VS Code / GitHub Copilot

Add to `.vscode/mcp.json` in your workspace:

```json
{
  "servers": {
    "netlogger": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["netlogger-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

#### Gemini CLI

Add to `~/.gemini/settings.json` (global) or `.gemini/settings.json` (project):

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "netlogger": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["netlogger-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

Installed with pip instead? Use `"command": "netlogger-mcp"` in any config above.

### Ask questions

> "What nets are on the air right now?"

> "Are any 80m nets running?"

> "Who's checked into the county ARES net, and who's up now?"

> "Which nets ran in the last three days?"

> "Show me the check-ins from last night's net."

## As a Python Library

The same code works without an AI, with the same limits and cache. A library can't ask for your callsign, so you pass it in:

```python
from netlogger_mcp.netlogger import NetLoggerSource

nl = NetLoggerSource(callsign="KI7MT")
for net in nl.active_nets()["nets"]:
    live = nl.checkins(net["server"], net["name"])
    print(net["name"], "up now:", live["pointer_callsign"])
```

Apps can also name themselves, using ADIF's `PROGRAMID` and `PROGRAMVERSION`: `NetLoggerSource(callsign="KI7MT", program_id="MyLogger", program_version="1.0")`.

## Testing Without Network

```bash
NETLOGGER_MCP_MOCK=1 netlogger-mcp
```

## MCP Inspector

```bash
netlogger-mcp --transport streamable-http --port 8014
```

## Development

```bash
git clone https://github.com/qso-graph/netlogger-mcp.git
cd netlogger-mcp
uv sync --group dev
uv run pytest
```

## License

GPL-3.0-or-later. `adif_band.json` is the ADIF 3.1.7 Band enumeration, the work of the ADIF Developers Group ([adif.org.uk](https://adif.org.uk/)), included unchanged.